By Daniel M. Austin
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

NAROBI, Kenya – Over the objection of international officials, the Kenyan government has decided to let an agreement made with the European Union (E.U.) and other nations expire, thereby ending its practice of prosecuting Somali pirates.   This agreement was initially signed by Kenya and the E.U., United States, United Kingdom, Denmark, Canada, and China just over a year ago.  The contents of this agreement specified that the Kenyan government would hold, prosecute, and jail Somali pirates captured by international forces patrolling the coast of Africa. In exchange, Kenya would receive financial support from western countries to run this program and to strengthen its own judicial system.   Included in this agreement was a clause allowing Kenya to cancel the deal if six months notice is provided.  Thus, this agreement is set to expire as of September 30, 2010.

Since the agreement has been in place, more than 100 suspected pirates have been arrested by international forces and transported to Kenya for prosecution.  Despite this success, Kenya claims that the EU and other nations have not fulfilled their promises. Specifically, the western nations have not provided the financial support promised nor have they supplied the judicial and technical expertise to the Kenyan government as previously agreed.  Furthermore, Kenyan officials are concerned the security risks associated with trying Somali pirates are too high.

In response to these accusations, the western nations point to almost 3 million dollars (U.S.) that has been spent through the United Nation Office of Drugs and Crime (UNDOC) to support Kenya’s judiciary. Some of this money has been spent on creating a court specifically designed to prosecute Somali pirates.

Diplomats from the E.U. and other nations have been pressuring Kenya’s President Mwai Kibaki to reconsider his decision to end the prosecution of Somali pirates.  So far, the President has not been persuaded to resurrect these agreements.  Kenya’s decision comes at a time when piracy attacks continue to plague merchant ships traveling along the eastern coast of Africa including the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden.   In fact, three ships in the Indian Ocean have been attacked during the past week alone.

For more information, please see:

BBC News Africa – Kenya Ends Cooperation in Hosting Somali Pirate Trials-1 October 2010.

Bloomberg Businessweek – Kenya Jails 11 For Piracy; Daily Nation Says Trials to End-1 October 2010.

Daily Nation – Kenya Cancels Piracy Trial Deals-30 September 2010.

By Eric C. Sigmund
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

KHARTOUM, Sudan – The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) voted Friday to extend the mandate of Mohamed Chande Othman, a human rights expert and observer, in Sudan.   The Council extended the mandate by a margin of seven votes despite opposition from a number of African nations who favored terminating the mandate.  19 nations ultimately voted against renewal.  In accordance with Saturday’s resolution, Mr. Othman will remain in Sudan for an additional year to monitor the human rights situation in the country.

Mr. Othman, a justice on Tanzania’s court of appeals, reported last September that he was concerned that the military crackdown in Sudan has resulted in numerous human rights violations.   The expert noted that rights violations in the country “represent a serious setback” for development in the country.   The UNHRC renewed Mr. Othman’s mandate just as Sudan gears up for a referendum which could be a catalyst for an independent South Sudan.  Mr. Othman stated “[i]t is essential that authorities uphold human rights principles as a way of ensuring a peaceful and credible referendum.”

The government of Sudan however, objected to UNHRC’s decision.  Government officials contend that the country’s human rights record is good when compared to other countries and accused European nations of having a double standard when it comes to human rights.   A representative of the Arab League also blasted Friday’s vote, arguing that the extension was the result of Western pressure and done for political reasons.

The government’s comments are hardly reassuring.   Militants have accused the government of ethnic cleansing as it seeks to subdue rebels throughout the country.  The Sudan Liberation Army, on Friday, alleged that Sudanese forces killed 27 civilians in its latest week-long assault in the region.  The International Criminal Court has also issued arrest warrants against Sudan’s president Omar Hassan al-Bashir for committing genocide and war crimes.

