Royal Bank of Scotland Cuts Financing to Belarus, Opposes Human Rights Abuses
By Terance Walsh
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
EDINBURGH, Scotland — The Royal Bank of Scotland, one of the United Kingdom’s largest banks, declared that it would cease finance operations in Belarus in protest of Minsk’s continued human rights aberrations.
RBS decided to stop doing business with Belarus after human rights groups Free Belarus Now and the U.K-based Index on Censorship applied pressure to the bank. The two groups criticized RBS’s dealings with Belarus, leading to a decision by the bank to break with the Belarusian government in favor of opposition to the Belarusian government’s abuses of power.
In an official statement RBS said, “Given sanctions, the deteriorating political situation in Belarus and the fact that it has reneged on key elements of the [International Monetary Fund] programme, RBS has ceased any type of capital-raising for or on behalf of the Belarus Republic, and we have no plans to change that position until these issues have been resolved. In assessing where we do business, we have a responsibility to consider a number of factors, including social and ethical issues and compliance with the letter and spirit of all international sanctions.”
Head of Advocacy at Index on Censorship Mike Harris expressed excitement at RBS’s decision. “We’re delighted that RBS has heeded our calls to stop acting as a broker for authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. This couldn’t come at a more crucial time. The government of Belarus needs nearly $1 billion a month in foreign capital. RBS has sent a clear signal not to risk investing in a regime that violates fundamental human rights and may not last.”
Earlier this year RBS took part in a deal to issue more than $800 million in the Belarusian government’s Eurobonds, a deal essential to Belarus’s financial survival. RBS was the only British bank doing business with Belarus at that time. The European Union has already imposed sanctions on Lukashenko and several of his key officials, including a freeze on their assets and a travel ban as well as an arms embargo.
Lukashenko has come under fire from the West, especially after being dubbed “Europe’s last dictator” by George W. Bush’s administration. Since coming to power about twelve years ago he has styled himself as an authoritative leader and does not shy away from this image. “An authoritarian style of rule is characteristic of me, and I have always admitted it,” he said in August 2003.
In 1996 he disbanded Parliament, which was seeking to impeach him, and put in place a new hand-picked Parliament. Recent criticism of his regime has arisen from his crackdown on political opposition after his disputed electoral victory last year. In a foreboding declaration he warned that opposition protestors would be treated as “terrorists,” promising that he “will wring their necks, as one might a duck.”
Belarus is currently facing an economic and financial crisis, which makes the loss of financing from RBS especially crucial. Lukashenko ramped up spending prior to December’s elections, which disrupted Belarus’s balance of payments. The Belarusian ruble has experienced steady deprecation relative to the dollar. The country is experiencing food shortages due to Russia taking advantage of Belarus’s weak currency by buying Belarusian meat. The country depends on foreign financing and has already been cut off from financing from the west due to sanctions. The IMF has refused to assist Belarus until it takes measures against its credit and inflation problems. As Belarus continues to face a bleak economic forecast and dried-up credit sources, Lukashenko will be forced to comply with foreign pressure to improve their human rights practice if he wishes to attract financing from the West.
For more information please, see:
RIA Novosti — Lukashenko Tries to Rescue the National Currency and Himself — 31 August 2011
BBC — RBS Agrees to End Work for Belarus — 29 August 2011
Financial Times — Belarus: RBS Jumps Ship — 29 August 2011
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty — British Bank Halts Belarus Work After Criticism — 29 August 2011
San Francisco Chronicle — Belarus Runs Out of Meat as Russians Exploit Currency Plunge — 29 August 2011
USA MarketNews — RBS Concurred to Conclude Work for Belarus — 29 August 2011
BBC — Profiler: Alexander Lukashenko — 9 January 2007
Chinese government considering legalization of secret detentions
By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch, Asia
BEIJING, China – Beijing is proposing a change in the criminal code that would allow suspects to be detained in an undisclosed location for up to six months without notification being given to family members or lawyers.
The proposed changes would essentially codify the longstanding and much criticized practice of detaining individuals for extended periods of time in unknown locations and without giving loved ones or attorney’s notification of their whereabouts or the reason for their detention.
