News

Displaced Rohingya Refugees Turned Away from Thailand

By Irving Feng
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BANGKOK, Thailand – Over 600 displaced Rohingya Muslims were found by Thai authorities after police raided a warehouse in the town of Sadao in Songkhla province and a rubber plantation in a Malaysian border town of Pedang Besar.

Rohingya refugees awaiting deportation. (Photo Courtesy of Al Jazeera)

Police suspected that the raid sites were utilized by local human traffickers and discovered the refugees during their operations.  Among the Rohingya discovered in Pedang Besar, roughly 20 of the refugees were women and children.

The Thai landowner of the raid sites is now being sought by the local authorities on illegal human trafficking charges.  The charge of sheltering illegal migrants has also been tacked on by the officials seeking to prosecute the alleged traffickers.

Reports say that the Rohingya refugees had fled Myanmar and were passing through Thailand en route to a third destination.  The migration was entirely voluntary by the Rohingya refugees; however, the migrants had been housed in the warehouse for 3 months prior to discovery.

The refugees were reportedly travelling to a final destination in Malaysia and the camps were temporary holding facilities as they passed through.  The landowners were middlemen who were paid to help facilitate the refugees’ journey.

The migrations may have been voluntary because the Rohingya people are currently stateless.  The Myanmar government continues to deny the Rohingya people official citizenship status.  Myanmar also classifies them as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.

Nearby Bangladesh also denies the Rohingya people official status creating hostility and persecution for the stateless refugees.  The Thai government has refused to grant asylum and plans to force the recently discovered refugees back onto rickety and overcrowded boats for departure, similar to the ones they utilized during their arrival.

Similar incidents in 2008, where Rohingya were forcibly deported from Thailand, generated tragic results.  The Thai military put roughly 1000 Rohingya refugees onto boats without food or water causing hundreds of deaths.

The violence in the Rakhine state of Myanmar last June has caused a large displacement of the Rohingya people.  Of the 800,000 Rohingya people, an estimated 110,000 people were displaced, many of which were Rohingya.

Rights groups have clamored to the international community about Thailand’s attitude toward the recently discovered Rohingya refugees in the two police raids.  Thailand’s refusal of asylum for the stateless refugees and sending them back to sea in rickety boats without food or water is seen as shameful.

Thailand had already deported 73 of the Rohingya people back to Myanmar last week, but the boat landed in the nearby Thai island of Phuket.

For further information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Myanmar Rohingya refugees rescued in Thailand – 11 January 2013

Breitbart – 700 ROHINGYA IN THAILAND TO BE DEPORTED TO MYANMAR – 11 January 2013

Reuters – Over 600 illegal Rohingya migrants held in Thai raids – 11 January 2013

San Jose Mercury News – Rohingya boat people found adrift near Thai resort – 1 January 2013

Three Politically Active Kurdish Women Mysteriously Murdered in Paris

By Alexandra Sandacz
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe 

PARIS, France – The Kurdish community was stunned this past Thursday when three politically active Kurdish women were brutally murdered. The three bodies were found around 2 a.m. inside the Kurdish Information Center. The center was used to promote Kurds’ political and cultural agendas.

The community watches as the three bodies were removed from the inconspicuous building. (Photo Courtesy of NBC News)

Although there are no claims of responsibility or any suggestion of suspects, it is quite clear that the killings were carefully planned. Since the building is not marked, investigators believe someone would have to know where the office was. Furthermore, the front door could not be opened without a digital code.

Center employee, Berivan Akvol, stated, “There is no doubt this was politically motivated.” Agnès Thibault-Lecuivre, a spokeswoman for the Paris prosecutor’s office, stated, “No hypothesis can be excluded at this stage” as per the motive. However, Kurdish activists believe Turkish forces committed the murders.

One woman who was killed is one of the founders of the Kurdish Workers’ Party, the PKK. Multiple nations, such as Turkey, believe the PKK is a terror organization because of their 28-year rebellion against the Turkish state, one of Middle East’s longest-running conflicts.

The PKK, a pan-Kurdish nationalist movement, is internationally known for the three decade war against the government of Turkey. As a result, an estimated 40,000 people were killed. However, suspiciously, the killings happened around the time the Turkish government entered into peace talks with Kurdish leaders.

French Interior Minister, Manuel Valls, told reporters that the three women were “without doubt executed” and described the killings as “totally unacceptable.”

Roj Welat, a spokesman for the PKK leadership in northern Iraq, said “It is an assassination, it is terror, it is ideological and political assassination, a terror attack against the Kurdish people. Sakine Cansiz has been actively involved in the peace and democracy struggle, freedom struggle, of the Kurdish people for a long time. She was one of the women who participated in the formation of the PKK.”

