Banditry and Insecurity in Eastern Chad Continues to Threaten Relief Efforts

By Jared Kleinman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

KAWA, Chad – Increased banditry, kidnappings of relief workers and attacks on humanitarian compounds in eastern Chad are threatening crucial aid for nearly 100,000 people, many of them refugees or internally displaced persons (IDP).

Some 70 humanitarian organizations in eastern Chad are assisting 256,700 Sudanese refugees from the strife-torn Darfur conflict, 168,000 Chadian IDPs and around 150,000 people in host villages. Six organizations have temporally suspended their operations in eastern Chad due to the insecurity in the Assoungha and the Dar Sila areas, while others have reduced their activities, depriving over 37,000 people of much needed aid.

Crime in eastern Chad has ‘‘escalated in recent weeks including robbery, kidnapping and attempted kidnapping and murder’’, according to a bulletin which was distributed via the department’s Overseas Security Advisory Council. Bandits responsible for the surge in violence had proved ‘‘difficult to interdict, despite the presence of a United Nations peacekeeping operation in the region,” the bulletin added.

The late start to the rainy season and weak rainfalls has exacerbated the situation, with surveys indicating a 30 percent decrease in national agricultural production. Efforts to assess the situation in Assoungha were impeded by the kidnapping of the Red Cross expert, who was in charge of the exercise, and information on the food situation there is still lacking.

“The kidnapping of relief workers is a new element in bandits’ operations in eastern Chad, Darfur and northern CAR (Central African Republic),” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in its latest update, citing the recent kidnapping the international Red Cross expert, attacks on two non-governmental organizations (NGO) and the abduction of two French nationals. “This new security challenge [kidnapping] exacerbates the chronic banditry,” it added. “To date at least 96,500 people in needs are at risk of deteriorating living conditions due to the continued suspensions or reduction of operations by several humanitarian organizations.”

In April, the kidnappers gave their name as the Falcons for the Liberation of Africa. The group’s motives have remained shadowy ever since that abduction. It was unclear whether the appeal for a change of policy was genuine or cover for a ransom demand. “There have not been any clear political demands issued by the kidnappers. The motives have always appeared to be economic,” said a humanitarian source, asking not to be named.

Peacekeepers from the UN Mission in Chad and the Central African Republic (MINURCAT) have increased their patrols in the area, offering escorts to those humanitarians who accept and working with them to better respond to their protection needs, reported OCHA reported.

Assoungha remains the area the most affected, with organizations covering food security, health, water, sanitation and education continuing to suspend their activities. In the Dar Sila area, too, several organizations have decided to temporarily suspend activities or relocate international staff to safer areas, maintaining only minimal services.

For more information, please see:

UN News Centre – Aid Lifeline to Scores of Thousands in Eastern Chad Threatened by Banditry, UN Reports – 1 December 2009

AFP – Suspected Darfur Kidnappers Threaten to Kill French Workers – 30 November 2009

The Post.IE – Violence Escalates for Troops in Eastern Chad – 29 November 2009

VOA News – ICRC Worker Kidnapped in Chad – 10 November 2009

Witness Dies While in Mexico’s Witness Protection Program

02 December 2009

Witness Dies While in Mexico’s Witness Protection Program

By Brenda Lopez Romero
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

MEXICO, D.F. – A protected witness was murdered by gun shots in a Starbucks in the Del Valle subdivision, south of Mexico City. Édgar Enrique Bayardo del Villar was former chief of the Federal Police and accused of working with the drug cartel Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. The prosecutor offered Bayardo del Villar witness protection in exchange for his testimony against the cartel.

Bayardo del Villar had been a long time officer and after his arrest for bribery, he turned into a protected witness, with the alias “Tigre,” and a monthly salary of 50 mil pesos (approximately $5,000 U.S.D.). He formed part of the Clean Operation in 2008, one of the biggest political corruption scandals of the year. Bayardo del Villar was the lead witness against the Interim Commissioner, Gerardo Garay Cadena, of the Federal Police.

The Starbucks employees indicated that two men dressed in suits entered the location and one pulled out an automatic weapon and shot Bayardo del Villar. Then, they ran out towards a vehicle.