Chinese law currently allows a suspect to serve up to six months of house arrest without being formally charged. The proposed change in the law would substitute house arrest with detention at a secret location in cases involving national security, terrorism and bribery when the police believe that holding the suspect at home would put a burden on the investigation.
In China, national security crimes encompass subversion which is frequently used to detain dissidents. Under this scheme rights activists and political commentators will be especially susceptible to the new amendment which will first have to be approved by the National People’s Congress.
According to Legal Daily, an official Chinese newspaper, in which the proposed change in the law was announced, the location of the detention would not be a “regular detention center or police station.” It is also reported that prior to detaining an individual under the proposed amendment, the police would be required to obtain permission from either a prosecutor or a public security agency.
Nicholas Bequelin, Human Rights Watch Senior Asia Researcher, stated that the changes would be a “worrisome expansion of the power of the police” and would violate international laws which require a court decision before an individual can be deprived of their freedom.
Some rights activists suggest that China’s attempt to amend the law is a result of widespread criticism the country has received from Western nations for their treatment of dissidents and that Beijing hopes to alleviate the criticism by legalizing the practice of forced disappearances and thereby strengthening China’s argument that their actions are not illegal.
This new proposal is believed to be another result of the call made for a “Jasmine” revolution last February in which Chinese citizens called for an uprising against the government. In the wake of February’s call for revolution, the Chinese government has cracked down on dissident voices, rights activists and lawyers. Many of these individuals, most notably artist Ai Weiwei, were detained in secret locations without notification being given to their families.
For more information, please see:
Reuters – China Announces Plans to Boost Secret Detention Powers – 30 August 2011
Irish Times – Beijing Considering Move That Would Allow Secret Detentions – 29 August 2011
Los Angeles Times – China’s Plan for Secret Detentions Alarms Rights Activists – 28 August 2011
Radio Free Asia – China May Legalize Secret Detentions – 28 August 2011
AFP – China May Legalize Secret Detentions – 27 August 2011
Indian Parliament Accepts Hazare’s Demands
By: Greg Donaldson
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia
NEW DEHLI, India – After fasting for twelve days Anna Hazare has been heard loud and clear by the country’s parliament.
After an eight hour session on Saturday, both houses passed a resolution urging for the creation of an independent anticorruption agency to monitor government officials.
Included in the resolution were three main demands that Hazare required. First, an anticorruption bill had to be passed during the current session of Parliament. Second, anticorruption agencies would also be created at the state level to monitor local officials. Hazare’s last substantial mandate was that a clear process be created for public grievances.
Despite this success, the day nearly ended in a stalemate. After being told the new resolution would be put to a “voice” vote, “Team Anna” received a communication from Parliament that it would make the group aware of the House consensus on the bill but that the resolution would not be voted on that day.
Team Anna immediately accused the government of betrayal and demanded that the resolution be passed by a vote. Shortly thereafter, a motion was made to vote on the resolution. While a voice vote did not take place, the bill passed unanimously. “Thumping of the desk is akin to passing a motion by voice vote,” House Speaker Meira Kumar explained.
In celebration of the passage of the resolution, Team Anna invited supporters to attend Hazare’s breaking of his fast Sunday morning. Hazare shed over fifteen pounds during the course of his fast but doctors report that his health is stable.
Hazare broke his fast by drinking a glass of coconut juice given to him by a five year old girl.
While Saturday marked a historical day throughout India, many are skeptical about the government’s true intent, believing that they might attempt to drag their feet in passing the resolution into law.
Team Anna announced that it still does not trust the government and it will watch the parliament’s actions to ensure that their “morally binding commitment” is kept.
Many local political scientists do not see the government going against a resolution that it created. Yogendra Yadav explained if the government did go against the bill, the parliament’s legitimacy would plummet.
In the past the government has been accused of corruption but some of that criticism has shifted to Team Anna. Many call the organizations tactics dirty and “political blackmail.”
Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi espressed that people have a right to protest but that threatening to fast until death in order to get your way is incorrect
Hazare’s supporters defend the actions taken noting that if Hazare had not gone to such extreme measures the resolution would have never passed.
Team Anna has demanded a special session of parliament be called to pass the bill.
