Asia

Thai Red Shirts Stage Anti-Government Rally

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BANGKOK, Thailand – In one of the biggest demonstrations to take place in the recent months, more than 30,000 Thai “red shirts” gathered in Bangkok for an anti-government rally.  The “red shirts” were silenced when the government threatened a crackdown back in April after the protest led to the worst street violence in 15 years.

Thai red shirts “Red shirt” protesters in Bangkok (Source: AP)

“Red shirts” are members of the United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD).  Thai society is divided into either “red” or “yellow” shirts, the “reds” representing Thais in rural areas who support the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and the “yellows” comprising Thai’s urban elite who consider the red shirts as a threat to the Thai monarchy.

Thaksin, who is currently in exile, addressed the crowd via telephone saying, “We come here because we want to see true democracy.  We loathe injustice.  We loathe double standards.  We’re here to say if you want us to stop, then return justice and true democracy.”

Supporters of Thaksin said they are calling for the current prime minister’s resignation, the dissolution of the government and for general elections.  The protesters also accuse the “yellows,” which include the military, judiciary and other unelected officials, of undermining Thailand’s democracy and orchestrating a coup back in 2006.

Nuttawut Saikua, one of the organizers of this rally, said, “We rally today because we want to get rid of the government, the aristocracy and bring back true democracy to people.”

UDD has planned three more protests in addition to this rally in Bangkok although the timing for the next rallies has not been set.  UDD’s leader Jatuporn Promphan explained that his group will evaluate several factors such as the political situation before determining the date for each rally.
For more information, please see:

BBC – Thai protesters return to streets – 27 June 2009

China View – Renewed Thai anti-gov’t rally peaceful, to disperse on Sunday morning – 27 June 2009

MSNBC – Thousands of anti-govt protesters mass in Bangkok – 27 June 2009

Kazakhstan to Tighten Internet Control

By Alishba I. Kassim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ALMATY, Kazakhstan – Kazakhstan’s parliament has approved a law tightening government control of the internet. The new bill will subject chat rooms, blogs, and other social networking sites to potential criminal prosecution.

Media activists in Kazakhstan have been opposing the law and say it will vastly limit freedom of speech, and is designed to allow arbitrary crackdowns on anyone opposing Nursultan Kazarbayev, Kazakhstan’s president.

Kazakh authorities have denied the media’s allegations, and instead maintain that the new law is aimed to curb the distribution of child pornography, extremist literature, and other “unsuitable” material. “The law is not a regulation of the internet. The amendments introduced to the law are aimed at stopping the dissemination of illegal information on the internet,” the government’s state information agency said.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Europe’s main human rights and security agency, has criticized the bill. Miklos Harszti, a representative on media freedom, said the law “limits the freedom of the internet and media freedom in general. Its adoption would be a step backwards in the democratization of Kazakhstan’s media governance.”

He further said that Kazakhstan is due to take over chairmanship of the OSCE in six months and “refusing to enact this law will send a strong signal that the forthcoming OSCE chairmanship of Kazakhstan in 2010 intends to fully honor the country’s OSCE media freedom commitments.”

Several leaders from Kazakhstan’s political opposition as well as the media community have started to stage small protests in Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest city.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Kazakhstan to Tighten Internet Law – June 26, 2009

Daily Times – Kazakhstan Adopts Tough Internet Law – June 25, 2009

Radio Liberty – Kazakhstan Adopts Controversial Internet Law – June 25, 2009

Formal Arrest Made in China of Prominent Activist

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China– Liu Xiaobo, one of China’s most prominent political activists, was formally arrested after being held for six months in a secret Beijing location.  Liu was taken from his home and held by the police without formal notification to his family until yesterday.

Liu XiaoboLiu Xiaobo (Source: BBC)

The police took Liu away one day before the publication of “Charter 08,” a document he co-authored with 300 other intellectuals calling for a new constitution, human rights, elections, freedom of speech and religion in China, and to end the Communist Party’s control over the military, courts and the government.

Beijing’s public security bureau claimed Liu is being arrested for “spreading of rumours and defaming of the government, aimed at subversion of the state and overthrowing the socialism system in recent years.”

Despite Chinese government’s allegations, there has been global support for Liu’s release.  Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi wrote to China’s president asking for the release of Liu and other “prisoners of conscience.”

In addition, Amnesty International said, “This use of state security charges to punish activists for merely expressing their views must stop.  This is another act of desperation by a regime that is terrified of public opinion.”

