Another UN Worker Killed in Pakistan

Another UN Worker Killed in Pakistan

 By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan– A relief worker who works for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has been shot dead in northwestern Pakistan on Thursday in a failed kidnapping attempt.  The victim, Zil-e-Usman, was a 59-year-old Pakistani and a 30-year veteran of the UN.  This was the third killing of UNHCR employee in Pakistan in the past six months.

The slain senior UN official was attacked as he left a field office in the Kacha Gari Refugee Camp and was shot several times.

 Pakistan refugee camp Refugee Camp in Pakistan (Source: AFP)

UNHCR Chief Antonio Guterres said targeting aid workers must be stopped, adding, “There is no justification for attacks on humanitarian workers dedicated to the protection and care of the most vulnerable people.”  

The attack took place at a refugee camp in Pakistan’s Frontier Province where the government forces have launched a military offensive against the Taliban militants.  About 2 million Pakistanis have been driven from their homes in this region and have been placed in refugee camps.  Consequently, many international organizations have dispatched aid workers to this area of Pakistan although there was a risk that the aid workers could be targeted by the militants.

A Pakistani security official told reporters that he suspected the Taliban to be behind this attack.  The shooting came only days after senior Pakistani officials warned that the Taliban militants who had fought in the northern Swat Valley over the past few months were expected to retaliate against the Pakistani government and aid workers.  The Taliban fighters have targeted foreign diplomats and humanitarian workers in the past.

UN had lost its workers just last month in the devastating suicide bombing attack in a hotel in Peshawar.  Guterres said, “It is unacceptable that humanitarian workers doing such vital and selfless work are attacked in this way.”

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – UN workers killed in Pakistan attack – 16 July 2009

CBS – UN Worker Killed in Pakistan Refugee Camp – 16 July 2009

CNN – U.N. worker killed in Pakistan kidnap bid – 16 July 2009

Youth Activists Arrested in Azerbaijan

By Alishba I. Kassim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BAKU, Azerbaijan – Two student activists were arrested and beaten in Azerbaijan after they posted a video critical of the nation’s government.

Authorities arrested Adnan Hajizada, a University of Richmond graduate and fellow activist Emin Milli, in the capital city of Baku last week. A friend of the pair said government officials questioned them while they were out at dinner and struck Milli without warning, and then attacked Hajizada. The two were then arrested and accused of attacking the officials.

Hajizada and Milli are now awaiting trial, where they could be punished with up to five years in prison. They are being held in pretrial detention for the time being, reported The New York Times. Mehriban Efendiyeva, friend of the pair, as well as an activist, said “We note with great regret that in some parts of the world today, severe injustices against the driving force for the progress – the socially active youth – take places in the most brutal manner.”

U.S. Embassy and German officials have voiced concern about the detention and the arrests, which have prompted the Azerbaijani Interior Ministry and Prosecutor General’s office to respond by saying the two countries were “meddling in its affairs.” There are reports circulating that Milli and Hajizada were beaten, and are currently being denied access to lawyers or medical treatment.

A statement issued by the U.S. Embassy in Azerbaijan read, “We call on the Government of Azerbaijan to ensure that Mr. Milli and Mr. Hajizada are granted proper access to legal assistance and medical care. We ask that the Government of Azerbaijan exercise due process in this case and respect the rights of these individuals.”

The video posted by the two activists satirized the Azerbaijani government paying exorbitant prices to import donkeys. The video ended with the statement, roughly translated, “There will be someone to protect donkey civil rights, but who will protect human civil rights?”

For more information, please see:

AP – Azerbaijani Blogger Arrests Prompts Backlash – July 14, 2  009 

 

The Collegian – 05′ Richmond Graduate Arrested – July 14, 2009  

The New York Times – In Azerbaijan a Donkey Suit Provokes Arrests – July 14, 2009

 

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb Vows to Target China

By Ann Flower Seyse
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East Desk

ALGERIA– Al Qaeda in the Islamic Mahgreb or “AQIM” has vowed to avenge the deaths of many Islamic Uighur people during the recent riots in the northwestern province of Xin Jiang in China.  Although the threat does not come directly from Al Qaeda, the Algeria based group’s threat is likely to be supported by other branches of the terrorist organization.

This is the first threat by any branch of the greater Al Qaeda organization on China. Following the recent violence in the province of Xin Jiang many jihadists have been calling for vengeance. 

There are an estimated fifty thousand Chinese living in Algeria,  and they are part of hundreds of thousands of Chinese that work in North Africa and the Middle East.  There are many potential targets for AQIM very close to their cell in Algeria. Earlier in June AQIM attacked a convoy that carried many Chinese engineers. In this attack 24 Algerian security officers were killed, as the target was the greater project, and not the Chinese engineers.

Most of the people who have died in the recent attacks in Xin Jiang are ethnically Han, with only a small portion of Islamic Uighur casualties. China has asked for understanding from the terrorist group, and believes that if AQIM was aware of the whole story, that they would support China’s actions.

One Uighur living in exile in the United sates, Rebiya Kadeer, hopes that other Muslim countries, besides Algeria, will support the Uighurs in China. Kadeer was once a very successful businesswoman in China, but was forced to leave because of her peaceful protesting of Chinese rule. Kadeer hopes that increased Muslim support of Uighurs will help their rights in China.
For more information please see:

The Australian – Algerian Al-Qa’ida Vow to Target Chinese Workers – 15 July 2009

AFP – Al Qaeda Vows to Hit China Over Uighur Unrest – 14 July 2009

Penn Energy – Al Qaeda Threatens China’s Overseas Oil, Gas Interests – 14 July 2009

Telegraph UK – China Pleads for Understanding as Al Qaeda Vows for Revenge over Uighur Deaths – 14 July 2009

Recent Increase in Violence Spurs Increase in Security

By Ann Flower Seyse
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
BAGHDAD, Iraq – Vehicle bans were imposed in two predominantly Christian towns and security was increased around churches in Baghdad following a recent string of attacks that targeted the Christian minority.

