Nepali Police Arrested over 400 Tibetan Protesters

By Ariel Lin
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

KATHMANDU, Nepal – UN officials reports Nepalese police stopped two separate protests by Tibetan exiles and monks in Katmandu, and arrested 475 protesters on Monday as they gathered to protest the recent crackdown on Tibetans in China.  The UN human rights office in Nepal said the arrested included some prominent Nepali human rights activists who joined the protests.

Chanting “China, stop killings in Tibet. UN, we want justice,” the protesters were marching toward the UN offices when police stopped them and snatched their banners.  The protest in Katmandu by 200 Tibetan refugees and monks was broken up by police, who beat them with bamboo sticks and arrested scores, dragging them to trucks and vans to be taken to police stations. Police official Sarad Karki said about 245 demonstrators were arrested in the protest.

Police also stopped a second protest near Singhadurbar, where the prime minister’s office and all government ministries are located, but less force was used.  Police official Sarvendra Khanal said 155 protesters were arrested there.

The UN human rights office said it was deeply concerned at the arbitrary arrests and detentions of several hundred individuals. “These actions by police violate individuals’ basic rights to freedom from arbitrary detention and freedom of movement, in addition to impairing the individuals’ rights to peaceful assembly and expression,” the UN said in a statement.

The Nepali government denied it was using excessive force, saying it was only trying to stop political activities by Tibetans.  “We will not allow any anti-China activities in Nepal and will stop it. The allegations that excessive force was used to break these protests are baseless,” said Modraj Dotel, Nepal’s home ministry spokesman.

For more information, please see:

AP – Nepal Police Arrest Tibetan Protesters – 24 March 2008

CBC News – 400 Tibetan supporters arrested in Kathmandu – 24 March 2008

FOX News – Nepalese Police Beat Back Monks, Refugees in Tibetan Protest; About 475 Arrested – 24 March 2008

Reuters – Tibetans protest in Nepal, 250 detained – 24 March 2008

BRIEF: Dozens Killed in Attacks Throughout Iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq – A series of suicide attacks, shootings, and rocket strikes have claimed dozens of lives this week in Iraq. The sudden rise of violence despite of additional 30,000 troops deployed in critical areas underscore the precarious nature of security in the country.

On early Sunday morning, 13 Iraqi soldiers died when a suicide attacker drove a fuel tanker into an army base in Mosul in northern Iraq. At least 40 people were also injured when the attack caused a massive blast. In other violence:

· Drive-by shooting in a Baghdad market claimed seven lives and injured 16 people

· Rocket strikes in Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone killed at least fifteen people, eight of whom were civilians

· A suicide car bomb killed at least three people near Samara

· A roadside bomb killed five Iraqi soldiers close to the city of Kirkuk

Violence in Iraq had declined since the stationing of extra 30,000 troops last June. But this week’s attacks have shown that any improvements made in security can deteriorate anytime.

For more information, please see:

Associated Press – 42 die in series of attacks across Iraq – 23 March 2008

BBC News – Dozens die in attacks across Iraq – 23 March 2008

AFP – 54 killed in Iraq bloodshed – 23 March 2008

International Herald Tribune – Rockets hit Green Zone in Iraq – 23 March 2008

BRIEF: This Week’s Pacific Island Forum Will Discuss Fiji Elections

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Leaders from more than 15 nations around the Pacific will converge on Auckland this week for the Pacific Island Forum.  New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters told the Fiji Times that among the topics to be discussed at the conference is Fiji’s progress towards Democratic elections.  Peters has also said that all Pacific Islanders share the goal of returning Fiji to democratic elections. 

“We will continue to encourage Fiji to build on its preparations for elections, and we all stand ready to assist and encourage this process,” he said.

The Fiji’s interim Foreign Minister has said that he is willing to attend the meeting with an open mind.  At the meeting Foreign Affairs Minister Ratu Epeli Nailatikau will be asked by the other Foreign Ministers attending the meeting to give a presentation of what has transpired over the last twelve months in Fiji. 

The meeting is set to begin this Wednesday.

For more information, please see:
Fiji Times — Forum wants Fiji to return to elections next year says NZ — 24 March 2008

Pacific Magazine — Meeting on Fiji in Auck this week — 24 March 2008

News Talk ZB — Fiji Foreign Minister Has Positive Outlook on Forum Ministers Meeting — 23 March 2008

Fiji Times — Fiji on Forum agenda: Minister — 21 March 2008

Nauru’s President Speaks Out Against Opposition

By Hayley J. Campbell
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

YAREN, Nauru –- Amidst recent political instability, Nauru’s President, Marcus Stephen, has declared the newly appointed parliamentary Speaker, David Adeang, “out of control.” Mr. Adeang, a member of the Opposition, working with Nauru’s former President, Rene Harris, attempted to oust Mr. Stephen with a vote of no confidence on Tuesday.

