Impunity Watch: Africa

Burundian Refugees Given More Time to Return Home

By Kylie Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

 (Source: UN News Centre)

KASULU, Tanzania - The Tanzanian government has announced that it will give Burundian refugees housed in its country more time to return home.

The deadline for voluntary repatriation of Burundian refugees was set for today, 30 June 2009.  Tanzania's Home Affairs Minister, Honorable Lawrence Masha, reported that the government decided to extend that deadline to run through September, giving the refugees a chance to plan their trip home during the traditional high season for repatriation.

"The Minister also reiterated that no refugee will be forcibly returned and reaffirmed his government's commitment to uphold international laws and standards relating to the protection of refugees," UNHCR spokesman William Spindler said.  "The Burundian peace process has paved the way for the return of one of Africa's longest staying refugee populations.  Since 2002, UNHCR has assisted the voluntary repatriation of over 485,000 Burundian refugees from the neighboring countries of Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda."

Mtabila (alternate spelling: Mbatila) refugee camp is located in northwestern Tanzania.  The camp has been open since the 1990s and is the last remaining camp hosting Burundian refugees.  The 36,000 refugees who were scheduled to leave Mtabila fled to escape the ethnic violence of the past sixteen years.

Once the last of the 36,000 refugees permanently return home, this last camp will finally close.

"There might be a residual caseload, a residual group of people staying behind and they would be integrated locally. And, we have programs for that," said Spindler.  "In some cases, some people have been - I mean after 20 years in the country, many of them have strong roots and they will not want to return home. So, they have the possibility of staying as well."

Tanzania also hosts the "1972" Burundian refugees in addition to those in the Mtabila camp.  In 2008, the Tanzanian government gave them a choice to return to their home country or to apply for Tanzanian citizenship.  Of those offered, 165,000 chose to stay while 55,000 returned to Burundi.

By the end of the year, UNHCR is scheduled to help repatriate the remaining 15,000 refugees of the 55,000 who chose to return home.

For more information, please see:

UNHCR - Tanzania Gives Burundian Refugees More Time to Return Home - 30 June 2009

UN News Centre - UN Lauds Tanzania's Decision to Give More Time to Return - 30 June 2009

VOA - Tanzania Gives Burundian Refugees More Time to Return Home - 30 June 2009

Impunity Watch - HRW Urges Uganda and Tanzania to Avoid Forced Return of Refugees – 19 June 2009

US Gives Somalia 40 Tons of Weapons and Ammunition to Aid in the War Against Terrorism

By Jennifer M. Haralambides
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The U.S. has sent weapons, ammunition, and funding to Somalia in an effort to keep the country from becoming a safe haven for foreign terrorists.
Islamist rebel groups who are allegedly linked to al-Qaeda have been attacking Mogadishu for months. 

The Somali government has appealed to the United States and other African countries for help in their efforts to ward off the rebels.

Soon after Somalia’s al Shabaab insurgents began their major offensive against the transitional federal government (TFG) in early May, the U.S. government decided to get involved. 

A senior State Department official told reporters that, “ we remain concerned about the prospects of an al Shabaab victory, and we want to do as much as we can to help the TFG.”

During its most recent offensive, the rebel army held a ceremony in Mogadishu, the countries capital, in which they chopped off the hand and foot from each of four men who were convicted of stealing cell phones and other items.

The constant bloodshed and violence in Somalia has caused massive amounts of refugees to flee to neighboring Kenya.  This year alone, the U.N. refugee agency has registered almost 38,000 new arrivals into these camps.  Sources from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees say that the vast majority of them are fleeing the situations in Somalia that have occurred from the Islamic insurgents trying to topple the government.

 (Source: AP)
This surge of refugees is putting a strain on the camps ability to properly provide.  Those fleeing from the violence could initially care less about the aged facilities or overflowing camps, as long as they reach safety from the bullets and poverty that plague Somalia; although they eventually suffer from the lacking refugee facilities as well.

