Most-Wanted Rwandan Genocide Fugitive Arrested

By Jared Kleinman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

KAMPALA, Uganda — Idelphonse Nizeyimana, one of the most wanted fugitives from Rwanda’s 1994 100-day genocide, was arrested in Uganda this week, Ugandan and Rwandan officials said Tuesday. Ugandan officials said he was caught using false documents to travel from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to Kenya and was subsequently detained. Nizeyimana was extradited to the international criminal tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), based in Arusha, Tanzania, which has charged him with genocide, complicity in genocide and direct and public incitement to genocide.

During the Rwandan genocide, Nizeyimana was second-in-command in charge of military and intelligence operations for the École des sous-officiers (ESO). The former intelligence chief, Nizeyimana is alleged to have participated in the Rwandan Genocide in 1994 which left about 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus dead in 100 days.

Besides helping draft plans to exterminate the Tutsis, and drawing up death lists of intellectuals and other influential figures, Nizeyimana is accused of creating secret units of extremist Hutus to carry out the killings. One of these units is alleged to have killed Queen Rosalie Gicanda, the widow of the former Rwandan king during colonial times, and a symbolic figure for Tutsis. During the 100-day massacres, Nizeyimana is said to have ordered the erection of roadblocks where Tutsis were stopped and killed, and is accused of personally sanctioning the killings of entire Tutsi families on account of their ethnicity.

Nizeyimana fled the country in June or July 1994 as the Tutsi-dominated Rwandan Patriotic Front, led by the current president, Paul Kagame, advanced. On November 27, 2000, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) issued an indictment against Nizeyimana, charging him with genocide and crimes against humanity. The US had offered a reward of up to $5m (£3m) for his capture.

More recently, Mr. Nizeyimana was a top commander of a rebel army of former Rwandan soldiers hiding out in the forests of eastern Congo, Rwandan officials said. That force, the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda, or FDLR, has been blamed for some of the most atrocious attacks in eastern Congo and is widely seen as a threat to regional peace. “He [Nizeyimana] was an agitator, a handler, the chief killer in Butare,” said Rwandan justice minister, Tharcisse Karugarama. “The arrest of this man is a very big relief to survivors of the genocide.”

With Nizeyimana’s arrest, 11 top suspects remain with similar bounties on their heads for their alleged roles in the 1994 genocide.

For more information, please see:

AllAfrica – Top Rwandan Genocide Suspect Arrested in Kampala – 6 October 2009

Huffington Post – Idelphonse Nizeyimana, Rwanda Queen-Killing Genocide Suspect, Arrested In Uganda – 6 October 2009

The Guardian – Key Rwanda genocide suspect arrested in Uganda – 6 October 2009

New York Times – Rwandan Fugitive Is Captured in Uganda – 6 October 2009

Reuters – Uganda arrests most-wanted Rwanda genocide suspect – 6 October 2009

Date Set For Inspection of Iranian Nuclear Plant

By Bobby Rajabi
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran – On October 25, Iran’s newly disclosed Qom uranium enrichment plant will be inspected by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The decision was announced by the head of the United Nations nuclear agency, Mohamed El Baradei. El Baradei emphasized the importance of the inspection as a moment where the situation with Iran would shift to a level of greater transparency and cooperation. The IAEA chief also “praised Iran’s cooperation” with the UN on the issues of its new nuclear facility.

The plant is located near the holy city of Qom. This is the second plant that Iran has built to enrich uranium and isolate isotopes of the metal to generate fuel used in a nuclear power reactor. Higher concentrations of enriched uranium can be used to make bomb. The United States has long suspected that the Iran’s goal is to create a bomb.

Iran’s disclosure prior to last week’s meeting in Geneva that it was building a second nuclear enrichment facility inside a mountain in Qom caused anger throughout the world. El Baradei made it clear that it was Iran’s responsibility to inform the IAEA that it was building the enrichment plant prior to beginning construction. This is based on a 1992 IAEA statute that required immediate notification of any planned nuclear sites.

