By Christine Khamis

Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

 

ANDAMAN SEA AND MALACCA STRAIT, Off the Coastlines of Thailand and Malaysia–

Thousands of migrants are stranded in boats in the Andaman Sea off the coast of Thailand and in the Malacca Strait near the coast of Malaysia. The migrants have been unable to find asylum after fleeing from oppression and economic troubles in Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Many of the migrants are Muslim Rohingya from Myanmar. There are over one million Rohingya in Myanmar and more than 100,000 have fled from persecution in recent years. The Rohingya are a minority in Myanmar and have faced systematic discrimination by Myanmar’s government. They are also subject to attacks by radical Buddhists. Anti-Muslim views are common among the people of Myanmar, many of whom are Buddhist.

In Myanmar, the Rohingya are not entitled to rights of citizenship, freedom of travel or access to education. Myanmar’s military government has stated that the Rohingya are Bengali migrants whose presence is an unwelcome reminder of colonialism in Myanmar. Bengladash’s government disagrees that the Rohingya are Bengalis and has made attempts to close its borders to the Rohingya migrants.

The other migrants traveling with the Rohingya are fleeing from economic hardship in Bangladesh. Legal migration is time consuming and expensive, so many of those migrating from Bangladesh have used the same trafficking routes and boats as the Rohingya.

Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia have all turned boats of refugees away at their shores, leaving the migrants with no option but to go back onto the open sea.

Malaysia turned away one such boat full of migrants on Wednesday. Malaysia has a shortage of unskilled labor, making it a prime destination for fleeing migrants. Malaysia has already admitted tens of thousands of Rohingya, but those who arrive through people trafficking routes are treated like illegal immigrants and are placed in slums. They are treated with discrimination and their only employment options are dangerous and low-paying jobs.

Although Malaysia has admitted a number of Rohingya, the recent surge in migrants reaching Malaysian and Indonesian shores has caused both countries to state that they will not accept any more migrants unless they are in extreme peril. A Malaysian official has stated that the rush of migrants is unwelcome and that the Malaysian government will not allow any illegal entries into Malaysia.

Malaysian Deputy Home Minister Wan Junaidi Jaafar has voiced concern that if Malaysia continues to admit the fleeing migrants, then hundreds of thousands more migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh will come to Malaysia.

A boat carrying an estimated 660 migrants arrived in Indonesia, a Muslim country, on Friday morning. Yet another boat was sighted in the Malacca Strait by the Indonesian Navy on Friday morning and was turned away before it could come ashore. Indonesia’s government has stated that illegal immigrants will not be admitted.

Another boat, carrying hundreds of migrants, reached the shore of Thailand on Thursday after journalists found it in the Andaman Sea of the Thailand shore. The boat’s crew had abandoned the boat without a working motor, leaving the passengers stranded without food and water. Although there are differing accounts of how many people aboard the ship have died, passengers have stated that 10 people on board the ship had died and were then thrown overboard, The Thai government repaired the boat’s engine and provided the passengers with supplies and enough fuel for 33 hours.

Thai authorities claimed that the passengers on board the ship wanted to continue their journey to Malaysia instead of getting out in Thailand. The boat had, however, already been turned away from Malaysia on Wednesday. A Thai reporter witnessed the boat’s parting and stated that some of the migrants aboard did not seem to want to leave. She stated that women on the ship were crying as the ship pulled away from the Thai coast.

While the Thai government has stated that its navy will give humanitarian aid to migrants, they do not want the migrants to settle down permanently in Thailand.

United Nations human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein has stressed Myanmar’s responsibility for the migrants’ fleeing because of its discrimination against the Muslim Rohingya. He has stated that until discrimination against the Rohingya is addressed, the migration of the Rohingya refugees will continue.

 

For more information, please see:

CNN – We Will Send Rohingya Back, Says Malaysia, Amid Calls to Rescue Migrants – 15 May 2015

The New York Times – Boat With Hundreds of Migrants From Myanmar Heads Farther Out to Sea – 15 May 2015

BBC – ‘Ten Deaths’ on Stranded Myanmar Migrant Boat – 14 May 2015

The New York Times – How Myanmar and Its Neighbors Are Responding to the Rohingya Crisis – 14 May 2015

 

 

By Christine Khamis

Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

 

JAKARTA, Indonesia–

Five political prisoners in the Papua province of Indonesia were released on Saturday by Indonesian President Joko Widodo as part of an effort to improve human rights conditions in Papua. The five prisoners were convicted after a raid on an Indonesian military arms base in 2003 and were facing sentences ranging from 19 years to life.

 

 

President Widodo has stated that the release is meant to alleviate conflict in Papua. There has been political unrest and violence in Papua since it was annexed by Indonesia in 1963. Since then, a group of separatist insurgents, called the Free Papua Movement, has fought against the Indonesian government. There are also activist groups who have petitioned for a vote on Papuan independence.

Thousands of Papuan citizens have been killed during clashes with Indonesian police and military forces throughout the last several decades. Last December, five people were killed for protesting a young boy’s beating by Indonesian soldiers.

The prisoners’ release comes just weeks after seven foreigners and an Indonesian national convicted of drug-related offenses were executed by a firing squad in Indonesia. President Widodo ignored international calls for their release and has expressed his support of the use of the death penalty in Indonesia.

Humans Rights Watch, an international organization that researches and advocates for human rights, has pushed President Widodo to release other political prisoners. Overall, there are at least 100 political prisoners being held in Indonesia. Prison sentences are often lengthy and many political prisoners have complained of torture and other abuses at the hands of prison guards.

According to the advocacy group “Papuans Behind Bars”, there are dozens of political prisoners being held for political demonstrations and for acts such as waving the separatist flag. Such acts are viewed as treason in Papua. 26 prisoners held for treason in Papua have rejected the option of being freed under a governmental amnesty program because being released in such a way means admitting guilt for crimes that they did not commit.

President Widodo also recently lifted a ban on foreign journalists traveling to Papua in a further effort to improve human rights conditions in the region. He has stated that journalists are now free to travel to Papua. Previously, foreign journalists needed government clearance before traveling to Papua. Last year, two French journalists were imprisoned for 11 weeks for illegally using their tourist visas to work as journalists in Papua.

The restrictions on journalists were established because of the tensions created by the insurgency movement. The Papuan people saw the travel restrictions on foreign journalists as allowing the Indonesian police and military forces to continue to operate unrestrained in their abuses against Papuan citizens.

For the Papuan people, the freeing of the political prisoners and the lifted ban on foreign journalists are positive steps toward addressing human rights violations in their region.

 

For further information, please see:

ABC News — Indonesia Lifts Travel Ban for Foreign Journalists to Papua — 10 May 2015

Reuters — Indonesian President Lifts Foreign Media Restrictions in Papua — 10 May 2015

BBC — Indonesia Frees Prisoners and Lifts Media Curbs in Papua — 9 May 2015

The New York Times — Indonesia President, Joko Widodo, Pardons Prisoners in Papua Province — 9 May 2015

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

KATHMANDU, Nepal – Aid has been slow in reaching the most isolated communities in Days after the devastating 7.9 Magnitude Nepal after the devastating earthquake that struck the small mountainous country four days ago, claiming the lives of at least 5,000. People remain stranded, waiting for rescue and aid, in many of the countries remote towns and villages. While the relief efforts continued Tuesday, government officials warned that they were hindered by problems of getting aid into Nepal and then delivering it to the nation’s remote Himalayan communities in desperate need.

The government has declared three days of mourning in Nepal for the victims of Saturday’s earthquake which claimed the lives more than 5,000 people, left at least 10,000 people wounded and effected eight million people across the country, many of whom have now been displaced as a result of the large scale devastation. Nepalese Prime Minister Sushil Koirala says the government is doing all it can but is overwhelmed by the scale of the catastrophe. Thousands of people remain unaccounted for, especially in remote Himalayan villages, and Prime Minister Sushil Koirala has warned that the death toll could rise to more than 10,000 people.

Aid efforts are still ongoing in the nation’s capital. On Tuesday heavy rains hampered the recovery effort in city of Kathmandu. The country’s Armed Police Force (APF) is now being assisted by teams from both China and India. APF officers are concerned that if bodies of the deceased are not recovered in time from the collapsed buildings that can be seen all over the historic city, an epidemic will break out in the city, putting even more lives at risk. “We are working as fast as we can and our response teams are moving from place to place but there is still a lot of work to do. Besides recovering the bodies, we believe that there may still be some survivors buried under all that rubble,” says one APF commander. The United Nations estimates that eight million people in 39 districts across Nepal have been affected by the devastating earthquake, more than a quarter of the nation’s population.

When addressing the nation to announce three days of mourning for the victims of the tragic disaster Prime Minister Sushil Koirala stated that his government was according top priority to rescue and search for the missing, and provided much needed medical treatment of the injured. He also promised that the nation would rebuild the historical, cultural, archaeological and religious monuments destroyed in the devastating earthquake.

For more information please see:

BBC News – Nepal Earthquake: Official Mourning Declared For Victims – 28 April 2015

CNN International – Nepal Earthquake: Death Toll Passes 4,600 As Rescuers Face Challenges – 28 April 2015

The Guardian – The Guardian’s View on the Earthquake in Nepal: It Will Be a Long Road Back – 28 April 2015

The Hindu – Quake Death Toll Could Reach 10,000, Says Nepal Prime Minister – 28 April 2015

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

New Delhi, India –According to a study of air quality conducted by the World Health Organization in 2014, New Delhi, The capital of the world’s second most populous country, was found to be the most polluted city on earth. According to the study, New Delhi was found to have the highest levels of particulate matter or PM 2.5, which refers to small solid or liquid particles floating in the ambient air that are known to be harmful to human health. New Delhi’s average PM2.5 level was 153, compared to 14 in New York City and 56 in Beijing, the city that has become famous around the globe for high pollution levels. The WHO’s safety threshold for humans is 10. High levels of particulate pollution are extremely hazardous to human health. The pollution problem in India is not limited to the nation’s capital. India is home to 13 of the 20 most polluted cities in the world and air-pollution related deaths have become the fifth largest killer in the country.

Delhi’s air is consistently more toxic than that in Beijing, rigorous statistical comparison of two years’ worth of data from both cities has demonstrated. According to US air quality standards, the air quality in the Indian capital was considered healthy for only 7 out of 730 days. Professor Douw Steyn of the University of British Columbia, an air pollution expert who performed the analysis of New Delhi air said the city’s air was considered health less than 1% of the time.

The data shows that in New Delhi, PM 2.5 levels are above the “hazardous” level 17% of the time, or nearly one out of every five. At these levels, according to the US definition, “everyone may experience serious health effects”. Steyn argued “the cost of pollution reduction is far smaller than the costs of pollution damage and simple technological solutions are easily available. What is needed is political will, which can only come from an informed and engaged population.”

Kamal Meattle, a Delhi-based air pollution activist says the government must do more to respond to the pollution crisis in India’s cities and beyond. “I think the first people to be convinced are the politicians, the bureaucrats and the judges … people who really matter in the sense that they understand the problem is going to create a major health issue and major costs,” he said. India’s newly elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently launched a national Air Quality Index (AQI) to monitor pollution levels in major urban cities on a real-time basis. AQI data is currently available in 10 cities across the country including New Delhi. Air pollution in India is a reminder of the high costs of economic development and globalization, especially when industry is left unregulated. Urbanization is also a massive problem in India and a challenge to environmental regulators as the country’s poor continue to move into large, overcrowded urban areas in search of work.

For more information please see:

Hindustan Times – Beijing better than Delhi: Only 7 days of good air in national capital in 2 years – 22 April 2015

BBC News – Breathing poison in the world’s most polluted city – 18 April 2015

The Weather Network – New Delhi has the world’s worst air pollution – 14 April 2015

CNN Money – This Indian city has the world’s worst air – 13 April 2015

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing Editor

SRINAGAR, Kashmir – Police in India-administered Kashmir reprovingly shot and killed a 16-year-old boy on Saturday during a demonstration on the outskirts of the city of Srinagar, the regions summer capital, as a separatist strike shut down the region for a second second day of violent clashes between Kashmiri separatist and Indian officials. The young boy’s uncle claims his nephew was detained by Indian police before he was shot and killed at point-blank range; Indian officials say they are investigating the allegations.

Indian police reported that they had arrested two officers accused of being involved in the shooting a few hours after the incident. Witnesses say three others were injured during clashes with police. In a police statement Indian Police expressed concerns over the killing of the young protester saying; “regret the unfortunate incident.” the statement added that “a preliminary inquiry conducted into the matter indicates that the forces deployed have acted in violation of the laid-down SOP (Standard Operating Procedure).”

The demonstrators erupted in response to India’s apparent crackdown on separatists leadership within occupied Kashmir. The police killing occurred after protests erupted the day before after Friday prayers. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets into crowds of protesters on Friday as demonstrators threw rocks at police and changed anti-Indian and pro-Pakistan slogans, Indian officials said. Earlier, Indian Police arrested Masarat Alam, a top Kashmiri separatist leader for allegedly leading an anti-India demonstration earlier in the week. Alam was placed under house arrest on Thursday night and then formally arrested Friday. His arrested came just weeks after he was released from prison after serving an five yer term for organizing anti-Indian protests in 2010. During the clashes on Friday, 30 people, mainly police officers, were injured as pro-Pakistani demonstrators in the city of Srinagar set fire to an Indian flag and threw rocks at police while protesting the arrest of Masarat Alam.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesperson Tasnim Aslam addressed the violence in Kashmir saying; “brutality and coercion will not suppress aspirations and struggle of Kashmiris of their right to self-determination, promised by the United Nations Security Council resolutions,” she said. “Pakistan is deeply concerned at increase in systematic human rights violations in Indian occupied Kashmir and condemns brutal use of force by Indian security forces.”

Anti-Indian sentiment runs deep within the Indian administrated region of Kashmir. The Himalayan territory is dived by the Line of Control which separates the Pakistan-administered region from the Indian-Administrated region divining families and communities with shared cultural heritage between the two states. A number of militant organizations have operated in the Indian-administered region of Kashmir since the insurgency began in 1989, an estimated 68,000 people have killed in the fighting.

For more information please see:

The Express Tribune – Police Shoot 16-Year-Old Protester Dead in Indian Kashmir – 18 April 2015

The New York Times – One Killed in Kashmir Valley Protest – 18 April 2015

The Times of India – Jammu & Kashmir Police Accept Lapses in Narbal firing that Killed a Teenager – 18 April 2015

Reuters – Violent Clashes Erupt in Kashmir Over Arrest of Separatist Leaders – 17 April 2015