Charles Taylor Still on Stand Defending His Actions

Charles Taylor Still on Stand Defending His Actions

By Kylie M Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Charles Taylor is still on the stand in front of the Special Court for Sierra Leone defending himself against allegations that he aided Sierra Leonean rebels during the country’s 11-year war.

On Monday Taylor continued to deny any affiliation between his National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) and the Revolutionary United Front’s (RUF) Foday Sankoh saying that if any agreement were made, the prosecution would have produced evidence of such.

“I had no pact with RUF leader Foday Sankoh for mutual assistance.  That could not have been necessary.  There has been no evidence in this court about Sankoh being involved in the conflict in Liberia or commanding an NPFL post.  There was no such thing because I did not know him at this time,” Taylor said.  He added, “There has been no evidence in this court about Sankoh being involved in the conflict in Liberia or commanding an NPFL post.”

He also denied having any knowledge of “Operation No Living Thing.”  During the prosecution’s case a witness testified that Taylor participated in the operation that ordered the deaths of anything that was living.

“I did not instruct anybody to launch such an operation.  I had no control over anybody in Sierra Leone.  There is no way that I would be in control or even in any type of situation of this sort when throughout the revolution in Liberia we never had these kinds of atrocities, so this is impossible,” he said.

Taylor also denied having anything to do with a witness’ claim that he was involved in an organized plan to destabilize West Africa saying, “There was no such thing like this that occurred.”

Taylor’s trial continues on Monday.

For more information, please see:

CharlesTaylorTrial.org – Taylor Did Not Order the Assassination of Sam Bockarie – 10 September 2009

CharlesTaylorTrial.org – Taylor Refuses Testimony of Key Prosecution Witness; Says He Did Not Plan to Destabilize West Africa – 09 September 2009

CharlesTaylorTrial.org – “I Was Not Aware of RUF’s Operation No Living Thing,” Taylor Says – 08 September 2009

CharlesTaylorTrial.org – Taylor Did Not Have Any Pact with RUF Leader Foday Sankoh for Mutual Assistance, He Says – 07 September 2009

Impunity Watch – Update: Trial for Charles Taylor Still in Progress – 27 August 2009

Japanese Inmates Driven to Insanity

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

TOKYO, Japan – Amnesty International published findings that Japan’s practice of informing inmates of their execution only a few hours before they take place have caused death row prisoners to become mentally ill.  The Japanese government is now under pressure to abolish their capital punishment system.

Kate Allen of Amnesty said, “The mental anguish of not knowing whether each day is to be your last day on Earth is terrible…[b]ut Japan’s justice system…sees fit to bury its death row prisoners in the most punitive regime of silence, isolation and a sheer non-existence imaginable.”  She urged the Japanese government to “[r]ather than persist[ing] with a shameful capital punishment system, [they] should immediately impose a moratorium on all further executions” because being informed only a few hours before execution is “utterly cruel.”

Japanese prisoners Japanese prisoners.  Courtesy of Getty Images.

Japanese death row prisoners are held in isolation, and they are not allowed to speak to other inmates.  In addition, prisoners on death row are not allowed to move around except for the weekly exercise sessions and must remain seated in their cells.  Visitations from family and attorneys can end in as little as five minutes.  Consequently, many inmates become delusional and suffer from mental illnesses.

Amnesty’s report highlighted the case of Iwao Hakamada, former professional boxer, who has been on death row for 41 years.  He is considered to have been the longest condemned death row prisoner in the world.  A psychiatrist who met Hakamada diagnosed him with “institutional psychosis.”

32 men were executed between January 2006 and January 2009 in Japan.  17 of the 32 executed inmates were older than 60.  Five were in their 70’s, which made them the oldest executed prisoners in the world.  Japan currently has 102 prisoners on death row.

International human rights standards forbid imposing capital punishment on the mentally ill.  The Japanese criminal procedure code also states that executions should be halted if a person receives the death sentence and is mentally insane. 

However, the death penalty has had wide support in Japan, where conviction rate for criminals is 99%. 

For more information, please see:

BBC – Japan death row ‘breeds insanity’ – 10 September 2009

Guardian – Prisoners driven insane on Japan’s death row, says Amnesty – 10 September 2009

Huffington Post – Amnesty International: Japan Must Stop Executing Mentally Ill Prisoners –11 September 2009

Government Inflicts Heavy Casualties on Rebel Forces in Northern Yemen as Humanitarian Crisis Looms

Government Inflicts Heavy Casualties on Rebel Forces in Northern Yemen as Humanitarian Crisis Looms

By Ahmad Shihadah

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SA’ADA, Yemen – Armed conflicts continue in Northern Yemen as Yemeni government forces engage rebel groups in the mountainous province of Sa’ada.  Regional sources claim that seventeen members of the Houthi rebel group were killed in the skirmish, which occurred in response rebel attacks in several regions. Furthermore, it has been reported that Yemeni government forces have inflicted heavy losses to the rebellion elements and destroyed several hideouts.

The government claims that the rebels are trying to impose religious Shia law. However, the rebels assert that the government is corrupt and has carried out airstrikes against villages in the region killing civilians. International Humanitarian Law requires warring parties at all times to distinguish between civilians and combatants, both the Government forces and Houthi rebels have pledged to do so. If the rebel’s assertions are true, the Government may be violating their pledge.

