Somalia’s Al Shabaab Pulls Forces BBC off the Air

By Jared Kleinman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa Desk

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somali Islamists insurgents seized radio transmitters that let the local population hear news programs from the British Broadcasting Corporation Friday. Militia group al-Shabaab, who profess loyalty to al Qaeda and are fighting a deadly insurgency in the anarchic Horn of Africa nation, also said they had looted transmission equipment belonging to the BBC.

“Starting from today all BBC FM stations in the areas controlled by al Shabaab will be off air and their equipment will be taken over,” the group said in an emailed statement. “BBC is owned by England and it spreads (a) colonial and Christian agenda in the Muslim world. BBC fights Islam … it is against the Islamic administration in Somalia.”

The BBC broadcasts its London-based programming onto its own local FM frequencies in Somalia and local stations relay its signal. The BBC does not have any studios in Somalia.

Jerry Timmins, BBC Head of International Relations & Africa Region, said, “We are disappointed in this interference with our broadcasts in Somalia as in the end, it is the Somali people who are most affected.”

“The BBC speaks to all sides in Somalia — including al-Shabaab — and reports events as they unfold. It is essential for the people of Somalia that the BBC is allowed to continue to report accurately and impartially on the situation in the country without undue interference from anyone,” he said. The BBC has been broadcasting in Somali for 50 years.

The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) has decried a crackdown on press freedom in recent weeks and called the clampdown on the BBC an act of repression. “This…is a strong demonstration of the gravity of media repression by al Shabaab. We are very concerned at the obvious intent…to get tough on journalists and media organizations that have taken an independent attitude of reporting,” NUSOJ said.

Al-Shabaab insurgents control much of southern and central Somalia, including large portions of Mogadishu. They frequently threaten or assassinate journalists whose coverage they disagree with.

The group wants to topple the country’s weak U.N.-backed government and replace it with an Islamic state. Somalia has not had an effective government for nearly 20 years.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – Somalia’s al Shabaab Takes BBC Off Air – 9 April 2010

Garowe Online – Al-Shabaab orders BBC off air in Somalia – 9 Apr 2010

Associate Press – Somali Islamists seize radio transmitters for BBC – 9 April 2010

Religious Leader Visit Creates Controversy in Nigeria

By Jennifer M. Haralambides
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

LAGOS, Nigeria –  Nigerian President Umaru Yar’Adua’s critics are accusing the ailing president’s allies of working to undermine the country’s acting president’s efforts.

President Yar’Adua has not appeared in public for months due to his health.  In November 2009, the President left Nigeria for Saudi Arabia for medical treatment of a heart condition.   Most recently, a groups of clergymen have made visits to the President.   On separate occasions, both Muslim and Christian religious leaders made visits offering support and prayers.

After the visits, all of the religious leaders declined to offer any details regarding the health of the ailing leader.

Acting President, Goodluck Jonathan, who was formerly the Vice President, has been able to see or access President Yar’Adua since his return to Nigeria in February.  Many fear that the President’s family may be restricting access to him.

Human Rights lawyer Femi Falana has spoken out claiming that the visits by religious leaders were, “part of the moves by Yar’Adua’s wife to cause further confusion in politics . . . to give the impression that her husband will soon return to office.”

She goes on to say that, “[t]he timing of the visits was also important.  The motive was to frustrate the inauguration of Jonathan’s newly-appointed ministers.”

This tension between the ailing President and Goodluck Jonathan, who was thrust into office by parliament, has caused political uncertainty.  According to AFP, this has also come at a time where there is existing tension between Muslim and Christian groups.   “Religion is a powerful force in Nigeria, with the country roughly split in half between Christians and Muslims,” said AFP.

There have been no updates on President Yar’Adua’s health since November.

For more information, please see:

NEXT – Yar’Adua and the Missing Billions – 11 April 2010

The Punch – Enough of this Yar’Adua Distraction – 11 April 2010

AFP – Critics Fear Allies of Nigeria’s Ailing Leader Interfering – 10 April 2010

VOA – Controversy Grows in Nigeria Over Visit With Ailing President by Ten Religious Leaders – 8 April 2010


UPDATE: DECREE GRANTS IMMUNITY TO FIJI COUP LEADERS

By Cindy Trinh
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – Fiji’s coup leaders have given themselves immunity. President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau has approved a decree giving full immunity to those involved with the 2006 coup, and also for the coup in 2000 and the attempted mutiny at the Fiji army barracks also in 2000.

The decree states that absolute and unconditional immunity will be granted to the interim prime minister, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, his predecessor, Jona Senilagakali, and a former president Ratu Josefa Iloilo, who last year abrogated the constitution.

It extends the immunity from criminal or civil prosecution to members of the military, police and prison service, and all others acting under official orders.

The decree says, however, that those who have already been found guilty of crimes will not be given immunity.

The immunity will apply to a list of prescribed political events, starting with the purported civilian takeover of the government in May of 2000 and the attempted mutiny at the Queen Elizabeth barracks also in 2000. It will also cover the government take-over in 2006, and the abrogation of the constitution.

The president of the Fiji Law Society, Dorsami Naidu, says a government decree giving coup leaders immunity from prosecution shows that those in power think they are above the law.

He stated: “This decree basically does away with all actions, or all events that may have occurred, or that may be before a court or tribunal or any body which would be seeking any form of damages, compensation, or any claim against the present regime.”

