Does the Pistorius Case Decision Serve Steenkamp’s Death Justice?

By: Ashley Repp

News Desk Reporter, Africa

pistorius

PRETORIA- South Africa

This week, in a tense courtroom, Judge Thokozile Masipa found Oscar Pistorius, not guilty of murder in the fatal shooting of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in 2013.  Instead, with regard to her death, he was found guilty of a lesser charge of “culpable murder,” which is the equivalent of manslaughter in the United States.  Some, including Steenkamp’s family, expressed that justice was not served here.

On February 14, 2013, Steenkamp went into the bathroom of the master bedroom where she and Pistorius slept.  According to Pistorius, he though an intruder was hiding in the small bathroom, took his gun, and shot into the bathroom four times through the door.  The prosecution pushed the premise that Steenkamp had locked herself in the bathroom, in an attempt to get away from Pistorius.  The prosecution brought text messages between Steenkamp and Pistroius that indicated a rocky and jealous relationship.

The defense argued that Pistorius was raised in a violent and unsafe part of South Africa and as a result, was wary and afraid of the possibility of intruders, which he claimed he believed Steenkamp was the night he shot her.  While the judge held that this particular piece of information was immaterial to the trial, she did find that he behaved negligently in shooting into the bathroom four times.

The trial’s outcome turned on the legal finding that not all of the elements to find Pistorius guilty of premeditated or common law murder, were present.  Under South African law, to find someone guilty of premeditated murder, the killer must intend and plan to kill the target, which in this case would have been Steenkamp, or whoever Pistorius claimed was behind the door.  To find common law murder, the killer must act in the heat of the moment, but lack the “malice aforethought” requisite for premeditated murder.  Under this theory, the judge would have to find that Pistroius should have known that shooting into the bathroom would kill whoever was behind the door.

While Masipa did not find these elements entirely fulfilled, she did find Pistorius guilty of culpable murder, a classification that does not require that the actor intended to kill the individual, but acted negligently, counter to how a reasonable person would behave in the same circumstance.  Therefore, the decision turned on the finding that Pistorius did not intend to kill, and did not know that his actions would lead to the death of Steenkamp, and that by shooting into the bathroom four times, Pistorius behaved negligently.

Though this decision came as a relief to Pistorius and his family, the verdict was heartbreaking for many who simply cannot come to terms with the notion that Pistorius could have shot into the bathroom without the intent to kill.  There is no minimum sentence for culpable murder, and Pistorius will be sentenced in October, pursuant to the decision reached this week.

 

For more information, please visit:

BBC News- Oscar Pistorius: Minister says verdict is ‘disappointing’- 13 Sept 2014

CNN World- Judge: Pistorius was negligent, but Steenkamp’s killing was not murder– 12 Sept 2014

CNN Wrold- What’s next for Oscar Pistorius– 11 Sept 2014

New York Daily News- Oscar Pistorius murder trial: ‘I can’t believe that they believe it was an accident,’ says Reeva Steenkamp’s mother– 13 Sept 2014

New Study Suggests Fracking Is The Cause of Health Problems In Pennsylvania Town

By Lyndsey Kelly
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States of America – Researchers from the University of Washington and Yale University conducted a study to research the negative impact fracking has on health conditions. Since the start of the United States domestic energy surge in 2003, advocates have blamed oil and gas drilling for a wide range of medical ailments.

A Pennsylvania home is surrounded by pipes used for fracking purposes (Photo Courtesy of US News).

Fracking blasts large amounts of water, sand and chemicals deep underground in order to break apart shale deposits and ultimately extract gas and oil. The University study was conducted over a two-year period in Washington County, Pennsylvania. The study surveyed nearly 500 residents of the rural southwestern town, which is home to more than 600 active gas wells.

The study found that residents living within one kilometer of a gas well suffered twice as many health related problems than those who live two kilometers away or further. The recorded health issues include: allergies, nosebleeds, skin rashes, sore throats, itchy eyes, and respiratory conditions.

Other studies have corroborated the claims posed in the University of Washington and Yale University study. Methane and toxic chemicals were found in the drinking water in the area surrounding multiple well sites.

One Pennsylvania resident, Stephanie Tiongco recently filed a lawsuit against an Arkansas-based energy company, which has been drilling just a quarter-mile from her property. Tiongco claims that the fracking has resulted in the death of farm animals and has even caused her hair to start falling out.