Moreover, a larger humanitarian crisis looms at Al-Mazraq refugee camp, located ten miles from the fighting near the Saudi Arabian border, where thousands of refugees have been displaced as a result of the fighting. Aid groups have stressed the possibility of humanitarian crisis, as the intense fighting has prevented aid groups from entering the region. Possible consequences of prevented access include lack of food to refugees and inadequate or nonfunctioning health facilities. Many of the refugees have been turned down at the border of Saudi Arabia while attempting to flee the conflict.

The United Nations (UN) is attempting to put together a cross border aid operation from inside Saudi Arabia. Although the UN has launched a $23 million dollar “flash aide” appeal to assist the approximately 150,000 displaced persons, as of now no funds have been received for the initiative. Currently the UN has been using emergency funds from its Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has approved a $2.5 million loan pending responses for the previous $23 million appeal. As of September 8, the refugees have received 170 metric tons of food delivered to camps in towns Hajjag and Sa’ada.

For more information, please see:

Saba News Agency – Armed Forces Cause Rebellion Elements Heavy Losses – 12 September 2009

Al Jazeera – ‘Heavy Losses’ in Yemen Fighting – 11 September 2009

UN News Centre – Yemen: UN Appeal Remains Unfunded As Thousands Flee Fighting Through Desert – 11 September 2009

BBC – Yemen Claims Success Over Rebels – 10 September 2009

Human Rights Watch – Armed Conflict in Northern Yemen – 28 August 2009

UN Found Possible War Crimes in DR Congo

By Kylie M Tsudama
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

GENEVA, Switzerland – On Wednesday the UN human rights chief announced that army and rebel troops committed “possible war crimes and crimes against humanity” in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo).

“The information that has been gathered points very strongly to war crimes and crimes against humanity but you need a judicial body to determine whether or not the acts committed are war crimes under international law,” said head of Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Africa, Scott Campbell.

During the conflict between Nord and Sud-Kivu from October to November 2008, two reports indicate that there were 12 arbitrary killings and around 70 rapes committed by government troops.  In a report compiled jointly with the UN Mission in Congo, MONUC, it is said that the killings were not committed in crossfire, but that the victims “were arbitrarily executed, often inside their houses, after fighting had stopped.”

“Impunity is the norm,” Campbell said. “Rape and sexual violence are daily occurrences.”

The UN urged the necessity of reforming the DR Congo’s security and judicial systems saying the “two reports on a series of human rights abuses, including possible war crimes and crimes against humanity… underscored the urgent need for the DRC government and the international community to institute fundamental reforms to the country’s security and judicial systems.”

The International Criminal Court has issued four arrest warrants for Congolese militiamen.

The High Commissioner said that “concrete and immediate action to hold perpetrators accountable, particularly since sexual violence continues to take place on a daily basis,” will be enforced by a zero-tolerance policy.

For more information, please see:

AFP – DR Congo Army, Rebels Committed ‘Possible War Crimes’ : UN – 09 September 2009

Reuters – U.N. Rights Chief Sees Possible War Crimes in Congo – 09 September 2009

UN News Centre – UN Reports Point to Possible War Crimes in Eastern DR Congo – 09 September 2009

VOA – UN Sees Possible War Crimes in Eastern Congo – 09 September 2009

Many Egyptians Arrested for Allegedly Breaking the Ramadan Fast

By Ann Flower Seyse
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt– Police have arrested one hundred fifty-five people for breaking fast during the daylight hours of the holy month of Ramadan, according to several Egyptian newspapers and human rights activists.

On September 9, Al-Arabiyya reported that an unnamed source within the interior ministry stated that Egypt has launched an unprecedented campaign to enforce prohibitions against eating, drinking, and smoking during the Muslim holy month.  Several human rights organizations have condemned the arrests as a violation of personal freedoms. Furthermore, many human rights activists have emphasized that these detentions have no legal or religious legitimacy.

During the Lunar month of Ramadan all healthy adults are expected to refrain from eating, drinking, smoking, or having sexual relations between dawn and dusk. Children, the elderly, pregnant women, and sick individuals are not expected to keep the strict fast.

However, Gamal Eid of the Arabian Network for Human Rights (ANHR) said that fasting is something that people should do according to their own will, and that it is not an obligation, though many do fast out of courtesy. He further commented that there is no law that prohibits eating and drinking during the day in Ramadan, and that all citizens have the right to do so without being harassed. He believes that the government’s arrests are an implicit endorsement of turning Egypt into a religious state. He primarily blames the government for being complicit.

Negad Al Borei, head of the Institution for Democracy Development commented that he found it strange that, although the administration typically chases extreme religious and jihadist groups, it was executing an extreme policy based on religion. Khaled Ali, Executive Manager of the Hesham Mubarak Law Centre for Human Rights, accused the Ministry of imposing religiosity on citizens. 

For more information, please see:

Al Arabiyya News Chanel – Egypt Cracks Down on Breaking Ramadan Fast – 9 September 2009

J Post – Egyptians Irked By ‘Ramadan Eating’ Arrests – 9 September 2009

UPI – Ramadan Arrests Called Unconstitutional – 9 September 2009

LA Times – Egypt: Police Arrest 155 for Failing to Keep Ramadan – 7 September 2009