By Ben Kopp
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

WASHINGTON, DC, United States – Neo-Nazis protested against immigration reform in the United States. In response, several organizations and city officials staged counter-demonstrations.

On 9 November 1938, non-Jewish persons throughout Germany plundered and destroyed Jewish homes, synagogues, schools, and businesses. An estimated 1500 people died as a result of the attacks, which began around Hesse, making it one of the deadliest and most violent programs during the Nazi reign.

On 9 November 2013, the 75th anniversary of what is now called “Kristallnacht” or the “Night of Broken Glass,” the National Socialist Movement (NSM) staged a rally at 3:00 p.m. at the Jackson County Courthouse in Kansas City, Missouri to protest against immigration reform. NSM is a white supremacist party that claims to be “the political party for every white American.”

A leaflet for the event stated: “If you are working for a slaves wage, making barely enough to feed your family, and are tired of seeing the corruption that is crippling our land, the time to get active in this fight is now.”

NSM claimed that politicians who advocate amnesty for “illegal aliens” are allowing the “nation to drown in a free fall of economic collapse.”

Kansas City police screened all persons entering the protest for firearms, padlocks, chains, backpacks, and baby strollers, which were strictly prohibited. Police stated that the security measures ensured “a peaceful expression of ideas” and helped avoid any violent incidents.

The ACLU objected to the restrictions, saying protesters on both sides needed pickets to hold up their signs.

About three dozen neo-Nazis attended, marched down the sidewalk, and preached their views in the shadow of an Andrew Jackson statute.

Across from the NSM rally, hundreds of opponents held signs and shouted from behind barricades and police tape. One sign, with a picture of Southern cook Paula Deen demanded, “White Flour! And more butter.” Pro-diversity protesters outnumbered the Nazis approximately nine-to-one.

Pro-diversity protester Ryan Jones said, “Humor dispels hate. Making a mockery of it makes the whole thing hard to take seriously.”

Before the protest, NSM claimed that other white supremacist groups would join them, including the White Christian Group of Aryan Nations, the Sadistic Souls Motorcycle Club, and the Traditionalist American Knights, a Klu Klux Klan affiliate.

In response to the protest, several civil, human rights, and anti-racism organizations planned counter-rallies for the same time.

The Latino Coalition of Kansas City (LCKC) called for members to peacefully “stand up against the Nazis.”

At the Liberty Memorial, Kansas City officials and organizations staged a rally to support immigration reform. Kansas City Mayor Sly James said that immigration reform will happen only if people push their representatives and use voting as a voice.

The Ida B Wells Coalition against Racism and Police Brutality of Kansas City called local hotels to confirm that they were “not harboring Nazis.”

While the city made clear that it did not agree with NSM’s message, the city demonstrated that freedom of speech means the diversity of people and ideas.

For further information, please see:

ABC News – Neo-Nazis Stage Rally on Kristallnacht Anniversary in Kansas City – November 9, 2013

Kansas City Star – Freedom of Speech Reigns in Rally Faceoff – November 9, 2013

KCTV 5 News – ACLU Has Concerns over Restrictions at Neo-Nazi Rally – November 9, 2013

Kansas City Business Journal – Kansas City Council Roundup: Nazis Not Welcome – November 1, 2013

By Ben Kopp
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

BRUSSELS, European Union – Applicable to all EU states, the European Court of Justice ruled that fear of imprisonment on the basis of homosexual status is grounds for asylum; particularly, for nationals of Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Senegal.

In October 2013, the Netherlands and Russia fought when masked assailants entered a Moscow apartment, beat a Dutch diplomat who lived there, and scrawled “LGBT” in lipstick on his mirror. The attack followed a similar attack in which Dutch police entered a Russian diplomat’s flat and “roughed him up.”

In early November 2013, Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans stated that Russia’s prohibition on “homosexual propaganda” may be grounds for asylum in the Netherlands, which is a leader in protecting LGBT rights. Russia’s law has angered many activists worldwide, who have called for a Winter Olympics boycott since the law’s June 2013 enactment.

The Dutch Council of State, a top advisory body, asked the European Court of Justice (ECJ) whether homosexuals could be considered a particular social group, and whether criminalization and possible imprisonment amounted to persecution of them. Dutch policy had suggested that homosexuals could exercise “restraint” to avoid persecution.

Particular social groups with a well-founded fear of persecution can claim refugee status under international law, if the persecution constitutes a severe violation of human rights.

In response, the ECJ ruled that laws specifically targeting homosexuals do make them a separate group; however, national authorities must determine “whether, in the applicant’s country of origin, the term of imprisonment…is applied in practice.” For instance, merely banning homosexuality is not grounds for approving an asylum request.

While it is unclear how persons claiming refugee status can prove their homosexuality, the ECJ is not scheduled to rule on that issue within the coming year.

