By Greg Donaldson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

MANILA, Philippines – On Wednesday Human Rights Watch (HWR) called for the New People’s Army (NPA) to end unlawful killings and detentions of civilians. The communist group has sought for over forty years to establish a Maoist state in the Philippines.

The New People’s Army (NPA) presence is felt throughout the country (Photo Courtesy of Reuters)

NPA has claimed responsibility for the killing and detentions of several citizens over the past few months.

“For four decades the New People’s Army has offered excuses for cold-blooded killings of civilians,” said Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Recent attacks show that there has been no real departure from this illegal practice.”

NPA justifies its actions by explaining prior to death, civilians were tried before a “people’s court” and were found guilty of “crimes against the people.” “Crimes against the people” could range from rape and murder to spying on the NPA.

Philip Alston, the United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial executions from 2004 to 2010, strongly criticized the NPA’s court system saying it “is either deeply flawed or simply a sham.”

Alston continued “any claim that people who are tried by the NPA’s ‘people’s courts’ are receiving a fair hearing is ludicrous,” Pearson said. “The NPA’s ‘revolutionary justice’ is not just – it is simply old-fashioned murder.”

Currently NPA is holding thirteen people, including Mayor Dano of Lingig, on the island of Mindanao under suspicion of working for the government as spies. HWR reports that at least six members of the group will be tried before the “people’s court” for their alleged crimes.

Last month, during a one day ceasefire, NPA captured and executed two troops. Both troops were in civilian clothing and had just attended a wedding.

NPA admitted to the August and September killings of Raymundo “Monding” Agaze and Ramelito “Ramel” Gonzaga. In addition NPA took responsibility for the accidental injuring of a pregnant woman.

On Monday the rebel group attacked a mine at Claver town in the province of Surigao del Notre, burning down trucks and taking several firearms.

HWR has called for the NPA to abide by international human law and for the government to investigate and prosecute those who have been involved in unlawful killings and detentions.

“Both the NPA and government forces have committed numerous atrocities in more than forty years of armed conflict,” Person said. “Each claims to have the interests of the ordinary Filipino at heart, but neither seems to show it.

The conflict has claimed the lives of over 40,000 people in regions that have been described as poor but resource-rich areas of the country.

For more information, please see:

Philippine Daily Inquirer – Rights Group Slams NPA for ‘Cold-Blooded’ Killings– 6 September 2011

ABS-CBN News – NPA Under Fire for Killings, Attacks on Civilians – 5 October 2011

AlertNet – Philippine Rebels Must Stop Targeting Civilians – rights group – 5 October 2011

Human Rights Watch –Philippines Communist Rebels Target Civilians – 5 October 2011

ABS-CBN News – NPA Kidnapped, Executed 2 Troopers During Ceasefire – AFP – 23 September 2011

By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – Chinese authorities have renewed the threat that internet users who use the internet to make statements that the government deems to be false will be punished.

Internet use in China has exploded in recent months, causing the total number of internet users in China to become larger than the population of every country on earth with the exception of India and China itself.

A report by the China Internet Network Information Center has indicated that, as of June, 195 million of China’s 500 million internet users were utilizing the internet to operate microblogs. This number represents a 209 percent increase from the number of microblogs found at the end of 2010.

The sudden boom in microblogging has led authorities to express concern about the ability of users to quickly send information and comments that run contrary to the Communist Party’s censors.

The spokesperson from the State Internet Information Office under China’s Cabinet has called on internet users to “abide by the law, show self-discipline and refrain from spreading rumors.” The spokesperson has also ordered local authorities and websites to hold those that spread rumors accountable and penalize them to the full extent allowed by law.

As a result of warnings from government authorities and a visit from a Politburo member, China’s largest microblog operator, Sina Corp. is increasing its censorship over bloggers. The corporation has asked its users to help stop the spread of rumors and has warned that bloggers will have their accounts suspended for one month if they are found to have posted false information.

The apparent catalyst for Sina Corp’s decision to increase its censorship is a controversial blog that has caused Chinese authorities to express frustration at Sina Weibo, a microblog controlled by Sina Corp. In this blog a 31-year-old man posted fictitious stories about working as a prostitute. After his identity was discovered, his account was permanently deleted and he was forced to pay a fine for disturbing public order.

