Syrian Forces Attack Mourners at Funeral, Killing Six

By Eric C. Sigmund
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria –Security forces open fire on mourners gathered in the suburbs of Damascus, to pay their respects to friends and family lost in the bloodiest day since the outbreaks of protests in Syria.  Six were shot dead.  Over one hundred people were killed Friday when security forces advanced on civilian protesters in the country’s capital.  This comes just days after President Bashar al-Assad issued a ban on public demonstrations.

Tens of thousands were reported to have attended Friday’s funerals for the fallen.  Security forces attempted to deter the gathering by firing on those traveling to the event.  “There were was a heavy volley of gunfire in our direct as we approached Ezra to join the funerals of martyrs” commented one Syrian.  Reports confirm that at least three civilians will killed by snipers on their way to the funeral.

Despite Assad’s recent move to end decades of emergency rule, the government has attempted to reassert control and order of the public through violent reprisals.  Now some analysts are beginning to suggest that the imposition of martial law is near.

Government officials have failed to take responsibility for authorizing the use of force against peaceful protesters, instead alleging that violence is the product of disgruntled armed criminal gangs.   One official dismissed reports of civilian casualties stating that the deaths were mere fabrications, made up by gangs carrying bottles of fake blood. Other officials insist that security forces had only used water cannons and tear gas to disband protests.

Human rights groups have widely condemned the Syrian government for violations of international law. The government’s restrictions on access to foreign journalists have made it difficult to get real time information about the crisis and formulate an accurate assessment of those dead in Syria.  Syrian human rights activists estimate that over 200 people have been killed since March 16th.

In the face of violent crackdowns, anti-government momentum remains strong and the public resilient.   Calls for the end of the Assad regime continue to ring out in city squares throughout the country as protesters make clear they are willing to risk their lives for the future of their country.  And protests have not been in vain.  Numerous concessions, albright limited, have been given to citizens.  In addition, a number of governing officials have resigned from their posts, surcoming to pressure from civilian ousters.  Two more officials of the country’s defunct Parliament resigned after Friday’s massacres.

But there is little indication that the President will soften his positions.  As Assad attempts to cling to power, the risk that full blown civil conflict could ignite within Syria continues to rise.  Whether the international community will react as it did in Libya remains to be seen but one thing remains clear; the situation in Syria will likely get worse before it gets better.

For more information, please see:

Sydney Morning Herald – Outrage at Massacre of 88 Protesters – Apr. 24, 2011

BBC Middle East – Syria Protests: Security Forces “Fire on Mourners” – Apr. 23, 2011

New York Times – Syrian Security Forces Fire on Mourners in Several Towns – Apr. 23, 2011

Ynet – Syria Buries Scores of Dead Amid Growing Unrest – Apr. 23, 2011

Corruption Cripples Karachi From the Inside Out

David L. Chaplin II
Impunity Watch, Asia

KARACHI, Pakistan – The city of lights is becoming more like a jungle to local residents who fear the city has been overrun with predators: extortionists, drug lords, weapon dealers, the land mafia…the list goes on. Criminals guard their turf and have allegedly formed links with political parties, making controlling the violence difficult, if not impossible says the Tribune.

Within Karachi, an annual billion dollars in revenue province, political rivalry, sectarian tension, ethnic hatred, and a bloody chase of a multi-billion rupee pie are the ongoing explanation for the increased violence.

Nasrullah Khan, Station House Officer of Mauripur Police Station battles targeted killing on a daily basis and has survived numerous shootouts as a result.

“The police is combating crime efficiently,” he claims, “which is evident from the numerous arrests and the seizure of illegal arms, the courts are overflowing with trials and the  jails are overcrowded with all the people we have arrested.”

The statistics Nasrullah offers tell one story, but there are other numbers as well, and they tell a different story.

Targeted killings for the month of March are 135. This number is twenty more than two months ago were January witnessed 105 people killed.