Charter 08, published on the 60th anniversary of the promulgation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, also called for the abolition of a Chinese criminal code that allows imprisonment for “incitement to subvert state power,” which is the crime Liu is accused of committing.

Fighting back tears, Liu’s wife said, “I am so worried about him.  I don’t know how many more years he will be imprisoned now.”  She was allowed to see Liu during a supervised visit back in March where she noticed that he looked thin and pale.

The charge against Liu carries maximum of 15 years in jail, and Liu’s arrest is the highest-profile arrest of Chinese activists since last year.

For more information, please see:

AP – China arrests dissident who championed reforms – 24 June 2009

BBC – China activist formally arrested – 24 June 2009

CBS News – Chinese Media Says Dissident Liu Xiaobo Arrested – 24 June 2009

China Digital Times – Chinese Dissident Liu Xiaobo Formally Arrested – 23 June 2009

China Digital Times – Dissident Writer Liu Xiaobo Held in Secret after Sentence Ends – 9 June 2009

Cambodian Officials Stripped of Immunity

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Cambodia’s National Assembly has voted to remove parliamentary immunity for two opposition party officials, a move some are claiming is a sign that democracy in Cambodia is in jeopardy and going backwards.

This vote by Cambodia’s lower house would allow the court to prosecute Mu Sochua, former Minister of Women’s Affairs, and Ho Vann, Phnom Penh municipality representative, on defamation charges filed by the prime minister and other senior members of the ruling party.

Mu Sochua (Sourace: AFP)

Cambodian officialMu Sochua had initially filed a defamation suit against the prime minister for his remarks on a speech she made, but Phnom Penh Municipal Court dismissed the case earlier this month while continuing the countersuit filed by the prime minister.  Ho Vann was sued by a senior member of the ruling party after he made remarks on the validity of meaningless certificates given to Cambodian officials by Vietnamese schools.

The UN has criticized Cambodian government’s use of courts against its critics, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said, “The lawsuits undermine the constitutional freedom and expression.”

Cambodia’s ruling party is arguing that the suspensions of immunity were in accordance with internal parliamentary rules, the law and the Constitution of Cambodia.  However, since April, eight criminal defamation and disinformation complaints have been filed in the courts by Cambodia’s highest authorities against government critics.

Human Rights Watch said the prime minister has “a long history of trying to muzzle Cambodia’s political opposition and undermine the independence of the legal profession.”

With many local and international human rights group raising concerns over this violation of free speech, especially for lawmakers whose rights are guaranteed by the Constitution, Mu Sochua said she is prepared to go to jail rather than pay a fine to the prime minister if found guilty.

For more information, please see:

BBC News – Cambodia strips MPs of immunity – 22 June 2009

Breitbart.com – Cambodia suspends immunity of two opposition lawmakers – 22 June 2009

Radio Australia News – Cambodian opposition MPs stripped of parliamentary immunity – 22 June 2009

Taiwan News – Cambodia lawmakers, stripped of immunity, protest – 22 June 2009

UN’s Nepal Mission Extended

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations Security Council voted to extend its mission in Nepal for another six months.  Although the UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) is being extended, the Security Council is urging the government to resume its peace talks so that the UN’s 250-person mission can leave in January 2010.

UNMIN UN workers in Nepal (Source: UN)

UNMIN was established to support the peace process and to monitor weapons storage sites at camps for former Maoist fighters.  However, the peace process has been stalled since May when the Maoists walked out of the government when their attempts to fire the country’s army chief failed.  This has caused a hold up in the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist army personnel and the drafting of a new constitution.

The Security Council had hoped to complete the mission in Nepal this month, and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said last week that Nepal’s political crisis has prevented UNMIN from completing their work.

Nepal has been fighting anarchy, insecurity and impunity since the end of the country’s civil war when the Maoists overthrew Nepal’s monarchy, killing and displacing thousands of Nepalese. 

A peace deal was crafted in 2006, but the process has been slow.  Furthermore, the UN had recently expressed concerns regarding a rise in kidnappings for ransoms, which in turn encourages culture of impunity because there currently is no security enforcement in Nepal.

Karin Landgren, UN’s Nepal envoy, said, “It is our hope….that…the government and parties will take peace process forward, creating the conditions for the mission to complete its mandated tasks.” 

UN’s report on Nepal also warned that law and order continues to remain a “serious concern” because many armed groups are operating with impunity, especially in southern Nepal.

For more information, please see:

AFP – UN chief recommends extension of mission in Nepal – 18 July 2009

China View – UN extends mission in Nepal – 24 July 2009

Reuters – U.N council extends its Nepal mission but wants out – 24 July 2009