By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia 

SARGODHA, Pakistan- On Wednesday, five Muslim American youths were arrested in Sargoha city of Punjab province.  They allegedly were on their way to the Taliban sanctuary in the tribal areas of Pakistan with the intention of training to fight in Afghanistan against American troops.

Pakistani officials said these men from the Washington suburbs whose ages range from their late teens to their early 20s, had been in contact through YouTube with a Pakistani militant with links to al-Qaida before their arrival in Karachi last month.  “They are believed to have come here to join jihad,” one Pakistani security official said.

In a statement released on Wednesday by the FBI said that it was in contact with the families of the five men, as well as law enforcement authorities in Pakistan.  A second Pakistani official said, “No charge has been framed against them.  Investigations are underway as to whether they have any links with extremist groups.”

Usman Anwar, police chief of Sargodha said after arriving in Karachi, they attempted to join an extremist Islamic school near Karachi and approached another school in the eastern city of Lahore.  They were refused in both places because of their Western demeanor and their inability to speak Urdu.  After arriving in Sargodha, they were arrested at a four-room home in a government housing complex.

Pakistani news reports said the suspects were being investigated for links with Jaish-e-Mohammed, a banned Islamic militant group with links to al-Qaida and the Taliban.  It is one of several factions that have for years been fighting Indian forces in the disputed region of Kashmir.  The group is also suspected of involvement in high-profile attacks, including the murder of US Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, and an assassination attempt of Pervez Musharraf, the former Pakistani president. One of their leaders, who allegedly hid the five men in his house in Sargodha, was also arrested.  

According to Pakistani security officials, in the past, young men of Muslim origin have travelled from the west to seek out training on the use of explosives and in suicide attack methods, notably in the South Waziristan region, near the Afghan border.  

The arrest comes on the heels of David Headly, a US national with Pakistani roots, accused of scouting targets for the 2008 Mumbai attacks, who pleaded not guilty in Chicago on Wednesday at his first hearing.

Officials said three Pakistanis had also been detained, one who is believed to have been linked to a suicide bomb attack on an air force bus outside a base in Sargodha two years ago, in which eight were killed.

For more information, please see:

Times of India-5 US Youth on Jihad Quest Held in Pak  – 11 December 2009

FT.com- Pakistan Accuses US Men of Quest for Jihad– – 11 December 2009

Aljazeera.net- US Men in Pakistan ‘Jihad Quest’– 11 December 2009

 

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – The prosecution for the Khmer Rouge war crimes tribunal of Cambodia may be turning to a controversial legal concept in holding the accused accountable for their crimes.

Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia from 1975 until 1979 where about two million people are estimated to have died as a result of execution, starvation or overwork.

In prosecuting those responsible for the Khmer Rouge regime, Cambodia’s war crimes tribunal judges ruled on Wednesday that the Khmer Rouge leaders, likely to appear as defendants in 2011, can be charged with “joint criminal enterprise” (JCE).

JCE is a legal concept which states that a person can be individually held accountable for a crime committed by a group even if the individual did not personally carry out the plan. 

Furthermore, a third category known as “JCE III” states that a person can be held accountable for a crime committed by a group even if the crime was not part of the common plan so long as the crime was “a natural and foreseeable consequence.”

This concept has been used previously against defendants at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, and is a tool that can substantially improve the prosecution’s ability to prove its case.

However, Michael Karnavas, the defense lawyer for the former Khmer Rouge regime’s foreign minister said, “Where there is little or no evidence, [JCE III] is a great weapon for the prosecution: it lowers the bar for getting conviction and it spreads the stain to anyone and anything remotely connected to the alleged JCE.”

He added, “It is so broad and so unrestrained that even 10 years after its creation[,] it is still unclear where the boundaries lies.” 

Stating that he will appeal the prosecution’s decision to use JCE, Karnavas accused the investigating judges of Khmer Rouge war crimes tribunal of turning the trial into an international tribunal since JCE is applicable to crimes committed under international law, but not under Cambodian law.

The Khmer Rouge war crimes tribunal was created back in 2002 after years of haggling between the UN and Cambodia. 

The UN has a separate organ for prosecuting war crimes, the International Criminal Court (ICC), which was also founded back in 2002.  However, the former leaders of Khmer Rouge do not fall under ICC’s jurisdiction because the ICC can only investigate crimes which were committed after its establishment.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Krouge court dismisses bias claims against judge – 9 December 2009

Los Angeles Times – Cambodia’s first war crimes trial marred by flaws – 6 December 2009

M&C – Khmer Rouge chiefs can be charged as jointly responsible for crimes – 9 December 2009

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia 

MERAK, Indonesia – A group of Sri Lankan Tamil ethnic minorities have been subject to threats and oppression by the Indonesian Navy.  Approximately 250 Sri Lankan nationals have asserted an absolute refusal to leave the ports of Merak until Australia concedes to giving them asylum.

This particular group of refugees from Sri Lanka are among many more Tamils who fled from Sri Lanka to escape persecution by the government.  After the defeat of the Tamil Tigers insurgency organization earlier this Spring, the Sri Lankan government has continually mistreated Tamils, causing many of them to resort to migrating away from their home land into less hostile territories.  

Thousands of Tamils began fleeing Sri Lanka seeking asylum in Australia.  Christmas Island, a landform off the coast of Australia, has been the desired destination from refugees of many war-torn nations in the middle-east.  However, due to the abrupt influx of refugees, causing  inundation of the island with myriad, refugees, the Australian government called upon the Indonesian government to send vessels to intercept Sri Lankan goats.  

