Israel, Hamas Deny Wrong-Doing Ahead of UN Gaza Report Deadline

By Meredith Lee-Clark
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

 JERUSALEM, Israel/West Bank – As the U.N. General Assembly’s deadline for a second report on the 2008-2009 Gaza War approaches on January 29, both the Israeli government and Hamas party leadership are denying they deliberately targeted citizens during the 22 days of fighting.

 Israel announced that it would release its own report on January 29, responding to allegations of war crimes, made in the investigation by the U.N. Human Rights Council, and was led by South African Judge Richard Goldstone.  The Goldstone Report accused both Israel and Hamas with war crimes and crimes against humanity, citing incidents during which each party’s military forces allegedly targeted civilian populations.  The Goldstone Report also alleged that Israeli forces deliberately targeted humanitarian property, with the intent of completely destroying the Gaza infrastructure and terrorizing the Gaza population.  Finally, the Goldstone Report called upon both the Israeli and Hamas governments to conduct internal investigations into its accusations, and for any war crimes to be tried by the International Court of Justice at The Hague.

 In its anticipated response, Israel is expected to give explanations of Israeli Defense Forces actions in Gaza, without specifically addressing any of the allegations in the Goldstone Report.  Likewise, Hamas has claimed that it only targeted Israeli military installations, and hit civilian buildings “by mistake.”  Human Rights Watch has responded to the Hamas statement, saying it was “belied by the facts,” and that “[c]ivilians were the target…and deliberately targeting civilians is a war crime.”

 Outgoing Israeli Attorney General Menachem Mazuz told the Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz on January 28 that Israel must conduct an independent internal investigation into the Goldstone Report’s allegations to preserve its legitimacy.

 Mazuz said that although he thought the Goldstone Report was biased, there was a danger of a “Serbianization” of Israel.

 “Therefore I believe that Israel has a clear interest in conducting a serious, expert examination that will deal with the report and produce an opposing report,” said Mazuz.  “It would be a serious mistake not to establish some sort of committee.  We must remove the shame of accusing Israel of being a country that commits war crimes.”

 For more information, please see:

 Ha’aretz – Deadline Nears For Second UN Report on Gaza War – 29 January 2010

 Ha’aretz – Mazuz:  Israel Must Probe Gaza War to Counter Goldstone – 29 January 2010

 Christian Science Monitor – Why Hamas Is Denying It Targeted Civilians in Israel – 28 January 2010

 New York Times – Israel Completing Rebuttal to Goldstone Report – 23 January 2010

Iran Hangs Two Election Protesters

By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran – On January 28 the Iranian government hanged two men convicted of being enemies of God (Mohareb). These marked the first executions of protesters wince the protests over the disputed presidential election in June that awarded second term to Iranian President Mahmound Ahmedinejad. The executions of the two men were condemned by both nations around the world and Amnesty International.

Iranian state television reported that Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani and Arash Rahmani Pour were executed. Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi confirmed the hanging as well. Dolatabadi explained that “they objected to the preliminary sentencing, but the appeals court upheld the verdict and they were hanged (on January 28.” He also said that Zamani and Pour “belonged to the monarchist group Tondar. During their trials they confessed to obtaining explosives and planning to assassinate officials.”

Zamani was among the scores of people who were arrested in the mass protests that followed the election. However, Pour’s lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh, denied that her client had anything to do with the post-election riots. Sotoudeh told the Associated Foreign Press that Pour “was arrested in Farvardin (the Iranian month convering March-April) before the election and charged with cooperation with Tondar.”

Sotoudeh explained that Pour was convicted in a show trial in July 2009 and that he confessed to the charges because of threats made against his family. She insists that what her client went through constituted a “show trial.”

Baqer Moin, an Iranian author and journalists, said that the executions were intended to “set an example and frighten some of the people who may shout slogans that are not of the liking of the authorities.” Moin also explains that the executions could be used to head off any possible mass rally that could take place on the anniversary of the 1979 Iranian Revolution.

Civil unrest erupted in Iran after the June 12 Presidential election. The opposition insisted that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad won the election through fraud. Hundreds of thousands of Iranians poured into the streets. Dozens of protesters were killed with hundreds being detained. The Iranian government, in response to the protests, insisted that they were were a foreign backed bid to undermine the country’s Islamic system of government.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Iran Hangs First Two Post-Election ‘Rioters’ – 28 January 2010

Al Jazeera – Iran Executes Two Over Poll Unrest – 28 January 2010

AP – Iran Hangs Opposition Activists – 28 January 2010

BBC – Iran ‘Executes Two Over Post-Election Unrest’ – 28 January 2010

Australian Academic Says Fiji is Not Ready for Democracy

By Cindy Trinh
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – Jonathan Fraenkel, an academic at the Australian National University, says that Fiji is not ready to return to a free democracy.

Fraenkel fears that Commodore Frank Bainimarama, the prime minister of Fiji, will break his promise to the people of Fiji.

The Commodore stated in a speech that by 2014 politicians should be ready to take over the running of the country.  Fiji hopes to achieve democracy, and has been in the process of returning to a democratic government.

During his visit to Kadavu, an island in Fiji, the Commodore reiterated that national elections will be held in 2014. He used the visit as an opportunity to explain the reasons for past military coups, specifically in 1987 and 2000.