While Mr. Stephen’s supporters still hold a majority of 9 in the 18 member Parliament, Mr. Adeang’s appointment as Speaker is significant because it allows the Opposition to recall Parliament even when Government Ministers are out of the country and unable to vote.

Eager to remove Mr. Stephen’s government, the Opposition is calling for new elections. In accordance, Mr. Adeang has recommended dissolving Parliament and holding a new round of elections. Mr. Stephen has accused the Speaker of “breaking every parliamentary rule in the book.” 

But Mr. Adeang and the Opposition are justifying last week’s vote of no confidence on the “pollution and phosphate dust emissions” resulting from Nauru’s recent revival of its phosphate industry. Last month’s closing of an Australian detention center has placed nearly ten per cent of Nauruans out of work. The government has been pressed to find alternative solutions for creating a sustainable economy. Phosphate exportation is one of those solutions. 

The mining of phosphate, a mineral used in farm fertilizer, has long been a source of political unrest in Nauru. In the last hundred years, the phosphate industry has been both a blessing, transforming Nauru into one of the wealthiest countries in the world, and a curse, more recently bankrupting the island and ravaging its environment. President Rene Harris, whom the Opposition favors, is credited, at least in part, with causing Nauru’s fall from riches.

Meanwhile, President Stephen has retaliated, calling Mr. Adeang’s environmental reasons for the vote of no confidence a “a red herring being used in an attempt to justify their selfish and uncaring actions, which are not only affecting the smooth conduct of parliament; they are also hurting Nauru’s reputation at a time when genuine progress is being achieved.”

Nauruans are caught in the middle; many favoring a return to prosperity, yet, others unwilling to sacrifice their backyards to dust and phosphate emissions. The majority merely want an end to the political instability.   

If Parliament calls for new elections, however, foreign minister, Dr Kieran Keke, is confident the current Government will prevail.

For more information, please see:

PacNews –- Nauru talks ongoing to find political stability –- 24 March 2008

Pacific Magazine –- Nauru President Claims Parliamentary Speaker “Out of Control” — 22 March 2008

ABC News –- Oppn MP appointed Nauru Speaker –- 20 March 2008

Al Jazeera.net –- Nauru’s riches to rags decline — 17 March 2008

BBC News — Nauru seeks to regain lost fortunes — 15 March 2008

BAGHDAD, Iraq – A series of suicide attacks, shootings, and rocket strikes have claimed dozens of lives this week in Iraq. The sudden rise of violence despite of additional 30,000 troops deployed in critical areas underscore the precarious nature of security in the country. On early Sunday morning, 13 Iraqi soldiers died when a suicide attacker drove a fuel tanker into an army base in Mosul in northern Iraq. At least 40 people were also injured when the attack caused a massive blast. In other violence: · Drive-by shooting in a Baghdad market claimed seven lives and injured 16 people · Rocket strikes in Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone killed at least fifteen people, eight of whom were civilians · A suicide car bomb killed at least three people near Samara · A roadside bomb killed five Iraqi soldiers close to the city of Kirkuk Violence in Iraq had declined since the stationing of extra 30,000 troops last June. But this week’s attacks have shown that any improvements made in security can deteriorate anytime. For more information, please see: Associated Press – 42 die in series of attacks across Iraq – 23 March 2008 BBC News – Dozens die in attacks across Iraq – 23 March 2008 AFP – 54 killed in Iraq bloodshed – 23 March 2008 International Herald Tribune – Rockets hit Green Zone in Iraq – 23 March 2008

GAZA CITY, Gaza – On March 20, Hamas accused Egypt of detaining and torturing dozens of Hamas members.  Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhum stated that the organization “has expressed its dissatisfaction over the continuing detentions of dozens of Palestinians in Egyptian prisons and denounces the torture which has been inflicted on them.”

Hamas claims that 39 members are currently detained in Egypt and 90 have been released in recent days.  Most were arrested when they entered Egypt in January, along with hundreds of thousands of Gazans, when the border fence near the Rafah crossing was breached.

The alleged torture occurred during interrogations conducted by Egyptian authorities.  The individuals who have been released stated that they were questioned on topics such as the movements of Hamas leaders, such as former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, the whereabouts of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, and Hamas activities within Gaza.

Said Siam, former interior minister in the Hamas-led government, strongly condemned the Egyptian authorities.  “The Egyptians aren’t asking anything about what’s happening inside Egypt,” he said. Siam added, “These are the type of questions that only Israeli interrogators would ask.”  Barhum agreed, stating that the questions had nothing to do with Egypt’s security.

For more information, please see:
ABC – Hamas Accuses Egypt of Torturing its Members – 22 March 2008

AFP – Hamas Accuses Egypt of Militant “Torture” – 21 March 2008

BBC – Hamas Men “Tortured by Egyptians” – 21 March 2008

Jerusalem Post – Hamas: Egypt is Torturing Hamas Prisoners – 20 March 2008