Naidu believes that the decree makes a “mockery of the regime’s claim that the judiciary is independent.”

Other political exiles in New Zealand says the decree may be the price Fiji has to pay for free elections in the future.

Ruth Hill, correspondent for Radio New Zealand International reported: “A spokesperson for the Auckland-based Coalition of Democracy in Fiji, Nik Naidu, says the decree will allow the regime to literally get away with murder in some cases. Many military personnel have never faced charges for extra-judicial killings. This decree gives total immunity to all involved with the coup in 2000, an attempted mutiny later that year, the last coup in 2006, and scrapping the constitution last year. Mr Naidu says he believes those behind the illegal coup will never give up power unless they’re given immunity.”

For more information, please see:
Pacific Islands News Association – Fiji’s coup leaders give themselves immunity – 09 April 2010

Radio New Zealand International – Belief that immunity for coup leaders may be price that Fiji has to pay – 09 April 2010

Radio New Zealand International – Law society says Fiji coup leaders think they are above the law – 09 April 2010

Radio New Zealand International – Fiji’s coup leaders give themselves immunity – 09 April 2010

Hong Kong Names New Chief Justice

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

HONG KONG, China– A new chief justice has been named for the city of Hong Kong.  Lawyers and human rights activists said they were pleased to see a British-educated Geoffrey Ma head Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal later this year.

Ma currently serves as the chief judge of Hong Kong’s High Court, the city’s second highest court. 

Ma will succeed Andrew Li, who during his 13 years as chief justice was seen as the guardian of Hong Kong’s judicial autonomy.

Mainland China’s courts are criticized for imprisoning dissidents based on political motivation and for stifling individual liberties.  However, the legal system of Hong Kong is respected as when Beijing took over Hong Kong from Britain in 1997, Hong Kong was allowed to maintain its British-influenced political and legal systems whereby civil liberties like freedom of speech and protest are protected. 

Li told reporters that he is confident that Ma “will uphold the rule of law and safeguard judicial independence, and that the judiciary, under his leadership, will continue to ensure that individual rights and freedoms of citizens are fully safeguarded.”

In affirming Ma’s qualification for the position, Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Donald Tsang also said, “An independent Judiciary has been and will remain a cornerstone of Hong Kong’s stability and prosperity . . . I am confident Justice Ma will discharge his duties as head of the Judiciary with distinction.”

Ma’s appointment also garnered a positive reaction from the Hong Kong Bar Association.  The Association released a statement saying that Ma is well-respected and is “eminently qualified.”

Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor Director Law Yuk-kai was also elated saying, “[Ma] is strong in public law.  He has the competence to protect constitutional rights.”

However, critics and opponents have expressed concern regarding Ma’s two recent rulings.  One opposition lawmaker and veteran lawyer, Audrey Eu, commented that Ma has “always tended to be a little conservative.”

Nevertheless, Law said, “Of course we were disappointed about some cases, but I don’t think he is going out of the way to side with the government.”  He added, “Hong Kong doesn’t have democracy.  We expect there is at least one branch of government that serves as the last protector of our rights and interests.”

For more information, please see:

China Daily – Hong Kong appoints new chief justice – 8 April 2010

Taiwan News – HK top judge nominee praised as good for rights – 9 April 2010

WSJ – Hong Kong Taps Judge as New Chief Justice – 9 April 2010

Imprisoned Chinese Dissident Seriously Ill

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – One of China’s most well-known human-rights activists is ill with a serious liver condition speculated to be cancer.

Hu Jia, internationally acclaimed human rights activist, is in need of serious medical attention. Hu is recognized for speaking out on issues in China, including environmental concerns, patient rights for persons suffering from AIDS, and the expansion of democratic rights, was the winner of Europe’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 2008, and was a leading runner-up for the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize. 

Hu’s wife, Zeng Jinyan, announced his illness as the 36-year old dissident remains in jail on charges of subverting state power. Hu is serving a 3 1/2-year jail term for sedition that is set to end in June 2011. The charge stems from police accusations that he had planned to work with foreigners to disturb the Olympic Games. Zeng said in an interview that doctors discovered a mass on his liver during tests after he was admitted to a Beijing prison medical center on March 30.

Hu was found to have chronic cirrhosis in 2006 stemming from a hepatitis B infection, and in January 2009 he had to stop taking a drug used to treat it after developing a resistance to it. Cirrhosis can lead to liver cancer. in Zeng’s parole request, she indicated that Hu’s worsening condition and the ineffectiveness of medical treatment together meet the legal conditions for medical parole outlined in Chinese regulations.

Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) director Renee Xia said that prison authorities have refused to treat Hu’s illness. “Overwhelming evidence from the past two years demonstrates that Hu has not been receiving adequate care in prison medical facilities,” she said, this despite the law, which requires prisons to provide inmates with adequate medical care.  She said that she had asked the authorities to grant him parole but that she and Hu’s lawyer had received strong indications from prison officials that the request was unlikely to be granted. However, Zeng, herself a prominent blogger and rights activist, said that Hu’s relatives had been able to visit him the day after he was officially admitted to the Beijing prison medical center.

For more information, please see:

Asia News – Jailed dissident Hu Jia might have liver cancer 9 April 2010

The New York Times – Chinese Dissident Is Gravely Ill, Wife Says – 8 April 2010

The Guardian – Chinese dissident Hu Jia’s wife appeals for his release on health grounds – 9 April 2010