The District Attorney’s Office stated there is a full investigation into witnesses’ being murdered. They have reviewed the Starbucks surveillance cameras and are working with the Public Transportation System, because they believe that the assassins may have used the subway stations of the North Division and Zapata after they abandoned their green Isuzu vehicle. They have provided the public with sketches of the perpetrators.

The bodyguard, José Luis Castillo, is in the hospital in critical condition.

This is the second time in the last couple of days the State’s District Attorney’s Office has failed to protect its witnesses and have resulted in their deaths. Both witnesses had some connection to investigations into drug cartels in Sinaloa headed by “El Mayo.” On November 21, Jesús Zambada Reyes allegedly committed suicide while under witness protection.

For more information, please see:
Diario de Yucatán – Matan a testigo protegido – 2 December 2009

El Porvenir – Ejecutan en DF a testigo protegido – 2 December 2009

El Universal – Ser testigos de El Mayo los llevo a la muerte – 2 December 2009

Iran Plans Construction of Ten New Nuclear Plants

By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran – On November 29 the Iranian government began making arrangements for the construction of ten new uranium enrichment plants. The government ordered the country’s nuclear agency to begin work on five sites with five more to be located within the next two months. The announcement comes two days after the country was rebuked by the United Nations for covering up a uranium enrichment plant.

The International Atomic Energy Agency’s board of governors, the UN’s nuclear watchdog, voted twenty five to three with seven abstentions to condemn Iran’s nuclear program. The resolution called for the Islamic Republic to cease their enrichment of uranium and resolve any remaining questions about its nuclear activities. Additionally, the resolution reads that Iran must open its facilities to further inspection and to provide assurances that it is not operating any secret nuclear research sites.

Iran’s decision to build ten new plants sparked controversy throughout the Western world. The White House released a statement saying that this action was “yet another serious violation of Iran’s clear obligations.” Great Britain’s government reacted similarly, announcing that news of Iran’s actions was “a matter of serious concern” and was possibly a “deliberate breach of five UN security council resolutions.” Iran, however, claims that their actions are peaceful and allowed under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

According to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, if Iran builds ten additional nuclear plants the country would have enough uranium to produce twenty thousand megawatts of electricity within six years. However, Iran’s capability of accomplishing such a goal has come into question. According to Gary Sick, a professor of Middle East studies at Columbia University, given the pace of production and installation of working centrifuges in Iran, the process would both be extremely costly and take approximately twenty to thirty years to complete.

While Sick doubts that Iran has the capabilities to build ten new plants, Ahmadinejad insists that this goal can be accomplished if the new facilities incorporate new, more efficient centrifuges that Iran has not yet employed. The Iranian President insists that “new high-capacity centrifuges have been designed by the Islamic Republic of Iran that can carry out the task in fewer numbers.”

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – UN Rebuke ‘Forced’ New Iran Plans – 30 November 2009

Los Angeles Times – Iran Plans 10 More Large Nuclear Plants – 30 November 2009

BBC – Iran ‘Planning 10 New Uranium Enrichment Sites’ – 29 November 2009

Guardian – Iran Defies United Nations With Plans For 10 New Nuclear Plants – 29 November 2009

Officials Dismiss Claims of the Toxic Dangers Surrounding Bhopal


By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia     

 

BHOPAL, India- Indian officials have dismissed claims that the pesticide plant at Bhopal is still leaking dangerous toxins into the drinking water.  Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan stated that the plant was safe, contradicting claims in a new report.  

On 3 December 1984, thousands died after 40 tons of deadly methyl isocyanate gaw leaked from the US-owned plant.  Over half a million people were exposed to the gas, and as a result have suffered life-long chronic illness.

Speaking in an interview ahead of the 25th anniversary of the disaster, Mr. Chouhan said that the neighboring communities near the site had been supplied with clean drinking water.  “It took some time…But we managed this quickly, and we can say that we are providing 100% clean water.”

These statements are contradicted by a report by the Bhopal Medical Appeal (BMA) and the Sambhavna Clinic.  Their report says there is evidence that “there are still high levels of toxic chemicals in the drinking water supply in 15 communities near the old Union Carbide pesticide plant”.  The report says the water around the factory site in Bhopal still possesses unsafe levels of carbon tetrachloride, other organic pollutants, and other heavy metals.