Chinese regulations permit those who spread rumors to be punished by serving five to ten days in jail and a fine of 500 Yuan, the equivalent of eighty American dollars.

China’s regulation of the internet is not a new phenomenon and the country currently blocks Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, and monitors other internet sites to block unfavorable information. Analysts suggest that the anxiety being exhibited by officials in response to the increasing use of microblogs could lead to even stricter regulations being placed on internet users in China.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press – China Vows to Punish Posters of Internet Rumors – 1 October 2011

People’s Daily Online – China Calls for Boycott on Online Falsehoods – 1 October 2011

Bloomberg – China Calls for Internet Crackdown After ‘Prostitute Diary’ Shut – 30 September 2011

Reuters – China’s Sina to Step-Up Censorship of Weibo – 19 September 2011

By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – Activists who attempted to register as independent candidates in district legislative elections, which are generally dominated by the Communist party, are being held under house arrest and detained by Chinese authorities.

Reportedly, dozens of activists across China have filed applications to campaign despite receiving official warnings that there is “no such thing” as an independent candidate in China. As of Friday, there were thirteen candidates who had been detained for several hours after meeting to discuss the upcoming election in Beijing.

Although the capital generally has only a few independent representatives, Li Fan of the World and China Institute Think tank estimates that there are now tens of thousands independent candidates prompting unease among the Communist Party. Li attributes this increase to an awareness of civic rights, an increasingly worse relationship between the government and citizens, and social networking that allows for information to be transferred quickly.

Han Ying, who planned to run for election for the National People’s Congress, described her inability to pursue political office when she explained that, “[t]here are a lot of plainclothes officers near my house, and the police come to my home everyday to stop me from campaigning and to stop me from meeting with journalists.” Han also stated that barriers had been set by the police to prevent journalists from approaching her and that they took her cell phone away when she attempted to make a phone call.

Ye Qingchun, another independent candidate, was held at her home by authorities who intended to prevent her from campaigning in the elections.

In addition, three other potential candidates were detained and given fifteen days detention for “obstructing public servants in the course of their duties.”

Other candidates have reported being detained until after the polls were closed, having their name excluded from the ballot, enduring threats against them self and their family, having their business investigated and being told that males were not allowed to campaign against the communist party.

As a result of government opposition to independent candidates, some were forced to resort to refusing donations and avoiding public campaigning opportunities in order to avoid conflict with Chinese authorities.

The election for the People’s Congress, the lowest level of China’s parliamentary system, seats delegates to represent the townships and urban districts across the country. Elections for the People’s Congress are conducted every five years and are the only elections in which citizen’s can directly vote for their legislatures.

Chinese law allows anyone over the age of eighteen years old to be an independent candidate if they are endorsed by at least ten people although elections are tightly controlled by Communist Party officials who choreograph the outcome of elections.

For more information, please see:

Radio Free Asia – Election Candidates Held in Beijing – 30 September 2011

CNN – Independent Candidates Test China’s Election Experiment – 23 September 2011

NTD Television – China’s Independent Candidates Face Detention, Harassment – 20 September 2011

The Guardian – China’s Boom in ‘Citizen Candidates’ Sparks Backlash – 19 September 2011

By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

SINGAPORE, Singapore – Despite urging from human rights groups, Singapore is refusing to abolish the Internal Security Act (ISA) which allows for individuals to be detained without a trial.

Curiosity about the nation’s plans for the act is due, in part, to Malaysia’s recent decision to abolish two of their security regulations. On September 15, Malaysia announced that it would abolish not only the Emergency Ordinance but their version of the Internal Security Act as well. Similar to the act currently in place in Singapore, both acts allowed citizens to be detained without a trial.

Despite Malaysia’s decision; however, Singapore’s Home Affairs Ministry has stated that the ISA continues to be relevant and crucial in the realm of national security.  In announcing the decision to not follow in Malaysia’s footsteps, the Home Affairs Ministry notated various differences that exist in the two nations.

 One such difference is the holding period required under both forms of the ISA. In Malaysia, detainees could remain in custody for up to sixty days while Singapore only allows detainees to be held for thirty days before the individual is required to be released unconditionally unless a Detention Order is issued.

