• UK restoration of aid to Rwanda criticised

    Sep 06
    Britain's decision to unfreeze half of its aid to Rwanda after the African state engaged in constructive peace talks faced criticism from the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo and Human Rights Watch.

    Rwanda recently had all their British aid cut, after a UN report accused them of fuelling the bloodshed in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), but the decision to partly restore it was made earlier this week.

    The UK’s international development secretary, Andrew Mitchell, praised the country for constructively working towards resolving the crisis in the Great Lakes region, where 220,000 people have been displaced.

    However, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch Africa division, Carina Tertsakian, noted that her research showd that the Rwandan military were still supporting the M23 rebel group, that were responsible for atrocities including summary executions in Congo.

    Commenting on the UK’s decision to unfreeze aid, she said,
    “for the UK government to resume funding despite any real evidence of any improvement is premature, to say the least. But perhaps not surprising considering the unconditional support towards Rwanda and the apparent policy of providing development assistance without much consideration of human rights by the outgoing international development secretary.”
    The DCR government spokesman, Lambert Mende, also denounced the British decision as ‘dangerous’ and said the move would do nothing to help resolve problems in the area.

    The UK is the first to unfreeze aid to Rwanda. Other countries, including Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands have continued to uphold the aid suspensions.
  • Myanmar’s parliament ousts judges
    Nine presidentially appointed constitutional judges have been forced to resign after Myanmar’s parliament voted for their impeachment.

    More than two-thirds of Myanmar’s lower house backed the impeachment, after it was approved by the upper house last month and has now been accepted by President Thein Sein.

    The move was backed by both opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party and the ruling Union Solidarity and Development party. The situation is said to highlight the tensions between Burma’s government and parliament, as institutions continue to tussle for position since military rule ended last year.

    Meanwhile, Myanmar has passed a eagerly awaited investment law that looks set to boost foreign invest,ent in the country. The new law allows foreign firms to own up to a 50-percent stake in joint ventures with local partners, as corporations such as Coca-Cola expected to tussle for investment.

    See the report from AFP here.
  • Canada closes embassy in Iran and expels diplomats

    The Canadian government has decided to close its embassy in Tehran and kick out all remaining Iranian diplomats from Canada.

    A statement by Foreign Minister John Baird said that Canada had suspended all diplomatic relations with Iran, due to its continued and increasing military support for the Assad regime in Syria, its noncompliance with UN resolutions in relation to its nuclear programme and its incitement to genocide and anti-Semitic rhetoric against Israel.

    “Canada has closed its embassy in Iran, effective immediately, and declared personae non gratae all remaining Iranian diplomats in Canada." he said in the statement.

    “Canada’s position on the regime in Iran is well known. Canada views the Government of Iran as the most significant threat to global peace and security in the world today."

  • Colombia rejects Farc ceasefire call
    The offer of a ceasefire in Colombia by Farc rebels has been rejected by the Colombian government, as the two sides look to peace talks to be held in Oslo in October.

    Leaders from the Farc rebels stated that negotiating a ceasefire would be their top priority at the upcoming talks with spokesman Mauricio Jaramillo saying,
    "We will propose a ceasefire the moment we sit down at the table… We are going to discuss it."
    However Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos firmly rejected  the notion, stating,
    "There's not going to be any ceasefire. We will not give anything until we get the final agreement, and I want to make that very clear."
    Santos had earlier stated on Colombian radio that,
    "Making peace requires more sacrifice, more risk, but at the end the rewards are much higher".
    Talks are scheduled to be held in October and will be facilitated by Norway, Venezuela, Chile and Cuba.

    See our earlier post: Colombia and Farc rebels agree to talks in Norway (04 September 2012)
  • Maldives take a leaf out of Sri Lanka's book

    An Amnesty report released on Wednesday, ‘The Other Side of Paradise’, has accused the Maldives government of several actions amounting to violations of human rights. It outlined that there would be no meaningful reconciliation unless there was an end to the campaign of violent repression, abuses and impunity.