The United States government remains cautiously optimistic with Iran’s concession. U.S. National Security Advisor James Jones explained that the Obama administration is encouraged with Iran showing some level of conversation. He did emphasize, however, that the world community expects to satisfied “within a short period of time.” The U.S. officials contend that Iran’s goal was to delay informing the IAEA of the new plant in order to deceive inspectors about a possible nuclear weapons program.

Prior to the IAEA’s inspection of the new Qom plant there will be a meeting between Iran and a number of countries, including the United States. The meeting will take place on October 19 and will be a discussion regarding the direction of Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman emphasized that the nation’s nuclear program was peaceful, but explained the country would not be offering any guarantees.

For more information, please see:

AFP – Iran Vows ‘Positive’ Approach To Nuclear Talks – 5 October 2009

Los Angeles Time – Iran Sets Date For Inspection Of Nuclear Plant – 5 October 2009

Al Jazeera – IAEA Sets Iran Inspection Date – 4 October 2009

Bloomberg – Iran Inspection Set For Oct. 25, UN Atomic Chief Says – 4 October 2009

Italian Court To Review Prime Minister Immunity Law

By David Sophrin
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

ROME, Italy – The Constitutional Court in Italy began hearing arguments on Tuesday as to whether the legal immunity that was given to Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, is in violation of the nation’s constitution.  The court’s final ruling could have far reaching political implications for the Prime Minister.

The law in question, also known as the Alfano Law, protects the top four national public officials, including the Prime Minister, President, and the Speakers of both Houses of Parliament, from prosecution while they hold office.  This law was passed by political supporters of the Prime Minister in the Italian parliament soon after his re-election.

Prior to the passage of the immunity laws, there were numerous legal proceedings pending against Berlusconi.  Those actions include an allegation that Berlusconi bribed a British lawyer to give false testimony to protect the Prime Minister’s business interests.  Other cases involved tax fraud, false accounting, and domestic corruption charges.  Yet another claim was concluded prior to the passage of the immunity law, where a Milan court imposed damages against Berlusconi’s family for attempting to bribe a judge.  Prosecutors in Milan and Palermo are also investigating the Prime Minister’s alleged ties to organized crime.  These legal actions will recommence if the Alfano Law is struck down.

The opponents of the immunity law allege that the law was passed with the specific intention to protect Berlusconi from looming legal entanglements.

Berlusconi has denied wrongdoing in all of the allegations against him and has expressed no intention of considering resignation in the event the immunity law is struck down.  Despite continued allegations of corruption through his term as Prime Minister, Berlusconi has maintained a domestic approval rating above 50 percent.

The 15-member Court is expected to announce its verdict within two weeks.  In the event that the Court upholds the immunity, political opponents have announced the possibility of pushing for a national referendum on the law.

For more information, please see:

CNN – Court to rule on Berlusconi’s immunity law – 6 October 2009

FINANCIAL TIMES – Italy’s top court weighs Berlusconi’s immunity – 6 October 2009

REUTERS – Italy’s top court debates Berlusconi immunity law – 6 October 2009

TELEGRAPH – Silvio Berlusconi’s lawyers: Italian PM is above the law – 9 October 2009

THE TIMES – Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi ‘could resign’ if immunity law struck down – 18 September 2009

Immense Flooding Devastates South Indian States


By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

KARNATAKA, India – Monsoon rains catalyzed the worst flooding India has experienced in over 100 years on Monday.  India’s monsoon season annually leaves scores of flood victims dead and displaced, yet it has been decades since flooding as caused such immense destruction and alarm.  Between the southern states affected by the torrential rains, flooding has claimed the lives of over 270 victims and displaced more than 2.5 million people. 

Rescue workers responded expediently to the news of imminent tragedy.  Prior to the most intense flooding, relief organizations began reinforcing the embankments of the Krisha river with over 300,000 heavy sandbags to prevent the floodwater from penetrating the trade-center city of Vijaywada.  Rescuers also dropped rations and plastic sheets to the displaced population from helicopters.  In Andhra Pradesh, over a quarter-million people have been relocated to makeshift relief shelters.  Aid workers in Karnataka were able to move over 450,000 into similar temporary housing.  
 
