Impunity Watch: Asia

Pakistan Taliban Claim Responsibility For Parade Attack

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PESHAWAR, Pakistan- On Wednesday Pakistan's main Taliban faction claimed responsibility for a suicide attack that killed 43 people at a Shiite parade in the commercial capital of Karachi, and have threatened more attacks.  Asmatullah Shaheen, one of the commanders of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), or Taliban Movement of Pakistan, made the claim on Wednesday in phone calls to news agencies from an undisclosed location.

"My group claims responsibility for the Karachi attack and we will carry out more such attacks, within 10 days," he said, referring to the bombing of the previous day.

Shops, offices and schools were closed in the city after religious and political leader called for a day of mourning following the attack that in addition to the deaths left scores injured.

A bomber detonated explosives strapped to his body as crowds walked down Mohammed Ali Jinnah Road in the heart of Pakistan's largest city on Monday, turning Ashoura, the holiest event on the Shiite Muslim calender into a bloodbath.  Shaheen, whose name is also on a government list of 19 most-wanted militant added, "We did it to protect the honor of the companions of the holy prophet" referring to the centuries old dispute between the Sunni, who dominate the Taliban and the Shiite over the succession to the Prophet Mohammed. 

It was the deadliest attack in Karachi in more than two years and one of the deadliest single sectarian-linked attacks in the conservative Muslim country's history.  Since October, Pakistan has been pressing a major offensive against TTP in its South Waziristan stronghold on the Afghan border.

The bombing and the following arson by furious mourners underscored the extent of the volatility in Pakistan,were militant attacks have killed more than 2,760 people since July 2007.

Pakistan has posted a 10-million-rupee ($118,690) bounty for Shaheen's capture dead or alive, when it published a list last month of its most-wanted TTP warlords.

Monday's attack sparked riots as mourners rampaged, throwing stones at ambulances, torching cars and buildings and reducing shops to rubble. "Our office and the whole building is completely burnt.  Everything has been destroyed," said Saleem Khan, who runs a car rental business in the city. 

Pakistan had tightened security to protect mass procession before Ashoura, deploying tens of thousands of police and paramilitary forces.  The attack was the third on the commemorations in Pakistan this year.

Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan's President, blamed groups such as TTP for trying to turn Shiite and Sunni Muslims against each other.  

In Pakistan Sectarian violence periodically flares up between the minority Shiites, who beat and whip themselves in religious fervor during Ashoura, and the country's majority Sunnis who account for 80 percent, who oppose the public displays of grief.

For more information, please see:

Aljazeera.Net-  Pakistani Taliban in Attack Claim- 30 December 2009

Associated Foreign Press-  Taliban Claim Pakistan Shiite Parade Attack- 30 December 2009

Reuters- Pakistan Taliban Says Carried Out Karachi Bombing- 30 December 20009

Burma Allows Repatriation by Rohingya Muslims

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

DHAKE, Rohingya  - The Burmese government has recently conceded to the repatriation of 9,000 of an estimated 28,000 Rohingya Muslims.  The Muslims who have just been granted access into Burma are among an alienated group of peoples who have been fleeing from religious persecution perpetrated by the Burmese junta.  Since the 1970’s, Bangladesh has experienced an increasing influx of Rohingya Muslims escaping mistreatment and discrimination by the state and civilians of Burma.  Escape into Bangladesh has proved the most effective means for Rohingya Muslims desperate to evade maltreatment and unequal consideration in social aspects such as employment and trade. 

The respective Foreign Secretaries of Bangladesh and Burma met recently to discuss the terms and scope of the repatriation agreement.  During the discussion, the two figures seemed to conclude that repatriation should begin as soon as possible so as to give at least some of the over 30,000 Rohingya Muslims an official residence nation.   

Apart from the approximately 30,000 living under derisory conditions in Bangladeshi refugee camps, over 300,000 Rohingya Muslims originating from Burma reside illegally in other nations throughout Asia.  The Rohingya repatriation plan appears also to extend a welcome to Rohingya Muslims who have ventured beyond Burma to find peace in life. 