The most fatal bombing occurred around dusk on June 12 as worshipers left the Church of Mariam Al-Adra, or the Church of the Virgin Mary, which is part of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Iraq, in central Baghdad. A car bomb exploded outside the church killing three Christians and one Muslim who was also outside the church at that time. More than twenty others were injured by the blast.

On the evening of July 11, and early morning on July 12 four other homemade bombs were placed at two churches in the neighborhood of Wahda and two other churches in the Dora and Al Gadir neighborhood. At least eleven people were wounded in these attacks and some minor damage to the churches occurred.

Also on Saturday, Aziz Rizko Nissan, a senior Christian Government official, was shot and killed in the northern city of Kirkuk. It is unclear whether or not his religion played a role in the killing, or whether the killing was related to Mr. Nissan’s position in government.

In addition a bomb exploded next to a U.S. convoy of personnel that included U.S. Ambassador Christopher R. Hill. No one was injured in this explosion, and it is unclear if this attack is at all related to the other attacks.

On the morning of July 13, another bomb detonated near a church in the city of Mosul, injuring at least three children. This was the seventh church to be attacked in Iraq in this recent string of violence, bringing the total injuries to at least 35 with four fatalities over the past three days.

All of these attacks follow an announcement by Iraq’s senior military commander, Lt. Gen. Babakir Zebari, warning that attacks by extremists and insurgents would continue for years, even though these groups were losing ground. Zebari explained that although losing ground, the extremists and insurgents have a few strongholds and will continue to attack for the next several years. This announcement comes only weeks after American troops have moved out of Iraqi cities. Many Iraqis are complaining about their own military’s lack of action now that the US military has withdrawn from the cities. Referring to Iraq’s security services in the heavily secured government zone, Hossain Ali, a college student said, “They are just hanging out in the Green Zone and staring at us being killed.”

In October of 2008 in Mosul, many Christians fled the country following a string of attacks deliberately targeting Iraq’s Christian population. At the time, more than a thousand Christian families fled the city and at least fourteen Christians were killed in the city. There has been speculation that the attacks were designed to stir religious tensions, even though Sunni and Shi’ite groups are the ones targeted.

There are around 750,000 Christians in Iraq. Christians have been targets of attacks in the past, but are spared much of Iraq’s deadly violence. Authorities imposed vehicle bans in the predominately Christian towns of Tilkaif and Hamdaniyah, which are near the northern city of Mosul. Christian- dominated areas are now a security priority, although deputy head of Ninevah provincial council which includes Mosul said that “we will make our best efforts to keep security for the province and all its citizens of all ethnic and religious backgrounds without exception.”

For more information please see:

AP – Iraq Beefs Up Security After Attacks on Christians – 13 July 2009

CNN – Wave of Church Bombings Stretches into a Third Day – 13 July 2009

The Washington Post – Car Bomb Kills at Least Four Near Church in Baghdad – 13 July 2009

BBC – Baghdad Church Bombing Kills Four – 12 July 2009

NY Times – Church and Envoy Attacked in Iraq – 12 July 2009

Burma’s Junta Prepare to Free Political Prisoners


By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NEW YORK, United States– Burma’s UN Ambassador Than Swe announced during a Security Council session that his country is preparing to release some of the political prisoners so that they can participate in the 2010 general election.  This decision was made at the request of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon during his last visit to Burma.

Swe said, “The Myanmar [Burmese] government is processing to grant amnesty to prisoners on humanitarian grounds…Myanmar [Burma] today is steadfastly proceeding on its chosen path to democracy.”

Ban visit Burma UN Secretary General Ban visit Burma (Source: AFP)

Ban told reporters after the Security Council meeting that he conveyed the international community’s expectation to the Burmese government in the clearest terms possible. He also added that “the world is now watching closely whether they [Burma’s junta leaders] will choose to act in the best interest of their country” since the Burmese people will bear the cost of any lack of cooperation by their government with the international community.

Other UN members, including the U.S., United Kingdom and France, together called for stronger action by the Security Council against Burma, especially with matters related to Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader who is currently on trial for violating her house rest.  Ban’s request to see Suu Kyi was denied during his visit, and Suu Kyi is not likely to be among the prisoners to be freed in time for the 2010 election.

The new constitution, which 92% of voters approved in last year’s referendum and will be voting for in the 2010 election, bars Suu Kyi from holding a political office.  Thus, some claim that the election is to further strengthen the powers of the junta generals.  In response, Swe remarked that “undue pressure from the outside would not be conducive to Myanmar’s [Burma’s] home-grown political process.”

Nevertheless, U.S. envoy Rosemary DiCarlo told the Security Council members that there could be “no free and fair election while key leaders of Burma’s Democratic opposition, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi…languish in Burma’s prison.” 

There was no official word on how many of the estimated 2,100 political prisoners will be release in time for the 2010 general election.

For more information, please see:

BBC – Burma junta ‘to free dissidents’ – 13 July 2009

Bloomberg – Myanmar to Free Political Prisoners, Envoy Tells UN – 13 July 2009

Mizzima – Burma preparing to free political prisoners – 14 July 2009