A spokeswoman for Pennsylvania State’s health department stated that the agency has not been given a copy of the study before its release, and would be happy to review any data the student researchers have gathered. However, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection failed to return email inquiries regarding the study. Other departments have rejected the studies validity as a whole. Travis Windle, a spokesman for Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale Coalition, states the study was “done in partnership with a local activist group, and was designed to put selective and unproven data behind a pre-determined and biased narrative.”

 

For more information, please see the following:

USA TODAY – People Near ‘Fracking’ Wells Report Health Woes – 10 Sept. 2014.

US NEWS – Respiratory, Skin Problems Soar NEar Gas Wells, Study Says -10 Sept. 2014.

WEATHER CHANNEL –  People Who Live Near Fracking More Likely To Become Sick, Largest Study Of Its Kind Finds – 11 Sept. 2014.  

WASHINGTON POST – Live Near Fracking? You’re More Likely To Report Health Problems, New Study Says – 10 Sept. 2014.

 

Fijian Soliders Freed After Captivity in Syria

By Max Bartels 

Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania 

 

Suva, Fiji

In late August 45 Fijian soldiers acting as U.N. peacekeepers, were kidnapped by Syrian rebels on the border between Syrian and Israel known as the “Area of Separation”. The “Area of Separation” refers to a 70- Kilometer strip between the border of Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights region, which has been policed by U.N. peacekeepers since 1974. The kidnapping militants said the reason for the action was because they believed the U.N. peacekeepers were supporting the regime of Syrian President Bashar- al Assad and ignoring the plight of the Syrian people.

IW #13 Fiji Soliders
Fijian Soliders in the video posted to the internet by Syrian rebels.
(Photo courtesy of ABC News)

Military officials in Fiji released, immediately after the incident that they were in negotiations with the Syrian Militants.  The Fijian military then released to the press, earlier this week that they had secured the released of their soldiers from the Syrians, who have been identified as the Nursa Front, without any demands or conditions. They then immediately tried to retract their statements, but the reason for this is still unknown. The U.N. never reported any such progress with the negations for the release of the Fijian solders. The Associated Press reported that it would be unlikely that the U.N. gave permission for Fiji to release that their soldiers would be coming home, as the U.N. usually doesn’t release information on hostage matters until it is completely resolved.

After Fiji prematurely released their statements the Syrian militants posted a video of the captured soldiers on their Twitter and YouTube accounts of the soldiers saying they were being treated well and expected to be released soon. The Fijian government then reported again that the Syrians had dropped all demands and conditions and that the soldiers were to be released. This time the statements were not premature,  after the videos were posted the Fijian soldiers were released on the Syrian side of the border. The soldiers were made to walk through the border crossing to the Israeli controlled territory. They were reported to be in good condition and were sent to receive medical treatment in Israel before being able to return home to Fiji. Fiji’s presidential candidate Frank Bainimarama called the Fijian soldiers heroes, to be able to keep their cool under such extreme circumstances. He further stated that it was the discipline of his troops that kept any militants and any U.N. forces from being killed throughout the incident. Many nations have now pulled out their military contingents from U.N. peacekeeping operations in the Golan Heights out of concern that the war in Syria will spill over the border.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press — Fiji May Have Jumped the Gun on Fate of its UN Troops — 10 September 2014

Al Jazeera — Syria Rebels Free UN Peacekeepers — 11 September 2014

ABC News — UN: 45 Fijian Peacekeepers Freed in Syria — 11 September 2014

Reuters — U.N., Fiji Say No Word on Location of Peacekeepers Abducted in Golan Heights — 31 August 2014

 

Who is Marina Silva? Probably Brazil’s Next President

By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BRASILIA, Brazil – Marina Silva is on track to become Brazil’s next President.  However, Silva’s childhood was far from presidential.  Silva and her family lived deep in the Amazon rain forest, where her father, brother and six sisters followed miles of trails through the forest to find rubber trees.  The family would tap rubber trees for their latex as income.

Marina Silva, front-runner in Brazil’s presidential election | Image courtesy of Forbes

At 16 years of age, Silva was illiterate and her mother had just died.  After tragically contracting hepatitis, Silva traveled alone to the nearest city for treatment, there she learned to read and right so she could become a nun, her biggest goal.

At 56, Silva is on the verge of a much larger goal, becoming Brazil’s first black president.

Silva’s path took many turns after arriving in the city: she worked as a maid, and then became a teacher and grass-roots campaigner against deforestation in the Amazon alongside the idolized activist Chico Mendes.  She is perhaps the most prominent defender of the threatened rain forest.

Silva has spring-loaded to front-runner of the presidential election, to be decided in October, following the death of her running mate, Eduardo Campos, who died in a plane crash Aug. 13.