“The consequences of not having a functioning water system and adequate latrines could be very severe. Certainly there could be a humanitarian catastrophe if these people are not getting enough water,” says Daniel Dickinson, Spokesman for the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Office.

Regardless of the Somali needs, U.S. aid does not come without its critics.  The Eritrean foreign affairs ministry said that, “U.S. misguided acts of intervention and supply of weapons have not, in the past years, advanced the cause of stability in Somalia.”   They argue that the U.S. will only aggravate and prolong the crisis.

For more information, please see:

AFP - Eritrea Slams US for Providing Weapons to Somalia - 27 June 2009

The Daily Nation - Al-Shabaab Should be Taught a Lesson - 27 June 2009

The Washington Post - U.S. Has Sent 40 Tons of Munitions to Aid Somali Government - 27 June 2009

AP -Somalis Create World's Largest Refugee Camp - 26 June 2009

Reuters - US Gives Somalia About 40 Tons of Arms, Ammunition - 26 June 2009

Nigerian Government Revealed 60 Day Amnesty Plan

By Kylie Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

 President Umaru Yar Adua (source: AFP)

PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria - The Nigerian Government announced on Thursday that it had a plan for amnesty.  This offer is the government's attempt to end years of unrest between rebels and government forces over the oil in the region.

 (Source: AFP)

Leaders of four militant groups were willing to speak to the government.  Ateke Tom, Soboma George, Farah Dagogo, and Boy Loaf met with President Umaru Yar'Adua on Friday to discuss the amnesty plan.  The president offered presidential pardons in return for the rebel groups' disarmament.

Ateke Tom asked for the release of Henry Okah, leader of MEND (Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta).  MEND is the largest armed group in the region and was not among the four groups willing to meet the president.  Okah was arrested in Angola in September 2007 for gun running and treason and was extradited to Nigeria last year.                                                                                 (Source: BBC)

The president is set to send a delegation to Angola to speak to President Jose Eduardo dos Santos.  Okah will be offered amnesty after the envoy returns from Angola, said Presidential spokesperson Olusegun Adeniyi.  He also said Okah could be freed if he accepted.                                                    

The formal amnesty program is set to begin on 06 August and last through 04 October.  The delay is necessary in order for the government to train personnel for the fifteen amnesty centers that will be set up.  The centers will be places of disarmament, education, and rehabilitation for militants and soldiers.  It is estimated that at least 20,000 could participate prior to the end of the program.

The Joint Task Force will not engage in any military action unless in self-defense during this period. 

"[Security Forces] will observe a ceasefire and respect all the terms of the amnesty. But if we are attacked, we will respond," said Air Chief Marshall Paul Dike, chief of the defense staff.

Leaders of the militant groups have yet to announce any agreement to the plan, saying only that they will announce if and when they will begin to surrender arms and ammunition to the government following their meeting with the president.

For more information, please see:

AllAfrica - Amnesty- JTF to Observe Sixty Day Ceasefire - 27 June 2009

Next - Niger Delta Offers Cautious Support to Amnesty Plan - 27 June 2009

Al Jazeera - Nigeria Army to Halt Delta Fighting - 26 June 2009

BBC - Nigeria 'To Release Key Militant' - 26 June 2009

Reuters - Nigeria Army to Halt Fighting, Rebels Want Meeting - 26 June 2009

VOA - Nigeria Says Amnesty Plan Key for Resolving Niger Delta Unrest - 25 June 2009

Impunity Watch - Tens of Thousands Caught in Niger Delta Violence - 23 May 2009

HRW Accuses Zimbabwe's Armed Forces of Torture and Forced Labor in Diamond Fields

By Dahee Nam
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Africa

NEW YORK, United States – Human Rights Watch said Friday that Zimbabwe's military has committed massive human rights violations, including murder, torture, and forced labor, in diamond fields in the eastern district of the country.   Zimbabwe government denied the allegations.