The repatriation of Burma by Rohingya Muslims has been a point of contention between the Burmese and Bangladeshi governments since the beginning of the 1990’s.  Although Bangladesh has established numerous camps to house the Rohingya refugees, human rights groups have often voiced concern over the inadequate living conditions of the refugee camps.  Essentials such as food, clothes, and shelter are apparently scarce in the camps, which are not readily supplied so as to tend to the needs of the refugee dwellers.  

However, despite the unfavorable situation of staying in refugee camps, a majority of the Rohingya Muslim refugees seem to prefer Bangladeshi shelters than returning their homes in Burma.  Although no reports discuss whether the issue of significant discrimination against the Rohingya Muslim group was considered in repatriation talks, refugees themselves have stated their desire to remain in Bangladesh where they are at least safe from state mistreatment. 

While these issues continue to be raised by human rights groups, it remains to be seen how many Burmese Rohingya Muslims will actually grasp the opportunity to return, supposedly without prejudice, to their native state.

 

For more information, please see:

BBC News - Bangladesh to send home thousands of Burmese refugees - 29 December 2009

Irrawaddy - Bangladesh, Burma Agree on Repatriation of Some Rohingya -30 December 2009

Silobreaker - Burmese Muslims to be repatriated - 29 December 2009

Indonesia: The Continuous Struggle to Combat Corruption

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

JAKARTA, Indonesia - It seems that corruption is a way of life in Indonesia, and for many Indonesians, it is trite to pass a small bribe to an official to get a task or favor done. The practice is embedded in so many facets of life in Indonesia that it is virtually impossible for civilians to escape having to engage in bribery or evade its effects.

Corruption costs the country's economy billions of dollars every year. According to a recent report by the US-based Human Rights Watch, it is estimated that corruption in Indonesia's forestry industry alone costs the economy $2 billion a year, which is dramatic since Indonesia is home to the world's third largest area of tropical rain forest impacted by the huge degree of illegal logging that occurs.

Dealing with corruption in forestry is not only area Indonesia is seeking to clamp down on efforts of fraud. The European Union has come out with a report saying that one of the main reasons its investors are reluctant to come to Indonesia is the perception of high levels of graft in the country. The government acknowledges there is a problem, but says that like all developing countries, Indonesia is not perfect. According to Gita Wirjawan, the individual responsible for trying to attract more foreign funds to Indonesia's economy, "One has to take a long term view of Indonesia." Wirjawan went on to say that, "There may be some questions or concerns about Indonesia - but that applies to just about every country in the world... we're on the right trajectory and we're heading in the right direction." 

In early December, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono reasserted his pledge to lead an endeavor against corruption in Indonesia. In a televised speech on the eve of International Anti-Corruption Day, Yudhoyono asked the public to work together to fight graft, saying he wished to create a clean government as his legacy by the end of his term in 2014. Yudhoyono claims to have done a lot to eradicate corruption since he assumed power in 2004, and stated that reforms within the Attorney General’s Office and the National Police would continue to be the top priority of his administration in the coming five years.

Photograph of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono discussing anti-corruption efforts. Image courtesy of Asia Sentinal. 

Apart from statements by government officials, editorials in Indonesian newspapers have called him weak and indecisive in his handling of the case of the Corruption Eradication Commission, or the KPK as it is known in Indonesia, one of the few institutions people in this country actually have faith in.

Photograph of an anti-corruption demonstration. Image courtesy of BBC World News.

One civilian, James Sundah, a 50-year-old musician lost his driving license and tried to get the local police to help him replace it. Instead, he was forced to get a new license. He was told by police that "it would be a quick and painless procedure" and he knew that this was a hint to most Indonesians to pay some money and get your license, but Sundah refused. He tried to go through the official procedure to re-obtain his license, but his application and test were denied several times. Sundah said, "I was a couple of points short each time - but when I asked to see the test papers, the officials refused. The others in my exam room told me that if I just paid an extra $20, I would get my license." Sundah stated that the police must have grown tired of his persistence, because finally he was given his license. When Sunday asked to see his exam paper after passing, he said, "I looked at it and I spotted the question: 'What would you do if you hit someone in an accident?' I got the question wrong because the correct answer, according to the official exam paper was to run away!" 