In its ruling, the ECJ discussed that expecting concealment of one’s sexual identity was not reasonable: “A person’s sexual orientation is a characteristic so fundamental to his identity that he should not be forced to renounce it.”

The Dutch Council’s request stemmed from a case of three Africans seeking asylum on grounds that they feared persecution for their sexual orientation if returned to their homelands. Currently, homosexual acts are illegal in most African countries, including Uganda, Nigeria, Kenya, Botswana, and other Western allies.

In Uganda and other countries, suggested punishments for homosexuality have included the death penalty.

In June 2013, Amnesty International reported dangerous levels of homophobic attacks in sub-Saharan Africa, where 38 countries criminalize homosexual acts, and stated that such attacks must stop.

Until the ECJ visits the question of how EU states may reasonably inquire as to a refugee’s sexual orientation, a larger question looms: in the pursuit of happiness and a greater quality of life, does a person’s specific reason for wanting to leave an oppressive regime really matter?

For further information, please see:

BBC News – Top EU Court Ruling Backs Gay African Asylum Bids – November 7, 2013

Deutsche Welle – European Court Rules Homosexuals Can Seek Asylum in EU – November 7, 2013

RadioFreeEurope Radio Liberty – ECJ Rules Homosexuality Can Be Grounds for Asylum – November 7, 2013

Reuters – Anti-Gay Discrimination Could Be Grounds for Asylum: EU Court – November 7, 2013

TIME – European Court: Gay Refugees May Have Grounds for Asylum – November 7, 2013

by Tony Iozzo
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

GAO, Mali – The Al Qaeda-linked militant group, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has claimed responsibility for the deaths of two French journalists, who were murdered in Mali on Saturday.

The Mauritanian news agency, Sahara Medias, stated that it received the message in the form of an email. In the email, AQIM claimed it was responsible for the deaths of Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon, journalists from Radio France International.

Dupont and Verlon were found dead just outside of Kidal in northern Mali hours after being abducted at gunpoint. Sahara Medias stated the email said the murders had been carried out by a unit led by Abdelkrim al-Targui, a Malian national who has risen to prominence internally in a branch of Al Qaeda that is led by Algerian jihadists. Sahara Medias, often sent statements by Islamic militants in Mali, stated it received the email from fighters loyal to Targui.

“This operation was a response to crimes committed by France against Malians and the work of African and international forces against the Muslims of Azawad,” the email stated.

France had launched a military operation in the ground and air in Mali in January earlier this year, with the objective of reclaiming territory seized by Islamist militants in the northern part of Mali.

The AQIM statement also suggested that the murders were “the minimum debt” owed by the French people and President François Hollande “in return for their new crusade.”

Targui is a native of the Kidal region of Mali and is also believed to be responsible for the previous kidnappings of two French nationals, Philippe Verdon and Serge Lazarevic. Verdon and Lazarevic were abducted from the town of Hombori in northern Mali in 2011. Lazarevic remains in captivity, while Verdon was executed earlier this year.

AQIM grew in the 1990’s out of a movement started by radical Algerian Islamists who sought the overthrow of the Algerian government and to replace it with Islamic rule. The organization joined forces with Al Qaeda in 2006 and has spread itself across the Sahel region abutting the southern Sahara desert.

On Tuesday, France stated that it had sent seven investigators, including intelligence and police officials, to Mali to assist in the search for Dupont and Verlon’s killers. A member of the Malian security forces said that roughly thirty five suspects had been arrested in connection with the murders.

For more information, please see:

BBC News – “Al-Qaeda killed” French Reporters Dupont and Verlon in Mali – 6 November 2013

France 24 – Al-Qaeda-Linked Group Claims Murder of French Journalists – 6 November 2013

New York Times – Killing of French Journalists Reverberates in France and Mali – 6 November 2013

Reuters – France, Malian Forces Hunt Suspects Behind Journalist Killings – 4 November 2013

 

by Tony Iozzo
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

VIENNA, Austria – Seven members of the Austrian Neo-Nazi Political Party, “Object 21” were sentenced to up to six years in prison for “re-engagement with National Socialism.”

The judge started at the conviction that these convictions should serve as an example to the rest of the country. Austria, which has a sensitive Nazi past, criminalized re-engagement with National Socialism in 1947.

The members of the Object 21 Party were convicted on late Monday. The prosecution’s witnesses linked the Party members to an illegal prostitution scheme. The trial had been held in the Upper Austria province.

The prosecution and police, who had surveyed the Party since 2009, stated that the Object 21 party is known for committing widespread arson attacks, dealing weapons and drugs, and the prostitution scheme.

The prosecution’s evidence included a video showing the Party members giving a “Sieg Heil” salutes in their meeting building, known as the “Arms Factory”. The two main members of the group were sentenced to four and six years in jail, respectively, and stated they intend to appeal the conviction. The others were given sentences of between 18 months and two and a half years. All seven members of Object 21 had pleaded not guilty.

