Impunity Watch: Asia

Indian doctor-imposter charged with illegal abortion

Indian police have arrested a man posing as a doctor, charging him with illegally aborting female fetuses and then flushing them down the toilet. A.K. Singh ran an illegal clinic in Gurgaon (a Delhi suburb) offering sex-determination tests and abortions.

Abortion is legal in India, but the government outlawed abortion based on the sex of the fetus in 1994. Police found tiny skulls and bones in the clinic’s septic tank, as well as a pile of partly burned fetuses in the clinic building. Singh confessed to the crime, but Indian law does not accept confessions made in police custody unless they are repeated in court.

The Indian government reports that about 10 million girls have been killed over the past 20 years.  Many regions of India, including Gurgaon, report only 800 girls born for every 1,000 boys. Indian parents tend to prefer sons because daughters are expensive to marry off.

For more information, please see:

http://in.news.yahoo.com/070615/137/6h15g.html

http://www.indiadaily.org/entry/aborted-female-foetuses-found-in-gurgaon/

 

Chinese ex-slave laborer tells his story

A 16-year-old Chinese boy, Chen, an ex-slave, told his story to the media this week. He reported that he accepted a job at a factory from a man that approached him at a train station.

He said that he was taken to a brick yard, where he was fed minimally, beaten, and forced to work without pay. As a result, his body is pocked with sores from being beaten by the guards.

Recently police have raided thousands of Chinese coal mines, freeing hundreds of workers.

The boy claims that until the raid, police were bribed by the owners of the mines. He went without a bed, shower, health care, or hair cut. Chen said that he was beaten the guards with iron bars, sticks, or bricks if he worked too slowly. 

Chen and his family are now worried about the possibility of retaliation by the brickyard and they agreed to be interviewed by media only after receiving assurances that the exact location of their home would not be identified.

Since the coal-mine scandal broke last month, more than 8,000 kilns and small coal mines in Shanxi and Henan provinces have been raided, with 591 workers freed, including 51 children.

About 160 suspected kiln bosses have been detained, and at least one village-level Communist Party secretary expelled from the party after his son was found to be operating a kiln where 31 slaves were found laboring under harsh conditions.

For more information, please see:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070620/ap_on_re_as/china_slavery

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/23/world/asia/23china.html?ref=asia

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/asia/jan-june07/labor_06-25.html

Dispute over deaths in 'Rape of Nanking'

A group of about one hundred Japanese lawmakers has said the Chinese estimate of the death toll in the 'Rape of Nanking' massacre has been grossly inflated.  This disagreement has led to increased friction between the two countries.  The Japanese lawmakers compiled a study indicating the deaths to be 20,000.  China has estimated the number to be over 300,000 deaths.  Historians, however, have generally  agreed that at least 150,000 civilians were slaughters and thousands of Chinese women were raped in the 1937 attack in Nanjing, then called Nanking.

When the Japanese seized the city of Nanjing in 1937, they raped thousands of Chinese women and killed thousands in what came to be known as the 'Rape of Nanking.'  Many Japanese conservatives are now angry over what they call exaggerated stories of Japanese brutality during World War II.

Amid this new friction between China and Japan, anti-Japanese feelings over the Nanjing attacks among the Chinese have remained strong.  In its 70th anniversary, an American movie about the mass slaughter will open in China next week.  "Nanking" will premiere in Beijing and be released across China.  The movie mixes archival footage with actors' readings of witness accounts from those who protected Chinese refugees.

For more information, please see:

-Rape of Nanking toll disputed

-China says 'Rape of Nanking' was atrocious crime that Japanese lawmakers cannot deny

-'No massacre in Nanking,' Japanese lawmakers say

-Film about 1937 Japanese assault on 'Nanking' to screen in China

Afghan civilian death toll continues to rise

American and NATO forces in Afghanistan have killed at least 203 civilians so far this year.

In the past ten days, airstrikes and artillery fire targeting Taliban insurgents have killed more than 90 civilians.

Separate figures from the U.N. and Afghan and international aid groups show that the numbers of civilians killed by international forces is about equal to those killed by insurgents.

