Aid Requested as Thousands Flee Clashes in Yemen

By Eric C. Sigmund
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SANA’A, Yemen – More than 8,000 civilians were forced to flee their homes as Yemeni forces launched an assault on a suspected al-Qaeda stronghold in the town of Hota in Shabwa province.  The government contends that over 100 al-Qaeda fighters were hiding in the town.  The outbreak in fighting comes as John Brennan, President Obama’s top counter-terrorism advisor, was visiting Yemen. 

Authorities suspect that radical Muslim cleric, Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-Yemeni citizen wanted by the U.S. has been hiding in his home province of Shabwa.  Analysts have been monitoring the development of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) which has considerable influence in the country’s tribal regions.   AQAP is responsible for a series of attacks inside Yemen, the latest happening in June.  Today, the government detailed that it had engaged “armed elements” of al-Qaeda inside the town killing at least three militants. 

The government has been giving notice to citizens since Saturday urging them to flee in anticipation of the anti-terror offensive.  Civilians fled to nearby towns creating cramped conditions.  The Red Crescent has been calling for food and medical supplies to support the growing populations.

This attack is just the latest in a larger campaign against AQAP within Yemen.  With U.S. military and intelligence support, the Yemeni government has been able to step up its attacks against al-Qaeda in the last year.   Yemen remains critical battlefield in the War on Terror as al-Qaeda continues to grow its ranks in the region.   The Christmas Day Bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was found to have spent time training in Yemen.   

Last month fighting in Loder left 19 militants and 11 Yemeni soldiers dead.   The United States has expressed its confidence in the Yemeni government stating that it is “convinced” that the government can defeat the militant forces.   As the government steps up its military strategy it must remain aware that it not only has to manage the conflict but also the humanitarian fallout. 

For more information, please see:

Agence France Presse – South Yemen Clashes Send Thousands Fleeing: Govt Official – 20 Sept. 2010

BBC Middle East – Thousands Flee Fighting in Yemen’s Shabwa Province – 20 Sept. 2010

CNN – Obama Counterterror Aid Visits Yemen – 20 Sept. 2010

Reuters Africa – Thousands Flee in Qaeda Clashes in South Yemen – 20 Sept. 2010

Agence France Press – Yemen Troops Kill Two at Checkpoint in Troubled Town – 19 Sept. 2010

Papua Prisoner Calls for Attention to Indonesia’s Abuses

By Joseph Juhn
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

Prisoner Filep Karma in prison in 2009, while enduring difficulties urinating. (Photo courtesy of Bintang Papua/Hendrik Yance Udam)

JAKARTA, Indonesia – A Papuan political prisoner in Jayapura’s Abepura prison says ongoing pressure by the international community is crucial to force Indonesia to address human rights abuses.

Filep Karma, age 51, has been in the Abepura prison for over five years after the district court found him guilty of treason when he raised the outlawed Papuan Morning Star flag and organized a pro-independence rally in late 2004.

Karma has been openly advocating for Papua’s independence from Indonesia. He has been on numerous occasions arrested and held in detention by the Indonesian military, most notable one being in 1999, when the Biak district court found him guilty of treason for leading and giving speeches at the Biak protests. Despite being sentenced for six and a half years in jail, he successfully appealed this sentence, won his appeal, and was freed that year.

In 2001, when members of the Indonesian special forces (Kopassus) killed then-Papuan-leader Theys Eluay, which dramatically raised political tensions in Papua, Karma became more involved with the independence movement.

Three years later, Karma helped organize an event on December 1, 2004, to celebrate the anniversary of Papua’s independence from the Dutch. The event was joined by hundreds of Papuan students, who chanted “freedom” and displayed the Morning Star Flag, which led to Karma’s arrest.

Today Filep Karma is probably one of Papua’s most popular pro-independence leaders as he never advocated violence as a means of obtaining liberty and independence.

“We want to engage in a dignified dialogue with the Indonesian government, a dialogue between two peoples with dignity, and dignity means we have no use of violence,” Karma said.