    The accusations include many instances of arbitrary arrest and torture by security forces with complete impunity.

    Security forces are also said to have increased attacks against peaceful demonstrations, which were instigated by the controversial resignation of the first democratically elected President, Mohameed Nasheed, who later claimed he was forced to resign at gunpoint, suggesting a coup by forces aligned with the previous leadership.

    The Amnesty report asked the current president, Mohameed Waheed, to ensure prompt, independent, impartial and effective investigations into alleged violence by officials. The rights group found that not a single criminal case had been filed for any of the violations committed since the resignation of Nasheed.

    The Maldives' damning reports of human rights violations surface as Sri Lanka agree to extend and strengthen the cooperation between the two nations. The Maldivian president recently sought Sri Lanka’s assistance in training security personnel and special Force units, as the Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa reiterated Sri Lanka’s support to provide further training opportunities for Malidvian security forces. 

    Incidentally, the Maldives leader extensively supported Sri Lanka at the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva this year.

     

  • Putin remains steadfast on Syria
    Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Moscow will not be shifting its stance on Syria and has instead called on other nations to review their policy, as battles continue to rage in the country.

    Speaking on Russia Today television, the President said,
    “Why should Russia be the only one reassessing its position? Perhaps our negotiating partners should reassess their position”

    “To us, the most important thing is to end the violence, to force all the sides in the conflict to sit down at the negotiating table, determine the future and ensure the security of all the participants of the domestic political process,” he said.

    “Only then move on to these practical steps about the internal organisation of the country itself."
    See his full interview below (comments on Syria start at 4 minutes 20 seconds).

    Meanwhile Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov reiterated that he had guarantees the Syrian regime would not deploy chemical weapons in their fight against Free Syrian Army rebels. Ryabkov stated that,
    “We are fully confident - and have the official assurance from Damascus - that this country’s government is taking all the necessary measures to guarantee the chemical arsenal’s safety.”
  • Ethiopian threatens to sue Dfid over human rights abuses

    An Ethiopian man, only identified as Mr O, could sue the British government over the alleged funding of a project which led to human rights abuses.

    Mr O, a farmer from the Gambella region, said a “villagisation” scheme, which received funding from the Department for International Development (Dfid), caused him to be evicted and beaten. He also claims he was forced to witness the rape of several women.

    His lawyers at London firm Leigh Day & Co said his family was forced from the family farm by the Ethiopian National Defence Force and resettled in a new village without being given farmland, food or water.

    When Mr O attempted to return to his farm he alleged ENDF soldiers assaulted him.

    Rosa Curling, one of the lawyers representing Mr O said that the British government needs to be more transparent.

    "The UK spends a considerable amount of money on international aid and Dfid has a responsibility to ensure that this money does not contribute in any way to human rights abuses such as the ones suffered by our client.

    "Our government has a duty to ensure that the programmes it supports meet the highest compliance standards,"

    A Dfid spokesperson denied that the UK funds any commune projects in Ethiopia and said they could not comment further on the case due to the threatened legal action.

  • Save the Children to be kicked out of Pakistan
    Pakistan has ordered foreign staff from Save the Children out of the country according to the charity, over fallout from a CIA raid that killed Osama Bin Laden.

    The raid by the USA in Pakistani territory embarrassed Pakistan, who have since sentenced Dr Shakil Afridi to 30 years in jail, for running a fake vaccination program which gathered information for the CIA. According to media reports, Dr Afridi was linked to Save the Children.

    Justin Forsyth, the charity's chief executive however denied these allegations, saying,
    "There have been allegations in the Pakistani media that Dr Afridi was somehow linked to Save the Children. It is absolutely untrue. He has never worked for us, we have never paid him, we have never run a vaccination programme in Abbottabad.
    The charity, which has operated in Pakistan for over 30 years, has only 6 foreign staff out of an estimated 2,000 employees in the country.

