News

Bangladesh Law Allows Underage Marriage Under “Special Circumstances”

By: Nicole Hoerold
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

DHAKA, Bangladesh – A Bangladesh law now allows girls under the age of 18 to be married off by their parents under special circumstances. Such circumstances are left undefined by the law, allowing parents to petition for a court order simply if an underage marriage is deemed in the child’s “best interests”. There is no minimum age for when such circumstances should apply and no definition for the “best interest” requirement. The minimum age to wed in Bangladesh is 18 for women and 21 for men.

A social worker provides counseling to a young girl in Ashkarpur, Bangladesh in 2013. Photo courtesy of: UNICEF.

Human rights activists are concerned that this law could legitimize rape and sexual misuse by allowing children to marry their abusers. The Bangladeshi government defended the new legislation, condemning rape and encouraging people to trust the integrity of the legal system to discern legitimate special circumstances.

Still, Bangladesh has the highest rate of child marriage in Asia, with 52 percent of girls marrying before they turn 18 years of age and 18 percent of girls marrying under the age of 15. Child advocates warn that this law could threaten girls’ safety and urge the government to train Bangladeshi judges and social workers to screen for cases of sexual violence and ensure that girls are not victim of rape.

For more information, please see:

Human Rights Watch – Bangladesh: Legalizing Child Marriage Threatens Girls’ Safety – 2 March, 2017

CNN – Human rights groups condemn new Bangladesh child marriage law – 3 March, 2017

Reuters – Bangladesh law allowing child brides may legitimize rape – 1 March, 2017

The Hindu – New child marriage law sparks uproar – 4 March, 2017

U.S. Considers Withdrawing from U.N. Human Rights Council

By Sarah Lafen
Impunity Watch Desk Reporter, North America

 

WASHINGTON D.C., United States — The United States is considering leaving the United Nations Human Rights Council.  A final decision to withdraw would most likely include Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley, and President Trump.

US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks at the Security Council meeting last week at at UN Headquarters in New York. (Photo Courtesy of The Times of Israel)

According to sources connected with current U.S. officials, the council has been accused of being biased against Israel by pushing critical resolutions and issuing “scathing” statements about the country.  The council drew criticism in 2012 for inviting a speaker from the Palestinian Hamas terror group to speak at a meeting.

Countries known for human rights violations, including China and Saudi Arabia, are members of the council.  Russia was also a member until last year when it lost its seat after the U.N. General Assembly voted to remove it due to Moscow’s role in the Syrian conflict.  A former U.S. State Department official commented that there are also questions regarding the council’s overall usefulness.  Tillerson recently expressed skepticism about the council in recent meetings with State Department officials.

Last week, Haley criticized the council for failing to discuss the buildup of illegal Hezbollah weapons, strategies for defeating the Islamic State terrorist organization, and holding Bashar Assad accountable for the deaths of Syrian civilians.

The State Department has not directly commented on the rumored withdrawal, however spokesman Mark Toner told reporters that the “delegation will be fully involved in the work of the HRC session which [started] Monday.”

The website Human Rights Watch issued a statement calling a hypothetical withdrawal by the U.S. from the council “misguided and short-sighted.”  U.N. Director of the website, Louis Charbonneau, predicted that the withdrawal might “significantly set back U.N. efforts to protect human rights around the world.”  Charbonneau noted the U.S.’s crucial role in encouraging the council to establish commissions that helped uncover violations in North Korea and Syria and commented that withdrawal would hinder the U.S.’s influence in the international community.

Former President George W. Bush refused to join the council after it was created following the termination of the U.N. Human Rights Commission.  Former President Barack Obama, however, joined the council once he was elected.

 

For more information, please see:

The Independent — U.S. ‘Considers Withdrawing from U.N. Human Rights Council — 27 February 2017

The Nation — U.S. Considers Quitting U.N. Human Rights Council — 27 February 2017

The Times of Israel — U.S. Considering Leaving Human Rights Council – Report — 26 February 2017

Politico — Sources: U.S. Considers Quitting U.N. Human Rights Council — 25 February 2017

Drought Worsens as 100 Die in One Region of Somalia

By Samantha Netzband 

Impunity Watch, Africa Desk Reporter

MOGADISHU, Somalia– The drought has worsened in Somalia leading to 110 deaths in the South Western Bay region, according to Somalia’s Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Haire.  The drought is caused in part by the El Nino weather pattern, and is wrecking havoc on an already struggling country.  Somalia has experienced low rain fall totals for the last two years.   While over a hundred have died, many thousands are still in need of food aid.

People travel long distances to reach this river near Dhudo, in northern Somalia, because it still has water.

Many travel long distances to this river that still has water.  (Photo Courtesy of CNN)

Somalia President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo declared the drought a national disaster last week, hoping to show the rest of the world how bad the drought truly is.  Food is unavailable because of the drought and domestic livestock are also dying.  Thousands travel miles to the capital of Mogadishu for food aid, or to rivers that still have water.  Some of the water that remains is not clean, which puts citizens at risk for diseases like cholera.