The Sri Lankan Tamils’ desire to leave for Australian territory has produced numerous human rights violations both on the Australian and Sri Lankan ends.  Human smuggling, as colored by the Australian and Indonesian governments, has created a lucrative opportunity for boat operators to exploit many impoverished nationals.  

Further issues have risen concerning the safety peoples on these boat.  In one instance, passengers on a refugee vessel have threatened to detonate their vessel if the Indonesian border patrol came any close to the ship.  

At another point, Tamils on a refugee ship escorted to an Indonesian border engaged in a hunger strike to convey their desperation for achieving asylum in Australia.   

An organization based in Australia called Refugee Action Coalition recently made statements concerning the assurance of the Tamil refugees’ well-being.  Indonesian naval vessels have slowly been approaching the Tamils’ vessels.  The Indonesian forces intend to physically remove the Tamils from their current position along the Merak port city

The Tamils, however, fear being taken off their ships under the belief of facing persecution by the Indonesian government.  They also have expressed apprehensions about being sent back to Sri Lanka, where they will face abuses from the government there.

The Tamils face a situation in which they cannot be safe in either lands, making it more significant that the Australian government grant them asylum.  

For more information, please see:

 Al-Jazeera – Sri Lanka asylum boat ‘threatened’ – 3 December 2009  

 

New York Times – Australia Puts Its Refugree Problem on a Remote Island… – 5 November 2009

Sydney Morning Herald – Rudd took Indonesia for granted over asylum seekers – 17 November 2009

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia 

NEW DELHI, India- A protest fast by K Chandrasekara Rao, the leader of a regional party in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has entered its 10th day.  Mr. Rao of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) is demanding separate state status for the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh.

The Telangana region is an area surrounding Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh, which is comprised largely of people who speak the Telugu language.  The demand for a separate Telangana state dates back over 50 years, and Mr. Rao’s TRS party has been spearheading the agitation since 2001.  The separatists believe that economic development in their region has been neglected in favor of the richer Andhra region.

Mr. Rao began his “indefinite fast” on 29 November at his hometown in the Medrak district, 62 miles from the capital.  He said, “Either a victory procession will come out or my funeral procession will come out.  The decision will have to be taken by the government”.  Fearing a loss of law and order, the police arrested him and sent him to a prison in Khammam district.  However, as his health worsened, he was moved to a hospital in Hyderabad.  Doctors state that Mr. Rao has refused food, and have resorted to giving him saline water and medicine.  They have also suggested he should break his fast to improve his overall health and avoid complications.

Over the last 10 days TRS workers have attacked public transport, government offices and private property in the capital city and nine other districts of the region.  In addition, students from two universities have also launched a movement for a Telangana state.  In response, the state has shut down schools and universities in the state for a fortnight to try to prevent students from protesting. In 1969, the demand for a Telangana state led to widespread violence where over 400 students lost their lives.

According to the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, all people have the right of self determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, and social and cultural development.

Various groups supporting the cause for a separate Telengana have called for a march to the state legislature building on Thursday.  The administration fears the rally or a sharp decline in Mr. Rao’s health could lead to street violence.

For more information, please see:

BBC News- Indian Politician on Hunger Strike – 8 December 2009

Earth Times- Indian Politician on Hunger Strike Over Separate State Demand– 8 December 2009

Breaking News 24/7- Telangana Issue, Telangana Movement Updates– 8 December 2009

United Nations- International Covenant On Civil and Political Rights 

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

KATHMANDU, Nepal – Nepalese law enforcement has been trying to quell significant, aggressive strikes occurring on the city streets.  Cadres torched and populated the streets of major Nepalese cities in rage at governments security agents’ destruction of over 2,500 squatters’ huts in forests of the Kailali district.  Metropolitan areas of Nepalese cities essentially shut down, with colleges, schools, and even bazaars closed down during the strikes. 

City-wide transportation services also halted, creating significant travel issues for many civilians.  Many strikers also resorted to throwing stones and vandalism to demonstrate contempt for their governments’ violent police actions against the landless squatters.

Maoists previously promised the homeless that they would afford them land on which they could establish  themselves.  However, when Nepalese police arrived to evacuate the area, tension between the Maoists along with the squatters and the Nepalese law enforcement escalated into severe skirmishes leaving six people dead.  

The squatters were being evacuated because Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal was set to deliver a statement on climate shifts in the Kalaili area.  Apparently, even a Maoist majority consented to clearing a forest area to hold the discussion.  However, when police arrived to survey and initiate clearing procedures, including tearing down the 4,000 shanties, they met with resistance from the homeless forest-dwellers and some of their Maoist supporters.  

Per request of the Maoists, a human rights group was called upon to examine the events culminating into the strikes.  The Maoist group further demonstrated their disfavor for the police actions by removing themselves from the government after an attempt to stop the head of the Nepalese army.  

The police actions against landless squatters raises profound concerns on an international plateau.  From the Western perspective, Washington has made a statement the U.S. government finds the police actions contradictory to the democratic process, law, and the pursuit of peace.  This by the Nepalese government initiative represent the sort of violence an unjust acts often oppressing impoverished peoples of South Asian nations.  

Ultimately, the battle between landless squatters and the Nepalese left fifty injured and six dead.  The situation was supposed to have been neutralized on Sunday, yet transportation and other strikes provoked by the attack continue on.

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Maoists stage strikes across Nepal – 6 December 2009

Deccan Herald – Maoists’ strike paralyses life in Nepal – 6 December 2009

The Hindu – Maoist strike shuts down Nepal – 6 December 2009