However, although many believe the Turkish government is behind the killings, Turkish political leaders were quick to express their shock and disgust. Additionally, Turkish government spokesman, Bulent Arinc, said the “savage” killing of the women was “utterly wrong.”

The BDP, the Turkish parliament, also stated, “We expect the French government to enlighten this massacre beyond a shadow of doubt. We want it known that these murders committed overtly in the busiest part of Paris cannot be covered up.”

For further information, please see:

BBC News – PKK Paris deaths: Turkey PM Erdogan blames ‘internal feud’ – 11 January 2013

CNN – 3 Kurdish women political activists shot dead in Paris – 11 January 2013

NBC News – Three women shot dead in ‘politically motivated’ Paris slayings – 10 January 2013

The New York Times — 3 Kurds Are Killed in Paris, in Locked-Door Mystery – 10 January 2013

UN Human Rights Group Calls for Release of American Prisoner

By Mark O’Brien
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

HAVANA, Cuba — A human rights group at the United Nations urged Cuba this week to free an American held captive for more than three years.

A United Nations human rights group is calling on the Cuban government to free American prisoner Alan Gross. (Photo Courtesy of CBS Baltimore)

The lawyer for Alan Gross publicly released a 12-page report by the U.N. Human Rights Council imprisonment watchdog on Tuesday.  The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention called Gross’s imprisonment arbitrary and Cuba’s judicial system biased.

Gross, an American contractor, is serving a 15-year sentence for delivering computer and communications equipment to Cuba’s Jewish community.  The equipment was used to access the Internet by bypassing government controls.  U.S. government programs paid for the tools, which were aimed at spreading democracy across the communist country.

The island nation outlawed all cooperation with the American programs, describing them as designed to snuff out communism.  Gross was charged with a crime against the state by acting against the country’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

But the report criticized Cuba’s judiciary as lacking independence, and it said that the nature of the alleged crime was imprecise.  And while the report said the failure of the courts to grant bail to Gross rendered his punishment arbitrary, it rejected complaints by Gross’s attorney that the process violated Gross’s due process rights or that the charges violated Gross’s free speech rights.

“By virtue of what has been set out, the Working Group asks the Government of Cuba to immediately release Mr. Alan Phillip Gross,” the report stated.

The Working Group has no enforcement powers; however, the ruling could pressure Cuban leaders to release Gross.

The Cuban government arrested Gross in December 2009 and convicted him in 2011.  Some have called his arrest an obstacle in efforts to improve relations between the United States and Cuba.

Gross’s family hired Jared Genser, an international human rights lawyer, to argue that both Gross’s arrest and conviction amounted to human rights abuse.

Cuba scoffed at the report’s conclusion last month, blaming the U.S. government for pressuring the UN group to take action.  The Cuban government reiterated that Gross received a fair trial.

Efforts to free Gross have been ongoing since his arrest.  Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), now President Obama’s nominee for Secretary of State, reportedly had a secret meeting in 2010 with Cuba’s foreign minister in New York.

According to Havana Times.org, Gross’s release was to be conditioned on ending the pro-democracy destabilization programs.  The Cuban-American Florida lobby, however, reportedly blocked those plans.

For further information, please see:

The Miami Herald — A U.N. Human Rights Group Has Urged Cuba to Free Alan Gross — 10 January 2013

CBS Local — UN Report Calls on Cuba to Release Alan Gross — 9 January 2013

Havana Times.org — Cuba: Failed Attempts to Free Alan Gross — 9 January 2013

JTA — U.N. Imprisonment Watchdog Calls on Cuba to Release Alan Gross — 8 January 2013

Falkland Exchange Leads To Increased Troop Deployment

By Brendan Oliver Bergh
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America 

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – What began last week as a simple diplomatic barrage of propaganda between Argentina and Great Britain has seemingly escalated between the two nations as the British have begun growing their armed garrison in support of the Falkland islands.

Argentina dismayed by UK’s Assertion of Falklanders Independence. (Photo Courtesy of Falklands)

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner reignited Argentina’s claim on the Falklands Islands with a strongly worded letter posted in British newspapers early last week.  Whether she believed that the United Kingdom (UK) would budge is irrelevant as Prime Minister Cameron David immediately responded with a resounding NO, standing by their resolve to protect the Falklands, for as long as the islanders wished to remain a part of the UK.

Despite the simple diplomatic statement made by the Prime Minister, ‘The Daily Mail’, a popular British tabloid responded with scathing article in a Buenos Aires newspaper summed up with the with simple message “Hands Off!”

While most would think this simple exchange would be nothing new in the thirty years since the British-Argentinian War, there has been no real decision on with the Islanders Sovereignty. The Argentinians maintain a claim to the islands and an “end of colonialism”, The UK has maintained their position that they have a legitimate claim, and the backing of the islanders.