The presiding judge had been reportedly quoted as saying the sentences were meant to have a “preventative” impact on anyone “tempted” by Neo-Nazism. A spokeswoman for the prosecution stated investigations will continue into suspected crimes by other Neo- Nazi gang members.

Austria became a democratic country shortly after World War II by passing the Anti-Nazi Prohibition Act, after the country had been a part of Hitler’s Nazi Third Reich from 1938 to 1945. In 1992, the Act was broadened to criminalize denying the Holocaust ever occurred, as well as minimizing the effects of any Nazi crimes.

In its 2012 annual report, Austria’s BVT, its counter-terrorism agency, downplayed the imminent threat of Neo-Nazi crimes, issuing a statement that a legal crackdown had deprived the Nazi revisionist movement of its leaders. With the Neo-Nazi’s suspected ringleaders on trial, right-wing radical Nazis kept a low profile, but in many regions were gaining ties with criminal gangs, the Austrian BVT said.

Austria’s far-right Freedom Party, which got more than one-fifth of the vote in the September general election, rejects Neo-Nazi ideology but attracts some sympathizers with its anti-foreigner and anti-Islam rhetoric.

For more information, please see:

ABC News – Austrian Court Finds 7 Guilty of Neo-Nazi Crimes – 5 November 2013

BBC News – Austria Court Jails Seven Members of Neo-Nazi Group – 5 November 2013

Yahoo News, UK & Ireland – Austrian Neo-Nazi Group Members Get up to Six Years’ Prison – 5 November 2013

The Jerusalem Post – Austrian Neo-Nazi Group Members Get up to Six Years’ Prison – 5 November 2013

 

 

By Ben Kopp
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

MOSCOW, Russia – Reports show that Pussy Riot member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova was transferred to another penal colony following her demands for a transfer.

In 2012, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova’s punk rock band and protest group Pussy Riot staged a politically provocative performance in Moscow’s main Orthodox cathedral. Tolokonnikova has been serving a two-year sentence as a result of that performance, based on a conviction for hooliganism. While another band member has also been serving a sentence, their third member was released on appeal.

While Pussy Riot’s performance was considered blasphemous, their prosecution created an international outcry for their release.

In September 2013, Tolokonnikova went on a hunger strike against her treatment in the Mordovia penal colony, which included death threats from a colony official, as well as “slave-labor conditions.” She ended the hunger strike after becoming hospitalized.

Nearly two weeks ago, Tolokonnikova demanded that she be transferred to another penitentiary. Pyotr Verzilov, Tolokonnikova’s husband, says that nobody has heard from her since that time.

Verzilov said that Tolokonnikova is still weak from her last hunger strike, and he accused authorities of punishing her for protesting.

The last time Verzilov knew of his wife’s location, she had passed through Chelyabinsk in the Urals.
According to the Interfax news agency, Russia’s prison service sent Pussy Riot member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova to a new penal colony. Interfax further reported that, in accordance with regulations, Tolokonnikova’s family would be informed within 10 days of arrival. The Associated Press could not reach Interfax officials for comment.

“According to a decision made by FSIN [Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service] in regards to changing Nadezhda Tolokonnikova’s location: she is currently being moved to a different correctional facility,” an FSIN official told Interfax news agency. “Upon arrival to a particular institution, one of the relatives, chosen by Tolokonnikova, will be given the information.”

Verzilov contends that it has been thirteen days since he last saw his wife. “They want to cut her off from the outside world,” Verzilov said. “Basically, we are applying the tactic we’ve been applying the last two years, (which) is to draw as much international attention as possible. We are trying to make authorities follow the law, when they do not follow it.”

On November 2, demonstrators picketed the headquarters of the prison service in Moscow.

“We are people who want to drastically change the political system in Russia and put an end to the Putin regime in this country,” Verzilov said. “We do what we feel we have to do, and after the government makes us pay the price they feel we should pay.”

Absent access to Tolokonnikova, her family might claim that Russia has forced her to disappear. However, they will have to wait for further evidence to suggest that Russia is taking such actions.

For further information, please see:

CNN International – Imprisoned Pussy Riot Band Member Transferred to Another Prison – November 4, 2013

Euronews – Russian Prison Service Announces Transfer of Pussy Riot Member – November 3, 2013

RT – Pussy Riot Member Tolokonnikova Being Moved to New Prison – Officials – November 3, 2013

Al Jazeera – Jailed Pussy Riot Member Cut Off from Contact, Husband Says – November 2, 2013

BBC – Pussy Riot: Tolokonnikova ‘Out of Sight’ Since Jail Move – November 2, 2013

RadioFreeEurope RadioLiberty – Pussy Rioter Not Heard from in Two Weeks – November 2, 2013

TIME – Pussy Riot Member Moved to New Prison – November 2, 2013

Washington Post – Report: Pussy Riot Member Tolokonnikova Being Sent to New Prison – November 2, 2013