Before, Silva and Campos, of the Brazilian Socialist Party, had been polling as low as 8 percent, now leading polls show Silva winning a second-round victory against current President Dilma Rousseff.

Silva’s platform stems from her humble background and green credentials.  She vows to institute fiscally conservative economic reforms.  Silva has called for an end to “creative accounting” and has pledged to cut taxes on investment, eliminate government waste and boost foreign trade.

Brazil has slipped into recession under the leadership of Rousseff, eroding his support base among the poor and working class.  Younger voters, who took to the streets last year to protest poor public services and political corruption, appreciate Silva’s distance from a political elite mired in scandal.

Unlike her competitors Silva has pledged to remain in office for only one term.

“She’s speaking our language, she’s saying things the youth want to hear,” Andre Dutra, former president of the Socialists Party’s youth division, told VICE News.  “She’s talking about a new way to do politics.”

Recently Silva’s party has been mentioned in an alleged corruption scheme involving the state-owned oil firm Petrobas and officials receiving cash kickbacks.  So far Silva has not been directly implicated.

For many working –class Brazilians, Silva’s political ascendance as a poor, black woman suggests that anyone can become president.  We will find out in October.

For more information please see,

Forbes – Marina Silva Likely to Become Brazil’s Next President -11 Sept. 2014

Vice News – Marina Silva, Former Illiterate Rubber Tapper, Reshapes Brazil’s Presidential Race – 11 Sept. 2014

Bloomberg.com – Silva’s Clean-Politics Pledge Clashes With Growth Agenda – 10 Sept. 2014

Aljazeera – Marina Silva’s Swift Rise Aided by Leftists, Evangelicals and Billionaires – 10 Sept. 2014

Robert H. Jackson Center Hosts Eighth Annual International Humanitarian Law Dialogs

From The Robert H. Jackson Center
9 September 2014

International Prosecutors, ambassadors, diplomats, and legal scholars from around the globe came together in the name of humanity on August 25-26 at Chautauqua Institution, a renowned arts and cultural community located in upstate New York, near Jamestown. The International Humanitarian Law Dialogs, hosted by the Robert H. Jackson Center, Jamestown,NY, is a historic gathering of renowned international Prosecutors from The International Criminal Court, The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, The Special Court for Sierra Leone, and The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, together with leading professionals in the field of International Humanitarian Law. The eighth annual proceedings offered attendees a look at the impact of modern international law on war crimes and crimes against humanity, focusing on the theme, “The New World (Dis)Order: International Humanitarian Law in an Uncertain World.”

Brenda Hollis, SCSL; Serge Brammertz, ICTY; Hassan Jallow, ICTR, David M. Crane, SCSL; Fatou Bensouda, ICC; Nicholas Koumjian, ECCC; moderated by Jean Freedberg , United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (Photo courtesy of The Robert H. Jackson Center)
Highlights from this year’s Dialogs included updates from the current prosecutors; a panel discussion on the Relevance of International Humanitarian Law in 2014; “Porch-Sessions with the Prosecutors,” which featured topics relating to non-state actors and International Humanitarian Law, and the culminating event – the issuance of the eighth Chautauqua Declaration by all of the international Prosecutors in attendance.

Developed by the Prosecutors during the two-day symposium, the Chautauqua Declaration is a statement that calls on all nations to pursue justice as a matter of law. It reaffirms the original Chautauqua Declaration, issued in 2007, which stated in part, “The challenge for States and for the international community is to fulfill the promise of the law they created; to enforce judicial decisions; [and] to ensure the arrest and surrender of sought individuals….”

The Dialogs are held annually to honor these ideals, and to help advance the field of International Humanitarian Law. Signing the 2014 Declaration were Fatou Bensouda, International Criminal Court; Serge Brammertz, International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia; David Crane, Special Court for Sierra Leone; Sir Desmond de Silva, Special Court for Sierra Leone; Brenda J Hollis, Special Court for Sierra Leone; Hassan Jallow, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda; and Nicholas Koumjian, Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. The issuing ceremony was moderated by Jean Freedberg, Center for the Prevention of Genocide, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Sponsoring organizations for this year’s Dialogs were the American Bar Association, American Red Cross, American Society of International Law, Athenaeum Hotel, Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Chautauqua Institution, Impunity Watch, International Bar Association, IntLawGrrls, NYU Center for Global Affairs, Planethood Foundation, Robert H. Jackson Center, Syracuse University College of Law, and Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute at Washington University School of Law, in association with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

To view streamed sessions of Monday’s schedule please click the following links: