By Stephen Kopko,

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON D.C., United States- For the past two days President Barack Obama has hosted many of the world’s leaders in a discussion of one of the world’s most important issues:  nuclear security.  The summit was held in the wake of the United States and Russian agreement to reduce their nuclear arsenals.  The main objective of the summit was to reduce nations stockpiles of nuclear weapons as well as to make nations more accountable for lost nuclear weapons and equipment. These “loose nukes” have the potential to fall into the hands of terrorist organizations.

Forty seven countries participated in the Nuclear Summit.  The leaders pledged commitments to better account for loose nuclear materials in order to promote global security.  Experts estimate that there is between 1,300 to 1,900 tons of weapons grade nuclear materials unaccounted for throughout the world. According to reports, some of these materials are housed in university research centers, United States missile submarines, and Russian icebreaker power plants.

The Nuclear Summit accomplished two primary goals.  First, the summit empowered nations to “clean up their nuclear arsenals” through the formation of specific plans to find and account for “loose nukes.”  Also, the summit placed pressure on nations that have failed to abide by previous nuclear disarmament commitments.

The main criticism of the Nuclear Summit was that it did not accomplish anything of substance.  The promises made by the nations in attendance were voluntary. Senator Jon Kyl stated; “The summit’s purported accomplishment is a nonbinding communiqué that largely restates current policy, and makes no meaningful progress in dealing with nuclear terrorism threats.”

Nevertheless, the summit’s proponents point to some nations actions in the wake of the summit.  For example, Egypt is in the process of criminalizing the trafficking of nuclear materials in their country.  Also, Malaysia, a country known as an easy access point for funneling nuclear materials, imposed stronger export controls.  Additionally the nations in attendance promised to cooperate with international nuclear inspectors.

President Obama admitted that the United States has not always abided by its international nuclear agreements.  However, the United States did take a step forward during the summit.  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signed a proposal with the Russian government that would destroy plutonium that had the ability to make 17,000 nuclear weapons.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press-Nuke summit sets post-Cold War challenge-14 April 2010

Christian Science Monitor-Obama’s nuclear summit report card: incomplete, for now-13 April 2010

NY TIMES-At Security Summit, President Obama Calls For Action, Not Talk, to Secure Nuclear Stockpiles-13 April 2010

By Brenda Lopez Romero
Impunity Watch reporter – North America desk

ARIZONA, United States – The state Congress passed today an immigration bill, SB 1070, which in essence criminalizes the physical presence of a human being.  The bill also allows local law enforcement to determine if a person is without legal immigration status.  The bill passed 35 to 21 on party lines.  Although in private some Republicans expressed concern about the bill they were reluctant to vote against it in an election year. Republican Gov. Jan Brewer is expected to sign the bill.

The state police chief’s association opposed the bill, but the police unions approved.  Immigrant rights advocates claim Arizona will be transformed into a police state.  Chris Newman, legal director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network said “it appears to mandate racial profiling.”

The bill makes it a misdemeanor to lack proper immigration paperwork in the state and requires police officers with a “reasonable suspicion” that someone is an undocumented immigrant, to determine the person’s immigration status, even when there is no suspicion of any other criminal activity.  There is an exemption if the immigration issue would be impractical or hinder another investigation.  The bill allows for a cause of action to compel local law enforcement to comply with the law and prevent sanctuary orders that restrict law enforcement from inquiring about people’s immigration status.

Mark Krikorian at the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington, D.C., think tank that advocates tougher immigration enforcement, said “it makes sense that they would be the first to do it since they’re ground zero for illegal immigration … Obviously, their prosecutors aren’t going to go out and prosecute every illegal alien … It gives police and prosecutors another tool should they need it.”

“A lot of U.S. citizens are going to be swept up in the application of this law for something as simple as having an accent and leaving their wallet at home,” said Alessandra Soler Meetze, president of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona.

The ACLU and immigrant rights groups will file a suit to block the bill from taking effect should Brewer sign it, because similar laws have been struck down declaring that only the federal government has the authority to enforce immigration.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio aready uses aggressive enforcement and is under civil rights investigation from the Department of Justice.

For more information, please see:

AZ Central – Arizona House passes wide-ranging immigration bill – 13 April 2010

L.A. Times – Arizona passes strict illegal immigration act – 13 April 2010

Phoenix Business Journal – Arizona House passes immigration bill – 13 April 2010

By Brenda Lopez Romero
Impunity Watch reporter – North America desk

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala – U.N.-sponsored International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (Cicig) reported that government officials and business people are bankrolled by Guatemala’s powerful criminal organizations.  The corruption of judges, prosecutors, police, lawmakers and business executives puts organized crime above the law

Carlos Castresana, jurist in charged of Cicig, stated, “Let’s not fool ourselves: there are judges who are on the payrolls, there are business owners, there are politicians, there are legislators who work for these groups,” and added “Each has his sectors of interest and his groups to protect.”

The success of Cicig and the newly implemented Attorney General’s Office in identifying organized criminals, including recent arrests of high-ranking police officers and former President Alfonso Portillo, gave organized crime something to be concerned.  Castresana said “The bad guys don’t know what we have, but as we translate that information into evidence and we bring it before the courts, our cards will be revealed as we put them on the table.”