He explained that the takeover of 1987 was carried out to further the development of Fiji. In the 2000 takeover, where a number of soldiers lost their lives, the Commodore assured that the military will “never forget their fellow comrades who died.”

The Commodore has appointed four military colonels to the positions of divisional Commissioners, in hopes for “rapid development in the country.”

The Commodore called upon the people of Kadavu to support the government’s plans. Chiefs on the island of Kadavu have expressed their support for the Commodore’s administration, and urges the Commodore to continue his term after 2014 if reforms in the government are completed by then.

But Fraenkel fears that the Commodore’s plan for politicians to take over the running of the country will not be totally free from military influence. Such influence has resulted in Fiji’s history of human rights violations and abuses.

Fraenkel says that the Commodore has a history of changing what he has vowed to do.

He states: “A trail of broken promises and if we believe what we’re hearing, the electoral democracy that is restored in Fiji will not be one that is free of military influence.”

For more information, please see:
Radio New Zealand International – Fiji not set to return to democracy, says academic – 28 January 2010

Islands Business – Fijian province wants Commodore Bainimarama leadership to go beyond 2014 – 26 January 2010

Pacific Islands News Association – Fijian province wants Commodore Bainimarama leadership to go beyond 2014 – 26 January 2010

Human Rights Watch Hopes for Justice in Sri Lanka

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Human Rights Watch recently released a statement pleading for holding accountable many of the perpetrators of human rights violations in Sri Lanka.  The prominent and influential organization pressed that the thousands of Sri Lankan nationals who have been denied human rights and legal recourse should finally attain their just deserts.  The group further asserts that President Rajapaksa’s first term saw myriad violations of international humanitarian laws, and is pushing for more transparent policies and the proper imposition of accountability during Rajapaksa’s new term.The Sri Lankan government has been ravaged by guerilla warfare against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam for over a quarter-century.  The United Nations itself has described Sri Lanka’s war, in which the government ultimately prevailed in the spring of 2009, as a “bloodbath”.  The war caused over 7,000 civilian casualties and has been the cause of many more human rights violations.

Discrimination against some Tamil nationals has forced many to flee to Australia to seek asylum.  However, many of those who tried to flee to Australia and Christmas Island were intercepted by Indonesian Border Control.  The Australian government employed the assistance of Indonesia to mitigate the influx of Tamil refugees into Christmas Island, which has become a haven for refugees of war-torn nations, particularly those in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

The Sri Lankan government’s establishment of refugee camps for Internally Displaced Persons subsequent to its victory over the Tamil Tigers faced its own plethora of human rights violations claims.  The derisory condition of the camps, along with the lack of adequate food, clothing, and shelter supplies drew the attention of many human rights groups and provoked pressure from the international community.  The Sri Lankan government only recently allowed Sri Lankan nationals housed in refugee camps to return to their own homes.  The Sri Lankan government claimed that prolonged holding was necessary to identify and remove Tamil Tigers among the civilian population.

The Sri Lankan government’s persistent refusal to cooperate with the UN and human rights groups further perpetuated suspicions and criticisms concerning Sri Lanka’s treatment of enemy combatants as well as its own citizens.  Human Rights Watch hopes that accountability will be able to prevent new violations and offer justice to victims of Sri Lanka’s past impunity.

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Sri Lanka Refugees on Hunger Strike – 06 October 2009

BBC News – Sri Lanka Tamil refugee camps ‘to be opened next month’ – 21 November 2009

Human Rights Watch – Sri Lanka: President’s New Term Time for Accountability – 26 January 2010

Four More Sentenced to Death for Xinjiang Riots

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – A court in China sentenced four more people to death in connection to their part in last year’s ethnic riots in the western Xinjiang region. A fifth person was also given the death penalty, but  was granted a two-year reprieve. and he is expected to see his sentence reduced to life in prison. In addition to sentencing five individuals to death, eight others were given various jail sentences.

The group appeared before the Urumqi Intermediate Court. The sentences for the defendants are said to be carried out immediately. They were charged with “extremely serious crimes,” reported state-run Xinjiang Daily newspaper. The thirteen defendants were charged with the “violent crimes of attacking, smashing, looting and burning”, a Chinese term that refers to violent rioting.

The verdicts bring the number of people who have been sentenced to death for involvement in the riots to about two dozen, including nine who have already been executed.

The verdicts were handed down on Monday, January 25, by a court in the regional capital Urumqi – the site of the violence in July 2009 where Muslim Uighurs and China’s Han ethnic majority fought in turmoil. The occurence left nearly 200 dead and over 1,600 injured.

On July 5 violence began as Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking minority ethnic group, protested the deaths of Uighur factory workers in an earlier brawl in southern China. The protest became a riot as gatherers clashed with police in the Xinjiang regional capital of Urumqi. The crowd scattered and fled throughout the city, attacking majority Han Chinese and burning cars. Nearly 200 people, mostly Hans, were killed, according to the government. Two days later, Uighurs were targeted in revenge attacks, promulgating the incident.

All of the thirteen sentenced this week are believed to be Uighurs, according to local sources.

For More Information, please see:

CNN – Four sentenced to death over Urumqi riots – January 26, 2010

New York Times – China: Four Sentenced to Die for Xinjiang Rioting – January 28, 2010

Al Jazeera – Four sentenced to die in Xinjiang – January 27, 2010