The Middle East

Bahrain Delays The Visit of UN Investigator

By Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

MANAMA, Bahrain– The UN human rights office in Geneva, Switzerland stated that on Thursday 01 March 2012, the Bahraini government had formally requested that the visit of the special rapporteur on torture be delayed until mid-July. The investigator, Juan Mendex, had originally been scheduled the visit the Gulf island nation from 8 March to 17 March. The Bahraini government has also imposed restrictions on groups attempting to monitor reforms inside the nation, clearly desiring to keep all foreign influence away from its citizens.

Anti-government protesters at a demonstration organized by al-Wefaq in Manama.(Photo Courtesy of Reuters)

While the protests and violence continues, three international human rights groups were informed last week by the Bahraini government of new restrictions on visiting the nation. Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International stated that Bahrain’s Human Rights and Social Development Ministry told them that new rules limited them to five-day trips and those trips must be arranged through a Bahraini sponsor.

Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, a regional Amnesty deputy director, shared these words in a statement concerning the situation.

“Regrettably, we have cancelled the fact-finding visit to Bahrain as the new five days limit imposed by the Bahraini authorities for visits by international human rights organizations is a serious impediment. The Bahraini authorities have repeatedly stated their commitment to undertake human rights reform and to cooperate with human rights organizations. These new restrictions contradict such commitment.”

The UN also released a statement concerning the inability to enter and inspect the nation. A spokesman for the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Xabier Celaya, stated that Mendez would express his regrets to Bahraini representatives in meetings this week concerning the “last minute postponement.”

“Mr. Mendez will seek to secure new dates as he remains very committed to undertaking this important visit. Bahrain is still undergoing major reforms and wants some important steps, critical to the special rapporteur’s mandate, to be in place before he visits so he can assess the progress that Bahrain has made to date.”

Bahrain is ruled by the Sunni Muslim al-Khalifa family and has been under tremendous pressure to institute political and rights reforms since the violent crackdown on the uprising. Bahrain’s Minister for Social Development, Fatima al-Balooshi, told the UN Human Rights Council this week that the kingdom had learned important lessons from the demonstrations and protests against the government.

“Mistakes were made. Serious wrongs were committed. We believe we are on the right track.”

The road leading up the delay of Mendez’s visit is rather peculiar one. In January, Bahraini officials told a number of human rights organizations that they should delay trips to the country until after 22 February 2012, the date that the government had set for a review of the changes in the way the country functioned as a whole. This included changes for the police, the judiciary, the educational system, and the media. Also, as recommended by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), a body of international legal experts, the reforms included the payment of compensation to torture victims and a process of national reconciliation. The recommendation from the BICI came in November 2011.

On Thursday 01 March 2012, the Bahraini government said that it needed as many as 20 more days to complete its plans for implementing the recommendations of the BICI. The BICI reported that demonstrators and protesters, who come primarily from the majority, non-ruling Shia population, had suffered from systematic torture to elicit confessions that were subsequently used in military trials.

The ruling, minority Sunni Muslim community in Bahrain has been under pressure from the non-ruling, majority Shia Muslim community to change the rules on the appointment of government officials. The Shia community believes that if they had more officials, more policies would better serve their interests. The Sunni ruling party has been very reluctant to allow this to occur. Thus, demonstrations and protests have occurred across the Gulf island nation.

The Bahraini government has moved swiftly to control any widespread, anti-regime movement. It has even strengthened its tourist visa restrictions, after some Western activists took part in anti-government demonstrations last month that marked the first anniversary of the uprising on 14 February 2012. Bahraini police officers allowed the main parties, led by the al-Wefaq group, to hold a rally inside the nation’s capital of Manama last week.

On Thursday 01 March 2012, Wefaq released a statement concerning the situation.

“Many villages were repressed brutally by security forces, leaving at least two people seriously injured. One of the injured had been hit in the head by a tear gas canister, while another had sustained injuries from shotgun pellets.”

Inspired youth protesters and activists have regularly held demonstrations in Shia districts, although Bahraini police usually quell any momentum using armored vehicles, teargas, and stun grenades. The Bahraini government has repeatedly reported that the youth protests are rioters simply causing chaos with no aim of political objectives. Until the voices of the majority are genuinely heard and addressed, it seems that the suffering and violence will continue. The continued denial of human rights groups into the country projects the message that the rights of those not in power do not matter.

