Sri Lankan Military Declares “Safety Zone” for Trapped Civilians

Sri Lankan Military Declares “Safety Zone” for Trapped Civilians

By Shayne R. Burnham
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – The Sri Lankan military declared a “safety zone” for the 250,000 civilians trapped in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)’s stronghold.  The military offensives have backed the LTTE into the town of Mullaitivu, located in Sri Lanka’s northeastern province.

Air force planes dropped thousands of leaflets to urge civilians to travel to the safety zone where the army will then transport them into government territory away from warfare.  The safety zone is a 14 square mile zone located in rebel territory.

Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said, “We will not fire into that area.”

The government says that it has set up temporary shelters in the Vavuniya area, south of the fighting.

The war between the Tiger rebels and the government have raised serious human rights concerns regarding the displaced civilians.  Human Rights Watch has accused the Tigers of preventing the freedom of movement of the people.  On the other hand, the Tigers claim that they protect the civilians who follow them of their own free will.

There is no way to confirm accounts since people are restricted people from going in and out of the area.

A day after the military declared a safe zone, the pro-rebel Tamil website, TamilNet, said that the army shelled a hospital, killing at least five civilians, in the Tiger controlled territory.

The military denied the allegations, stating that there was no need to fire at the hospital and that the statement was merely propaganda.

The LTTE have been fighting for decades to establish an independent homeland for the minority Tamils who claim they have suffered oppression by the Sri Lankan government and majority.  There have been over 270,000 deaths as a result of the violence.

The United Nations calls upon the Tigers to allow free passage to civilians and to UN staff to allow aid inside the territory.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press – 250,000 Tamil Civilians Urged to Flee to Safety – 21 January 2009

BBC – Civilians ‘Die in Lanka Shelling’ – 22 January 2009

New York Times – Sri Lanka Presses Rebels, but at a Mounting Cost – 22 January 2009

UPDATE: Iraq Announces Camp Ashraf Will Close in Two Months

BAGHDAD, Iraq– On December 21, 2008 the Iraq government announced plans to close Camp Ashraf within two months.  The Iraqi government assumed responsibility for the security of the camp from U.S. forces earlier this year.  On January 21, 2009, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the government will expel all members of PMOI from the country.

For more than 20 years, members of the exiled organization People’s Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI), also known as Mojahedin Khalq (MEK) have lived in the camp, located north of Baghdad.  The camp was first opened in 1986, when members of the group fled Iran and were permitted to establish a base north of Baghdad to launch raids against Iran in support of Iraqi war efforts during the Iran-Iraq War.  The organization was also used by Saddam Hussein to suppress Shiite and Kurdish opposition in Iraq following the first Persian Gulf War.  Although PMOI claims it has renounced violence since 2001, Iraq, the United States and the European Union continue to classify PMOI as a terrorist organization.  Iraq has also accused the organization of planning suicide attacks targeting Iraqi security forces, which the organization has denied, calling the allegation a “sheer lie” on the part of the Iraqi government.

According to Iraqi National Security Adviser, Muwaffeq al-Rubaie, “over 3,000 inhabitants of Camp Ashraf have to leave Iraq and the camp will be part of history within two months.”  The Iraqi government has announced plans to close the camp on more than one occasion since the fall of Saddam Hussein;s Baathist government in 2003.  However, according to al-Rubaie, the recent decision to close the camp and the two month time table are “irreversible.”  Iraq maintains it will not allow terrorist groups to operate on Iraqi soil.

While the Iraqi government has stated that the inhabitants of the camp will not be expelled from Iraq by force, the government has not indicated where they will be permitted to reside after the two month deadline expires.  The government has stated that members of the PMOI will either be returned to Iran, at their own request, or to another country where they currently hold a passport of residence.  According to al-Rubai, currently 914 PMOI members do have passports of residency for a third country.

Amnesty International has urged the Iraqi government to classify members of PMOI as “protected persons” under the Fourth Geneva Convention, Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.  Classifying members of the organization in this manner will preclude the Iraqi government from extraditing or forcibly returning people to their countries of origin where they may be subject to torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or execution.

For more information, please see:

Gulf Daily News – Iraq Terror Clamp – 24 January 2009

Tehran Times – Iraq to Close MKO Camp in Two Months – 24 January 2009

Hartford Courant – Iraqi ACcuses Iranian Opposition Group of Planning Suicide Attack; Exiles Deny Allegation – 23 January 2009

Reuters – Iraq Says Will Shut Iran Rebel Camp in 2 Months – 23 January 2009

U.S. Investigation of Airstrikes in Afghanistan Flawed

By Shayne R. Burnham
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

AFGHANISTAN – Human Rights Watch claims that the U.S. investigation into the August 2008 air strikes on western Afghanistan was “deeply flawed” and thereby casts doubt over the military’s commitment to reduce civilian casualties.

