Breaking News: Sentencing of Three Former Leaders of Sierra Leone’s Armed Forces Revolutionary Council

Breaking News: Sentencing of Three Former Leaders of Sierra Leone’s Armed Forces Revolutionary Council

By Lindsey Brady
Impunity Watch, Africa

The Special Court for Sierra Leone, based in Freetown, has just handed down the sentences of Alex Tamba Brima, Brima Bazzy Kamara, and Santigie Borbor Kanu.  Brima, thirty-five years old, and Kanu, forty-two years old, have been sentenced to jail for 50 years.  Kamara, thirty-nine years old, has been sentenced to jail for 45 years.

In June, each were found guilty of 11 of the 14 charges against them, including murder, rape, enlisting child soldiers, terrorism, and enslavement.

The men are former leaders of Sierra Leone’s Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) which in 1997 caused a coup d’etat against then President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah.  The AFRC allied itself with the rebel group the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and embarked on a terror campaign.  The rebels are believed to have been backed by Charles Taylor in exchange for Sierra Leone diamonds.  The civil war ended in 2001 leaving 120,000 people dead and thousands more mutilated.

During their trial, the men did not cooperate with the prosecution nor did they accept responsibility for their crimes.  However defense lawyer Kojo Graham had urged the court to consider reconciliation in sentencing.

It is believed that the men will serve their sentences in Sweden and Austria.

For more information, please see:

AllAfrica – Sierra Leone: Rebel Leaders Found Guilty in First Verdicts From UN-Backed Court – 20 June 2007

Reuters – Sierra Leone War Crimes Court Jails Militia Chiefs – 19 July 2007

VOA – Convicted Coup Plotters Face Sentencing in Sierra Leone – 19 July 2007

IOL News – Prosecution Seeks 170-Year Jail Terms – 16 July 2007

Civil Marriage in Israel

On July 18, Israel’s Justice Minister, Daniel Friedman, and Sephardi Chief Rabbi Amar reached agreement on legislation that would allow limited civil marriages in Israel.  Currently, there is a difference between the state’s and religious requirements to be considered Jewish.  Under Israel’s Law of Return a person needs only to have a Jewish grandparent to be considered Jewish.  However, according to religious authorities, a person needs to have a Jewish mother or convert to Judaism.  This difference leaves about 270,000 Israeli Jews unable to marry in their own country.

This limited bill will apply only to couples where both partners are not considered Jewish according to Jewish law.  However, many criticize that this law is too limited and many will still be forced to get married outside of Israel.  The proposed legislation does nothing to address marriages between a Jew and a non-Jew, gentile.  Therefore, while gentile couples and Jewish couples will be able to marry inside Israel, mixed couples will not.

In addition to the limited scope of the legislation, critics also state that the law may isolate and discriminate against immigrants.  Most of the people who fall between the state and Jewish law’s definition of Jew are immigrants from the former Soviet Union.  So this legislation marks a first step in recognizing civil marriages and expanding marriage rights.  However, more can be done to recognize full marriage rights of every Israeli citizen.

For more information please see:

Jerusalem Post:  “Amar OKs civil marriage for non-Jews”  19 July 2007. 

Ha’aretz:  “Bill would let non-Jews wed in civil ceremony”  19 July 2007. 

Ha’aretz:  “Government to support non-Jewish civil marriage law”  19 July 2007. 

Middle East Times:  “Limit civil marriage in Israel for first time”  19 July 2007. 

Ynetnews.com:  “‘Green light’ for civil marriage in Israel”  18 July 2007.

100 Palestinians trapped in Egyptian Airport

        Since the fighting broke out between Hamas and Fatah thousands of Palestinians have fled to Egypt.  The number of Palestinian refugees in Egypt ranges from 4,000 to 6,000.  Egyptian President Mubarak stated that the refugees will remain in Egypt until the fighting subsides between the two factions.  Therefore, he has shut down Egypt’s border to the Gaza Strip, the Rafah Crossing.  He has also shut down air travel from Egyptian Airports to the Gaza trip, which has stranded passengers.

        Consequently, 100 Palestinians have been trapped in the Arish Ariport for about 20 days.  The Palestinians arrived at Arish from various countries. They had planned on stopping in Arish only to make their connecting flight to the Gaza Strip.  Therefore, they did not obtain visas to enter Egypt, because they did not think they would get stuck in the country.  These Palestinians have been forced into a small section of the airport, and have not been allowed to leave for any reason.  The Palestinians have tried to break free, but the police forcefully restrained the crowd, injuring three people.  One of the men told the Middle Eastern Times, “We are sleeping on the floor, we all share one toilet, [and] there is nowhere to take a bath or shower.”   Reportedly, they have survived on water and salt, and currently, have gone on on hunger strike. 

