By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The Malaysian government has used the Internal Security Act to detain thirteen individuals indefinitely and without trial despite an announcement in September that the ISA would be repealed.

According to the inspector-general of police all thirteen of those detained this week were arrested under Section 73(a) of the act which authorizes the police to make a warrant-less arrest of anyone whom they suspect might “act in any manner prejudicial to the security of Malaysia.”

Although the identities of those  detained have not been officially released, there are reports that the detainees include businessmen and two teachers and that six of those detained are foreign nationals who are slated to be deported to their country of origin.

The reason for the detentions, according to the inspector-general, is that intelligence and police investigations have uncovered information that those detained were attempting to revive militant activities but did not elaborate on which militant organization they belonged to. Authorities also allege that the suspects were planning to conduct paramilitary training on the coast of Malaysia before going to the southern Philippines and were using Tawau, a Malaysian coastal city, as their transit point for importing weapons from the Philippines.

Asia director of Amnesty International, Sam Zarifi, has criticized the Malaysian government as making “…a mockery of its plan to scrap the Internal Security Act by using it to detain people once again.” Zarifi has called on the Malaysian government to either charge the thirteen detainees or release them.

Voice of the Malaysian People, a rights group, has described the detentions as a heinous act and found it “…regrettable because it contradicts with the announcement of the prime minister of Malaysia” referring to the September announcement of the act’s repeal.

Over the past decade, the law has been used to detain over 100 militant suspects, political opponents and government critics without trial.

The Internal Security Act has been criticized as draconian and contrary to international human rights standards calling for a fair trial, the right to due process and freedom from arbitrary detention.

Human Rights Watch has been applying pressure to the Malaysian government to fulfill their promise to repeal the Internal Security Act. Even after the promise to repeal the act was made, however, the senior minister in charge of legal affairs explained that there was no schedule for action to officially rescind the Internal Security Act but that it might not happen until after the March 2012 legislative session.

 

For more information, please see:

Borneo Post – Six Foreigners Held for Militant Activity to be Deported – 19 November 2011

The Star – Thirteen Detained in Tawau are Terrorists, Says Hishammuddin – 19 November 2011

Amnesty International – Malaysia: New ISA Detentions Show U-Turn on Reform Promises – 18 November 2011

Arab News – Malaysia Arrests Thirteen Suspected of Militant Activity – 17 November 2011

Channel News Asia – Malaysia Detains Thirteen Over Borneo Militant Group – 17 November 2011

Human Rights Watch – Malaysia: Fulfill Promise to Repeal Abusive Laws – 23 September 2011

By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

HANOI, Vietnam – Two Vietnamese men have been imprisoned for “the illegal transmission of information on a telecommunications network” into China amidst suspicion that the prosecutions were an attempt by Vietnamese authorities to please the Chinese government.

Le Van Thanh and his brother-in-law Vu Duc Trung were sentenced to serve two and three years respectively following a half day long trial.

Both of the men arrested were followers of the Falun Gong spiritual movement which is inspired by Buddhism and focuses on meditation. The movement was banned in China in 1999 after the group organized a peaceful protest in Tiananmen Square causing the Chinese government to designate the group as a “threat to social and political stability.”

The two men were initially detained in June 2010 for broadcasting the Sound of Hope news program into China in which they discussed human rights abuses, corruption and the persecution of Falun Gong followers. The transmissions were made from a farm outside of Hanoi from April 2009 until their detention.

Although outlawed in China, the Falun Gong practice is not prohibited in Vietnam and, according to Epring Zhang of the Falun Dafa Information Center, “…the Vietnamese constitution should protect people’s freedom of speech and expression.”

In addition, the transmissions of uncensored news to China did “…absolutely nothing to harm Vietnamese society or break Vietnamese law” according to Falun Dafa and the court failed to produce a law banning broadcasting into China when pressed by Vu and Le’s attorney.

Furthermore, the Chinese government has allegedly sent correspondences to Vietnam requesting not only that the government prevent the transmission of radio content from Vietnam into China but also that they restrict and harass Falun Gong practitioners. Following the requests, China sent a letter praising Vietnam for their assistance in controlling Falun Gong.

The correspondences between the Chinese and Vietnamese government in conjunction with the legality of the activities of Vu and Le have led many to speculate that the conviction of the two broadcasters was an effort by the Vietnamese government to cater to China’s influence.

For example, Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch argued that “Vietnam should not violate human rights and punish its own citizens merely because their activism displeases China.”

In addition, Reporters Without Borders released a statement that the “…verdict shows the authorities were conveying the anger of their Chinese counterparts, who were the targets of criticism expressed in the radio programs.”

Since being outlawed, Falun Gong practitioners in China have been detained, held in psychiatric facilities and forced into re-education through labor programs.

Just days before the trial of Vu Duc Trung and Le Van Thanh thirty Falun Gong demonstrators were beaten and detained for protesting the trial of the two men outside of the Chinese embassy in Hanoi.