In a 62-page report released on Friday, HRW said the military killed more than 200 people, forced children to work in mines, and torture local people who get in the way in a takeover of the Marange fields last year.  The report is based on one-on-on interviews with more than 100 witnesses including local miners, police officers, soldiers, local community leaders, and victims.

Miners dig for diamonds in Marange, Zimbabwe, Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2006. (Source: AP)

"Soldiers in helicopters started firing live ammunition and tear gas at us.  We all stopped digging and began to run toward the hills to hide.  I noticed that there were many uniformed soldiers on foot pursuing us.  From my syndicate, 14 miners were shot and killed that morning," HRW quotes a local miner saying of the military's violent takeover of the Marange diamond fields in late October 2008.

A 13-year-old girl told HRW: "Every day, I would carry ore and only rest for short periods.  ...  We always started work very early in the morning before eight and finished when it was dark after six. All I want now is to go back to school."

The report also alleges that the profit from the diamond field is a revenue source for officials of President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party, which has long been accused of human rights violations.  It says that while the diamonds could earn $200 million a month to the country, the Mining Development Corporation claimed only $15 million from gem exports in 2007.

"The police and army have turned this peaceful area into a nightmare of lawlessness and horrific violence," said Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch.  "Zimbabwe's new government should get the army out of the fields, put a stop to the abuse, and prosecute those responsible."

HRW also called on the Kimberley Process, an international alliance of industry, civic and government officials against the flow of “blood diamonds,” to press Zimbabwe and to urgently broaden the definition of "conflict diamonds" to include “diamonds mined in the context of serious and systematic human rights abuses.”   Kimberley Process said it will send a team to Marange diamond fields soon to assess alleged violations.

For more information, please see:

AFP - Kimberley Process to Send Team to Zimbabwe Diamond Fields - 26 June 2009

AP- Rights Group: Abuse in Zimbabwe Diamond Fields - 26 June 2009  

HRW - Zimbabwe: End Repression in Marange Diamond Fields - 26 June 2009

NY Times - Zimbabwe’s Diamond Fields Enrich Ruling Party, Report Says - 26 June 2009

VOA - Human Rights Watch Charges Massive Violations in Zimbabwe Diamond Zone - 26 June 2009

20 Female Inmates Raped in DR Congo Prison

By Kylie Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

 

At least 20 women raped during attempted Goma prison break. (Source: AFP)

GOMA, DR Congo - A failed prison break attempt from a prison in Goma left 2 killed, 12 injured, and at least 20 women raped.

Beginning on Sunday night and leading into the early Monday morning hours, prisoners at Goma's central prison detonated two grenades, destroying walls within the building.  Congo police and militia quickly surrounded the prison preventing any escapes.

Generally the prisons are overcrowded, often mixing women, children, and soldiers with the general inmate population.  This Goma prison was built to hold 150 prisoners but is currently housing over 600. 

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has previously called on Congo authorities to improve the crumbling infrastructure and to protect vulnerable inmates but they failed to heed the warnings. 

"This is a horrific example of what has been happening across the prison system throughout Congo," said Anneke Van Woudenberg, HRW's senior Congo researcher.

The prison holds a number of rebel and militia fighters.  While it is unclear who was trying to escape, it is believed that ex-warlord Laurent Nkunda's CNDP (National Congress for the Defence of the People) and the Mai-Mai Militia were among the participants.

According to Oscar Kasangandjo, Goma's public prosecutor, at least 90% of inmates were jailed for "murder, rape and other grave offences." 

Rape has become a common occurrence in DR Congo this year, with a conservative estimate of over 400 cases having been committed in the last three months alone.  Among the most graphic of incidents, a 3-year-old girl was raped alongside her sisters at the hands of Hutu rebels in late May.  She died at the Goma prison earlier this month.

Jean Keba, an official from human rights group l'Association Africaine de Défense des Droits de l’Homme (ASADHO), says rape is frequent in Congo prisons.