Photograph of James Sundah and family driving. Image courtesy of BBC World News.

Despite stories like Sundah's and so many other Indonesians forced to endure and submit to nefarious practices, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has publically announced its effort to target corrupt officials and agency backroom wheeling and dealing

For more information, please see:

BBC World News - Indonesia battles with widespread corruption - December 24, 2009 

Asia Sentinal - Anti-graft Day in Jakarta - December 9, 2009

The Jakarta Post - SBY renews pledge to lead corruption jihad - December 8, 2009

Rights Activist Enter North Korea

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

SEOUL, South Korea – In an effort to raise awareness of North Korea’s human rights abuses, a Korean-American rights activist illegally crossed a river into North Korea from China.

Activist Robert Park during an interview.  Courtesy of Reuters.

The 28 year-old activist, Robert Park, heads a coalition of about 100 groups which works to shed light on North Korean defectors and the rights abuses within North Korea.

Park crossed the Tumen River near the northeast border city of Hoeryong on Christmas Day carrying a letter for the North’s leader Kim Jong-il.  Witnesses said Park shouted, “I am an American citizen.  I am bringing God’s love,” as he crossed the Tumen River.  Witnesses said Park was not stopped by the North Korean border guards.

The letter he was carrying is said to include demands for opening the tightly-controlled border so that North Korea can receive shipment of food and medical aid as well as a request to close all political concentration camps.

Park was reported to have said he would carry a message calling for Kim Jong-il to step down as the North Korean leader and for compensation to the rights abuses victims.

In an interview with Reuters earlier this week, Park said he felt that it was his duty as a Christian to make this journey to North Korea and that he did not want the U.S. government to try freeing him. 

He added that he would prefer to be arrested so as to pressure the governments of the U.S., South Korea and Japan to improve North Korea’s human rights record and to address the suffering of innocent North Koreans.

Park said, “Through the media and through sacrifice[,] we are looking for the global leaders to be forced to give an account.  There is no excuse.”

In addition, Park commented, “Until the concentration camps are liberated, I do not want to come out.  If I have to die with them, I will.” 

North Korea has not released any statements concerning Park.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – U.S. rights activist crosses into North Korea: reports – 25 December 2009

UPI – Rights activist crosses into North Korea – 26 December 2009

Yonhap News – Activist breaches N. Korea border for human rights campaign: activists – 26 December 2009

Prominent Chinese Dissident Sentenced to 11 Years

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China– Liu Xiaobo, China’s most famous dissident, has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for criticizing the Chinese government. 

The Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People Court handed down a ruling on Christmas Day saying that Liu was “guilty of inciting subversion of state power.”  In China, those found guilty of inciting others by “spreading rumors…to subvert the State power” are subject to imprisonment of no less than five years.

Some have suggested that this verdict foreshadows that other detained activists will also face harsh punishments as China began tightening its already strict stance against dissidents. 

Many believe that Liu’s sentence is a warning against other activists, including human rights lawyers whose licenses to practice law have not been renewed by the government this year.

Phelim Kine, a researcher at the rights group Human Rights Watch, said, “The fact is that Liu Xiaobo is neither a subversive nor a criminal and the severity of the verdict against him suggests that the Chinese government is ready and willing to take an unyieldingly harsh line against human rights activist in the year ahead.”

One of Liu’s attorneys, Ding Xikui, said they will be appealing the decision as there were some flaws during the trial procedure.  In fact, Human Rights Watch has criticized the Chinese government for violating Liu’s rights and for showing contempt for China’s commitment to universal human rights.

