President Obama Eulogizes Slain Rev. Clementa Pinckney

By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Technical Director

CHARLESTON, South Carolina — President Barack Obama delivered a heart felt eulogy and rousing political speech and a thoughtful reconciliation on race in America when he left the White House for Charleston, South Carolina on Friday to eulogize the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, who was gunned down last week by a racist terrorist during Bible study.

The President surprised the nation when he belted out the chorus of ‘Amazing Grace’ at the end of his speech, bringing the mourners to their feet to join him in song.

“As a nation, out of this terrible tragedy, God has visited grace upon us for he has allowed us to see where we’ve been blind,” Obama said. “He’s given us the chance, where we’ve been lost, to find our best selves.”

From President to Preacher, the President’s remarks often sounded like a sermon with an organ in the background swooning behind the impassioned passages.

The President, first lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, a bipartisan host of high-level members of Congress and Hillary Clinton all attended the memorial service at TD Arena in downtown Charleston. Last Wednesday, a 21-year-old man opened fire at a Bible study inside Charleston’s Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, killing nine.

The shooter declared he was there to “kill black people,” and an online manifesto attributed to him contained white supremacist screeds.

Obama, in his eulogy, said the killer likely assumed he “would deepen divisions that trace back to our nation’s original sin.”

“But God works in mysterious ways,” Obama said. “God had different ideas. He didn’t know he was being used by God.”

“The alleged killer could have never anticipated the way the families of the fallen would respond when they saw him in court in the midst of unspeakable grief, with words of forgiveness,” Obama said.

The country, he argued, has responded to the church shooting “with a thoughtful introspection and self-examination that we so rarely see in public life.”

See President Obama’s full remarks here.

For more information, please see:

CNN – Obama’s Charleston eulogy: ‘Amazing Grace’ – 27 June 2015

DailyMail – Obama’s amazing grace: President gives searing speech on race and leads church in song during emotional eulogy for pastor killed by race-hate gunman – 27 June 2015

The Washington Post – Obama calls for racial understanding, unity as thousands mourn S.C. pastor – 26 June 2015

Whitehouse.gov – Remarks by the President in Eulogy for the Honorable Reverend Clementa Pinckney – 26 June 2015

In a Landmark Decision The SCOTUS Has Declared Same-Sex Marriage Legal Across the U.S.

By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Technical Director

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On June 26, 2015, a split Supreme Court of The United States ruled that same-sex couples can marry nationwide, establishing a new civil right.

The Whitehouse celebrated the decision with a full rainbow of colors / image courtesy of abcnews.com

In a 5-4 ruling, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote the majority decision with the court four liberal justices.  Each of the four dissenting conservative justices wrote their own dissenting opinions.

Almost 46 years after the Stonewall riots ushered in the modern gay rights movement, the decision marks the end of a major fight for same-sex activists.

“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice and family,” Kennedy wrote. “In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than they once were.”

“Their hope,” Kennedy wrote, “is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.”

In a dissent, Justice Antonin Scalia blasted the Court’s “threat to American democracy.”

“The substance of today’s decree is not of immense personal importance to me,” he wrote. “But what really astounds is the hubris reflected in today’s judicial Putsch.”

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that the decision had “nothing to do with the Constitution.”

“If you are among the many Americans—of whatever sexual orientation—who favor expanding same-sex marriage, by all means celebrate today’s decision. Celebrate the achievement of a desired goal,” he wrote. “Celebrate the opportunity for a new expression of commitment to a partner. Celebrate the availability of new benefits. But do not celebrate the Constitution. It had nothing to do with it.”

The U.S. has now become the 21st country in the world to legalize same sex marriage, including territories. The decision means that married same-sex couples will enjoy all of the same rights and benefits as married heterosexual couples nationwide and will be recognized on official documents including birth and death certificates.

For more information, please see:

CNN – Supreme Court rules in favor of same-sex marriage nationwide – 27 June 2015

New York Times – Supreme Court Ruling Makes Same-Sex Marriage a Right Nationwide – 26 June 2015

NBC News – Landmark: Supreme Court Rules Same-Sex Marriage Legal Nationwide – 26 June 2015

ABC News – Same-Sex Marriage: Supreme Court Rules in Favor, President Obama Calls It ‘Victory for America’ – 26 June 2015

U.N. Report Finds Possible War Crimes Committed in Gaza by Both Israel and Palestinian Militants

By Brittani Howell

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

 

JERUSALEM, Israel – The United Nations released a report on Monday concluding that war crimes may have been committed by both Israel and Palestinian militants during the 2014 conflict in the Gaza Strip. The investigation revealed “serious violations of international humanitarian law.”

Shoppers take cover in shopping mall as air raid siren warns of incoming rockets on July 10, 2014. (Photo Courtesy of New York Times)

The report found that 2,251 Palestinians were killed, 1,462 of whom were civilians. It was also found that 67 Israeli soldiers were killed, as well as six civilians. Children on both sides were “savagely affected,” the report concluded. “Children on both sides suffered from bed-wetting, shaking at night, clinging to parents, nightmares, and increased levels of aggressiveness.”

The conflict, which ended with a truce, lasted for 50 days during July and August 2014. On June 12, 2014 three teenagers had been kidnapped and killed by two Hamas militants. Israel cracked down against Hamas who responded with rocket fire. Israel in turn began a military operation and launched an offensive against Gaza Strip.