Castresana also points to an attempt to discredit Cicig as a counter reaction by organized crime, such as press reports criticizing Cicig work.  He commented “We knew this was going to happen. We’re not particularly scared or alarmed, naturally the falsehoods we are seeing published bother us,”

“The press was outraged when, a year ago, I said that (the criminal organizations) are also in the media, and they asked for names: well, there they are, there you have them,” Castresana said.

For more information, please see:

Latin American Herald Tribune – Judges, Cops and Politicians on Mob Payrolls in Guatemala – 12 April 2010

La Prensa – Judges, cops and pols on mob payrolls in Guatemala – 12 April 2010

By William Miller

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

QUEBEC, Canada – United States Border Patrol has arrested at least 115 people of Haitian descent this year trying to cross the border illegally from Quebec, Canada to Vermont, United States. Authorities say that this record increase coincides with the earthquake in Haiti on January 12.

Several reasons have been cited for the spike in illegal immigration. Many have family in the U.S. and are attempting to reunite with them. Others are looking to make more money working in the U.S. to send to family still in Haiti.

Many of the illegal immigrants falsely believe that a temporary ban in the U.S. on deportations to Haiti will protect them. The ban, however, only applies to those who were already in the U.S. when the January 12 earthquake struck.

Almost all of the Haitians originally entered the U.S. and were ordered deported. Instead, many of them went to Canada in an attempt to take advantage of their refugee program. They attempted to re-enter the United States after the ban was passed thinking it would protect them from deportation. Many of those caught trying to re-enter the U.S. had already filed for refugee status in Canada.

Authorities believe that there may be an underground network of human traffickers assisting the Haitians attempting to enter the United States. This organized ring may be contributing to the rumors that the eighteen-month ban on deportation to Haiti will apply to those entering the country now.

Most of the Haitians caught were attempting to cross at night at unguarded boarder areas and were headed to New York and Miami where there are large populations of Haitians.

The U.S. Attorney will prosecute at least thirty-five of the Haitians for re-entering the country with an outstanding deportation order. The illegal aliens could face up to two years in prison if found guilty.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office has discretion in deciding to prosecute those entering the country illegally. They have already said that they cannot ignore such a large influx of immigrants. “Having this scale of individuals from one nationality [Haitian] over a short period of time is unusual. It’s an issue that requires us to respond with a significant message of deterrence. We have laws against illegal immigration,” Tristram Coffin, the U.S. Attorney for Vermont, said from Burlington on Monday.

For more information, please see:

CBC – Illegal Haitians Caught at U.S. Border – 6 April 2010

Globe and Mail – Haitian Illegally Travelling to U.S. Looking for Asylum get Jail Time – 5 April 2010

Digital Journal – Vermont a Hotspot for Haitians Sneaking into U.S. – 4 April 2010

By Stephen Kopko

Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States – Since it began its private security operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the former Blackwater Company has received great scrutiny for its policies. Its corporate executives have been questioned by the United States Congress and by humanitarian organizations throughout the world.  Today, one of the company’s greatest controversies was answered. A federal District Court Judge dismissed all criminal charges against five Blackwater employees stemming from a 2007 incident in Iraq.

Since the 2007 incident, Blackwater has changed its name to Xe Services. It provides private security services and support personnel to the United States government. Their employees have worked in both the conflict in Iraq and the conflict in Afghanistan. Xe Services employees are normally former members of the different branches of the United States military. The company has been questioned for some of its policies and practices since receiving contracts from the United States government. For example, Xe Services has been accused of providing active service in certain raids by the CIA. This went against its contract with the CIA to provide only support services in a protective role. At the time of the 2007 incident, Blackwater was under contract to provide security for State Department officials in Iraq.

The five Blackwater employees were supposed to go on trial in one month for the allegedly criminal actions they took in 2007. According to prosecutors, while patrolling the Nisour Square in downtown Baghdad on September 16, 2007, the five employees opened fired and killed unarmed Iraqi civilians. A later F.B.I. investigation found that fourteen or the seventeen Iraqi’s that were killed during the incident were unarmed and the employees use of force was unjustified. Military investigators agreed with the F.B.I.’s assessment and stated that their actions were criminal. Blackwater and its five employees defended themselves stating that they fired on insurgents who first fired upon the employees. The Iraq government wanted to try the employees for murder in Iraq.

After an investigation by the State Department, the Justice Department brought manslaughter charges against the five employees. However, Judge Ricardo Urbina dismissed the manslaughter charges today in a ninety page ruling. The main reason cited by the Judge for dismissing the case was prosecutorial misconduct. According to the opinion, the five employees were initially questioned by State Department officials after the incident. Those investigators promised the employees that their statements would only be used for an internal State Department investigation and could not be used in a later criminal prosecution.  Despite the promise of immunity, prosecutors used the statements to obtain evidence and search warrants in building a case against the employees. Nevertheless, Judge Urbina’s ruling did not discuss who was at fault in the killings of the seventeen Iraqis. The Justice Department can appeal Judge Urbina’s ruling.

For more information, please see:

MSNBC – Judge Tosses Blackwater Shooting Charges – 31 December  2009

NYTIMES – Judge Drops Charges From Blackwater Deaths in Iraq – 31 December 2009

LATIMES – Blackwater Joined CIA Raids in Iraq and Afghanistan, Sources Say – 11 December 2009