According to the Human Rights Commission in Pakistan, target killings in the city have risen by 175 per cent from 2009 to 2010. Last year 748 people lost their lives on the violent streets of Karachi. Only 447 of them were political activists.

“This is indeed a turf war,” says Nasrullah Khan. “There is a battle for drugs, for weapons, for confiscation of land, for extortion, for dominance — ultimately it’s a battle to own Karachi.”

But adding to the turmoil is a sluggish judicial process where the police and prosecutors lack the ability to produce evidence or witnesses before the court.

Despite the confession of nine target killing suspects, they were acquitted by the court because of a lack of evidence and witness testimony. Only to be let loose without any surveillance so they often continue committing crime without any fear.

Reports indicate that on May 12th a message was sent to political parties to strengthen their militant wings or find themselves on the receiving end of political violence. Lacking alternatives, party workers chose to arm themselves or align with ‘sympathetic’ criminal groups for protection.

Politics in this case are unquestionable the “Muttahida Qaumi Movement” or MQM and the “Awami National Party” or ANP share the coalition government in Sindh with the ruling Pakistan People’s Party or PPP.

They share the responsibility of governance and maintenance of the law and ultimate order.

ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan says that no single political party should be allowed to dominate the city. He stressed “that the Pashtun presence in Karachi was a reality, as was the existence of other ethnicities.”

The ANP chief says that “elements” intending to destabilize the city were feeding on political strife and that neither the MQM nor the ANP were solely responsible for target killing.

Interviews with the International Herald report that the ANP and MQM now apparently seem to be in agreement that peaceful co-existence is the solution to Karachi’s problems.

The citizens pay the price for this targeted violence.

Citizens are targeted for their ethnicity, their sect, their politics…and sometimes, just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The father of a victim says, “the Katchi community is fed-up of the PAC and has decided to gang up against them under the banner of the Katchi Rabta Committee” or KRC.

Uzair Jan Baloch, chief of the now-defunct People’s Aman Committee or PAC, refutes the allegations leveled against him. “I am a victim of gang wars myself. My father was abducted in front of my eyes fifteen years ago. His dead body was found in Jahanabad in a sack.”

“I am a social activist and the Aman Committee is a social welfare outfit,” claims Baloch.

To back up his claims, Uzair Baloch shows Sabin Agha of the Tribune, three applications from the residents of Lyari for financial assistance.

One is a request for payment of a student’s school fees in Australia, the other two also ask for monetary help due to lack of income and the absence of a breadwinner. Baloch claims he took care of all three applications.

Administrative neglect over the years have left Lyari so impoverished that it is not surprising that people find their saviors in people like Uzair Baloch or Rehman Dakait.

Citizens believe that as long as political parties feel the need to maintain militant wings and ally themselves with criminals, the slightest spark will continue to set this city ablaze.

Police have lost credibility in the eyes of the people, the law enforcement agencies suffer from endemic lawlessness and rampant corruption, ironically the same problem Karachi faces.

For more information, please see:

International Herald Tribune – Welcome to the Jungle – 17 April 2011

Xinhua News (China) – Tension grips Pakistan coastal city Karachi as target killing continues – 15 April 2011

Hindustan Times – Fresh Political violence kill 10 in Karachi-17 April 2011

The News (International) – No PPP man named in Joint Team report on Karachi target killings – 11 April 2011

Al-Bashir Claims Limited Responsibility, Calls Ocampo a Liar

By Laura Hirahara
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan; Photo courtesy of the AFP
President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan; Photo courtesy of the AFP

In an interview today, Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir claimed limited responsibility for the atrocities in his country while blaming the International Criminal Court (ICC), its chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo, “Western” states and cited the UN figures of death and displacement as exaggerated.  During the interview, al-Bashir said, “Of course, I am the president so I am responsible about everything happening in the country. . . .Everything happening, it is a responsibility.  But what happened in Darfur, first of all, it was a traditional conflict taking place from the colonial days.”  He said that his troops had not executed any attacks on the people in Darfur despite claims that his troops have committed ground and air strikes against thousands of civilians.