In a statement issued, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said, “This is a grim example of both the prison conditions and the level of sexual violence that plagues the DRC.  I call on the DRC authorities to bring to justice those who have committed these crimes and, more generally, to renew efforts to bring an end to the impunity too often enjoyed by perpetrators of sexual violence."

For more information, please see:

AFP - UN Chief 'Distressed' by DR Congo Rapes - 24 June 2009

IRIN -DRC: Mass Rape in Goma Prison - 24 June 2009

Feminist Majority Foundation - Rape Continues as a Weapon of War in the Congo - 24 June 2009

Daily Nation - 20 Women Raped in DR Congo Prison Riot - 23 June 2009

Reuters - Rioting Congo Prisoners Rape 20 Women - 23 June 2009

UN News Centre - Ban Deeply Distressed By Rape of Female Inmates at DR Congo Prison - 23 June 2009

A Milestone for Peace between North and South Sudan May be in the Works

By Jennifer M. Haralambides
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

WASHINGTON, United States -  On Tuesday, a forum met in Washington to discuss efforts to help Sudan apply the terms of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended the 22-year civil war between the north and south.  Unfortunately the implementation of the peace accord has been difficult because the agreement has been plagued by mutual distrust and violence.

Tuesday’s convening group was made up of officials from the south’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), the north’s ruling National Congress Party, foreign and development ministers from South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia and the Netherlands, and also representatives from over 32 countries and organizations.

The hope is that Tuesday’s conference will rekindle international support for the 2005 peace accord.  The Obama administration wants the parties to settle disagreements that have slowed the implementation of the accord such as: election policies, the passage of security laws, wealth sharing, and the ongoing dispute over the future of Abyei. 

Abyei is Sudan’s richest oil-producing region, which straddles the northern and southern border.  Currently the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague is adjudicating border claims in this region that are disputed by the north and south. 

The U.S. special envoy for Sudan, General Scott Gration, said both sides have agreed to work together to prevent the verdict from igniting violence.

(Source: AFP)      

US envoy Scott Gration speaks at a press conference in Khartoum, in April 2009.

If both sides do in fact accept and abide by the findings, it could present a chance for the renewal of this peace accord.  The timeliness of these actions is also important because only 160 days remain until the national elections of Sudan take place, and only 19 months until the referendum on the self-determination of southern Sudan.

The slow implementation of the peace accord has created fear that civil war could reignite and claim more lives.

"If the war in the south began again, it would make Darfur look like a Sunday picnic," said John Prendergast, co-founder of the Enough Project, an anti-genocide organization.

For more information, please see:

AP - US Envoy Says World Must Push for Peace in Sudan – 24 June 2009

UPI - Arbitration Said Key to Sudan Peace Deal - 24 June 2009

The Washington Post - White House Boosts Effort to Salvage North-South Peace in Sudan - 24 June 2009

VOA - Washington Forum Seeks Renewed Comprehensive Peace Deal for Sudan – 24 June 2009

IPS - Limited Progress Made to Rescue Peace Accord – 23 June 2009

Reuters – UPDATE 2 – US Urges Sudan to Carry Out North-South Peace Deal – 23 June 2009 

Somalia in 'State of Emergency' Declares President

By Kylie Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

 (Source: AFP)

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Following continued conflict between pro-government forces and Islamic insurgents and the killings of 12 more people in the latest clash, Interim President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed has declared a state of emergency.

At a press conference at the presidential compound in Mogadishu, President Sharif, along with Finance Minister Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, Fisheries Minister Abdirahman Ibbi, and Information Minister Farhan Ali Mohamud, announced that his country had been "attacked by foreign fighters."

"After reviewing the situation in Somalia, we have decided to declare a state of emergency because the country is on the verge of being overrun by foreign fighters opposed to the Somali nation," the president said.

 The main insurgent groups are al-Shabaab and Hizbul Isam, but the government says they are being helped by hundreds of foreign jihadists (Islamic fighters).  The latest attacks were heaviest in the Yaaqshiid and Kaaraan districts of Mogadishu.

