Persecution of Kurds in Syria a Widespread Problem

By Brandon Kaufman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria– According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), Kurds, who make up approximately ten percent of the Syrian population and who live primarily in the country’s northern and eastern regions, have been the subject of unlawful and unjustified discrimination in recent years.

In their report, HRW said that Syrian security forces have steadfastly attempted to ban and disperse gatherings calling for Kurdish minority rights or celebrating Kurdish culture., Additionally, the report details the detention of leading Kurdish political activists and their ill treatment while in custody.  The report documents that the repression of Kurds in Syria has grown exponentially following large scale Kurdish demonstrations throughout 2004.  The published material is based on interviews with over thirty Kurdish activists who have been recently released from prison.  In response to requests for interviews, members of the Syrian government turned down requests for information or meetings.

The report asserts that Syrian authorities have repressed over a dozen Kurdish political and cultural gatherings since 2005, all being conducted in a peaceful manner.  In addition to the repression of political meetings, security forces are said to have ended celebrations for the Kurdish New Year.

Sarah Lee Whitson, HRW Director for the Middle East and North Africa said that “aAt a time when other countries in the region, from Iraq to Turkey, are improving the treatment of their Kurdish minority, Syria remains resistant to change.  In fact, Syria has been especially hostile to any Kurdish political or cultural expression.”  She further went on to say that “the Syrian government sees threats everywhere, even in village new year celebrations.  If the government wants better relations with its Kurdish minority, it should address their legitimate grievances instead of trying to silence them.”

Under international law, Syria is obligated to uphold freedom of expression and association, as well as the right to freedom of assembly.  In addition, under international law, Syria is required to protect minorities and guarantee them the right to participate actively in public and cultural life.

For more information, please see:

Human Rights Watch- Group Denial: Repression of Kurdish Political and Cultural Rights in Syria– 26 November 2009

Human Rights Watch- Syria: End Persecution of Kurds– 26 November 2009

Asia Times- U.S. Designs on Syria’s Kurds– 9 April 2005

Brown Discusses the Possibility of Harare’s Readmission

By Jennifer M. Haralambides

HARARE, Zimbabwe – Gordon Brown said that significant reforms are still needed by the national unity government in Harare before they can be readmitted to the Commonwealth.

In 2003, President Robert Mugabe resigned Zimbabwe’s membership in the Commonwealth of Nations in protest of their continued suspension over human rights issues.

Gordon Brown, British Prime Minister, has raised the possibility of readmitting Harare while he was on his way to the summit of Commonwealth nations in Trinidad and Tobago that opened on Friday.  This would be the first time in years the Commonwealth leaders were scheduled to debate whether they should allow Zimbabwe back into the fifty three member club.

Brown said that although they are aware of the progress made by the unity government, Britain remains concerned about the rate at which the reform is taking place.  In an article for the Zimbabwe Independent Newspaper, Brown was quoted saying that the power-sharing government had made some recognized achievements such as raising the living standards of local residents, and taming of hyper-inflation.

The next step should be for the Commonwealth to make an offer of readmission that is conditional on the Zimbabwean government’s fulfillment of the 2008 Global Political Agreement (GPA) on power-sharing.  The agreement was intended to lead to a new constitution by August 2010 and free elections.

“I sincerely hope that by the time of our next meeting in 2011, Zimbabwe will have made enough progress for us to welcome them back into the Commonwealth,” said Brown.

Brown wants to see progress on reforms in security, justice, and the economy.  He would also like to see Zimbabwe embrace a “vibrant free press.”  Moreover, the most important implementation Brown is hoping for is a genuinely free and fair election.

News reports quoted Didymus Mutasa, the Zimbabwe’s Minister of State, saying that Zimbabwe did not want want to rejoin the commonwealth.  Also, some skeptics say that Mr. Mugabe is using the illusion of a power-sharing relationship with Mr. Tsvangirai as a way of re-establishing himself in the international community as statesman.

For more information, please see:

The Sydney Morning Herald – Mugabe’s Fate – 29 November 2009

Telegraph.co.uk – Robert Mugabe: Will Zimbabwe be Let Back Into Commonwealth? – 28 November 2009

Reuters – Brown Hopes Zimbabwe Can Rejoin Commonwealth – 27 November 2009

VOA – Britain’s Gordon Brown Moots Readmission of Zimbabwe to Commonwealth – 27 November 2009

Saudi’s Clear Mountain Area of Rebel Forces

By Ahmad Shihadah

Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

SA’NA, Yemen – Saudi Arabia says it has captured a strategic mountain area near its border with Yemen from Yemeni Shi’ite rebels. Saudi forces have been carrying out air and artillery strikes on Yemen for several weeks, after rebels killed a border guard in a raid. “The armed forces completely control al-Dood mountain, one of the most strategic regions,” deputy defense minister Prince Khaled bin Sultan was quoted as saying as he inspected troops just within Saudi territory. He also said Saudi forces had “cleaned up every inch of Saudi territory,” adding that “ant person who infiltrates or sniping will end up surrendering or dead.”

Yemeni officials said they had also engaged in heavy clashes with the Houthi rebels on the outskirts of the northern city of Sa’da. A military official told Reuters that Yemeni officials had prevented a rebel attempt to enter the city on Saturday.

The Houthi rebels denied that the area had been taken and said that Saudi Arabia had carried out further attacks – but they said there had been no clashes on the ground, and that Saudi troops were not in control of the area.