 

For more information, please see: 

Al-Jazeera – Bahrain Delays UN Investigator Visit – 02 March 2012

AllVoices – Bahrain: Government Delays Visit by UN Torture Investigator – 02 March 2012

Chicago Tribune – Bahrain Delays U.N. Investigator, Limit Rights Group Visits – 01 March 2012

Reuters – Bahrain Delays U.N. Investigator, Limits Rights Group Visits – 01 March 2012

 

Red Cross Denied Access to Civilians as Shelling Continues in Syria

By Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria – Syrian security forces resumed their attacks on the city of Homs, causing more civilian deaths and preventing relief access to the wounded. On Sunday 04 March 2012, activists reported that a bombardment came to Syria’s third-largest city of approximately one million residents as China presented a proposal to end the violence in the country. It called for an immediate ceasefire and dialogue between all of the parties but stood firm against any type of intervention by outside forces.

 

A member of the Syrian Free Army. (Photo Courtesy of NYT)

In addition to Homs, the Syrian security forces also descended upon the rebel-dominated city of Rastan on Sunday 04 March 2012. According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, four children were said to be among seven civilians killed in the shelling. The victims included as many as six family members when a rocket crashed into their home, causing the building to collapse.

The focal point of the attacks by security forces has been the western Homs neighborhood of Baba Amr, where the situation has been described as “catastrophic.” On Saturday 03 March 2012, there were reports of power outages, shortages of food and water, and no medical care for the sick and wounded. The Red Cross has desperately been trying to gain access to the city for three days, attempting to deliver aid and supplies to those in need. The closest that the organization has come to assisting Baba Amr is handing out food and blankets to those fortunate enough to have the ability to flee the city to nearby areas.

Syrian officials informed the Red Cross that Baba Amr had to be cleared of booby traps before they could enter the area. But activists reported that troops were carrying out reprisal attacks around the city, causing more death and violence at the expense of thousands of civilians. While the attacks continue to occur, the bodies of two foreign journalists who lost their lives for the sake of letting the world know what was happening on the ground left Syria and were headed to France. The bodies of Remi Ochlik and Marie Colvin were placed on an Air France flight from Damascus on the evening of Saturday 03 March 2012.

Rebels from the Free Syrian Army withdrew their forces from Baba Amr late last week, as the weeks of shelling from government forces made it increasingly difficult for the rebels to maintain their positions. The Syrian government gave the Red Cross permission to access Baba Amr but once the help actually arrived in the form of a convoy, the government refused to allow it to enter the city. BBC correspondent Jim Muir, reporting from Lebanon, stated that this is when the Red Cross decided to assist those who were lucky enough to flee Baba Amr. Muir also stated that the ICRC had dispatched a 15-man team to the Abil area, a southern part of Baba Amr.

ICRC spokesperson Hicham Hassan shared these words with Reuters about the developing situation.

“The plan is to continue to the neighborhoods of Inshaat and Tawzii in order to assist local populations and families displaced from Baba Amr. We really don’t know how many people are still in there. It’s all a bit of a mystery to us.”

The Syrian state television has been broadcasting pictures of deserted streets laden with debris, being careful not to display any strife on the part of civilians. There have been a multitude of unconfirmed reports of revenge killings and summary executions by Syrian forces in Baba Amr. Opposition activists believe that a government-wide cover up is responsible for the delay in bringing these reports to public attention. The reports detail mass arrests of males over the age of 11, with the local cooperative building being transformed into a detention facility.

Another report detailed that truck full of bodies was seen driving away from Baba Amr.

Sunday Times photographer Paul Conroy, who fled Syria after being wounded while working in Homs, told the BBC that what he saw on the ground in Baba Amr classified as “systematic slaughter.”

“I’ve done a fair few wars, I’ve never seen anything on this level.”

Activists have reported that approximately 7,500 people have lost their lives since the demonstrations and protests against President Bashar al-Assad began almost a year ago. The government had repeatedly and staunchly blamed “terrorists and armed gangs” for the violence. Regardless of who the government chooses to throw the blame on, the people of Syria continue to pay a fatal toll as each day goes by.

The international community continues to debate the appropriate course of action and each day seems to bring a new idea to the table. The proposal by China and Turkey strictly rules out the use of foreign intervention, a theme that seems so necessary at this point but will not be used. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that the lack of consensus among the international community has only emboldening the Syrian government to proceed with its crackdown. Davutoglu stated that the gravity of the killing closely resembles the bloodshed of the Balkans war of the 1990s.

He described the actions of al-Assad’s regime as “crimes against humanity.” And these crimes will only continue while the rest of the world watches and reports on the situation, instead formulating and agreeing on a plan to end it.

 

 

For more information, please see: 

Ahram – China Demands End To Violence As Syria Blocks Aid – 04 March 2012

Al-Jazeera – Syrian Forces Renew Assault On Homs – 04 March 2012

BBC – Syria Crisis: Red Cross Pushes For Baba Amr Access – 04 March 2012

CNN – Rockets Fall On Syrian City of Rastan, Opposition Activists Say – 04 March 2012

The Guardian – Syria: Red Cross Blocked Again From Baba Amr – 04 March 2012

NYT – Bearing Witness in Syria: A Correspondent’s Last Days – 03 March 2012

 

Iran’s Parliamentary Elections Take Place Amidst Claims of Unfairness

By Tyler Yates
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran — On 2 March Iran held their first elections since the 2009 election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spurred mass protests.  Human Rights Watch has called Iran’s parliamentary elections grossly unfair due to their arbitrary disqualifications and other restrictions.