"Our forces are on full alert," Sharif said.

The president has asked for immediate international military intervention, specifically calling on Kenya, Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Yemen, but there has been no indication that troops would be supplied from any of these countries.

So far 300 have been killed and 130,000 have been misplaced since insurgents launched the offensive on 07 May.  Just last week the Security Minister, Mogadishu's Police Chief, and an MP were killed in three successive days.

On Monday the African Union (AU) announced its approval of Somalia's appeal for foreign support.  The Somali government "has the right to seek support from AU member states and the larger international community," said AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping.

Sheikh Sharif Ahmed is running a fragile UN-backed government.  Insurgents are trying to topple the government in favor of converting to an Islamic state.  Sharif introduced Islamic Sharia law in an effort to appease insurgents but his effort has been rejected as insufficient.

For more information, please see:

UPI - Somali Leader Declares State of Emergency - 23 June 2009

AFP - Besieged Somali Leader Declares State of Emergency - 22 June 2009

AP - Somalia President Declares State of Emergency - 22 June 2009

BBC - Somali President Calls Emergency - 22 June 2009

Garowe Online - President Declares State of Emergency, 12 Killed in Mogadishu Clashes - 22 June 2009

VOA - Somali President Declares State of Emergency - 22 June 2009

Impunity Watch - Somali President Calls for Help, Islamist Extremists Remain in Mogadishu - 26 May 2009

Rwandan Ex-Minister Jailed for Genocide

By Jennifer M. Haralambides
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

ARUSHA, Tanzania - The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) sentenced the former Interior Minister, Callixte Kalimanzira, to 30 years in prison for luring Tutsis under the promise of food and protection, only to watch them be massacred.

This United Nations Criminal Tribunal sits in Tanzania and is set up to try the ringleaders and alleged masterminds of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide.  Members of Rwanda’s former army and extremist Hutu militias, known as the Interahamwe, are now being held accountable.

In 1994, the killings subsided when the Tutsi minority and politically moderate Hutus led rebels, under President Paul Kagame, to oust the extremist government.  Astonishingly, during the 100-day genocide, over 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed.
 (Source: AFP)
In 2005, the former Interior Minister was formally accused of tricking thousands of Tutsi civilians to take refuge in Kabuye Hill.  When they arrived, hoping to find food and shelter, Kalimanzira stood by while militias murdered them.  He pled not guilty.

Kalimanzira, now 56 years old, was said to have been an ally of Rwanda’s President and Prime Minster during the genocide.  Today, in a packed courtroom, Kalimanzira was convicted of two counts of genocide and direct and public incitement to commit genocide.

“The Chamber finds Kalimanzira guilty beyond reasonable doubt of aiding and abetting genocide at Kabuye Hill,” said Justice Byron, presiding judge, in his one hour-judgment.

The ICTR was due to complete its work by the end of the year.  But it has asked for more time.  So far the tribunal has delivered judgments on 38 people.

For more information, please see:

AP - Ex-Minister Gets 30 Years in Rwanda Genocide - 22 June 2009

BBC - Ex-Minister Jailed for Genocide - 22 June 2009

CNN - Rwandan Guilty of Genocide Jailed for 30 Years - 22 June 2009

Daily Nation - Rwanda Ex-Minister Jailed for 30 Years - 22 June 2009

ITN - Rwandan Ex-Minister Jailed for Genocide - 22 June 2009

World Refugee Day Brings Awareness to the Sobering Truth of ‘Real People, Real Needs’

By Jennifer M. Haralambides
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

NAIROBI, Kenya - World Refugee Day, June 20th, brings light to the dire need for support for the millions of refugees around the world.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) along side good will ambassadors, such as Angelina Jolie, urges the world to see refugees as survivors, and not as a burden.

World Refugee Day is designed to pay tribute to the millions of people who have fled war torn villages, and who have survived against the odds.  The theme for this year’s World Refugee Day is “real people, real needs.”