Many believe that oil is the main reasoning behind the Kircheners push. With the Argentinians economy at a decade low, with only 2% growth, a staggering inflation growth, wand large scale riots and work stoppages many believe that this new national push is a distraction from their domestic issues.

The Daily Mail article seems to have stirred up trouble, and individuals and business on both sides have taken the bait. Argentinians hurled insults and verbal abuse at cruise line passengers attempting to disembark at Buenos Aires, with many activist burning the Union “Jack” Flag. In response, numerous European cruise lines have stopped servicing the area harming the countries tourism.

While Britain already keeps a garrison of about 1,2000 troops, this increase has already been meet with a weary statement by President Kirchner  “We ask Mr Cameron not to use our legitimate and peaceful claim … as an excuse to maintain the weapons industry,” citing the belief of Britain militarizing the South Atlantic.

Prime Minister Cameron responded with a statement concerning the Islanders, “They’re holding a referendum this year and I hope the president of Argentina will listen to that referendum and recognize it is for the Falkland Islanders to choose their future, and as long as they choose to stay with the United Kingdom they have my 100 per cent backing.”

For more information, please see:

Pagina 12 – Britain Will Send 150 Soldiers To The Falklands – 9 January 2013

Marti Noticias – London and Beunos Aires Again Battling Over Falklands – 9 January 2013

The Telegraph – Argentina Condemns David Cameron’s ‘military threats’ Over Falklands – 7 January 2013

The Telegraph – David Cameron: We Would Fight A Falklands Invasion – 6 January 2013

The Telegraph – Falklands: Argentines Abuse Cruise Line Passengers In Buenos Aires –  5 January 2013

Harsh CIA Interrogation Methods Ineffective, Report Finds

By Mark O’Brien
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, United States — A Senate committee released the findings of a three-year investigation this week, and officials said the report had “startling details” on the Central Intelligence Agency’s use of counterterrorism efforts.

A Senate committee report finds that harsh interrogation techniques, such as waterboarding (above), are largely ineffective in counterterrorism efforts. (Photo Courtesy of Press TV)

The 6,000-page report is the most detailed, independent examination of the agency’s methods to “break” dozens of detainees through physical and psychological duress.  But declassifying the report to prepare for its release to the public could take months, if not longer.

“The report . . . raises critical questions about intelligence operations and oversight,” said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) in a statement.  She chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, which voted 9-6 on Thursday to approve the report.

“I strongly believe that the creation of long-term, clandestine ‘black sites’ and the use of so-called ‘enhanced-interrogation techniques’ were terrible mistakes,” she added.  “The majority of the committee agrees.”

Those familiar with the report’s findings said it makes a detailed case that the interrogation techniques never produced any counter-terrorism breakthroughs.  In some cases, such as the campaign against al-Qaeda, subjecting prisoners to the techniques were counterproductive.

Republicans had largely boycotted the investigation because of inaccuracies, and they faulted Democrats for calling too few witnesses.  Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) was the lone Republican who supported approving the report, joining the committee’s eight Democrats.

The report includes information on every detainee in CIA custody, the conditions under which they were held, the interrogation techniques used on them, the intelligence they provided, and the accuracy of CIA descriptions of the program to the White House.  More than 6 million pages of documents were reviewed, containing data on post-9/11 interrogation techniques such as waterboarding.

Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), the committee’s ranking Republican, said in a statement that the report “contains a number of significant errors and omissions about the history and utility of the CIA’s detention program,” noting that the investigation did not interview “any of the people involved.”

High-ranking officials from the George W. Bush administration, including former Vice President Dick Cheney and former CIA Director Michael Hayden, have defended the use of waterboarding, sleep deprivation, and other measures.  They argued that the techniques provided critical clues to help find Osama bin Laden, who was killed in a U.S. raid in May 2011.  But Sen. Feinstein and Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) dismissed that suggestion earlier this year.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who has long opposed the United States’ use of torture based on his experience as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, issued a statement that the committee’s work shows that “cruel” treatment of prisoners “is not only wrong in principle and a stain on our country’s conscience, but also an ineffective and unreliable means of gathering intelligence.”

The report now goes to President Barack Obama and other officials for review.  Feinstein said the committee would receive their comments until February 15, at which time it would make the decision on whether to declassify the report for public release.

For further information, please see:

Press TV — Report Finds Harsh CIA Interrogations Ineffective — 15 December 2012

Chicago Tribune — Senate Committee Approves Report on CIA Interrogations, Revives Torture Debate — 13 December 2012

The Huffington Post — CIA Torture Report Approved by Senate Intelligence Committee — 13 December 2012

The Washington Post — Report Finds Harsh CIA Interrogations Ineffective — 13 December 2012