    Save the Children earlier reported that the Pakistani Interior Ministry had ordered that “visas for our six international staff in Pakistan may not be renewed.”

    However, the decision is not yet set with the New York Times reporting that Interior Minister Rehman Malik told them that he was “examining the matter,” stating that he had “suspended the exit order for four weeks.”

    The CIA campaign was slammed by Aine Fay, from the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum, who stated,
    "The use by the CIA of a vaccination campaign to get information is abhorrent to us... It has hindered NGOs here trying to help some very vulnerable people."
  • Mauritania extradites al-Senussi

    Mauritanian state media has announced that former Gaddafi-aide Abdullah al-Senussi has been extradited to Libya.

    "He was extradited to Libya on the basis of guarantees given by Libyan authorities," a Mauritanian government source told Reuters news agency.

    Al-Senussi fled Libya during the uprising and was arrested for entering Mauritania illegally.

    He is wanted by the International Criminal Court for committing crimes against humanity during his time as spy-chief for Col Gaddafi’s regime, but his extradition to Libya will make a trial at The Hague less likely.

    Libya wants to try Al-Senussi for crimes committed while he was Gaddafi’s aide.

    He is also wanted by France, who has sentenced him in absentia to life imprisonment for the shooting down of a plane over Niger, which killed 170 people.

    Al-Senussi is also accused of involvement in atrocities, including his alleged role in the 1996 massacre of more than 1,000 inmates at the Abu Salim prison in Tripoli.

  • Turkey slams Syria as “terrorist state”
    Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned Syria as a “terrorist state” on Wednesday, as recently elected Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi also joined the criticism of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.

    Speaking in Ankara, Erdogan accused Syria of committing “mass murders” and Assad of being "up to his neck in blood", saying,
    "The regime in Syria has become a terrorist state… Syria is not an ordinary country to us. We do not have the luxury to remain indifferent to what's happening there."
    His statement comes as Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi warned his Assad to “learn from recent history" stating,
    "it's too late to talk about reform, this is the time for change... The Syrian people have made their voice clear... You will not be around for long."
    Morsi went on to call on Arab nations and the international community to act saying,
    "The Syrian blood that is being shed day and night, we are responsible for this… We cannot sleep while Syrian blood is being shed."
    Meanwhile the newly appointed UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi told the UN assembly,
    "The death toll is staggering, the destruction is reaching catastrophic proportions and the suffering of the people is immense... The future of Syria will be built by its people and none other... The support of the international community is indispensable and very urgent. It will only be effective if all pull in the same direction."
    The statements comes as the Syrian rebels released a video showing a shot down Syrian military jet, reportedly brought down by machine gun fire as it took off from a government air base.
  • Gunman attacks at Quebec separatists' victory speech

    A gunman killed one and injured another in Montreal, as the separatist government was delivering its victory speech, after it was voted into Quebec, the French-speaking region of Canada, for the first time in nine years.

    As he was taken away by police, the gunman, speaking in French, vowed the English would fight back.

    The Parti Quebecois (PQ) won 54 of the provincial legislature’s 125 seats, beating the outgoing Liberal government by just 4 seats.

    The shortfall in the PQ’s majority means that the party will not have the backing it needs to push for radical reforms and will have to water down many of its election promises.

    Turnout for the election however was unusually high at 75 percent, a huge increase from 2008’s 58 percent.

    Read the full Reuters article here.

  • India and China to hold joint military exercises ‘at the earliest’

    The Indian Defence Minister AK Anthony announced on Tuesday that joint military exercises with China will resume after a four year gap, after meeting with his Chinese counterpart General Liang Guanglie in Delhi.

    "We have decided that (to restart military exercises)," Mr Anthony told reporters.

    "We covered a lot about the situation in the South Asia, Asia-Pacific region," Antony said.

    "We had a very frank and heart-to-heart discussion on all the issues... including in the border areas."

    The neighbours also agreed to strengthen border security cooperation between the two countries’ forces.