United Nations’ humanitarian coordinator for Somalia, Peter de Clercq said that the drought has the potential to develop into a full blown famine.  de Clercq is scheduled to visit Somalia to discuss the humanitarian situation in the country.  Somalia is one of four countries, along with Nigeria, South Sudan, and Yemen that is in desperate need of humanitarian aid.  With limited resources Somalia will get more aid to help fight this drought, but it will most likely not be enough to save everyone.  Somalia is no stranger to drought and has lost over 400,000 citizens in droughts that happened in 2010 and 1992.

For more information, please see: 

AOL – Somalia Drought Threatens Thousands – 5 March 2017

BBC Africa – Somalia Drought: More than 100 Die from hunger in One Region – 4 March 2017

CNN – Somalia Drought: At least 110 Die as fears of famine grow – 4 March 2017

NBC – Somalia: 110 Dead From Hunger in Past 48 Hours of Drought – 5 March 2017 

Thailand Urged to Criminalize Torture and Enforced Disappearances

By: Nicole Hoerold
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BANGKOK, Thailand – On February 28, the UN human rights office urged the government of Thailand to criminalize enforced or involuntary disappearances and the torture of individuals. Thailand has a prolonged history of disappearances, including that of lawyer Somchai Neelapaijit in 2004, and human rights activist Pholachi Rakchongcharoen in 2014. A UN working group on enforced disappearances recorded a total of 82 cases of disappearance in Thailand since 1980.

Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha at a cabinet meeting in May 2016. Photo courtesy of: Reuters.

Currently, Thailand does not legally recognize torture and enforced disappearances as criminal behavior. In May 2016, Thailand’s government did announce its intention to submit a bill to criminalize the behaviors. Importantly, the proposed bill would be the first Thai law to recognize the illegality of torture and enforced disappearances with absolutely no exceptions for political or national security circumstances. However, the government failed to provide a plan or frame for taking action on the matter.

Torture in Thailand has become increasingly severe since the military coup in May 2014, with many reports of individuals being taken into military custody and being tortured or mistreated. Reports allege that individuals have undergone torture through beatings, electric shocks, and near suffocation. Not only has the government vehemently denied these allegations, but it has blamed individuals for making false statements with the intention of damaging the country’s reputation.

Since October 2007, Thailand has been a party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The Convention requires governments to investigate and prosecute instances of torture and the like. Now, organizations like the UN and Human Rights Watch are urging states to press the Thai government on this issue and protect and enforce fundamental human rights and liberties.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – U.N. says Thailand leaves legal loophole for torture, disappearances – 28 February, 2017

United Nations – UN rights office disappointed with with Thai Government’s refusal to criminalize enforced disappearances – 28 February, 2017 

Human Rights Watch – World Report: Thailand – 2016

Bangkok Post – The faces of the disappeared – 3 February, 2017

Report Shows 10 Hate Crimes Per Day on Refugees in Germany in 2016

By Sarah Lafen

Impunity Watch Desk Reporter, Europe

 

BERLIN, Germany — According to a report conducted by the German Interior Ministry, over 2,500 migrants in Germany were attacked in 2016 as the result of hate crimes.  560 migrants were injured, including 43 children.  Nearly 1,000 of the attacks were on migrant housing, and 217 of the attacks were on refugee organizations and volunteers.  An average of 10 attacks per day occured.

Police in Heidenau secure a refugee center from attacks from far-right extremists opposed to asylum accommodation (Photo Courtesy of The Independent)

In February 2016, a neo-Nazi was sentenced to eight years in jail for burning down a sports hall which housed refugees and caused $3.7 million worth of damage.  In another instance, a group of onlookers cheered as an asylum shelter in eastern Germany was engulfed in flames.

German authorities have recently tightened their refugee procedures, practicing stricter benefit rules, speeding up the process of removing failed asylum seekers, and paying refugees to voluntarily return to their home countries.  Though the country is still struggling with a backlog of asylum applications, Germany’s intake of refugees fell in 2016 to 280,000 from 890,000 in 2015.

The German government issued a statement strongly condemning the violence on refugees, commenting that “people who have fled their home country and seek protection in Germany have the right to expect safe shelter.”

A left-wing politician with the Die Linke party, Ulla Jelpke, blames the violence on far-right extremism, and called upon the government to take stronger action to eliminate the violence.  Jelpke asked whether “people have to die before the right-wing violence is considered a central domestic security problem and makes it to the top of the national policy agenda” and called on the government to “stop giving the impression through new tougher asylum laws that refugees are a threat.”

International human rights group Amnesty International commented that “there are structural problems in Germany with how it prevents and deals with hate crimes.”  Amnesty called for “better risk assessments, more protection at certain locations and prosecutions of these appalling racist crimes.”

2016 was the first year in which data was collected on the amount of attacks on refugees, so the total number of attacks cannot be compared with those of previous years.

 

For more information, please see:

Aljazeera — ’10 Attacks a Day’ Against Refugees, Shelters in 2016 — 26 February 2017

BBC — Germany Hate Crime: Nearly 10 Attacks a Day on Migrants in 2016 — 26 February 2017

The Independent — Nearly 10 Attacks on Refugees a Day in Germany in 2016 — 26 February 2017

International Business Times — Germany sees Hate Crimes Against Migrants Surge in 2016 to 3,500 — 26 February 2017