 

For more information, please see:

NTDTV – Vietnam Complicit With Chinese Regime’s Persecution of Falun Gong: Rights Groups – 15 November 2011

Amnesty International – China: Local Residents Petition for Falun Gong Releases – 14 November 2011

IEWY – Viet Nam: Falun Gong Practitioners Detained Over Meditation Protest – 14 November 2011

Radio Free Asia – Under Fire Over Falun Gong Jailing – 11 November 2011

AFP – Vietnam Falungong Jailed Over China Broadcasts – 10 November 2011

by Hibberd Kline
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NEW DELHI, India— Hundreds of Pakistani citizens are being held without charge in Indian jails located in Jammu and Kashmir, India’s Supreme Court revealed on Friday.

Speaking for the Court’s Bench, Judge RN Lodha proclaimed that it was “shocking that over 254 Pakistani nationals are languishing in jails without trial.”

The plight of the prisoners came to light as the Court heard a petition seeking the release of the prisoners.

Petitioner, Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party president Bhim Singh, said that the illegally detained prisoners included four Pakistani soldiers, a number of insurgents and nineteen women who had unintentionally across the border from Pakistan.

The four Pakistani soldiers were arrested between 1965 and 1967 after crossing the dividing line between Pakistani-controlled Kashmir and Indian-controlled Kashmir. The four have been held without charge ever since.

The Pakistani Army had initially informed the soldiers families that the four were dead. However, in 2006 a freed prisoner told the families that he had seen the soldiers in prison in 1998. Upon hearing the news, the families contacted the Red Cross in an attempt to find further information, but no trace of the prisoners could be found until last April.

In Ludhiana Jail in Punjab, another prisoner, who was pregnant when she was arrested in 2002 after crossing the border, has watched her daughter spend the first nine years of her life behind bars.

After learning of the large number of uncharged prisoners, the Court strongly chastised the government for failing to give a full account of the extent to which foreign nationals are imprisoned in Indian jails.

The Court ordered the government to file a “comprehensive report” including “complete information” within two weeks.

Judge Lodha stressed that; “…liberty is the most dear Article to [the Court] and the most precious right given to the people.”

The right to personal liberty is protected in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution and applies to everyone regardless of whether they are are Indian citizens or foreign nationals.

In 2010, the Court began monitoring the repatriation of Pakistani prisoners by the Indian government after Bhim Singh alerted them irregularities in the process. That year the Home Ministry reported that it had repatriated 293 Pakistanis including 130 prisoners and 163 fishermen.

However, the ministry also reported that an additional 500 Pakistanis remained in Indian prisons.

The ministry’s affidavit stated that India’s government exchanges prisoner lists with Pakistan twice each year.

The court order comes on the heals of Thursday’s more upbeat statement by the prime minsters of India and Pakistan. The two leaders proclaimed that the two countries relations are inextricably linked and promised a “new chapter” in Indian-Pakistani relations.

For more information, please see:

BBC News — India Court Shocked at Pakistanis Held without Charge — 11 November 2011

The Telegraph — India’s Supreme Court Denounces Pakistani Jail Term Discovery — 11 November 2011

Times of India — Pakistan Men in Jail for 40 Years Appals Supreme Court — 12 November 2011

The Nation — Indian SC ‘Shocked’ by Pakistanis in Jail — 11 November 2011

By Greg Donaldson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia 

BEIJING, China – Despite international pressure to end its questionable detainee practices, the Chinese government is hoping to expand its power to jail those it deems as “criminals” by modifying China’s Criminal Procedure Law to legitimatize enforced disappearances.

The amendment would allow Chinese authorities to lawfully detain a person for up to six months without any kind of proceeding if alerting family members or lawyers of the detainee’s location would “hinder the investigation.”

International Law explains that a country commits an enforced disappearance when agents from its government take a person into custody and then deny holding the person or fail to disclose the person’s location.

China has a history of detaining individuals in “black jails” despite numerous accusations of major human right’s violations occurring in these facilities. “Black jails” are unlawful secret detention facilities.

In 2009 Human Rights Watch (HRW) RHreleased a report entitled “An Alleyway in Hell: China’s Abusive ‘Black Jails’” describing the horrible treatment detainees receive in “black jails.” Former detainees explained that they were dragged by their hair, beaten, starved, sleep deprived, and received threats of sexual violence.

A short time after the Human Rights Watch article was released, a weekly Chinese newsmagazine published an article confirming the finding of the HRW report. Two months later, the Chinese government ordered the closure of local government “liaison offices” in Beijing that had been used as “black jails” in the past.

Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch expressed the organizations concerns over the new legislation. “Despite a few weak gestures of disapproval, the Chinese government has largely ignored or tacitly approved the security agencies’ proclivity for enforced disappearance and ‘black jails.’” She continued “The proposed legal revisions are a clear indication of the government’s intentions.”

In response to recent criticisms about the proposed amendment China’s Foreign Ministry said “the competent authorities of China have been soliciting the public’s views” on the proposed amendment. Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters that “we are willing to listen to their views but some organizations have been viewing China with colored lenses. “For such organizations, we will not comment on their behavior.”

