By Alishba I. Kassim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

DHARAMSALA, India – Lobsang, and his fellow Tibetan monks courageously broke their silence in front of a group of 20 foreign and Chinese journalists over a year ago. After a long year of hardship, three out of 15 protesting monks have finally managed to find refuge in India, and tell their story.

Lobsang and others bravely unfurled hidden banners reading messages like “We have no human rights” a year ago when journalists arrived at their monastery, despite the obvious dangers that awaited them.

The journalists had been invited by Chinese officials to show that Tibetans were content under Chinese rule; however, the 15 monks outside the monastery seized the opportunity to express their true feelings. “If we monks hadn’t seized the opportunity to express our feelings, which are feelings in all Tibetan monks, then we would have missed a chance to tell the world,” said Lobsang.

Several Chinese officials insisted that the protests were planned by the Dalai Lama, and the Tibetan monks themselves were not unhappy under Chinese rule. The monks from Labrang said harsh Chinese policies sparked the protest. “I and my friends decided on our own to protest. The protests were caused by human rights violations and Chinese policies toward Tibet. We couldn’t tolerate it anymore.”

Alongside Lobsang, a half-dozen other monks scrawled slogans such as “We have no freedom of speech” on Tibetan flags with their wills written on the back, convinced of their death.

Now that Lobsang and two other monks from the protest, Gyatso, and Jamyang have found refuge in India after a year of hiding from Chinese authorities, they speak more freely about the situation in Tibet. Over the years the Chinese government has been limiting the number of monks allowed to live in monasteries and have been cracking down on festivities honoring the Dalai Lama. The protests that began over a year ago have resulted in the detention of numerous monks and have led to the emptying out of monasteries. Chinese authorities have further clamped down on Tibet, making it more difficult for monks to the leave the country.

The tightly controlled conditions have also led to an increase in the number of suicides amongst Tibetan monks.

For more information, please see:

New York Times – Monks Tell Tale of Escape – June 21, 2009

Tibet Custom – Monk Suicide on the Rise in Tibet – June 22, 2009

AFP – Dalai Lama Urges Pressure over Tibet Oppression – June 5, 2009

By Alishba I. Kassim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan –The Pakistani government has initiated a crackdown against citizens that joke at the President’s expense. Pakistanis who send jokes by text message, email, or blog, risk being arrested and facing up to 14 years in prison.

According to the country’s Interior Minister Rehman malik, the Federal Investigation Agency will now electronically trace jokes that ‘slander the political leadership of the country’, in particular, jokes regarding Pakistani President Asif Zardari, widower of Benazir Bhutto.  This initiative will be carried out under the auspice of the new Cyber Crimes Act.

Mr. Malik said the move would punish the authors of “ill motivated and concocted stories through emails and text messages against the civilian leadership.” The government also listed counter-terrorism concerns as a reason for the ban.

President Zardari has long courted controversy. During the late Prime Minister’s Benazir Bhutto’s tenure, he was dubbed “Mr. 10 percent” when alleged evidence revealed he had been receiving “kickbacks on government contracts.” Other alleged nicknames include, loosely translated, “chief thief” and “bandit.”

Human rights agencies in Pakistan have described President Zardari’s ban as “draconian and authoritarian,” and compared it former President Musharraf’s media ban during a time of political opposition – drawing a distinction only in name between a civilian and military government.

 For more information, please see:

Digital Journal – Pakistani President Bans Jokes Ridiculing Him – July 22, 2009  

World Sentinel – Indecent SMS Sender Could Fail Jail Time in Pakistan – July 22, 2009  

Telegraph – Pakistan President Bans Jokes Ridiculing Him – July 21, 20  09 

By Alishba I. Kassim
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – After Sri Lanka’s final victory over the Tamil Tiger rebels, the country continues to grapple with the issue of postwar resettlement.

Approximately 280,000 Tamil civilians remain detained, finding themselves living inside barbed wire fences in large tents. Despite challenges to their detention from various human rights agencies, the government maintains that their detention is an imperative security measure. Security in the detention facilities continues to be tightened with limited humanitarian access. Vehicles of aid organizations have been barred after the military suggested they were smuggling out members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Resettlement remains an issue for the Sri Lankan government who have not yet produced a clear plan. No details have been shared with the UN who have ample experience in this area and are willing to provide greater assistance.

The Sri Lankan government has maintained a closed door policy on these matters and have publicly refuted accusations of mismanagement and human rights violations during and after the fighting. There has been little or no probe of the military’s tactics during the fighting, and claims implicating the army’s indiscriminate shelling of civilians have been swept under the rug. Earlier this week a presidential panel set up to investigate human rights abuses during the fighting was also shut down.

Sri Lanka maintains a firm stance on state sovereignty since it has often been undermined in developing countries by the world’s super powers. However that being said, some level of intervention is necessary in order to investigate and respond to matters of human rights – especially when 280,000 displaced civilians are at stake.

For more information, please see:

Christian Science Monitor – Sri Lanka’s Post-war Resettlement Stalls – June 19, 2009

NPR – Sri Lankan Tamils Ponder Future – June 19, 2009

Tamil Sydney – Rising Threat of Post-war Disappearances – June 19, 2009

The Hindu – Sri Lanka Not to Allow Visits to Tamil Camps – June 19, 2009

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia– After a week of negotiations, 20 families with HIV/AIDS were evicted from their homes in Cambodia today.  The families have been forced by the Cambodian government to move out of the Borei Keila community in central Phnom Penh and resettle in Tuol Sambo, which is known as the “AIDS village” by the locals.

Families have been protesting the move for months, complaining that they would have no means of income or medical care at the new location.  Tuol Sambo has no clean water or electricity, and the homes are made of metal sheets.  Most families are not in the position to battle the authorities, and they fear that they will face further discrimination by living in Tuol Sambo.

A man carries his belongings as another resident watches before being transported to the new resettlement site (Source: AP)

Amnesty International has condemned the move calling it “segregation,” and added, “The site’s long distance from the city hampers access to health services and jobs…[t]he families have urgent humanitarian needs…[t]here is a real risk that the health of the evicted families will deteriorate there.”

However, the Cambodian government is claiming that the families had illegally settled on government land where the authorities now wish to build new offices for Ministry of Tourism.

Last year, around 23,000 Cambodians were evicted from their homes and another 150,000 are at risk of facing eviction due to land disputes and commercial development projects.  Human rights organizations said evictions are a major social problem hurting Cambodia’s stability.

Furthermore, according to the 2008 estimate by the UN, 75,000 Cambodians are infected with AIDS and 100,000 have died due to AIDS-related causes, which is the highest in Southeast Asia.  The government is trying to decrease its HIV/AIDS prevalence to 0.6% by 2010 and have allocated about $50 million to combat the disease.

Despite the government’s efforts, Director of Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights Naly Pilorge said, “It is tragic that the government has chosen to create a permanent AIDS colony where people will face great stigma and discrimination.”

For more information, please see:

Amnesty International – Amnesty International Condemns Cambodian Government’s Eviction of 20 Families Living with HIV/AIDS – June 18, 2009

Kaiser Daily Reports – Cambodia Aims to Decrease HIV/AIDS Prevalence to 0.6% by 2010 – 6 April 2009

MSNBC – Cambodian authorities evict HIV-affected families – 18 June 2009