Human Rights Watch’s Asia director, Sophie Richardson, added, “The only purpose of this trial [was] to dress up naked political repression in the trappings of legal proceedings.  Liu’s crimes are non-existent, yet his fate has been pre-determined.  This is a travesty of justice.”

However, appeals on political charges almost never succeed because political agenda supercede the written law in China.

Chinese officials were not available for comment, but China’s Xinhua news agency released a statement from the court which said that legal procedures were strictly followed and that the court fully protected Liu’s litigation rights.

Nonetheless, U.S. Embassy official Greg May said, “We are deeply concerned by the sentence…Persecution of individuals for peaceful expression of political views is inconsistent with internationally recognized norms of human rights.”

In addition, German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded to Liu’s sentence by saying that the Chinese government “still massively restricts freedom of opinion.”  However, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has remained silent.

For more information, please see:

Human Rights Watch – China: Liu Xiaobo’s Trial a Travesty of Justice – 21 December 2009

Inner City Press – UN’s Ban Silent as China Sentences Liu Xiaobo and Five Uighurs to Death – 25 December 2009

WSJ – China Sentences Dissident to 11 Years for Subversion – 25 December 2009

Pakistan Court Orders Removal Of 2 Mens Ears, Noses

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan- A Pakistani court has ordered the noses and ears of two men cut off, as punishment for doing the same to a woman who refused to marry one of them.  In September, the two brothers were found guilty of kidnapping 19-year-old Fazeelat Bibi, one of their cousins.  

The Sentence was passed on Monday under a rarely invoked Islamic law dating back to the 1980s.  The anti-terrorism court in the court in the eastern city of Lahore said it was applying Islamic law by ordering the punishment.  Similar sentences in the past have been revoked on appeal.  The court also ordered that the brothers spend life in prison and pay 700,000 rupees($8,300) in compensation to the victim, Punjab province chief prosecutor Chaudary Mohammad Jahangir said on Tuesday.

Ehtisham Qadir, prosecutor for the government said the punishment had been awarded in accordance with the Islamic principle of "an eye for an eye"  

Lahore prosecutor Chaudrhy Ali Ahmed said Sher Mohammad, one of the accused, was a cousin of the 19-year-old woman and wanted to marry her.  Sher Mohammad and Ammanat Ali, along with their cousin Mohammad Ali and two other men abducted Fazeelat Bibi on her way home from work at a brick kiln in the Raiwing area of Lahore, and strangled her with a wire.  Mr. Qadir told the BBC, "They put a noose around her neck, and then cut off her ears and nose."  The crime was committed after her parents refused to give their daughter's hand in marriage to Sher Mohammad.

They mutilated her body "to set an example", prosecutor Jahangir said.

Mohammad Ali has also been arrested, while the other two men allegedly involved in the attack have not been charged.  The brothers were tried under anti-terror laws because the incident "created tyranny" in the district.  The high court must confirm the sentence before it is carried out, and a doctor must determine that they can survive the punishment.

Pakistani human rights groups have long campaigned for more to be done to stop attacks against women, which often includes facial disfigurement.  However, they also disagree with the type of punishment handed out in Lahore, correspondents say.

For more information, please see:

BBC News- Pakistan Court Orders Ears and Noses To Be Cut Off - 22 December 2009

The Associated Press- Pakistani Court Orders 2 Men's Noses, Ears Cut Off - 22 December 2009

CNNWorld- Pakistan Court Orders Men's Ears, Noses Hacked Off - 22 December 2009

Forced Eviction Leads Man to Set Himself on Fire

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China - Xi Xinzhu, set himself ablaze when a demolition crew arrived at his home to move him out to begin tearing down his home. He is being hospitalized for the burns he suffered.

As striking as Xi Xinzhu's actions may have been, he is not alone in those who set themselves on fire to protest the Chinese government mandating that civilians abandon their homes. Last month a woman died after setting herself alight in a similar protest. Analysts say the incident will add to already intense pressure to reform China's rules on forced eviction.

