By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

SEOUL, South Korea– North Korea publicly executed a woman for distributing Bibles in a northern town close to the Chinese-North Korean border.  In addition to distributing Bibles, Ri Hyon Ok, a 33-year old mother of three, was accused of spying for South Korea and the United States and for organizing dissents.  South Korea and human rights groups were unable to verify the allegations against Ri, but her parents, husband and children have been sent to a prison camp.

Although an estimated 30,000 North Koreans are believed to secretly practice Christianity in their homes, the country views religion as a major threat. The government has authorized four state churches (one Catholic, one Russian Orthodox and two Protestant), but North Koreans cannot not attend services or publicly display their religious fervor.  Only the country’s founder, Kim Il-sung, and his son, Kim Jong-il, may be worshiped in public.

Underground North Korean Christians (Source: Cornerstone Ministries)

Ironically, North Korean constitution guarantees religious freedom, and Pyongyang, the country’s capital, was once known as the “Jerusalem of the East” for its predominance of Christianity.  However, in reality, religious observances are extremely restricted, and violators are usually accused of spying or anti-government activities.  The Bible is also among the books banned in North Korea.  A U.S. government report found that an estimated 6,000 North Koreans Christians are jailed in “Prison No. 15” in northern North Korea, and religious prisoners face harsher treatment.

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said in its report, “What religious practice…exist[s]…(are) tightly controlled and used to advance the government’s political or diplomatic agenda…[A]nyone engaged in clandestine religious practice faces official discrimination, arrest, imprisonment, and possibly execution.”

According to reports by South Korean human rights groups, execution of Christians in North Korean appears to have increased.  In the past year, North Korea has tightened its control over human rights policies, and some believe this may be the result of the government’s means of securing transition of power from Kim Jong-il to his son.

For more information, please see:

BBC – North Korea ‘executes Christians’ – 24 July 2009

The Huffington Post – North Korea Executes Christian For Distributing Bible: Rights Group – 24 July 2009

The Philadelphia Inquirer – N. Korea is said to kill Christian – 25 July 2009

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NEW YORK, United States – The Chinese government has closed down a legal aid center in Beijing and has disbarred 53 lawyers in an all-out effort to silence the country’s human rights defenders.

Last Friday, Beijing Civil Affairs Bureau officials raided and closed a nongovernmental legal research center, Open Constitution Initiative (OCI).  OCI takes on “officially sensitive” cases for groups and individuals whose fight for justice is hindered by China’s political system.

The officials claimed that OCI was closed down for failure to pay taxes and for improper registration, but OCI believes that the forced closure was politically motivated.  Sophie Richardson of Human Rights Watch said, “The attack on OCI marks a new low in the Chinese government’s campaign against human rights defenders.  This is precisely the kind of organization whose work the government should value….”

Among the 53 lawyers who were disbarred included an eminent civil rights lawyer, Jiang Tianyong, who has represented high-profile Tibetan monks and victims of slave labor rings.  Other lawyers, whose works include representing HIV/AIDS patients and peasants in land disputes, have been taken by the police, handcuffed and beaten.  There are also reports of law firms being forced to close.

Chinese petitioners whose legal channels have been frustrated (Source: AP)

The Beijing Justice Bureau announced that lawyers’ licenses were revoked because the individuals had failed to apply for re-registration.  However, critics argue that the Chinese government is intentionally removing means through which Chinese citizens can obtain legal assistance.  Furthermore, Beijing Bureau of Legal Affairs issued a notice to lawyers telling them to be “cautious” in defending suspects linked to the recent riots in Urumqi. 

Tang Jitian, whose license has been revoked and is under house arrest, said, “Some authorities don’t like those lawyers who speak for the people.  They think we are enemies…What police and the authorities are doing is destroying Chinese law.”

Human Rights in China and its executive director Sharon Hom also voiced their concerns saying, “This suppression will inevitably lead to…creating greater disadvantages for already persecuted groups and greater social instability.”

Human Rights Watch is urging the Chinese government to make a choice since “eliminating legal aid, banning legal research, and hobbling lawyers” will only hurt the Chinese society.

For more information, please see:

Guardian – China accused of ‘all-out attack’ on lawyers – 8 June 2009

The Huffington Post – China’s Civil Rights Lawyers: The New Enemies of the State – 20 July 2009

Human Rights Watch – China: Cease Attacks on Rights Lawyers – 17 July 2009

By Alishba I. Kassim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – China says it has accumulated evidence that the riots in Urumqi that ended up killing nearly 200 people were part of a coordinated attack.

Security officials were quoted on Monday in the state-run press as saying that surveillance videos showed women in Islamic robes and head coverings issuing orders to rioters. One woman is said to have given out clubs for the attack. “Such dressing is very rare in Uqumqi, but these kind of women were seen many times at different locations on surveillance cameras that day.”