Accurate civilian death tolls are hard to come by because militants often wear civilian clothing and seek shelter in homes. Also it is not unusual for Afghans to have weapons in their homes.

The Associated Press count of civilian casualties is based on reports from Afghan and foreign officials and witnesses through Saturday, June 23. Of the 399 civilian deaths this year, 18 civilians were killed in crossfire between Taliban militants and foreign forces.

Earlier Saturday, a rocket hit a house in Pakistani territory killing nine civilians -- during a battle in which NATO and American forces killed 60 suspected Taliban.

Other fighting on Saturday left some 20 militants and one coalition soldier dead.

For more information, please see:

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C06%5C21%5Cstory_21-6-2007_pg4_15

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070619/ap_on_re_as/afghanistan

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1636551,00.html

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/05/13/africa/taliban.php

Peru’s former president may run for office in Japan

Peruvian ex- president Alberto Fujimori has been asked to consider running for office in Japan. He is now in Chile under house arrest, and faces extradition to because of human rights violations charges.

The Japanese People’s New Party urged Fujimori to run in July elections for the upper house of Japan’s Diet.

Fujimori was president of Peru from 1990 to 2000 and is a dual citizen of Japan and Peru. He lived in exile in Tokyo for five years, so he is technically eligible to run.

However, he is wanted by Peruvian prosecutors on several charges: ordering the murders of 25 people in 1991 and 1992, ordering the abduction and torture of opponents, and embezzling government funds. Critics say that he crushed civil liberties, rigged elections and abused human rights. If Fujimori is elected to parliament in Japan, that could affect his trial in Peru.

Fujimori resigned from office in November 2000.  He stayed in Japan until November 2005, until he flew to Chile and was arrested.

For more information, please see:

http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200706190598.html

http://www.livinginperu.com/news/4095

http://www.guardian.co.uk/japan/story/0,,2106439,00.html

Child labor allegedly used for 2008 Beijing Olympics official merchandise

A report by an advocacy group entitled "No medal for the Olympics on labour rights" claims four firms making official Olympic merchandise for the 2008 Beijing Olympics were exploiting workers.  Playfair, an alliance of world trade unions, found abuses at factories including child labor, forced overtime, and low wages.  Additionally, it is alleged workers are being instructed to lie about wages, poor health, and safety conditions to inspectors. 

Three of the four firms have denied these accusations.  Interviews with workers of the three firms support the firms' denial of labor abuse.  The fourth, however, Lekit Stationery has admitted children 12 and 13 years of age were employed by one of its sub-contractors, Leter Stationery.  They say the children were employed during the school holidays last winter and did not work on official Olympic merchandise.  Lekit also insists it was not aware of its sub-contractor's employment of children.

Lekit had originally denied these allegations, but the company only found out when Dongguan officials released the findings of an initial investigation into the issue.

The International Olympic Committee said it supports ethical practices.  Additionally, they say more stringent regulations must be made so the 2012 London Olympics will not be tarnished by similar accusations.  The speed of the Dongguan investigation shows, however, China's desire to avoid bad publicity in the time before the 2008 Olympics.

For more information, please see:

-Olympic firms 'abusing workers'

-Olympic firm admits child labour

-Chinese Olympic firms deny abuse

Cambodian, international judges announce rules for genocide trial

Special tribunal investigators cleared the last major delay of trials of former Khmer Rouge leaders. Cambodian and international judges for the United Nations-backed special court agreed on rules for the judicial process, paving the way for Khmer Rouge leaders to be held accountable for the atrocities committed during their rule. The announcement ends six months of debate.

Foreign lawyers will be allowed to represent defendants and victims may file complaints to the courts as long as they do so as a group. Cambodian judges will hold the majority but will need one supporting vote from a foreign counterpart to prevail in any decision.

The prosecution will refer their first cases to the investigating judges, who will determine whether there is sufficient evidence against Khmer Rouge leaders to bring them to full trial. The process is expected to start within a few weeks and last three years.

In 2004, after years of negotiations with UN representatives, Cambodia agreed to try a handful of Khmer Rouge leaders who were considered to be most responsible for the atrocities.