The protest is just one of a series in a country where land is effectively controlled by the state. The law currently allows local governments to claim land and confiscate homes for urban development projects: a system which critics say is open to abuse. It is reported that residents often complain that the amount of compensation offered is far below the real value of their homes.

According to Beijing Times, Xi had already suffered from a leg fracture when he was beaten by "unidentified men." It is said that violence is a form of intimidation commonly used in China. Despite his condition, Xi poured gasoline on himself, and proceeded to show a lighter, and threatened to ignite himself. "Neglecting his warning, the relocation people even said 'go ahead, light up,' his wife told Beijing Times.

Even though the flames were promptly put out, Xi suffered 10 per cent burns to his face, hands and body and is in a critical condition in a Beijing hospital.

Chinese legal experts have called for major changes, and in a sign that the government may be seeking to ease public anger, officials met nine of them recently to discuss the issue.  

When asked about his brother's protest and the situation generally, Xi Xinqiang said, "We tried everything to raise legal questions about this demolition through normal channels, but nobody would do anything, although there are plainly problems."

For more information, please see:

BBC World News - Chinese man sets himself on fire in Beijing - December 17, 20009 

Huffington Post - Chinese Man Sets Himself On Fire To Protest Demolition Of Home - December 20, 2009  

China News - Chinese Man Sets Himself on Fire to Protest Eviction - December 2009 

Explosion Near Pakistan Mosque Kills at Least Ten

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan- Officials say that at least ten people were killed in an explosion near a mosque used by police officers in north-western Pakistan on Friday.  Nearly 30 people were also wounded in the latest attack by suspected Taliban militants waging war against the government.

Pakistan has fought back with several major military operation against Taliban strongholds in the country. The United States, while applauding the effort has urged Pakistan to expand its fight to target militants who are staging cross-border attacks against coalition troops in Afghanistan. 

The Taliban inside of Pakistan have increased their campaign of violence since the military began a major offensive in Mid- October in the militant stronghold of South Waziristan. Friday's suicide bombing was the second attack in two weeks against mosques used by Pakistan's security forces.  Feroze Khan, the area's police chief said that most of the people killed in the attack in the Lower Dir region were police leaving the mosque after Friday prayers.  Mumtaz Zarin, another local police chief told the AFP news agency "The bomb blast took place inside a mosque near police headquarters...We are investigating the nature of the blast-that is, whether it was a suicide attack or planted bomb," he said.

Other attacks have been staged against mosques in the region.  On December 4, a team of militants armed with guns, grenades and bombs raided a mosque near army headquarters outside of Islamabad.

In the past two months, over 500 people have been killed. Despite this recent wave of violence, the Pakistani military has vowed to continue its offensive in South Waziristan and crack down on other militants who threaten the state.

At the moment no group has taken advantage for the bombing, but the Taliban has carried out similar attacks throughout the country in the past.  Lower Dir is located next to the Swat Valley, a region which Pakistani soldiers wrested from the Taliban earlier this year.  Attacks have continued in the area.

Witnesses said the victims included a woman and two children.  The death toll could rise as the condition of some of the 28 people wounded in the attack was critical.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press- Suicide Bomber Near NW Pakistan Mosque Kills 10 - 18 December 2009

BBC News- Blast Near Pakistan Mosque Kills Four People  -18 December 2009

Aljazeera.net- Deadly Blast Hits Pakistan Mosque - 18 December 2009

China Emerging on Status of Uighurs in Cambodia

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China - A recently issued statement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry suggests that it is already in the process, or will soon begin, an effort to return 22 Uighurs, after fleeing to Cambodia when deadly ethnic riots broke out in July in western China. Those in flight are said to have left due to extreme subsequent government crackdown on rioters.