Although an intensive investigation into the government’s campaign against the rebels in Sudan will be necessary to determine the extent of human rights violations in the country, it is clear that the government will continue its aggressive assertion of force and is willing to accept collateral civilian casualties until peace is established.   As recently as last month, Mr. Othman urged the U.N. to initiate an investigation into attacks against civilians by Sudanese forces.  Since 2003 over 300,000 people have been killed and 2.7 million displaced as a result of the fighting.

For more information, please see:

Reuters Africa – Darfur Rebels Say Sudan Army Raids Kill 27 – 2 Oct. 2010

Sudan Tribune – U.N. Rights Expert’s Mandate in Sudan Extended Despite Arab and African Objections – 2 Oct. 2010

Agence France Presse – U.N. Rights Council Keeps Sudan Under Scrutiny – 1 Oct. 2010

Associated Press – U.N. Expert Urges Probe of Recent Attacks in Darfur – 14 Sept. 2010

By Eric C. Sigmund
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

Mogadishu, Somalia – Fighting erupted again today in Mogadishu as Somali forces, backed by African Union peacekeepers, sought to reassert control over the capital.   At least seven people were killed in the clashes when a shell fired by Somali forces hit a bus.  In addition to the rising death toll, the latest U.N. report indicates that over 12,000 Somalis have fled Mogadishu over the last month. 

Islamic militants have been able maintain their foothold in Mogadishu and surrounding cities and have dug in for a tough fight to repel government forces.  Roughly 7,500 African Union peacekeepers have been committed to the country to support the ill equipped Somali forces.   The AU is currently investigating a plan to increase its troop presence in Somalia to 20,000 peacekeepers.

This added support however, has not deterred new recruits from joining the ranks of Al-Shabaab.  New reports have found that Al-Shabaab has been able to attract a significant amount of foreign fighters to join their ranks by offering them money to fight.  Fighters are said to receive $250 per month in exchange for their services fighting the Somali government.   At least two dozen Americans have gone to Somalia to fight with militant groups. 

The United States has sought to expand its engagement in Somali by increasing ties with the semi-autonomous regions in the country in order to stem the flow of recruits to Al-Shabaab.  The government hopes it can leverage friendly relations with the leaders of these regions to maintain stability in the country.  The U.S. currently provides political and military support to the government in its fight to neutralize Islamic militants.   Some analysts claim that the U.S. is also responsible for the Thursday’s mysterious helicopter attack against a group of militants. 

As if matters weren’t bad enough, another development is creating additional pressures on the government to defeat the militants.  Merger talks between Hizbul Islam, a group fighting alongside Al-Shabaab, and the al-Qaeda affiliated group, are in their final stages.   Despite a current standstill in negotiations, it is likely that the two groups will reach a final unification agreement.  Leaders of both groups reaffirmed their joint commitment against the government and those who support it.   In July, Al-Shabaab took responsibility for an attack in Uganda which killed over 75 people.  The attack was said to be retaliation for Uganda’s decision to join the AU peacekeeping force.    

For more information, please see:

The Tripoli Post – US Boosts Ties with Break-Away Somalia Regions – 3 Oct. 2010

The Hindu – Clashes in Somalia Leave Seven Dead – 2 Oct. 2010

Sunday Vision – Somalia Al-Shabaab Paid $250 to Die – 2 Oct. 2010

Reuters Africa – Somali Rebel Merger Talks Halt But Will Go On – 29 Sept. 2010

By Elly On
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

DR Congo-A UN report on killings of civilians in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1994 has shed a new view on genocide. The report accuses Rwandan and Ugandan forces of participating in atrocious genocide of innocent civilians in DR Congo. Most of the civilians were children, women, elders, and the sick who were undernourished and posed no threat to the attacking forces.

In 1994, more than 800,000 people, mostly the ethnic Tutsi group members in Rwanda, were killed by the Hutu. A Tutsi-led government seized control over Rwanda and the Hutu military fled with Hutu civilians to Congo (known as Zaire at the time).  With the help of a Congolese rebel force, Rwanda invaded Congo to pursue the Hutu militias.