If the law is passed, many human rights groups fear that the government will initiate a national security crackdown on human rights lawyers, bloggers, and civil activists by making them disappear prior to the upcoming leadership changes within the country.

For more information, please see:

China Digital Times – Human Rights Watch: Enforced Disappearances a Growing Threat — 10 November 2011

Reuters – China “Black Jails” Prompt Fears of Wider Security Crackdown – 10 November 2011

Human Rights Watch – China: Enforced Disappearances a Growing Threat – 9 November 2011

Asia News – With ‘Enforced Disappearances,’ the Communist Party Becomes A Bunch of Common Criminals – 19 September 2011

Human Rights Watch – China: Secret “Black Jails” Hide Severe Rights Abuses – 11 November 2009

by Hibberd Kline
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Over the past few days, access to at least six news websites including the official website for Sri Lanka’s main opposition party, the United National Party (UNP), has been blocked by the Sri Lankan Telecommunication Regulation Commission.

Currently blocked websites include: www.lankanews.com, srilankamirror.com, srilankaguardian.com, paparacigossip9.com and www.lankawaynews.com.

Despite domestic and international criticism, the Sri Lankan government has defended the ban on the grounds that the websites had maligned the President, ministers and top government officials.

Sunil Jayasekara, convener for media watchdog the Free Media Movement, labeled the government’s ban “a brutal crackdown.”

The ministry has attempted to counter such criticism by claiming that the banned websites engaged in publishing materials amounting to “character assassination and violating individual privacy” and that several complaints had been lodged against the sites.

However, the editor of srilankanmirror.com, Kelum Shivantha, believes that no complaints were filed against the news sites. He challenged the government’s assessment, stating that the website always presented fair coverage and included “both sides of the story” in its reporting.

The government did not explain specifically which content spurred it to impose the ban, but each of the banned sites has recently criticized the government. Some of the sites specifically accused politicians of corruption and malfeasance.

Last month, access was similarly blocked to Lanka-e-News’ website after it reported news critical of President Rajapaksa and his brothers.

Although Sri Lankan law does not technically ban criticism of the country’s leaders, the media is often forced to walk a fine line in order to avoid defamation charges.

In a further move, the Ministry of Mass Media and Information issued a statement on Saturday, calling for all websites “carrying any content relating to Sri Lanka,” wherever in the world they operate, to register with the government as soon as possible or face legal action.

Members of both the Sri Lankan media and the opposition have strongly protested both the ban and the registration requirement.

Senior member of the opposition, Mangala Samaraweera, said that the registration requirement was “absurd” and that the government was “paranoid.”

The UNP has pledged to continue campaigning against online news media censorship and is considering legal action.

Additionally, the United States Embassy in Colombo added its voice to the protest in a statement expressing the Embassy’s “deep concern” and calling on the Sri Lankan government “to stop activities aimed at blocking free access in Sri Lanka to all legitimate news websites, including Lanka-e-News.”

The embassy’s statement made it clear that in the view of the United States “a free and independent media is vital to ensuring the health and continuation of any democracy.”

The statement went on to say that “freedom of expression, including unfettered access to internet news websites is a basic right, which must be respected.”

Acting president of the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association, Gnanasiri Kottigoda, took the sentiment of the embassy’s statement further when he accused the government outright of attempting to undermine democracy by restricting the people’s access to information.

However, Sri Lanka’s news companies are not entirely new to registration requirements. Newspapers, radio and television stations must all register before they begin to publish or broadcast.

Furthermore, the government has previously instituted varying degrees of media censorship during its long struggle with the Tamil Tigers.

According to Paris-based campaign group, Reporters Without Borders, in spite of the fact that the war with the Tigers has been brought to an end journalists continue to be the targets of violence in Sri Lanka. The Group said that perpetrators of attacks on journalists enjoy impunity.

In the past year, lankanews, one of the banned websites which has been highly critical of the government, had its headquarters set on fire. Lankanews blamed the government for starting the fire.

Additionally, the website has received repeated threats of further violence and a lankanews reporter has been missing for over a year.

In spite of the government’s highly controversial move, some in the media community have pointed out that the ban may be largely futile.

According to Information Technology specialist Gihan Mendis, tech-savvy individuals inside Sri Lanka are still able to access the banned sites through proxies. Gihan explained that only developed nations, such as China, have the money and high-tech capacity required to completely block websites.

However, others view the website ban as just one of many measures in an ongoing government effort to search out and stifle dissent.

For more information, please see:

ABC News — Sri Lanka Blocks 5 News Websites over ‘Insults’ — 7 November 2011

BBC News — Sri Lanka Blocks Websites for ‘Maligning’ President — 7 November 2011

BBC News — Website Blocking ‘a Brutal Crackdown’ — 6 November 2011

Sunday Times — Government Blocks More Websites, All Must Register — 6 November 2011

Reuters — Sri Lanka Urges News Websites to Register after Ban — 5 November 2011