Uighurs, are a Turkic-speaking ethnic minority and are namely concentrated in western China. Those who deem themselves Uighurs often say the Chinese government, dominated by ethnic Han, discriminates against them. The Uighurs in Cambodia fled their homeland after the deadliest ethnic rioting in decades in China. Uighurs clashed on July 5 with riot police officers sent to put down a protest in Urumqi, the capital of the western region of Xinjiang, and then went on a rampage through neighborhoods, killing scores of people.

The 22 Uighurs who fled after the incident in July entered Cambodia about a month ago. Three of the Uighurs who made it to Cambodia are children. Two Uighurs were detained in Vietnam en route to Cambodia, and five others who fled China have disappeared, according to Uighur advocacy groups in the West. It is believed they were able to escape with the aid of an underground network of Christian missionaries in China that usually helps North Koreans who seek to get out of the country and into nations they can seek refugee status. It has been confirmed that the 22 Uighurs are still in Cambodia, because they appeared at the United Nations' Refugee Office to apply for refugee status.

This week, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said at a news conference that the Uighurs were suspected of criminal activities and that the “relevant departments” were investigating them. She said at the news conference and in a written statement that criminals "should not be allowed to take advantage of the United Nations’ refugee system." She went on to say that, “China’s stance is very clear: the international refugee protection system shouldn’t become a shelter where criminals stay to escape legal punishment."

Human Rights organizations have been very active in the matter. Sam Zarifi, Asia-Pacific director of Amnesty International, wrote in a  letter, “Since September 2001, Amnesty International has documented cases in which Uighur asylum seekers who were forcibly returned to China were detained, reportedly tortured and in some cases sentenced to death and executed." 

For more information, please see:

New York Times - China Is Disputing Status of Uighurs in Cambodia - December 18, 2009

Yahoo! World News - Cambodia to send 20 Uighurs back to China: US rights group - December 18,2009

Inside Asia - China Is Disputing Uighurs in Cambodia   

Mongolia Accused of Injustice and Impunity

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ULAN BATOR, Mongolia – An international human rights agency has accused Mongolia of impunity and injustice for ignoring reports of abuses after a post-election violence in July 2008.

Riots broke out in the streets of Ulan Bator when thousands of Mongolians demonstrated by burning cars and buildings against an alleged fraud in last year’s general election.

After the violence erupted, the spokesman for the General Election Committee, Purevdorjin Naranbat,  rejected allegations of fraud saying, “The election was organized well and by the law.  It was really fair.”

However, five people were killed and more than 200 were hurt during the riots.  This was the worst violence Mongolia saw in two decades. 

Amnesty International reported that the police shot at least nine people during the riots and hundreds more were forced into crowded detention centers where they went without food or water for up to three days.  Some detainees were also reported to have been beaten by the police.

Roseann Rife, director for Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific program, said, “Investigations into allegations of human rights violations have been delayed, ignored or inadequately investigated.”

She added, “A year on from the riot and there is no accountability on the part of authorities and no justice for the victims.”

The rights group is accusing Mongolia of failing to comply with international obligations by not taking legislative, judicial and administrative measures to prevent human rights abuses, and the secrecy surrounding the police operation is leading to further mistrust and fear.

These sentiments will continue unless Mongolian government takes steps to implement reforms to protect human rights.

However, Munkh-Orgil Tsend, who was the Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs at the time of the riots, said, “Lack of food and facilities to hold rioters just shows that we all were not prepared for such a riot.  It cannot be misinterpreted as human rights violation.”

Nevertheless, Amnesty International is urging the Mongolian government to investigate human rights violations promptly in a thorough and impartial manner. 

Furthermore, the organization is asking that Mongolia review its regulations and policy to ensure that the police, when using force and policing demonstrators, comply with international human rights standards, including the UN Code of Conduct for LW Enforcement Officials.

For more information, please see:

Amnesty International – IMPUNITY AND INJUSTICE ARE LEGACY OF DEADLY JULY RIOTS IN MONGOLIA – 18 December 2009

AP – Rights group accuses Mongolia over 2008 rioting – 18 December 2009

BBC – Streets calm in riot-hit Mongolia – 3 July 2008