In addition, al-Bashir called Ocampo a liar who is using the ICC to promote his own political agenda.  “It is a political issue and double standards, because there are obvious crimes like Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan, but [they] did not find their way to the international criminal court. . .He [Ocampo] is now working on a big campaign to add more lies,” al-Bashir said during the interview.  Al-Bashir was the first head of state indicted by the court in March 2009 and has yet to be arrested.  Since Sudan is not a signatory member of the ICC, they have no obligation to turn him over to the court.

During the course of the interview, al-Bashir also said the UN had grossly exaggerated the numbers of those killed and displaced by the conflict in Sudan, specifically in Darfur.  The UN reports that in the last 8 years, 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur and another 2.7 million displaced.  Al-Bashir claims the numbers are 10,000 and 70,000 respectively.  Refuting al-Bashir’s claims, John Prendergast, co-founder of the anti-genocide organization Enough Project, stated, “In my eight trips to Darfur since 2003, the overwhelming evidence demonstrates that a government-sponsored counter-insurgency targeted non-Arab civilian populations by destroying their dwellings, their food stocks, their livestock, their water sources and anything else that would sustain life in Darfur.”

Al-Bashir also criticized the military intervention in Libya, saying “The resources of Libya like petrol make it important to other countries like France, Britain and Europe in general.”  He has stated that he will support the succession of South Sudan after this year’s referendum in which an overwhelming majority of southern Sudanese voted for it.  However, he has been accused most recently of funding southern generals who are organizing a rebellion against the coming split.  After accusing western countries of pushing for a regime change in Sudan for the last 20 years, he claimed they were trying to satisfy a personal vendetta against him.

In response to al-Bashir’s numerous claims, Louise Arbour, a former UN high commissioner for human rights and Hague war crimes prosecutor, said, “’The crimes committed against millions of civilians in Darfur cannot simply be shrugged off. If Bashir wants to argue that he was not responsible for the atrocities, he should go to The Hague and make his case there.”

For more information, please see;

BBC– Sudan’s Bashir Accepts ‘Responsibility for Darfur War– 21 April, 2011

Sydney Morning Herald– President Accepts Responsibility for Darfur Slaughter– 22 April, 2011

The Independent– Sudan: President Concedes Blame for Genocide– 21 April, 2011

The Telegraph– Sudan’s President Accepts Responsibility for Darfur Conflict– 21 April, 2011

New Legislation Requires Syrians to Obtain Government Approval Before Demonstrating

By Eileen Gould
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

HOMS, Syria – Leaders in the international community have spoken out against the Syrian government and has called upon it put an end to the arbitrary arrest, detention, and torture of civilians.  U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the violence in Syria at a news conference today.

The most recent reports of violence among civilians are from the Syrian city of Homs.  However, journalists have not been allowed access to the city, which has made it difficult to determine what exactly is happening.  Activists have reported that more than twenty pro-democracy protestors have been shot and killed by military forces.

In Homs, demonstrators have been protesting since Monday, calling for the “downfall of the regime”.  Military forces were deployed and government officials ordered the protestors to disperse.  These demonstrations have continued, even though the government has ratified legislation that ended the state of emergency that has been in effect in Syria for the past forty-eight years.  The newly-elected cabinet also approved legislation that requires Syrians to obtain approval from the government before holding a demonstration.

Secretary of State Clinton has suggested that Syria allow “free movement and free access” and that it “stop the arbitrary arrest, detentions and torture of prisoners.”  The people of Syria have raised issue and seek lasting reform, which Clinton thinks the government needs to address.

In another city, Banias, where civilians were shot and killed last week, the chief of the security police was fired.  According to local residents, Amjad Abbas was observed beating a villager along with several other officers.

Reports indicate that more than two hundred people have been killed since the uprisings, inspired by Egypt and Tunisia, began over a month ago.  Various rights groups are seeking independent investigations into the acts of military forces during this time.