Large turnout at Iran's Parliamentary elections (Photo courtesy of Christian Science Monitor).

The voting for 290 seats came after the disqualification of hundreds of candidates on the basis of vague and ill-defined criteria.  Opposition leaders were either barred from participating, serving suspicious prison sentences, or they voluntarily refused to participate in what they considered sham elections.

On 21 February, the Guardian Council, an unelected body of 12 religious jurists, announced that only about 3,500 of the approximately 5,400 candidates running for parliamentary seats had been approved by Iran’s parliament.  At least 35 of those who were disqualified are current members of parliament.  The Interior Ministry had previously disqualified 750 candidates.

Iran’s opposition and reformist movement called for an election boycott in response to these disqualifications, and other state actions.

“Iranian authorities have stacked the deck by disqualifying candidates and arbitrarily jailing key members of the reform movement,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.“There is no transparency surrounding the vetting and selection of candidates.”

Iran’s vetting process for both parliamentary and presidential elections is comprised of several stages.   Initial cuts come on the basis of election laws, with some concrete criteria such as age and education, but many of the criteria are extremely vague and ambiguous, allowing the authorities to cut applicants without discretion.

Candidates were disqualified for “a lack of adherence to Islam and the Constitution,” for being critical of President Ahmadinejad’s government, and for being allegedly affiliated or supportive of “illegal” parties.

Of note, several of the candidates banned from running are members of the 15 member Sunni bloc in parliament.  The Sunni are a minority in Iran, and on December 19, 2011 the bloc sent Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a letter asking him to protect the political and social rights of Iran’s Sunni minority.

The parliamentary elections have been largely viewed as a contest between President Ahmadinejad’s supporters and those of Ayatollah Khamenei.  The underlying issue has been the growing tension between the president and Khamenei since Ahmadinejad’s controversial 2009 reelection.  Though Khamenei supported Ahmadinejad’s victory as president, there has been uneasiness between the two ever since, including an incident with Ahmadinejad disappearing from public view for 11 days after his decision to fire an intelligence minister was overruled by Khamenei.

It appears that Khamenei was the victor in the most reason battle. Candidates who support Khamenei look to gain about ¾ of the parliamentary seats, Iran’s state-run Press TV reported on Sunday.

The strength of the various parties after this election will set the stage for the, vastly more important,  2013 Iranian presidential elections.

The results of the election are not likely to change Iran’s stance on their controversial nuclear program.

For more information, please see:

CNN — Iran leader consolidates power, vote results suggest — 4 Mar. 2012

Tehran Times — Iran dismisses Hague’s claims on Majilis polls — 4 Mar. 2012

BBC — Iran conservatives contest poll for parliament — 2 Mar. 2012

Human Rights Watch — Iran: Fair Vote Impossible — 1 Mar. 2012

IDF Raids Palestinian TV Stations

By Carolyn Abdenour
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RAMALLAH, Palestine – Before dawn on Wednesday, 29 February, about 30 Israeli Defense Force (“IDF”) troops seized transmission equipment, documents, and computers during raids at two private Palestinian TV stations.  Palestinian officials asserted the raids violated media freedom.  Palestinian Prime Minster Salam Fayyad stated the raids were “oppressive and monstrous” and violated “all international laws.”

Prime Minister Fayyad visits al-Watan TV after the IDF raided it Wednesday Morning. The computer screne on the right captures a soldier conducting the raid. (Photo Courtesy of The Times of Israel)

IDF raided the Ramallah-based Jerusalem Education TV, a station owned by the Palestinian Al-Quds University, and al-Watan TV, a suspected pirate TV station.  Israel’s Communications Ministry initiated the raids claiming the frequencies from the stations interfered with aircraft communications at Ben-Gurion International Airport and legal broadcasters throughout Israel.

Moreover, the Israeli ministry stated the broadcasting frequencies violated Israeli-Palestinian agreements.  IDF spokesperson further reported the raids occurred after the stations ignored several warnings from Israel’s Communication Ministry to stop broadcasting.  He also asserted the IDF legally confiscated the items.

After the raids occurred, the Palestinian Authority emphasized that it did not receive these warnings and that the stations did not violate agreements.

Director of the Institute of Modern Media at Al-Quds University, the operator of the TV station, Lucy Nusseibeh urged, “We have all our licenses through the Palestinian Ministry of Communications and are in constant touch with them.  I never heard anything about Israeli complaints or warnings.”