Art.india.flooding.gi
 
While the government and relief workers have taken significant initiatives in their rescue mission, the relentless flooding in southern India carries risks and ramifications other than loss of property and life.  With so many people placed into temporary shelters, conditions at the shelters prove inadequate and resources scarce.  Displaced persons have questioned whether the government could have provided further amenities, but funds for improving the relief camps are currently insufficient.  The influx of rescued people into the makeshift shelters over the coming weeks will undoubtedly cause overcrowding issues while the government strains for the money to accommodate the homeless and rebuild the rain-ravaged cities.  Also, flooding of travel-ways has made the efficient distribution of already scant resources difficult for the government and aid workers.  

Furthermore, aid workers fear the rapid spread of water-borne disease to which hundreds of thousands of people are now vulnerable.  India must also bear the significant loss of agriculture, as the monsoon flooding submerged vast acres of corn, sugarcane, paddies, and other crucial crops.  

While the Indian government continues to calculate the monetary cost of the damage, relief workers continue to provide food and shelter to the displaced, and the military works continual rescue operations.  Though the lack of necessary funds keeps rescued persons in derisory conditions, measures are being  taken to secure the lives of the displaced.  
For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Millions homeless in India floods – 7 October 2009

CNN – Over 270 killed in India floods – 5 October 2009

Times of India – Flood water recedes, new worries surface – 6 October 2009

Yahoo! News – India floods leave 2.5 million homeless, 250 dead – 5 October 2009

Bomb Hits U.N. Building in Pakistan

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia  

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan– A suicide bomber garbed in military uniform attacked the UN World Programme offices in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital city, killing at least five people and injuring five others, according to police and U.N. officials.The interior minister of Pakistan stated that an investigation had begun into security lapses after guards had allowed the suicide bomber into the compound to go to the bathroom.

Taliban militants on Tuesday, claimed responsibility for the deadly bombing, saying that international relief work in Pakistan was not in “the interest of Muslims”.  Revenge was promised by the Pakistani Taliban for the killing of their leader Baitullah Mehsud in a U.S. drone strike in August and has been behind a series of recent attacks, including an attack last week, where at least 16 people died in two suicide car bomb attacks in north-western Pakistan.

The five confirmed dead worked for the WFP and the injured were hospitalized, some of them with critical injuries.  Of the dead four were Pakistani: Abid Rehman, a senior finance assistant; Gulrukh Tahir, a receptionist; Farzana Barkat, an office assistant; and Mohammed Wahab, a finance assistant. The fifth was Botan Ahmed Ali al-Hayawi, an Iraqi information and communication technology officer.

“All of the victims were humanitarian heroes working on the front lines of hunger in a country where WFP food assistance is providing a lifeline to millions,” the agency’s executive director, Josette Sheeran, said in a statement.  “This is a tragedy—not just for WFP—but for the whole humanitarian community and for the hungry.”

This was an unwanted reminder that their capital remains vulnerable to attack, and is further proof that militants can cause harm in the face of heightened security precautions and ongoing army operations.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the attack would not “slacken the resolve” of Pakistan’s efforts in battling the Taliban.  He said: “The operations that we carried out against them in Swat, North Waziristan and South Waziristan have broken their back. They are like a wounded snake.”

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the blast, stating, “Pakistan will not be deterred in its efforts to fight extremism and terrorism and will continue its quest to bring peace by eliminating the terrorists.”

For more information, please see: 

BBC News- Suicide Bomb hits UN in Pakistan– 5 October 2009

ABC News- Bomb rips through UN Office, 4 dead– 5 October 2009

Washington Post- Bomb Blast Hits U.N. Agency in Islamabad– 6 October 2009

Associated Post- AP Top News at 10:58 a.m. -6 October 2009