For more information, please see:
Times of India – Team Anna demands special session to pass Lokpal Bill – 29 August 2011
Express India – Has Anna Hazare really come out a winner? – 28 August 2011
India Today –Anna Hazare to break his fast today at 10am, govt accepts his key demands – 28 August 2011
Times of India – Anna Hazare wins, Parliament passes resolution on Lokpal Bill – 27 August 2011
New York Times – Anna Hazare Ends Hunger Strike as Indian Parliament Agrees to His Demands – 27 August 2011
Raids Continue in Syria as Assad’s Position Weakens
By Zach Waksman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
DAMASCUS, Syria – The end of Ramadan brought more of the same to the Syrian people. Over the past two days, security forces began a new series of raids intent on crushing dissent against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. Tuesday morning, at least seven people were killed when security forces fired at protesters who had gathered outside of mosques following their morning prayers to mark the first day of the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday. These latest crackdowns come in the face of continued international pressure.
“They don’t want us to have any peaceful day,” Um Mohammad, a mother of two from Damascus, told the New York Times. “We are grieving this Id, and we were not going to celebrate, so they didn’t have to kill more people today,” she added, referring to the feast of Id al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan.
Syria appears to be in a state of flux at this time. Although raids have continued, reports have emerged to indicate that dozens of soldiers have deserted their posts to join the uprising against Assad. In response to the defections, the country’s security forces surrounded Rastan, a town outside Homs, the country’s third largest city, early Monday morning. According to a Rastan resident who called himself Raed during a telephone interview with Reuters, the defections began three months ago after tanks entered the town to crush street protests, reportedly killing dozens of civilians. Other defections took place Sunday, when several dozen soldiers disobeyed orders to fire on protesters in the Damascus suburb of Al Ghouta. The targeted activists were attempting to march toward Damascus. The recent defections may have been influenced by the recent fall of the Qaddafi regime in Libya.
But even as these recent shootings took place, the international community continues its responses. During Monday’s crackdowns, ambassadors to the United Nations Security Council met behind closed doors to discuss further action against Syria, including the possibility of a resolution or sanctions. The European Union has also stopped making loans through its European Investment Bank.
Turkey, which borders Syria and has been a prime destination for refugees of the Assad regime, expressed concern about its neighbor’s efforts to beat back dissent.
“The only way out is to immediately silence arms and to listen to the people’s demands,” said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “We have been watching the fate of those who did not chose this path in the past few months in Tunisia, in Egypt — and now in Libya — as a warning and with sadness.”
Even Iran, Syria’s closest ally, has called for Assad to listen to his people’s protests. “The government should answer to the demands of its people, be it Syria, Yemen or other countries,” said Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran’s foreign minister, on Saturday. “The people of these nations have legitimate demands, and the governments should answer these demands as soon as possible.”
Despite Salehi’s statement, he also mentioned fear that the situation needed to be handled delicately. He considered the possibility of regional chaos to be great.
Ironically, Assad also performed the traditional prayer in Damascus, accompanied by high officials within the Muslim religion, calling for peace within his country. He used the occasion to reiterate his belief that Syria was reacting properly and was on a steady path to reform. In the meantime, the stability of the Assad regime may depend on the strength of its security force. Protests have yet to reach the stronghold of Damascus, so security forces have been able to concentrate on the sites of protest, instead of protecting the cities from activists.
For more information, please see:
Al-Jazeera — Syrian protesters ‘killed’ after Eid prayers — 30 August 2011
BBC — Is Syria slipping out of the grasp of its rulers? — 30 August 2011
New York Times — Security Forces in Syria Fire on Worshipers as Ramadan Ends — 30 August 2011
SANA — President Bashar al-Assad Performs Eid Al-Fitr Prayer at President Hafez al-Assad Mosque — 30 August 2011
Al Bawaba — European Investment Bank stops loans to Syria — 29 August 2011
Al Bawaba — Syrian forces continue raids as Erdogan warns Assad — 29 August 2011
Al Jazeera — Syria forces surround town after ‘defections’ — 29 August 2011
New York Times — Amid Syrian Raids, Reports of Desertions — 29 August 2011
New York Times — Iran Calls on Syria to Recognize Citizens’ Demands — 27 August 2011