There have been critical moments, too. In August 2009, after experiencing difficulties urinating, Karma requested medical assistance from the staff of Abepura prison, only to be denied of any treatment or transfer to other medical clinic for diagnosis.

After long fight and intervention of various NGOs, Karma finally received prostate surgery in September 2010, a year after he first made requests for urgent treatment which prison authorities repeatedly denied.

He claims that international awareness of his plight has substantially helped improve the prison’s treatment of his health condition and brought positive change at the notorious prison.

“Because every time we report everything to people in the world, it makes shame for the Indonesian government. They changed the head of the prison. That’s why now, they will try to do best for the people,” he said.

For more information, please see:

Radio New Zealand – Papua prisoner calls for pressure to halt abuses by Indonesia – 20 September 2010

Human Rights Watch – Prosecuting Political Aspiration – 22 June 2010

Ecuador, Colombia Address Rights of Colombian Refugees

By Patrick Vanderpool
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

Displaced Colombian Refugees (Photo courtesy of Colombia Reports)
Displaced Colombian Refugees (Photo courtesy of Colombia Reports)

 QUITO, Ecuador – Delegates from a bilateral commission recently convened to establish a plan to help the tens of thousands of Colombian refugees who are currently living in Ecuador. 

As many as 15,000 additional refugees are expected to flee war-torn Colombia for Ecuador this year alone. 

The talks were chaired by senior officials from both nations and although no solution was reached, the delegates involved agreed to deepen cooperation to lobby governments for aid to the refugees.

Currently, 53,000 Colombians are officially living in Ecuador as refugees, although many experts suspect that there are 135,000 Colombians who have fled to Ecuador.  There are also 80,000 additional refugees still living on Ecuadorian soil who are in need of protection.  Colombians are fleeing their home country in droves to escape rebel violence.

Although the refugee problem has been long-recognized, solutions have been slowed by Colombia’s refusal to accept responsibility.  Alfonso Morales, the head of the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry’s department for refugees, said this week that the country has spent $40 million to attend to the refugees’ needs, while its neighbor to the north has contributed just $625,000 since 2000.  By many accounts, however, this meeting is an important first step towards a resolution.

The delegates’ primary objective for these meetings is to develop a comprehensive strategy to return displaced Colombians back to their home country and to ensure that the rights of the refugees are fully protected.

In addition to the tens of thousands of Colombians that continue to be forced to flee the country due to the ongoing violence, reports claim that the population of internally displaced Colombians has grown from 1 million to more than 4 million since 2004.  The human rights group Codhes says that 2.4 million Colombians were driven from their home country from 2002 to 2009, estimating that the total number of displaced people is now up to 4.9 million.

The delegates said that the next bilateral meeting will be held on Oct. 14 in Bogota and include the participation of representatives from the U.N. Refugee Agency and the International Organization for Migration.

For more information, please see:

 Inside Costa Rica – Firm Steps Toward Normalization of Ecuador-Colombia Relations – 17 September 2010

Latin American Herald Tribune – Ecuador, Colombia Begin to Address Refugee Issue – 17 September 2010

Colombia Reports – Ecuador Expects 15,000 more Colombian Refugees this Year – 13 September 2010

French Senate Bans Full-Face Veils in Public

By Christina Berger
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

PARIS, France – The French Senate passed a bill this week banning Muslim full-face veils in public.  The bill passed 246 to 1, and was passed by the lower house of France’s parliament in July.  The ban will be implemented in six months unless it is ruled unconstitutional.  The language of of the bill was carefully set so as to survive a constitutional challenge; the words “women” and “Muslim” are not mentioned in the bill’s articles, though it has widely been acknowledged that the ban will primarily affect about 2,000 Muslim women in France.

Some believe the main issue in the controversial bill is religion.  Supporters of the ban believe allowing the full-face Muslim veil in public is contrary to ideals of secularism in France.  Opponents of the ban believe it is indicative of islamophobia.

Raphael Liogier, the head of the Observatory of the Religious in Aix-en-Provence, told the Associated Press that the ban “will officialize Islamophobia” at a time when Muslims in France are already a hate target. ”With the identity crisis that France has today, the scapegoat is the Muslim,” he said.

