Methodist Church Leaders Silenced as World Leaders Condemn Fiji Interim PM’s Actions

Methodist Church Leaders Silenced as World Leaders Condemn Fiji Interim PM’s Actions

By Hayley J. Campbell
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – A Fiji court has stopped two Fiji Methodist Church Ministers and the paramount chief Ro Teimumu Kepa from holding meetings for at least the next 21 days, after they were arrested for defying Emergency Regulations set up by the interim government.

In April, Fiji Interim Prime Minister, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, implemented emergency regulations which makes it illegal for groups that have anti-government views to organize.

Matelita Ragogo, a reporter for Radio New Zealand International, said, “In the next 21 days, they are not allowed to have any meetings, they are not allowed to be seen in public or conduct anything that might be construed to be a meeting. They had to surrender all their travel documents, and Ro Teimumu in particular, she is not to publish any other material pertaining to the annual conference of the Methodist church.”

Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key have condemned the arrests of the Methodist Church leaders, saying those actions are indicative of the type of power the interim regime has held over the Fijian people since the military coup in 2006.

“We absolutely condemn what has occurred. It does show a consistent course of conduct so far as Commander Bainimarama and the interim military is concerned. This is just another very regrettable example of the regime further isolating itself from the international community and further stepping back from democracy and civil and human rights,” Mr. Smith said.

Ro Teimumu, Reverend Ame Tugaue, who is the church president, and the Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu, who is the secretary general, are awaiting their court appearances in three weeks.

For more information, please see:
Radio New Zealand International – Charges silence Fiji church conference organisers – 23 July 2009

Taiwan News – Australian FM condemns Fiji church arrests – 23 July 2009

Stuff.co.nz – Wave of Fiji arrests alarms Key – 23 July 2009

Plan to Evacuate Outposts Approved Amid Increasing International Pressure

By Ann Flower Seyse
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East Desk

JERUSALEM, Israel– The news agency Ha’aretz broke the news on July 21 that Israeli leaders including Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had created a plan to swiftly evacuate twenty-three illegal outposts on the west bank.

The term “outpost” was initially defined in a report by lawyer Talia Sasson as a piece of land “lying a significant distance from an existing settlement and established with disregard to the law.” The government commissioned her study in 2005, in which 105 communities were identified as outposts. An estimated 8,000 settlers live at the outposts set to be evacuated.

No official date for the evacuation has been released, although the leaked information says that the evacuations will be very quick. Although the source of the information is anonymous, the report comes from the same reporter to whom former prime minister Ariel Sharon released plans to withdraw troops and settlers from the Gaza strip in 2005. Netanyahu’s officials have declined to comment on the plans, but soldiers executed a military exercise in preparation for riots and protests that are expected to occur with the evacuation. Moreover, the security administration designed the plan with Netanyahu’s knowledge and approval. This plan would comply with an agreement that was made with President George W. Bush to remove the outposts built after March 2001.

The last such evacuation attempt happened in 2006 with an outpost known as Amona. However, ultranationalist protesters flooded Amona, and violent protests broke out. More than 300 were injured in the struggle and Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, cited excessive violence and police brutality in the action. Furthermore, when three illegal structures at outposts in the West Bank were evacuated on July 21, and settlers torched Palestinian olive groves, threw stones at Palestinian Cars, and blocked roads. The displaced settlers have threatened a larger “price tag” for further evacuations.

The proposed evacuations will happen very quickly and simultaneously to minimize the chance of failure. It is hoped that violence will be significantly decreased if there is no time for protesters to travel to the evacuation. Additionally, with all of the evacuations occurring simultaneously and at an unannounced time, there will be no time for planning, so it will be difficult for protesters to gather in significant numbers at all of the locations.

There has been increasing pressure from the international community for the peace process to restart in Israel. Earlier in 2009, US President Barack Obama told Israel that the settlement expansion needed to stop in order for peace to occur, and other leaders are now supporting this message. Most recently Russia’s foreign ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko, and the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon have issued statements encouraging Israel to halt further settlement expansion.

For more information, please see:

Sydney Morning Herald – Plan to Evacuate Settler Outposts – 22 July 2009

Y-Net – UN Secretary General: Israel Must Halt Settlement Building – 22 July 2009

Christian Science Monitor – Is Israel Serious About Closing 23 Fringe Settlements? – 21 July 2009

Haaretz – Ex-envoy to US: Israel ‘totally committed’ to Razing Outposts – 21 July 2009

Jerusalem Post – Russia Calls on Israel to Halt Construction in East Jerusalem – 21 July 2009

The Washington Post – Israel to Evacuate all Outposts in a Day: Report – 21 July 2009

Fiji Police Arrest Church Leaders

By Angela Marie Watkins
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – Fiji’s interim Prime Minister has confirmed that several Methodist church leaders were taken into police custody and will appear in court Thursday afternoon.

The arrests follow several ongoing tussles over the past few months between the interim government and the church as to whether its annual conference can go ahead. Fiji’s military government has already banned the meeting once, accusing the church of being too political and setting conditions for future talks.

Military spokesman Lt. Col. Neumi Leweni said Wednesday that the overnight arrests followed the Methodist Church leaders’ decision to include “political issues” in the program for the church’s annual conference rather than promoting “spiritual development.”

“This was a clear breach of the Public Emergency Regulation and also not a matter for the church to discuss,” Leweni said. Under the regulation, meetings and protests are banned. Leweni said the church leaders would be released when investigations were completed, but the conference was canceled.

Among those arrested was former president of the Fiji Methodist Church, Reverend Manasa Lasaro; General Secretary, Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu; the Secretary for Pastoral Ministry, Tomasi Kanailagi; and the Church’s Finance Secretary Viliame Gonelevu. The general secretary was taken in on Tuesday night and others were detained the next morning.