    "We have reached a consensus on high-level visits and exchange of personnel, maritime security... and cooperation between the two navies," Liang said after Tuesday's talks.

    "I had candid and practical discussion with the defence minister," he added.

    A Defence Ministry statement said that, “they also decided to promote exchange visits by personnel at different levels and in various fields."

    "The two countries will strengthen exchanges in personnel training, academic research and cooperation between educational institutions of the Armed Forces of both sides,” it said.

    General Liang was in Sri Lanka before visiting Delhi, where he downplayed fears of China’s supposed hostile intentions in the region.

  • Rights groups condemn Buddhist Monk protests in Burma
    Buddhist monks in Burma have raised the concerns of human rights groups by protesting for the deportation of the Muslim minority Rohingya, for a third consecutive day.

    Burma saw its largest Buddhist monk led demonstrations since the pro-democracy uprisings in 2007.

    Hundreds of traditionally dressed Monks marched through Burma’s second largest city, Mandalay, supporting President Thein Sein’s calls for the segregation and deportation of the Rohingya minority.

    Human Rights Watch (HRW) Deputy Director For Asia, Phil Robertson, noted that the Monk’s prevalent moral authority was likely to increase the sectarian tensions, saying,
    “The fact that these monks just several years ago were protesting for democracy and human rights, and are today now protesting for exclusion and potential deportation of a particular ethnic group causes some concern that the government may in fact listen to these kinds of voices”.
    The Buddhist monks’ unrest comes after violent clashes this summer between the muslim Rohingya and the Buddhists in the western Rakhine state, resulted in displacement of thousands of muslim Rohingya.

    Burmese authorities have established a commission to investigate the human rights violations in these clashes.

    However, HRW Deputy Director questions whether the commission can independently investigate the clashes in the state.     He went on to say,
    “There needs to be accountability in addition to a sort of far-sighted vision for a way that both of these groups will be able to live in peace”
    Burma refuses to grant citizenship to the Rohingya, despite some living there for generations. The Rohingya are recognised by the United Nations as one of the worlds most persecuted minorities. Incidentally, Burma has 135 legally recognized minorities under a 1982 citizenship law that left out the Rohingya.
  • UK unblocks frozen Rwanda aid
    The UK government announced on Tuesday that it would unblock about half of its £15million aid to Rwanda, following progress on solving a conflict in Congo.

    Along with states such as the US, Sweden and the Netherlands, Britain had suspended support to Rwanda after a June report by the United Nations accused Rwandan officials of supporting armed rebels in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

    A spokesperson for Congo’s government described the decision as “disastrous” with rights groups blaming Rwanda for fuelling bloodshed in the Congo.

    The UK’s outgoing International Development minister Andrew Mitchell praised Rwanda’s ‘constructive’ efforts to resolve the crisis and said in a statement,
    "Given this progress and recognising that the government of Rwanda has continued to demonstrate its strong commitment to reducing poverty and improving its financial management, Britain will partially restore its general budget support to Rwanda.”
    Rwanda relies on foreign aid for half of its budget.

    Read full Reuters story here.
  • Colombia and Farc rebels agree to talks in Norway
    The Colombian government has confirmed that peace talks with Farc rebels will begin in Oslo in October, in a bid to end  one of Latin America's longest-running armed conflicts.

    Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos made the announcement that both sides had agreed to the talks, which are scheduled to move to Cuba after Norway.

    He called the talks a path to "a definitive peace", adding,
    "I ask the Colombian people for patience and strength…There's no doubt it's time to turn the page."
    "There are people like me that don't know a single day of peace… We have to take the dream of living in peace and make it a reality."
    Farc leader Timochenko also stated that,
    "How much death and destruction, how much pain and tears, how much useless bereavement and abuse, how many lives and smiles must be cut before we finally conclude that the end to this isn't conflict but civilized dialogue?"
    However, former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, criticised the move, stating Santos was pandering to "terrorists," and called the talks "grave."
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