Others believe the bill is a matter of women’s rights.  Supporters of the ban believe it is a move that will help liberate oppressed women.  Sihem Habchi, president of NPNS, said to the Associated Press Television News, ”How can we allow the burqa here and at the same time fight the Taliban and all the fundamentalist groups across the world?”  She went on to say that she’s Muslim and she shouldn’t have to disappear because she’s a woman.

Opponents of the bill who agree that the issue is a matter of women’s rights, make the argument that it’s about the right to choose.  M’hammed Henniche, the secretary-general of the Union of Muslim Associations in the Seine-Saint-Denis district north of Paris, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that women should be not be told what to wear.  “We don’t have the right to forbid women from wearing the full veil.  We must always be on the woman’s side. We mustn’t treat a woman like a child,” he said.

If the bill’s legality is upheld by France’s Constitutional Council, wearing a full-face veil in public could result in fines of 150 euros for women and 30,000 euros for any men who force their wives to wear a full-face veil.  Some women potentially affected by the ban have vowed to either stay at home so as not show their face in public or if fined to bring the issue to the European Court of Human Rights.

For more information, please see:

CNN – French Senate approves burqa ban – 15 September 2010

BBC – French Senate votes to ban Islamic full veil in public – 14 September 2010

NEW YORK TIMES – French Senate Passes Ban on Full Muslim Veils – 14 September 2010

RADIO FREE EUROPE – French Senate Votes to Ban Full-Face Veils – 14 September 2010

Journalists Not Safe in Mexico

By R. Renee Yaworsky
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

Photojournalist christian Torres, Santiagos colleague, grieves at the scene of the murder. (Photo courtesy of AP)
Photojournalist Christian Torres, Santiago's colleague, grieves at the scene of the murder. (Photo courtesy of AP)

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico—After an attack on two photographers, journalists in Mexico believe that they are defenseless against violent drug cartels, who target the media.  Many point the finger at an ineffective Mexican government that has been unable or unwilling to protect members of the media.

On Wednesday, Luis Carlos Santiago, a 21-year-old photographer, was shot and killed while in his car.  Another photographer with him, Carlos Sanchez, only 18, was severely injured.  Santiago worked for the most popular newspaper in Ciudad Juarez, El Diario de Juarez.  On Thursday, the newspaper published a front-page editorial that lashed out at the Mexican government for its weak response to the bloodshed.

“In a country where authorities have proven their incompetence, where can we ask for justice?” the editorial lamented.  “Who can we complain to for the dangers that journalists face every day?”  The editorial expressed frustration that many murdered journalists’ cases remain unsolved.

In 2008, a different El Diario journalist, Armando Rodriguez, was killed outside his home near the US-Mexico border.  In 2009, a federal agent investigating the murder was killed as well.

A New York-based group, the Committee to Protect Journalists, recently stated that over 22 Mexican journalists have been murdered since December of 2006.  During that period, President Felipe Calderon increased troops and federal police presence in the country in hopes of cracking down on the cartels.  The result, however, has been the opposite of what was expected, and has led to much criticism of the president’s approach.

Drug cartels target journalists in order to silence opposition, and some members of the media have felt threatened enough to quit reporting on the cartels.  El Diario, however, has continued tracking the gangs.

“The truth is,” El Diario’s editorial declared, “there is nothing we can do but keep reporting while feeling totally defenseless.”

A recent report by the Committee to Protect Journalists found “systemic failures that, if left unaddressed, will further erode freedom of expression and the rule of law.  Vital national and international interests are at stake.”

Ciudad Juarez is now one of the most dangerous cities in the world, with over 4,000 people slain in the past two years.

Santiago was the ninth journalist to be killed in Mexico this year.  His co-worker, Sanchez, remains in a serious condition in the hospital.

For more information, please see:

AP-Newspaper: Mexican media defenseless against gangs-17 September 2010

CNN-Mexican journalists shot Thursday may not have been intended targets-17 September 2010

BBC-Mexican newspaper photographers attacked by gunmen-17 September 2010