The rioting broke out several hours after police allegedly calmed a crowd of thousands of protesting Uighurs, a Turkic minority. The Uighurs were speaking out against the discrimination they face by the Chinese authorities. Authorities claim that “gangs” of Uighurs attacked the Han majority of China at random, and rampaged through Urumqi, a city of 2.3 million. The state-run media sources claim the attacks began simultaneously at 50 different locations throughout the city.

The Chinese government has been insisting that the riots were planned, and are now presenting evidence after being criticized internationally for not stopping the violence. Rohan Gunaratna, a Singapore-based “terrorism expert” said, “It is true that there is significant radicalization of a tiny segment of the Uighur community, but the Chinese government has not as yet presented convincing evidence that this was a coordinated attack.”

The Uighurs used to be a majority in northwestern China, but have now become a minority having lost jobs and influence due to a heavy influx of the Han population. Rebiya Kadeer, president of the World Uighur Congress, said, the Chinese government is “obscuring the truth in order to conceal a mass killing of Uighurs by Chinese security forces.”

For more information, please see:

Los Angeles Times – China Says it has Evidence Riots were Planned – July 20, 2009  

The New York Times – China Says its Forces Killed 12 – July 20, 2009 

The Wall Street Journal – Uighurs Lose Economic Ground to Han – July 20, 2009  

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

                                     Jakarta’s Marriott hotel after the blast (Source: AFP)

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Nine people were killed in Friday’s suicide bombing attacks in Jakarta’s Ritz-Carlton and J.W. Marriott hotels.  As Indonesian officials get closer to identifying the mastermind behind the blasts, the UN Security Council released a statement voicing outrage and sympathy.

The 15-member Security Council offered “deep…condolences to the victims of these heinous acts of terrorism and to their families, and to the people and Government of Indonesia.”

The bombings in two luxury, American hotels came at a time when Indonesia was enjoying great stability, including a peaceful presidential election just weeks ago.  Officials believe that the goal of the attacks was to embarrass the Indonesian government.

  Noordin Mohamed (Source: BBC)
The country’s anti-terror chief told reporters he believes that Noordin Mohamed is behind the bombings.  Noordin is the key financier for Jemaah Islamiah, a militant group linked to Al-Qaeda and responsible for numerous bombings in Indonesia, including the 2002 Bali bombing.  Indonesian police said they are sure this is the work of Noordin considering the target, location and the contents of the bomb.  The bombs used in Friday’s attacks contained nails and bolts, contents identical to the bombs Jemaah Islamiah uses.

The Security Council stressed that perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of the attacks must be brought to justice, adding that governments must take all measures to right terrorism by fulfilling their obligations under international human rights and refugee and humanitarian law.

The Council members also said, “The Security Council reaffirms that…any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed.”

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yodhoyono, condemning the attacks as “cruel and inhuman,” said a terrorist group is responsible for the attacks and vowed to find the perpetrators.

For more information, please see:

BBC – Fugitive linked to Jakarta blasts – 18 July 2009

The Hindu – UNSC deplores hotel bombings in Indonesia – 18 July 2009

MSNBC – Cops eye fugitive terrorist in Indonesia blasts – 18 July 2009

 By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan– A relief worker who works for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has been shot dead in northwestern Pakistan on Thursday in a failed kidnapping attempt.  The victim, Zil-e-Usman, was a 59-year-old Pakistani and a 30-year veteran of the UN.  This was the third killing of UNHCR employee in Pakistan in the past six months.

The slain senior UN official was attacked as he left a field office in the Kacha Gari Refugee Camp and was shot several times.

  Refugee Camp in Pakistan (Source: AFP)

UNHCR Chief Antonio Guterres said targeting aid workers must be stopped, adding, “There is no justification for attacks on humanitarian workers dedicated to the protection and care of the most vulnerable people.”  

The attack took place at a refugee camp in Pakistan’s Frontier Province where the government forces have launched a military offensive against the Taliban militants.  About 2 million Pakistanis have been driven from their homes in this region and have been placed in refugee camps.  Consequently, many international organizations have dispatched aid workers to this area of Pakistan although there was a risk that the aid workers could be targeted by the militants.

A Pakistani security official told reporters that he suspected the Taliban to be behind this attack.  The shooting came only days after senior Pakistani officials warned that the Taliban militants who had fought in the northern Swat Valley over the past few months were expected to retaliate against the Pakistani government and aid workers.  The Taliban fighters have targeted foreign diplomats and humanitarian workers in the past.

UN had lost its workers just last month in the devastating suicide bombing attack in a hotel in Peshawar.  Guterres said, “It is unacceptable that humanitarian workers doing such vital and selfless work are attacked in this way.”

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – UN workers killed in Pakistan attack – 16 July 2009

CBS – UN Worker Killed in Pakistan Refugee Camp – 16 July 2009

CNN – U.N. worker killed in Pakistan kidnap bid – 16 July 2009