By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PYONGYANG, North Korea – The new North Korean Constitution, revised in April of this year, explicitly mentions human rights for the first time.  The last time North Korea revised its constitution was back in 1998.

The contents of the newly revised constitution includes putting greater weight on military-first policies, power concentration in the National Defense Commission, emphasis on socialism over communism, as well as naming workers, farmers and working intellectuals as pillars of the nation.

More importantly, the new constitution uses the phrase “human rights” for the first time.  Article 8 of the new constitution says, “The State respects and protects the human rights of the workers, peasants and working intellectuals who have been previously freed from exploitation and oppression and have become masters of the State and society.”  This is a change from the 1998 revision which stated that the State will “defend and protect the interests” of the same list of workers.

However, observers claim that the reference to human rights is merely to portray a sense of “normalcy” to the international community.  Optimists have suggested that this could be a real effort on the part of North Korea to improve its international reputation, but experts are interpreting this as a “preemptive move against growing international condemnation of Pyongyang’s human rights record.” 

North Korean military officers.  Courtesy of Jakarta Globe.   

An anonymous source said, “Pyongyang is not interested in human rights; the labour camps that are still active are proof of that.  The population lives in extreme poverty and famine comes on cyclical basis.”

The introduction of new constitution coincides with U.S. appointing a new special envoy, Robert King, for North Korean human rights.  In 2008, U.S. Congress approved the North Korean Human Rights Reauthorization Act, which calls for “activities to support human rights and democracy and freedom on information in North Korea,” for another four years.

Some have suggested that since North Korea knows that any talks with the U.S. will include a human rights component, the revision was a counter-move.

The revision also comes in time when the media has reported that Kim Jong-il’s health is failing and that he is preparing to hand over his position to his youngest son, Kim Jong-un.
For more information, please see:

Asia News – From Communism to the ‘militarised state’, Kim Jong-il introduces new constitution – 30 September 2009

The Daily NK – Human Rights in Revised North Korean Constitution – 28 September 2009

JoongAng Daily – King named as human rights envoy to North – 26 September 2009

The Korea Times – NK Constitution States Kim Jong-il as Leader – 28 September 2009

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

 MAIWAND, Afghanistan – A roadside bomb planted beneath a crowded inner-city bus travelling along the fringes of Kandahar killed 20 civilians on Tuesday.  Among the dead were 10 children.  Additionally, many more civilians incurred injuries from impact and debris.  The blast left the bus burning and twisted, demonstrating the power of militant groups’ improvised explosive devices (IED).  The victims of the blast were rushed to a nearby hospital in Kandahar.  
 

 
 This latest attack signifies the increasing danger Afghan civilians must face when traversing public roads. Although roadside bombs are utilized to kill foreign troops, over 1,500 Afghanistan civilians have fallen victim to these lethal mechanisms.  The western district in which this tragedy occurred has long been a zone of combat between insurgents and Western armed forces.  As a result, many varieties of traps remain strewn about the city streets.  Afghan citizens often travel along roads used by Western military forces where enemy combatants lay roadside bombs and other IEDs.  A Taliban spokesperson stated that the organization does not intentionally target civilians, disclaiming responsibility for the attack.  However, despite the designs of the Taliban and other insurgent factions, IED’s, the deadliest weapons used in Afghanistan, continue to indiscriminately take the lives of the innocent. 

The attack in Maiwand exacerbates over 8 years of war-weariness and discontent felt among the Afghan population.  While a seemingly fruitless war against terrorism continually plagues their land, this summer’s questionable elections suggest that the corrupt officials have moved to silence the political voice of the people.  These travesties represent a violation of Afghan nationals’ fundamental rights to live in peace and democratic right to participate in the selection of their leaders.  

The Obama administration continues to formulate strategies for the Afghanistan front, yet the Taliban and other militant organizations steadily exploit violence to demonstrate their presence in key areas.  Members of the North-Atlantic Treaty Organization have expressed pessimism in the West’s ability to prevail in this war.  Until the West begins employing effective tactics, it seems Afghan civilians must continue living in fear of being caught in the tides of war.  

 

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Dozens die in Afghan roadside blast – 29 September 2009

The L.A. Times – 30 killed when Afghan bus hit roadside bomb – 29 September 2009

Yahoo! News – Taliban roadway attacks spread fear in Afghanistan – 29 September 2009

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

MASHKHEL, Iran – The Pakistani government recently released the eleven alleged members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRG) whom border police detained for illegal entry into Pakistan.   Although the Pakistan initially identified the arrested individuals as members of the IRG, they later confirmed their status as security guards.  It is unknown how this reclassification informed the government’s decision to release the prisoners. 

Pakistani border control was patrolling the area for drug-dealers crossing into Pakistan.  Suspecting the eleven men were drug-dealers, border control pursued them after they crossed the Pakistani border.  Pakistan’s border police arrested the men in the Baluchistan province. 

Pakistan and Iran do not have a general history of hostility concerning borders.  However, last week’s suicide-bomb attack in the Mashkhel region of the Pakistan-Iran border, which left over 50 dead, incensed tensions between the neighboring nations.  Furthermore, the small insurgency operations occurring along the southwestern border region over the past decade caused an increase in patrolling activity. 

A Sunni Muslim group known has Jundallah, or God’s Soldiers, claimed responsibility for the suicide-bomb attack in Mashkhel.   The Iranian government criticized the Pakistani government for unreasonably detaining members of the IRG.  Military personnel asserted that it is the protocol of the Iranian law enforcement to chase suspects into Pakistani borders has there been actually been an instance of drug-dealers fleeing from Iran into Pakistan. 