Ms. Nusseibeh reaffirmed the station is “an education television station, which puts on ‘Sesame Street’, antismoking programs and broadcasts to help integrate handicapped children into the community.”

During his visits to the raided TV stations, Mr. Fayyad said the raids undermined his government and called upon the international community to persuade Israel to cease these raids.  He added, “This is a clear aggression against what remains of the Palestinian Authority.”  Mr. Fayyad promised to provide both stations with replacement transmitters.

Al-Watan, owned by three non-governmental associations, frequently airs Palestinian protests in the West Bank against Israeli policies.  Mustafa Barhouti, legislator of the station’s part-owner Palestinian Medical Relief Society, said, “This is an act of repression of the freedom of the media in Palestine, and of repression of the popular resistance that we believe in.”

Al-Watan’s station director Moammar Orabi recalled an IDF officer told the employees to “say hello to Khader Adnan,” the Palestinian prisoner protesting his detention with a two-month hunger strike.  A worker at the raid stated the raiders “became very angry when they saw Khader Adnan’s photo hanging on our office wall.”

Mr. Fayyad added, “This piracy and raids on Palestinian media institutions are reminiscent of practices by the occupations forces in the beginning of the second intifada, when they stored and vandalized many Palestinian media institutions, including Palestine TV, Palestine Radio as well as Watan TV.”

For further information, please see:

Daily Times – Israel Raids Palestinian Television Stations – 1 Mar 2012

Arutz Sheva – IDF Raids Two Ramallah Pirate TV Stations – 29 Feb 2012

New York Times – Israel Troops Raid Two Palestinian TV Stations in the West Bank – 29 Feb 2012

The Times of Israel  – IDF Raids Ramallah TV Station – 29 Feb 2012

The Times of Israel – IDF Shuts Down Pirate TV Stations In Ramallah – 29 Feb 2012

 

 

HRW Calls For Bahrain To Release Activists

By Carolyn Abdenour
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

MANAMA, Bahrain – On Tuesday, 28 February, Human Rights Watch (“HRW”) called upon Bahrain to release hundreds of pro-democracy activists arrested last year and to drop all charges against them.  HRW also urged the country to void people’ convictions from civil and military courts that do not meet international fair trial standards.

Police prevent journalists from mingling with doctors and nurses during a break at a civilian criminal trial. (Photo Courtesy of Human Rights Watch)

HRW’s 94-page report, “No Justice in Bahrain: Unfair Trials in Military and Civilian Courts,” highlighted the county’s due process violations during politically motivated trials in criminal courts since 2010 and high-profile trials by special military courts in 2011. 

In March 2011, King Hamad organized special military courts during the country’s three-month “State of National Safety”, a quasi state of emergency.  Since 4 April 2011, Bahrain’s military officials tried and convicted hundreds of people charged under “national safety” grounds.  Civilian courts began accepting the trials and appeals of these people charged in the uprising on 7 October 2011.

In its report, HRW emphasized the violations through two case studies.  First, the court convicted twenty doctors of inciting to overthrow the government and trying to occupy a hospital.  Second, security forces jailed fourteen political activists for leading protests.  Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, a jailed activist with Danish nationality, has conducted a hunger strike for the past two weeks. 

HRW asserted the violations of fair trial rights include denying defendants the right to present a defense and to counsel along with failing to investigate torture allegations during interrogations. These violations reflect systemic failures in the country’s criminal justice system rather than deficient practices of judges and prosecutors. 

Furthermore, HRW has documented continued exercise of ill-treatment and torture by Bahraini security officers.   In November, the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (“BICI”) published that at least five people detained for engaging in peaceful protests died from torture.  The government pledged to implement recommendations by this Commission, including police and judicial procedural reforms.  However, earlier this month Amnesty International reported the government remained “far from delivering the human rights changes.”

Moreover, HRW requested France, the United Kingdom, and the United State halt military and security-related sales and assistance to the country until Bahrain address these human rights violations.

HRW’s Deputy Middle East Director Joe Stork said, “King Hamad should examine the special military courts he set up by decree before claiming there are no political prisoners in Bahrain…In case after case, people were convicted for their political beliefs, for the slogans they chanted, and for joining large peaceful rallies that the Crown Prince had publicly proclaimed were protected by Bahrain’s constitution.”

For further information, please see:

Dalje – Bahrain Trials Lack Due Processs – 28 Feb 2012

Human Rights Watch – Bahrain: Hundreds Railroaded in Unjust Trials – 28 Feb 2012

The Daily News: Egypt – HRW Calls On Bahrain To Release Democracy Activists – 28 Feb 2012

The Daily Star: Lebanon – Bahrain Should Shelve Trials Linked To Protests: Group – 28 Feb 2012