The country’s most senior female High Chief, Rewa Province’s Ro Teimumu Kepa, was also taken into custody, allegedly for a letter outlining her intention to allow the church to hold the conference in her province next month.

Commodore Frank Bainimarama says both Ro Teimumu and the church leaders breached the conditions of the permit given to them when the standing committee met seven days ago.

The Methodist Church in Fiji has said that eight of its senior members are being held by police for questioning.

For more information, please see:
BBC – Fiji police hold church leaders – 22 July 2009

Associated Press – Methodists arrested amid Fiji military crackdown – 22 July 2009

New Zealand International Radio – Fiji’s interim leader confirms Methodist leaders in court this afternoon – 22 July 2009

New Zealand International Radio – People of Fiji’s Rewa province fear for detained high chief’s safety – 22 July 2009

Explosion in Lebanon May Indicate “Severe Violations” of UN Resolution by Hezbollah

By Nykoel Dinardo
Senior Desk Officer, Middle East

United Nations – On July 14, an explosion in Southern Lebanon triggered a slew of accusations that Hezbollah has been and is still violating UN Resolution 1701 by gathering and storing arms.  Resolution 1701, which was signed in 2006, led to a halt in firing between Hezbollah and Israel following a 34 day armed conflict.  It imposed a strict embargo on weapons to Lebanese or foreign militias in Lebanon. 

According to Israeli military officials, the explosion in Lebanon was composed of “a new stock of short range missiles” and that those weapons were the property of Hezbollah.  Israeli Brig. Gen. Aviv Kochavi explained to journalists on July 15 that he believed the building also contained mortars, shells, rockets and other ammunition as well.  The explosion collapsed a two-story building on the outskirts of the village of Khirbet Silim, twelve miles from the Israeli border.  The cause of the explosion is still unclear.  No one was injured in the blast.  However, many residents in the area were panicked as the explosion took place on the third anniversary of the 2006 war. 

Israeli officials asked for an official UN investigation.  Israeli Ambassador Gabriela Shalev asked the UN to take action and at least begin an investigation citing this incident, and two others, that she claims are “severe violations” of Resolution 1701.  The UN sent an envoy of soldiers serving with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon.  However, demonstrations at the site of the explosion turned violent when UN soldiers arrived.  Fourteen soldiers were injured and several UN vehicles were damages.

UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams has spoken out since this incident calling for restraint.  Williams said that the UN needs to “lower the temperature, to try and address the issues and not see any escalation” of the situation.  In a statement to the press on July 20 explained that “clearly there were violations of 1701” and he has been meeting with several Lebanese officials to address the problem.  He called on both Lebanon and Israel to renew their commitment to the Resolution and exercise restraint during this period.

For more information, please see:

United Nations – Top UN Envoy Urges Restraint After Recent Incident in Southern Lebanon – 21 July 2009

Associated Press – Israel to Lebanon: Stop Border Violations – 20 July 2009

CNN – Lebanon: Crowd Attack U.N. Peacekeepers – 20 July 2009

AFP – Israel Demands Tougher UN Action Against Hezbollah Arms – 16 July 2009

New York Times – Israel Sees Evidence of Hezbollah’s Rearming in Explosion – 15 July 2009

Ynet – Explosion in Hezbollah Arms Cache Stirs Panic in South Lebanon – 14 July 2009

China’s “All-Out Attack” Against Lawyers

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NEW YORK, United States – The Chinese government has closed down a legal aid center in Beijing and has disbarred 53 lawyers in an all-out effort to silence the country’s human rights defenders.

Last Friday, Beijing Civil Affairs Bureau officials raided and closed a nongovernmental legal research center, Open Constitution Initiative (OCI).  OCI takes on “officially sensitive” cases for groups and individuals whose fight for justice is hindered by China’s political system.

The officials claimed that OCI was closed down for failure to pay taxes and for improper registration, but OCI believes that the forced closure was politically motivated.  Sophie Richardson of Human Rights Watch said, “The attack on OCI marks a new low in the Chinese government’s campaign against human rights defenders.  This is precisely the kind of organization whose work the government should value….”

Among the 53 lawyers who were disbarred included an eminent civil rights lawyer, Jiang Tianyong, who has represented high-profile Tibetan monks and victims of slave labor rings.  Other lawyers, whose works include representing HIV/AIDS patients and peasants in land disputes, have been taken by the police, handcuffed and beaten.  There are also reports of law firms being forced to close.

China attack rights lawyers Chinese petitioners whose legal channels have been frustrated (Source: AP)

The Beijing Justice Bureau announced that lawyers’ licenses were revoked because the individuals had failed to apply for re-registration.  However, critics argue that the Chinese government is intentionally removing means through which Chinese citizens can obtain legal assistance.  Furthermore, Beijing Bureau of Legal Affairs issued a notice to lawyers telling them to be “cautious” in defending suspects linked to the recent riots in Urumqi. 

Tang Jitian, whose license has been revoked and is under house arrest, said, “Some authorities don’t like those lawyers who speak for the people.  They think we are enemies…What police and the authorities are doing is destroying Chinese law.”

Human Rights in China and its executive director Sharon Hom also voiced their concerns saying, “This suppression will inevitably lead to…creating greater disadvantages for already persecuted groups and greater social instability.”

Human Rights Watch is urging the Chinese government to make a choice since “eliminating legal aid, banning legal research, and hobbling lawyers” will only hurt the Chinese society.

For more information, please see:

Guardian – China accused of ‘all-out attack’ on lawyers – 8 June 2009

The Huffington Post – China’s Civil Rights Lawyers: The New Enemies of the State – 20 July 2009

Human Rights Watch – China: Cease Attacks on Rights Lawyers – 17 July 2009