But since its establishment almost a year ago, the court has been stalled by bitter disputes between the Cambodian and foreign judges over many procedural issues, including court etiquette and registration fees for foreign defense lawyers.

The investigating judges will begin the judicial process as soon as they receive their first case from prosecutors.

 

For more information, please see:

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/499fdcce-1a14-11dc-99c5-000b5df10621,_i_rssPage=7f5f6b12-2f66-11da-8b51-00000e2511c8.html

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/06/13/khmer.trial.ap/index.html

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/281933/1/.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6747143.stm

Chinese police rescue slaves

China has rescued 31 people forced to work for a year as slaves, according to China Shanxi News.  A brickworks, run by the son of a local Communist Party official, supplied them only bread and water. They received no pay.  The factory is near Linfen in the inland province of Shanxi, China.

 

Eight of the workers now can only remember their names. One slave was beaten to death with a hammer for not working hard enough. All of the survivors have bruises, wounds and burns, having been made to carry uncooled bricks and walk barefoot in the kiln.

 

They were guarded by dogs and “thugs” at the factory. The boss was allowed to get away with the bad treatment because of his political connections. The workers are still living at the brickworks while the local government tries to get their wages.

 

Millions of migrant workers from poor rural areas have flocked to urban areas to find work. They often work for as little as $2 a day or less.

 

Many of these laborers work without formal contracts. They have little legal recourse in case of disputes.

 

For more information, please see:

http://www.einnews.com/china/newsfeed-shanxi

www.edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/06/08/china.workers.reut/index.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6733045.stm

Malaysia court rejects Christian conversion

In a divided two to one decision, Malaysia's highest court refused to recognize a Muslim woman's conversion to Christianity.  Lina Joy tried to change her religious status and remove the word Islam from her identity card to marry her Catholic fiance.  Under separate laws in Malaysia, Muslims must marry within the faith.  The abandonment of Islam is sometimes punishable by fines or imprisonment.  Here, the Islamic Sharia court rejected Ms. Joy's appeal.

Ms. Joy, born Azlina Jailani, has lost her job, been disowned by her family, and went into hiding last year after receiving death threats.  She now may seek asylum in Australia.

Malaysia's constitution guarantees freedom of religion, but declares all ethnic Malays are Muslim and thus are not allowed to convert.  In this multi-racial country, Muslims constitute sixty percent of Malaysia's population of nearly 25 million people.  Critics say this ruling underlines the increasing separation of Muslims from others. Additionally, it reinforced the notion that Islamic laws should have primacy over secular laws in some aspects of Muslims' lives and the question of the separation of religion and state.

For more information, please see:

-Malaysia rejects Christian appeal

-Malaysia Top Court Doesn't Honor Muslim's Conversion

China coal mines destroy homes above

     Coal mines in Da Antou, China, are cracking and destroying the homes above. Over the last several years, buildings have slumped and split apart because of the caverns created by the coal mines. Because of China’s growing economy, and thus need for energy, coal companies are expanding production. Coal meets 70% of China’s energy needs. More than half of the houses in Da Antou, forcing 400 people to move. In Shanxi province, Government officials estimate that more than 7,700 square miles have been hollowed out by miners, leaving the earth riddled with empty caverns and causing the crust to sink in more than 1,800 places. 

 The increase in mining also effects farmers. After the coal is extracted, it is trucked across the province. The black dust then falls on corn and wheat crops. The mining has effected the Da Antou water system in, forcing farmers to haul water from a communal pipe installed in the village square, which also sometimes goes dry. Also, according to farmers, terraced fields have been left unworkable because of the sinkholes.

 The Chinese Work Safety Administration reported 4,746 miners were killed in Chinese coal mine accidents last year, making it among the world’s deadliest. 

For more information, please see:

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/31/AR2007053102191.html chinadigitaltimes.net/2007/06/chinas_energy_rush_shatters_village_edward_cody.php

www.freeinternetpress.com/story.php?sid=12027

www.newsique.com/world/chinas_energy_rush_shatters_vill/