On October 1, 2008, the Department of Defense published a summary of a report by Brigadier General Michael Callan of the August air strikes in Azizabad.

Following the summary, Human Rights Watch conducted its own investigations into the matter.

“The weaknesses in the Callan Report Summary call into question the depth of the Defense Department’s commitment to institute reforms that would reduce civilian casualties,” Human Rights Watch said in a letter to U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Separate investigations were conducted by the United Nations (UN), the Afghani government, and the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission.  Their investigations concluded that about 78 to 92 civilians were killed, whereas the Callan summary only reported five to seven.

After receiving much criticism by the UN and Afghani government, and the release of video footage demonstrating a high number of civilian deaths, the U.S. conducted its own investigation led by General Callan.

As a result, the Callan summary accepted that 33 civilians were killed, failing to recognize the numbers arrived at by the UN and government of Afghanistan and the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commision; criticized their methodology; failing to acknowledge flaws in their own assessments, and; disimissing villager testimony.

The UN backs the government of Afghanistan.

“This is a matter of grave concern to the United Nations.  I have repeatedly made clear that the safety and welfare of civilians must be considered above all else during the planning and conduct of all military operations.  The impact of such operations undermines the trust and confidence of the Afghan people in efforts to build a just, peaceful and law-abiding state,” stated Kai Eide, the UN special envoy to Afghanistan.

Human Rights Watch, Asia Director Brad Adams stated, “There was great hope in Afghanistan that the Callan report would provide a credible and detailed analysis of the Azizabad airstrikes, place blame where it gell, lead to appropriate disciplinary action, and result in operational changes that would avoid such tragedies in the future.  Unfortunately, this has not happened.”

This year, there is an expected 30,000 increase in U.S. troops in Afghanistan and the civilian death toll could increase if military procedures remain unchanged.

For more information, please see:

Guardian – Afghanistan Demands End to NATO Air Strikes on Villagers – 26 August 2008

Human Rights Watch – Afghanistan:  U.S. Investigation of Airstrike Deaths ‘Deeply Flawed’ – 15 January 2009

Human Rights Watch – Troops in Contact:  Air Strikes and Civilian Deaths in Afghanistan – 8 September 2008

Reuters – U.S. Probe into Afghan Civil Deaths “Flawed” – 15 January 2009

Fiji Times Fined Over Article, Editor Sentenced to Jail

By Sarah E. Treptow
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – Fiji Times, Fiji’s oldest newspaper, has been fined US $54,000 by the High Court today over the publication of a letter to the editor in October criticizing the court’s validation of the 2006 military coup.  Fiji Times has to pay the fine within 27 days.  It was ordered that the newspaper’s chairman, Ross McDonald, enter a bond of $50,000 on behalf of the paper which is to be refunded after the fine is paid in full.  The editor-in-chief, Netani Rika, has been sentenced to three months imprisonment and has been suspended for two years.  Publisher Rex Gardener has been discharged on the condition he enters into a bond without surety and he is on good behavior for a period of 12 months.

The Fiji Times had admitted guilt and published admissions of contempt of court when they published a letter to the editor from a person residing in Queensland and offered to pay costs.  The Attorney-General, however, was not satisfied with the apologies and urged for the imposition of hefty penalties.  Judge Thomas Hickie said while judges were neither immune to criticism nor infallible, the freedom of expression had been grossly abused in this case.  Solicitor General Christopher Pryde said he was pleased with the ruling because it sends a strong message to media organizations to report responsibly.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) says it is “outraged” at the fine and suspended prison sentence.  IFJ Asia-Pacific director, Jacqueline Park, said in a statement, “The IFJ is alarmed that the publication of a letter to the editor has resulted in such a heavy penalty against the newspaper and its editor.”  Ms. Park continued, “The court’s decision has serious implications for Fiji’s media and the right to free expression, in an environment where freedom of the press has been sorely tested over the past year.”  Her statement said that in a restrictive environment, the IFJ was concerned about the military government’s proposed new media law, and the failure to engage in consultation for input on the proposal.  The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries.

A similar lawsuit against the Daily Post will be heard in April.  The Daily Post published the same letter.

For more information, please see:
Pacific Islands Report – Fiji Newspaper Fined, Editors Sentenced To Jail – 23 January 2009

Fiji Times Online – World body ‘outraged’ at fine – 23 January 2009

Islands Business – Fiji Times fined $100K over article – 23 January 2009