The report claims that as a result, “the populations in the areas surveyed have high rates of birth defects, rapidly rising cancer rates, neurological damage, chaotic menstrual cycles and mental illness.”

While Mr. Chouhan insists that clean water was supplied to communities without running water, many residents said the water was insufficient and delivered too infrequently, forcing them to continue relying on contaminated ground water.

Sathyu Sarangi, of the Sambhavna Clinic said, “We have ample evidence, that there are many toxins still in the ground that have never been cleaned up…Each time it rains, the rain washes those toxins into the ground water, which many people still draw to drink.”

The Indian government has also drawn the ire of the people by attempting to turn the disused factory into a tourist spot. India’s environment minister, Jairam Ramesh mocked activists on a visit to the city by picking up a handful of waste and saying “see, I am alive.”

Sarangi says the government has been attempting to lure Dow Chemical, Union Carbide’s successor back to India and secure $1 billion of investment. In return, says Sarangi, the government plans to allow Dow to evade its responsibility to clean up the Bhopal plant site.  She said “This is all about the money. “Politicians in India would rather do this than fight for people who suffered.”

 

For information, please see:

BBC News- Officials Dismiss Claims Bhopal Site is Leaking Toxins–  1 December 2009

Guardian.co.uk- Bhopal Water Still Toxic 25 Years After Deadly Gas Leak, Study Finds– 1 December 2009

Nzherald.co.nz- Bhopal a Poisoned City 25 Years On– 2 December 2009

Sri Lankan Government Fully Releases IDP’s from Camps


By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reproter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – The Sri Lankan government has at least conceded to and begun releasing the remaining internally displaced persons from war-time refugee camps.  Over 120,000 Tamil ethnic minorities have been taking refuge in government-run camps since the late defeat of the Tamil Tiger insurgency group this May.  Despite international pressure from the U.N. and various NGO’s and other human rights organizations, the Sri Lankan government has been obstinate in the full release of IDP’s from the refugee camps. 

 The Sri Lankan government has cited concerns that estranged Tamil Tigers may be hiding among the civilian Tamils.  To supposedly ameliorate the potential problems of enemy militants among the non-combatant nationals, the Sri Lankan government executed a comprehensive screening program to identify and remove Tamil Tigers from the refugee camps.  The Sri Lankan government also claimed that landmines could be located in the vicinities outside of the refugee camps and refused to release IDP’s en masse until all of them were located and safely defused or detonated.  The effectiveness of these safety measures does not seem to have been reported, but, assuming the honesty of the Sri Lankan government, its willingness of to at last release IDP’s suggests success.  

Although the Sri Lankan government has finally folded to international pressure, myriad concerns persist.  Transport out of the camps poses a significant obstacle for many who were taken to camps far away from their home.  Also, many people who have had their homes destroyed by the war or monsoon season no longer have a place to go.  Many have opted to stay in the camps, since evacuation is not compulsory.  Rather, all restrictions on IDP’s have been lifted, enabling them to enter and exit the camp areas at their whim.  

Although the camp areas are essentially open ground for the IDP’s, Sri Lankan officials have issued statements declaring that the security levels within the camps will not decrease.  

The decision to release IDP’s comes after many unfulfilled promises by the Sri Lankan government.  The full release is a significant step towards the government actively reinstituting the liberties it took from hundred-thousands of Tamil ethnic minorities by subjecting them to the derisory conditions of the refugee camps.  IDP’s continually voiced complaints about unlivable environments and a scarcity of food, clothes, and shelter.  Furthermore, the monsoon season of the summer months made the transportation of aid and other amenities quite difficult.  

Following the recent release of IDP’s, the Sri Lankan government aspires to close the refugee camps completely by the beginning of 2010.  


For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Sri Lanka opens Tamil Camps – 1 December 2009

BBC News – Sri Lanka war refugees leaving military camps – 1 December 2009

The Globe and Mail – Tamil refugees free to leave Sri Lankan Camps – 1 December 2009