The state of emergency has been in effect since 1963, when the Baath Party performed a coup and seized power.  Security forces were allowed to suppress dissent because gatherings of more than five people were prohibited.  The new law which requires demonstrators to obtain permission did not clarify whether ending the state of emergency would create a less restrictive government.

While the new law is viewed as a positive sign, the U.S. State Department stated that it’s up to the Syrian people to ensure that it is sufficient and that real change happens.

For more information please see:
Reuters – Clinton Says Syria Must Stop Detention, Torture – 20 April 2011

Reuters – Protest Erupts in Syria’s Homs Despite New Law – 20 April 2011

The Christian Science Monitor – End of Emergency Rule in Syria Unlikely to Quell Protests or Stop Arrests – 20 April 2011

Second Russian Official Speaks Out About Pressure On Judge During Trial

By Christina Berger
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

MOSCOW, Russia — A former Russian court official said in an interview on Friday that the judge in charge of last year’s high profile trial of Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky openly admitted the verdict would be dictated to him by others. This was the second official associated with the case to speak out about pressure put on the judge during the trial.

Igor Kravchenko, who was an administrator at the Moscow court until he was let go for allowing Khodorkovsky’s lawyers to bring a jar of crude oil into the courtroom as part of testimony, was interviewed by a Russian independent newspaper. In the interview, published on Friday, Kravchenko claims that Judge Viktor Danilkin admitted that he was not the one really in charge of Khodorkovsky’s fate. Kravchenko said in the interview, “[a]bout the process this is what [Judge Danilkin] said: ‘In principle, I don’t decide this. Whatever they say, that’s what will be.”

Judge Danilkin has said this is not true, and a Moscow courts spokeswoman has reassured Russian news media that Judge Danilkin wrote the verdict himself and urged reporters not to “suck news out of your finger, but analyze the process on the basis of facts and data which were presented in the trial.”

But Kravchenko is not the first Russian court official to make such claims. Natalya Vasilyeva, a former assistant to Judge Danilkin and court spokeswoman, gave an interview in February 2010 claiming that Judge Danilkin was forced to hand out a guilty verdict. Vasilyeva said in a TV interview, “Danilkin began to write the verdict. I suspect that what was in that verdict did not suit his higher ups, and therefore he received another verdict, which he had to read.” Kravchenko has said that what Vasilyeva said is true and only what most people involved the case already knew.

Khodorkovsky was already serving an eight year sentence on similar charges when the trial with Judge Danilkin took place. Many in the international community viewed the original sentence for tax fraud, handed down in 2005, as punishment for challenging then-President Vladimir Putin, and for his intent to sell energy assets to US companies. It was in light of his approaching release that government officials charged Khodorkovsky with embezzlement last year.

Khodorkovsky was held for months last year in pre-trial detention, despite legislation recently passed and aimed at keeping people accused of economic crimes free until trial. Russia’s Supreme Court actually ruled on appeal that the pre-trial detention was illegal, but it has no practical effect since Khodorkovsky is already serving the second sentence handed down by Judge Danilkin.

Khodorkovsky’s lawyer suggested the ruling was a superficial way to demonstrate reforms in Russia are working. “The situation is so crazy and so lacking in practical consequences that it was possible [for the court] to completely painlessly demonstrate that sometimes in Russia, even in this case, there are reasonable rulings,” he said.

As a result of the second trial, Khodorkovsky will be in prison until 2017, Judge Danilkin having sentenced him to six years for multibillion-dollar theft and money-laundering. During the trial Judge Danilkin was often called to Moscow City Court for meetings and demands of senior officials, according to Kravchenko. He also claimed that when senior officials were pleased with the judge, their approval was shown through bonuses for Danilkin and his employees, and when the senior officials weren’t happy with the judge, then his budget shrank.


Fore more information, please see:

MOSCOW TIMES — 2nd Court Official Sees Yukos Pressure — 18 April 2011

AP — Ex-Khodorkovsky court official criticizes judge — 15 April 2011

NY TIMES — Bosses Pressed Russian Judge, Official Says — 15 April 2011