        The Egyptians’ rationale for shutting down the border travel is to protect the Palestinians.  The Egyptian government’s fear is that if the Palestinians enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah Crossing, they may be shot by Israelis or Hamas soldiers misidentifying them as smugglers.  The Egyptians have kept the border crossings to Israel open, but many Palestinians are hesitant to cross into Israel.  The Palestinians fear that the Israeli’s will cause them trouble or even arrest them.  Therefore, the Palestinians are stuck in Egypt for an indefinite period of time.  However, the Egyptians are trying to address the problem by setting up free health care facilities to treat the Palestinian refugees.   This help may be too little because 28 Palestinians have already died with health related issues, which could be compounded with thousands of Palestinians crowding the border towns seeking to entrance into the Gaza Strip. 

Daily Star Egypt. Palestinians Trapped in Arish Airport go on Hunger Strike. 9 July 2007.
Middle East News. Palestinians Trapped for Weeks in Egypt. 17 Jul 2007.
News24.com. Palestinians Trapped. 17 July 2007.
People’s Daily Online. Egypt to provide free treatment for stranded Palestinian patients at Rafah crossing. 16 July 2007.

Peace for Sudan?

By Impunity Watch Africa

Two recent developments provide hope that peace will come to Sudan, although many problems still lie ahead.

On Sunday, at an international summit to push peace in the Darfur region, the Sudanese government agreed to meet rebel groups that have so far refused to join peace talks.   If the meet does in fact take place, it will be an important step towards re-starting peace negotiations that stalled last year following the unpopular Darfur peace agreement.  The non-signatories to that agreement will meet the first week of August to prepare a unified position for talks with the government in late August or early September.   Negotiations will be tough, with agreements needed on how much to compensate families driven from their land, how to protect them when they return home, and how to disarm the militias.

In another positive development, a huge underground lake has been found in the Darfur region, prompting many scientists to claim that it may help end the conflict in the arid region.  Boston University researchers discovered the lake and plan on drilling 1,000 wells in the region.  Many analysts say competition for resources between Darfur’s Arab nomads and black African farmers is a big force behind the conflict.  The director for Boston University’s Center for Remote Sensing, Farouk El-Baz, said that “access to fresh water is essential for refugee survival, will help the peace process, and provides the necessary resources for the much needed economic development in Darfur.”  The lake was discovered using radar data, and it is believed to be the size of Lake Erie – the 10th largest lake in the world.

However, a draft Security Council resolution to authorize the deployment of a joint UN-AU peace-keeping force in Darfur has been opposed by Sudan and South Africa. The objection is over a sanctions clause in the resolution.  Sudan’s Ambassador to the UN said the resolution should be more Sudan-friendly and drop the “irrelevant and alien issues” such as the threat of sanctions.   Last month, the Sudanese government agreed to allow the hybrid force into the region.  UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged the Security Council to approve a draft resolution to get the approved peacekeeping force on the ground as soon as possible.  UN reports have stated that security on the ground is deteriorating, with a rise in attacks on aid workers and peacekeepers. The hope is to get forces on the ground by September or October, in order to help the small AU force that is failing to stop the violence.  Since the start of the Sudan conflict, 200,000 people have died and more than 2 million have been displaced.

For more information, please see:

AllAfrica – Darfur Resolution Opposed – 18 July 2007

BBC – Water Find ‘May End Darfur War’ – 18 July 2007

Washington Post – Scientists Find Lake Remnants in Sudan – 17 July 2007

LA Times – Sudan Agrees to Meet with Rebels – 16 July 2007

Hunger Marchers Subdued and Arrested By Police in Nigeria

By Meryl White
Impunity Watch, Africa

Presently, one out of every three Nigerians are malnourished. On a daily basis, over 46 million people go to bed hungry despite the fact that Nigeria is Africa’s most oil rich nation.

Action Aid, a non-governmental organization involved in development work, organized a march in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, to raise awareness “about widespread hunger in Africa’s most populous nation.” At Friday’s march, participants hoped to present petitions to President Umaru Yar’Adua and government officials to encourage implementation of new laws and policies to help end hunger.

An organizer of the march described the situation in Nigeria as “their hunger is an indictment of those who have more than enough to eat in a country with more than enough resources and potential to banish the hunger it breeds.”

On Friday, the marchers became rowdy and played loud music. Environmental policy protection officials became disturbed when marchers littered the ground with discarded polythene bags. Marchers ignored attempts from the environmental officials, and the police were called to the scene. Ultimately, the police dispersed hundreds of campaigners with teargas and arrested twenty one individuals. The march was deemed illegal as organizers never obtained a permit from the board.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) has attempted to obtain comments from the leader of the mobile police team on the action of his men. However, all attempts by news agencies have been rebuffed by the police leader.

For more information, please see:

Angola Press – Police Stop Nigeria Hunger March – 17 July 2007

BBC – Police Stop Nigeria Hunger March – 16 July 2007

Daily Triumph – Hunger march protesters, teargased, 21 arrested – 13 July 2007

BBC – Country Profile: Nigeria – 29 May 2007