The Houthis have been battling the Yemeni government of Ali Abdullah Saleh since 2004, “citing political, economic and religious marginalization,” reports Al-Jazeera. The Houthis also accuse Saudi Arabia of allowing the Yemeni military to launch strikes against the rebels from within its territory, a claim denied by both nations, according to BBC. The Yemeni government launched a new offensive against the rebels in August 2009, the BBC says, leading to a wave of intense fighting. Reuters reports the Yemeni military tried to rout Houthi rebels near Sa’da, Yemen, leading up to the weekend.

For more information please see:

Al-Jazeera – Saudi ‘Seizes Key Rebel Area’ – 29 November 2009

BBC – Saudi Arabia ‘Clears’ Key Area of Yemen – 29 November 2009

The Christian Science Monitor – Saudi Arabia Steps Up Fight Against Yemen Rebels – November 29 2009

Philippines Election Violence Suspect Surrenders

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

AMPATUAN, Philippines– A lead suspect, Andal Ampatuan Jr., accused of a massacre, which killed at least 57 people in the Philippines, has been turned over to the authorities by his family on Thursday.

Ampatuan Jr.’s family is a powerful pro-government clan allied with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.  Since the massacre, there has been mounting pressure from the public to crack down on lawless acts and warlords.

According to Asia Foundation, more than 80% of families in Maguindanao province, the scene of Monday’s massacre, have been made homeless due to clan violence.

About 250 prominent political families exist in the Philippines with family members who hold positions in various levels of the government.    The Ampatuan clan has been ruling the Philippines’ Maguindanao province for years. 

Philippines clan killing Victims at the massacre site.  Courtesy of Reuters.

Andal Ampatuan Sr. is the provincial governor of the Maguindanao province and has been grooming his son, Andal Ampatuan Jr., to succeed him in next year’s upcoming elections. 

However, Ampatuan Jr. is accused of allegedly stopping a convoy with more than 100 armed police and militiamen, and killing journalists, family and supporters of the Ampatuan clan’s rival gubernatorial candidate, Esmael Mangudadatu.

The Mangudadatu clan was ambushed as they were traveling to go file the election papers nominating Mangudadatu as the candidate for next year’s provincial governor.

A witness to the massacre said the victims were taken to a remote mountainous area.  The witness said, “Datu Andal himself said…anyone from the Mangudadatu clan – women or children – should be killed.” 

Philippines clan killings 2Investigators unearthing more bodies at the massacre site.  Courtesy of Reuters.

The witness added that Ampatuan Jr. also ordered the gunmen to make sure that no evidence of the killings was left behind and that all of the women were raped before they were killed.

Authorities have found bodies of the victims in a mass grave at the massacre site.  Bodies were found in large pits buried with vehicles.

Investigators have said that it appears that the victims were shot at a close range before being dumped in shallow graves.  Some victims also had their hands tied behind their backs.

To prevent retaliatory violence from the victims’ clan, the government has declared a state of emergency throughout the Maguindanao province and has deployed tanks and troops.

Human Rights Watch has expressed concern that the Ampatuan clan’s family connections with President Arroyo and the administration would hinder an impartial investigation.
For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Philippines’ key suspect surrenders – 27 November 2009

AP – Prime suspect in Philippine massacre surrenders – 26 November 2009

NYT – Suspect in Philippine Election Killings Surrenders – 25 November 2009

Anti-Taliban Tribal Figure Killed In Pakistan

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

 

KHAR, Pakistan-  Shahfur Khan, a key anti-Taliban tribal leader was assassinated Friday in a roadside bombing, the latest in a series of attacks against pro-government militias in the area of northwestern Pakistan.  

Mr. Khan was returning to his home to receive guests after prayers marking the start of the Muslim festival of Eid al- Adha when the explosion occurred, which killed him and wounded three others, according to local officials Jamil Khan and Abdul Malik.  Jamil Khan, a local administrator said “The tribal leader was killed on the spot and his colleagues were seriously wounded in the blast.”

After his predecessor was killed with at least 14 other people in a suicide bombing last year,   Khan emerged as a militia leader in the Mamund area of the Bajur tribal region.

Violence has increased in Bajur and other northwestern tribal areas along the Afghan border since the army launched an anti-Taliban offensive in South Waziristan in mid-October.  A military statement on Friday said that over Fifteen Taliban fighters were killed in operations over the previous day in South Waziristan.  Pakistani troops took control of three significant militant strongholds in the Bara area of Khyber tribal region, where another 15 insurgents were killed.

Authorities also found the bullet-riddled body of another tribal elder, Ameer Saiyed who was seized from his home late Thursday in an attack that also left his son dead.  Authorities found the father’s body Friday near his home in Wali Kor village, the official said.  

The government has bolstered their military campaigns by assisting tribal leaders and supporting local militias to battle the Taliban.

These militias, also known as lashkars, have drawn comparisons with government-backed groups in Iraq known as Awakening Councils.  These groups have been credited with beating back the insurgency there.  The lashkars however, are less organized and the tribesman use their own aging weapons.

Traditionally, tribal elders have had massive influence in northwestern Pakistan but have increasingly been targeted by al-Qaida and Taliban fighters as they joined forces with the government.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press- Key Anti- Taliban Figure Assassinated in Pakistan– 27 November 2009

Time of the Internet- Insurgents Kill Two- Anti Taliban Elders– 27 November 2009

BBC News- Anti-Taliban Elder Killed in Pakistan – 27 November 2009