The ministry also claimed that the ISA has never been used to detain somebody based solely on their political beliefs and has instead only been used to combat threats of subversion, espionage, terrorism and religious extremism.

While some scholars believe that there is a need for the ISA,  other groups as well as sixteen individuals who were formerly detained under the ISA are pushing for its abolition.

One proponent of the ISA, Dr. Rohan Gunaratana from the International Center for Political Violence and Research stated, “…ISA is [a] valuable tool to preventively detain terrorist suspects to investigate and also confine them.”

In contrast, sixteen former detainees held under the ISA state that “[t]his law has been in existence for more than half a century and its impact on society is both crippling and pernicious.”

One of the detainees is Chia Thye Poh who spent 26 years in detention and was one of the world’s longest held political prisoners along with Nelson Mandela.  Chia was detained in the 1960’s after being accused of being a Communist subversive.

Seven of the others former detainees were detained for an alleged Marxist conspiracy against the government of Singapore in 1987.

The Singapore government maintains that the sixteen former political prisoners were detained for their involvement in activities that threatened national security and not because of their political beliefs.

The ISA was initially enacted by British authorities to fight the Communist insurgency after World War II. While the ISA was generally used between the 1960’s and 1980’s to contain those believed to be causing racial and religious disharmony, it was primarily used to combat terrorism following the September 11 terrorist attacks.

For more information, please see:

Channel News Asia – MHA Says ISA Remains Relevent & Necessary – 23 September 2011

AFP – Ex-Prisoners Urge Singapore to Scrap Security Law – 19 September 2011

My Sinchew – Will Singapore Bow to Pressure to put an End to ISA? – 19 September 2011

Today – Selling Singaporeans on the ISA – 19 September 2011

Channel News Asia – ISA Relevant to S’pore, Crucial for National Security: MHA – 16 September 2011

By Greg Donaldson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – The Khmer Rouge tribunal explained Thursday that the four former Cambodian leaders accused of genocide will be tried on a charge-by-charge basis.

“Separation  of  proceedings  will  enable the chamber to issue  a  verdict  following  a  shortened trial,  safeguarding  the  fundamental  interest  of  victims  in  achieving  meaningful  and  timely justice, and the right of all accused in Case 002 to an expeditious trial,” the opinion read.

The court’s desire to accelerate the trials stems from the fact that defendants range in age from seventy-nine to eighty-five. The court is attempting to avoid the result of the 2006 trial of Slobodan Milosevic in which Milosevic died in his cell during trial.

Defendants have already cited their health as obstacles to upcoming trials. It has been reported that Ieng Thirith, the youngest of all the defendants, has dementia and memory loss. A health expert told the court that Thirith was no longer fit for trial.

Another defendant, Nuon Chea, has told the court that it is very difficult for him to focus and he cannot sit for long periods of time.

Clair Duffy, a trial monitor for the Open Society Justice Initiative admitted that the decision to break up the charges into separate trials is not perfect but explained the clock is ticking for the court to sentence the defendants before they die.

“I guess it’s an exercise of weighing competing interests. The question is, is it better to see some form of justice in a shorter period of time that only involves some allegations? I think the answer to that has to be yes,” she said.

While public appearances by the defendants have been limited, the media has kept a close watch on how the defendant’s act while in public. During a bail hearing in 2009, Ieng Thirith said that anyone accusing her of a crime would be cursed “to the seventh circle of hell.”

Nuon Chea has been wearing sunglasses and a stripped ski cap throughout the trial. On the first day of trial he announced that he was not happy with the trial. After a judge denied Chea’s request to hear hundreds of Chea’s witnesses, Chea staged a three day walkout.

Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979. In addition to being accused of genocide, it is also alleged that the regime authorized torture, executions, starvation, and child labor camps.

For more information, please see:

Phnom Penh Post — Khmer Rouge trial split — 23 September 2011

AFP – War crimes court splits KRouge trial charges– 22 September 2011

Voice of America — Khmer Rouge Court to Try Former Leaders Crime by Crime — 22 September 2011

The Atlantic — Scenes From a Khmer Rouge Trial Gone Wrong — 21 September 2011