The report stated that Israel launched 6,000 airstrikes, 14,500 tank shells, and 35,000 artillery shells. Palestinians were found to have used 4,881 rockets and 1,753 mortars.

It was found that Israel used artillery in residential areas, which violated rules of “distinction, precaution, and proportionality.” These violations could constitute as a war crime. In addition, attacks on medical and school facilities that had been used as shelters may be considered another war crime.

Israel dismissed the investigation and refused to co-operate stating that the investigation was “politically motivated and morally flawed.” Israel’s Foreign Ministry stated that the report, “failed to recognize the profound difference between Israel’s behavior… and the terror organization it confronted.”

The report also found that Palestinian armed groups, “indiscriminate nature of most of the projectiles launched into Israel and the targeting of civilians” may constitute a war crime. Palestinian officials, while reviewing the report expressed a commitment and respect for international laws. A Hamas official rejected the reports findings that Palestinians committed any war crimes, arguing that military sites had been targeted not civilian areas.

International humanitarian law requires that there be sufficient warning when civilian areas may be affected by attacks. Israel used roof-knocks, small strikes that precede major attacks. The report found that these however do not constitute as an effective warning.

The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) led the investigation, which resulted in a 217 page report based off 280 interviews with witnesses and victims, 500 written submissions, and other publically available sources. The investigation began with William Schabas as head, but Mary McGowan Davis, took over after allegations of bias. William Schabas had previously done work for the Palestine Liberation Organization.

The UN Human Rights Council will discuss the report this month. Ms. McGowan Davis stated that the report must not be considered a judicial process but rather as objective findings to lay groundwork for further investigation.

For further information, please see:

BBC- Gaza Conflict 2014: ‘War Crimes by Both Sides’- UN – 22 June 2015

CNN- Israel, Palestinians Both may Have Committed War Crimes in 2014 Conflict – 22 June 2015

New York Times- U.N. Report on Gaza Finds Evidence of War Crimes by Israel and by Palestine Militants – 22 June 2015

Reuters- Israel, Palestinians may Have Committed War Crimes in Gaza: U.N. Report– 22 June 2015

Attack by Ethnic Uighurs was Likely Fueled by China’s Religious Controls

By Christine Khamis, Impunity Watch Reporter

 

BEIJING, China –

A clash between Ethnic Uighurs and Chinese police on Monday led to the death of an estimated 18 people in Kashgar, a city in the Xinjiang region in western China. The attack by the Uighurs on a police checkpoint was reported by Radio Free Asia.

Radio Free Asia, or RFA, is a Washington-based news service that employs Uighur reporters. Chinese news media fails to report much of what the RFA and pro-Uighur websites report on attacks against Chinese authorities.

RFA has reported that a car attempted to go through the police checkpoint in the Xinjiang region without stopping. A police officer attempted to stop the car and the car backed up, crushing the officer’s leg. Two individuals got out of the car and stabbed two traffic officers. Several other attackers arrived at the scene, as well as armed police officers. 15 of the attackers and 3 police officers were killed during the attack.

The RFA’s report has been corroborated by members of the neighborhood where the attack occurred. A police officer also confirmed the attack but wished to remain anonymous because he was not allowed to speak with foreign news organizations.

There is a long history of tension and conflict between the Uighurs and Chinese authorities. Tensions especially intensified in 2009 when there was ethnic rioting in Urumqi, Xinjiang’s regional capital. Hundreds of people have been killed during attacks throughout the past three years.

The Uighurs are an ethnic Turkish group comprising more than forty percent of the 22 million people in the Xinjiang region. Most Uighurs are Muslim. Beijing has increasingly controlled the Uighurs’ right to practice Islam, including allowing fewer mosques and strict oversight of religious schools.

In July 2014, some Muslim civil servants were not allowed to fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In some areas of the Xinjiang region, Uighurs are subject to fines or detention for wearing veils or having beards.

 

Members of ethnic Uighur population. (Photo courtesy of BBC News)

 

The Xinjiang region has expanded economically and with that expansion, a number of Han Chinese have settled in the region. The Han Chinese are said to have the best employment options in the region and many of them do well financially. This has also fueled animosity among Uighurs.

Some of the Uighurs are separatists who want to create an independent East Turkestan, and some of those separatists commit similar attacks against Chinese authorities.

An Amnesty International report in 2013 stated that Chinese authorities criminalized “what they labeled ‘illegal religious’ and ‘separatist’ activities” and cracked down on “peaceful expressions of cultural identity”.

 

For more information, please see:

BBC – China Police Checkpoint Attack ‘Kills 18’ in Xinjiang – 24 June 2015

Bloomberg Business – Attack in China’s Xinjiang Region Kills at Least 18, RFA Reports – 24 June 2015

New York Times – Deadly Clash Between Police and Ethnic Uighurs Reported in Xinjiang Region of China –24 June 2015

Reuters – Bomb Attack In Restive Xinjiang and Police Response Kill at Least 18: Radio Free Asia – 24 June 2015

BBC – Why Is There Tension Between China and the Uighurs? – 26 September 2014

Amnesty International – Annual Report: China 2013 – 25 May 2013