A recent report indicating new statistics used by UNHCR shows that the total number of displaced and uprooted people worldwide is at 42 million and growing.  UNHCR Representative Mr. Antonio Guterres says that refugees are “among the most vulnerable people on Earth, and they must be a priority.”

For example, refugee camps such as the Dadaad Camp in Northern Kenya, have found themselves in a desperate need for help.  The camp was originally designed to accommodate 90,000 refugees, and is now home to 260,000 displaced people.
 (Source: Capital News)
“Even if you wanted to build one more shelter, you really have to go to areas that are flood-prone or to those built as fire bricks so we have been requesting the government to look at that situation and see whether they can give us additional land,” explains UNHCR Deputy Representative Antonio Kanyandula.

UNHCR is working hard to provide shelter, sleeping mats, mosquito nets, and other basic necessities to those who are in camps.  The organization is making a large effort to bring awareness to World Refugee Day by conducting film screenings, photography exhibits, lectures, panel discussions, fashion shows, and other small events such as essay-writing competitions, workshops, and poetry recitals.

Another UNHCR Spokesperson, Ron Redmond, wants to bring awareness to the fact that, "refugees are not faceless statistics.  They are real people just like us who through no fault of their own have lost everything.  Those who work with refugees are struggling more than ever to meet even their most basic needs."

For more information, please see:

APP - World Refugee Day to Observe on June 20 to Highlight Real Needs - 20 June 2009

Capital News - UN says Dadaab Camp Overcrowded - 20 June 2009

U.S. Department of State - World Refugee Day 2009 - 20 June 2009

UPI - Plight of Many Cited on World Refugee Day - 20 June 2009

Human Rights Situation in Zimbabwe Serious

By Kylie Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Amnesty International's Secretary General called on President Mugabe to ensure that human rights are respected among Zimbabwe's citizens.

Thursday marked the end of a six-day high-level mission to the African country where Secretary General Irene Khan met with senior ministers from both ZANU-PF and Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), human rights activists, and victim of human rights abuses.

"The human rights situation in Zimbabwe is precarious, and the socio-economic conditions are desperate for the vast majority of Zimbabweans," said Khan.  “Persistent and serious human rights violations, combined with the failure to introduce reform of the police, army and security forces or address impunity and the lack of clear commitment on some parts of the government are real obstacles that need to be confronted by the top leadership of Zimbabwe.”

The Global Political Agreement (GPA) provides a framework for change and paves the way for the establishment of an inclusive government, and although all main political parties signed it, they are not consistent in their commitment to it.  Senior ministers say impunity issues are not a priority for the government right now despite the GPA's commitment to bring those who commit political violence to justice.

“For the climate of intimidation to end President Mugabe and Prime Minister Tsvangirai must make public statements clearly instructing all party activists to stop harassment, intimidation, and threats against perceived political opponents, including teachers and lawyers,” Khan said.  “The tolerance of impunity is being seen as a license for further violations by perpetrators – whether police, security officials or political party activists.”

Many Zimbabweans still live in fear.

Some officials told Khan that the declining economy and lack of resources frustrates efforts to address human rights violations.

"Ending attacks on human rights defenders, lifting restrictions on the media and allowing public protests do not require money — they only require political will," she said. "Lack of resources is no excuse."

Despite the continued abuses, Khan urges the international community to continue providing aid.

“The international community must work together to develop a common human rights strategy on Zimbabwe and support the Zimbabwean government to deliver it.”

For more information, please see:

ABC News - No Improvement in Zimbabwe Human Rights: Amnesty - 19 June 2009

AP - Amnesty: Human Rights in Zimbabwe Still Grim - 19 June 2009

LA Times - Zimbabwe Accused of Continuing Rights Abuses - 19 June 2009

AI - Zimbabwe's Progress on Human Rights 'Woefully Slow' - 18 June 2009

Reuters - Zimbabwe Rights Situation "Precarious" - 18 June 2009

VOA - Amnesty International: Zimbabwe Human Rights Problems Persist - 18 June 2009