The 545-page UN report on the atrocities that took place during the war details 600 of the most serious reported atrocities. Then, it poses the question–whether Rwanda could be found guilty of genocide against the Hutu. The 600 atrocities include incidents and allegations of massacres of civilians, torture, and the destruction of infrastructures that led to deaths of civilians. Most of the victims were children, women, elderly people and the sick.

In response to the report, Uganda and Rwanda denied such allegations and called the report dangerous and deeply flawed. Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda, threatened to withdraw its peacekeepers from the joint UN-African Union peacekeeping mission in Sudan’s Darfur region in response to the report. Uganda, also accused of atrocities, described the draft report as “deeply flawed” and had threatened to pull out of peacekeeping missions, such as Somalia.

 DR Congo’s permanent representative at the UN demands justice and that their voices be heard by his government and the international community.

For more information, please see:
BBC News–UN Report says DR Congo killings may be genocide–1 October 2010
The New York Times–U.N. Congo Report Offers New View on Genoice–27 August 2010
Yahoo News–UN tones down Congo ‘genocide’ report–30 September 2010

By Polly Johnson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

CONAKRY, Guinea – Families of the victims of the September 28, 2009 massacre in Conakry, in which junta troops murdered, raped, and tortured protesters at a political rally at Conakry’s biggest stadium, leaving one hundred and fifty seven dead, were unable to gather at the stadium to mark the one-year anniversary.

One year ago, thousands of peaceful protestors gathered at the Conakry stadium to protest the continued military rule of then-leader Captain Moussa Dadis Camara. Unable to suppress the rally, armed guards, anti-riot police, and militia in civilian clothes sealed the exits and opened fire on the protestors in the packed stadium. In addition to the murders, hundreds of women were raped at the stadium and others were detained for rape later. Protesters were illegally arrested and brutally tortured. In an attempt to hide the evidence, armed forces buried the bodies in mass graves.

Both the United Nations and the International Criminal Court deemed the crimes that occurred during the massacre as crimes against humanity.

The massacre stemmed from Guinea’s political structure. The army, which had at that time grown to a body of over thirty thousand men, ruled the country. In 2008, army captain Camara seized power and became leader of the military regime known as the Conseil National pour la Democratie et le Development (CNDD), which planned the attack in advance, according to HRW.

Camara was wounded in an assassination attempt last December and has been incapacitated since. General Sekouba Konate has been leading the transition until the election of a civilian president

Current presidential candidate Cellou Dalein Diallo said that if he were elected president, he would consider putting in place a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, “not necessarily to punish people but to condemn the really barbaric acts that were committed and which should be completely banned from our armed forces and the police.” Diallo was badly beaten himself in the massacre and treated for broken ribs.

The country has made important strides in the past year. The military is less visible. There are hopes that the October elections will bring democratic rule to the country.

But the perpetrators of the massacre are still free, and, according to HRW, the only way to break the cycle of impunity in Guinea is to bring the perpetrators to justice.

“While the mothers, fathers, spouses, and children of those murdered one year ago still grieve for their loved ones, the people who planned, perpetrated, and tried to cover up this atrocious act remain free men,” said senior West Africa researcher at HRW Corinne Dufka.

“The new government should waste no time in tackling the vicious cycle of violence and impunity that created the conditions for massacres like the one last year,” Dufka said. “Strengthening the judiciary and ensuring that those responsible for the 2009 violence are behind bars is a very good place to start.”

For more information, please see:

AFP – Guinea presidential hopeful seeks massacre truth commission – 28 September 2010

AFP – A year after Guinea massacre, culprits still free – 27 September 2010

Associated Press – Guinea massacre victims’ families unable to gather – 28 September 2010

BBC – Did Guinea democracy activists give their lives in vain? – 27 September 2010

Bloomberg – Guinea Failing to Prosecute Massacre Perpetrators, Human Rights Watch Says – 27 September 2010

Human Rights Watch – Guinea: One Year On, No Justice for Bloody Stadium Massacre – 27 September 2010