Iranian personnel stated that the Pakistani border control’s brazen actions represent counterintuitive acts of hostility in a time when both nations face insurgent attacks.  They also pleaded that Pakistan be more cooperative with Iran instead of committing wrongful acts against them.  The regions constituting the border between Pakistan and Iran signify a zone of neutrality between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims.  Considering the interaction between the two groups at the borders, Iranians have voiced a concern that the recent friction between the two states may compromise the rare peace among members of the two opposing groups. 

However, not all Iranians plead to the sensibilities of the people.  A senior commander of the IRG recently stated his desire to meet Pakistan militants within Pakistan’s borders with the IRG.  Also, Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejhad publicly announced that some members of Pakistan’s intelligence agency have been colluding with the Jundallah to perpetrate many of the suicide bombings. 

While the strife continues between the Iran and Pakistan, the fate of each states’ respective civilians lies in the cross-fire.  Until both nations recognize their common cause against insurgency in the area, it seems peace will not settle in the border regions.

 

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Pakistan Frees Iranian Guards – 27 October 2009

CBS News – Pakistan Frees 11 Iran Security Officers – 27 October 2009

VOA News – Pakistan Frees 11 Iranian Guards Arrested Near SW Border – 27 October 2009

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, AsiaKUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA– An Islamic court of appeals in Malaysia on Monday upheld the sentence of six strokes of the cane which will be given to a Muslim woman.  She was caught drinking beer in public at a resort.  She was caught by Islamic enforcement officers.

The significance of this ruling means that the woman, Kartika Sari Dewo Shukarno, a former model and nurse and a 32-year old mother of two, is set to become the first woman to be caned under the country’s religious laws that apply only to Muslims. Analysts have stated that the government fears that the punishment could damage Malaysia’s reputation abroad.  Malaysia uses a two-track legal system; where the majority Malays are subject to Islamic law, while the Chinese and Indian minorities are not.

After being arrested for drinking beer in a beachfront hotel in December 2007, she was originally told she would receive six strokes of a rattan cane during the last weeks of August.  This was delayed until after Ramadan and after a further review the ruling was subsequently upheld earlier in the week. 

Women’s minister Shahrizat Jalil, the chief judge of Pahang state appeals court called the verdict excessive, stating that it projected a “cruel image” of Malaysia.  “The overriding view was that the sentence meted out was too harsh and is not commensurate with the offense,” she told reporters.

The Prime Minister Najib Razak urged Shukarno to appeal.  However, Shukarno’s case previously garnered widespread media attention after she refused to appeal her sentence.  Shukarno asked that her punishment be carried out in public, saying that she wanted serve as an example to other Muslims.  This has triggered a debate over the use of Islamic laws in the moderate Muslim country, where the country’s majority Malay-Muslims make up 55% of the country’s 27 million population.

It is now in the hands of Pahang Islamic Religious Department to carry out the sentence.  A thin stick is used for the caning since the punishment is less about pain than it is about symbolism and humiliation.  No date has yet been set for the caning.

For more information, please see:

BBC News- Malaysia To Review Caning Woman– 25 August 2009

BBC News- Malaysia Upholds Woman’s Caning– 28 September 2009

USA Today- Court Uphold Caning of Malaysian Woman For Drinking Beer– 28 September 2009

Digital City-Court Upholds Caning of Woman For Drinking Beer– 28 September 28, 2009

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

TAIPEI, Taiwan– Earlier this month, the Taiwan High Court sentenced the country’s ex-leader Chen Shui-bian to life in prison for money laundering, embezzling state funds, accepting bribes and committing forgery.  This week, the same court rejected Chen’s petition for release on bail as Chen supporters demanded that the appellate court uphold Chen’s human rights.

One local newspaper said, “Let this be a warning to all political parties, politicians, government officials and businessmen.  The Chen family deserves no sympathy for the heavy sentence.  We should respect the court’s decision.” 

Taiwan’s Ex-President Chen Shui-bian.  Courtesy of Reuters. 

Chen, however, has petitioned the U.S. to intervene and restore his civil and human rights.  The Taiwan Civil Rights Litigation Organization is sponsoring a legal action for Chen and is demanding his immediate release.

Chen claims that under the 1952 San Francisco Peace Treaty, Taiwan was not awarded to Republic of China; therefore, still remains under U.S. Military Government.  Accordingly, Chen plans on using international law and U.S. constitutional law to resolve his legal problems.

 Chen’s supporters.  Courtesy of Start Telegram.

 Calling Chen’s trial unfair and invalid, Taipei Director of Democratic Progressive Party Huang Ching-lin said he supports Chen’s theory. 

Furthermore, some Taiwanese media also expressed concern for Chen’s case, especially for his lengthy detention during trial.  One daily paper said, “There was a widespread belief that this was hardly a fair trial.  The flawed process has affected the healthy developments in our country’s democracy and our international image.”

However, Chinese Nationalist Party Legislator Lee Hung-chun commented that Chen must be “mentally ill after spending so much time in detention.”

Chen has been in custody since December and continues to argue that he is innocent, claiming that he is a victim of Beijing’s political conspiracy.  Chen said his corruption trial was a “political revenge for his lifelong push to declare formal independence from China.”

Chen’s wife also received a life sentence, while his son and daughter received shorter sentences.
 

For more information, please see:

AFP – Taiwan media divided over ex-leader’s life sentence – 11 September 2009

Asia News – Ex President Chen SHui-bian to stay in prison – 25 September 2009

China Post – High court decides to detain Chen Shui-bian – 25 September 2009

Taipei Times – Chen asks US court to intervene to free him – 24 September 2009