Attackers kill Siberian environmental protester

Attackers raided a camp of environmental protesters, killing one person and injuring seven people.

More than 20 demonstrators had been camped out by a reservoir near Angarsk, about 2,600 miles east of Moscow, to protest nuclear waste processing at a state-owned Electrolysis Chemical Plant. Local police detained two suspects and identified 13 others.

Angarsk is about 60 miles from the southern end of Lake Baikal, the world’s largest freshwater lake. Russia is setting up a uranium enrichment center at the plant to enrich uranium from Kazakhstan, a major uranium ore producer.

President Vladimir Putin proposed setting up the site as a way to provide uranium fuel to nations intent on building nuclear power plants, while making sure they don’t develop weapons programs.

The enriched uranium supply would be made available only to countries which have made nonproliferation commitments. These would include a pledge of no use for nuclear explosive purposes and acceptance of International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards.

The demonstrators say Russia plans to become a center for processing and storing spent fuel from abroad, and that this plant could be part of the lucrative business.

For more information, please see:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070721/ap_on_re_eu/russia_demonstrator_killed_2

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/07/21/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-Demonstrator-Killed.php

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/21/world/main3085019.shtml

Charles Taylor Appointed New Lawyer

By Impunity Watch Africa

London lawyer Courtenay Griffiths was appointed on Tuesday to represent Charles Taylor against the charges of arming and supporting rebels who murdered, raped, tortured, and mutilated thousands during Sierra Leone’s 10 year civil war.  Taylor is the first African leader to stand trial before an international court and has plead not guilty to all counts.  Last month he boycotted the trial and fired his attorney, demanding that he receive more money to hire a new one.  The case has been postponed until August 20, although Griffiths said in an interview on Friday that he needed more time to study the “voluminous” case file and did not know when he would be ready.

Since June the court has steadily increased the amount of funds available to Taylor for his defense.  He is currently receiving $100,000 per month, which includes office space in The Hague, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.  Griffiths has said that this amount may still not be enough and that he needs to evaluate what further investigations need to be carried out

Griffiths was born in Jamaica and raised in England.  He has previously worked on high-profile British cases, including the 1984 bombing by the Irish Republic Army of a hotel on the British south coast where then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was staying.   Griffiths has been appointed the chief attorney, along with two assistants, Andrew Cayley and Terry Munyard.  Many attorneys were interested, but Taylor chose these individuals after meeting with several.

For more information, please see:

Guardian – London Lawyer to Defend Charles Taylor – 18 July 2007

International Herald Tribune – London Lawyer Appointed to Defend Liberia’s Charles Taylor at War Crimes Trial– 18 July 2007

VOA – Three-Man Team Appointed to Defend Former Liberian President – 18 July 2007

Malaysia arrests blogger

The Malaysian government detained Nathaniel Tan under the Official Secrets Act for posting information on the Internet (www.jelas.info) the government considered sensitive.

His arrest was part of a government campaign to combat alleged to inaccurate information being spreading by bloggers.

Police arrested Tan and seized his computers. Tan also manages the website of the opposition National People’s Party. Police questioned Tan for four days of police.

Tan potentially faces a large fine and a mandatory one-year jail sentence if charged and found guilty under the OSA. The OSA has “vaguely worded definitions” of what constitutes an official secret.

Tan is well known in blogging community. He is noted for his criticism of government leaders. He had previously criticized minister Baharum and asked readers to “vote this guy out.” Baharum was investigated and cleared last week after allegations that he had received $1.6 million in bribes to release three convicted criminals.

Analysts see the government’s campaign as an attempt to instill fear and suppress attacks on national leaders, especially on Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi before of a general election expected later this year.

The ruling National Front coalition does not want to see a swing in voter support for the opposition party, which is promising more transparent government, affirmative action to help all Malaysians, and to end racially-discriminatory policies.

The Southeast Asian Press Alliance and Reporters without Borders both urged the government to respect human rights and restrain the police. “By arresting [Tan], the authorities are trying to intimidate Malaysian Internet users and get them to censor themselves,” SEAPA said in a statement. “Until now, they had limited themselves to threats and abusive prosecutions. Now they have gone further and adopted a more radical form of repression.”

For more information, please see:

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=38581

http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=29966

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/IG20Ae01.html

Human Rights Watch Criticizes Child Soldiers in Chad

By Meryl White
Impunity Watch, Africa

In Chad, thousands of young boys are thought to be fighting in the national army, rebel and paramilitary group. Observers believe that there are between 7,000 and 10,000 child soldiers. The United Nations Security Council will meet in New York to discuss the issue of child soldiers in Chad.

Just a few days ago, Human Rights Watch criticized the government of Chad for not fulfilling the promise to release children from the national army. Human Rights Watch produced a forty six page report, “Early to War: Child Soldiers in the Chad Conflict,” which documents the use of young children in the Chadian army, its allied paramilitary militias and rebel forces in both northern Chad and along the eastern border with Sudan’s Darfur region. The report consists of interviews with senior officers in the Chadian military and current child soldiers

Presently, under a government deal, only four hundred children have been released from the military and sent to rehabilitation centers. These rehabilitation centers focus on efforts to change the children’s violent behavior. These centers were established by UNICEF, the United Nation’s Children’s Fund. The children follow a daily regimen of “prayer, rest, and play.” They play cards, play volleyball, and learn basic literacy. Furthermore, the boys learn anger management skills and learn to love their friends and family.

These child soldiers are expected to return to their families in a few months. Nevertheless, supervisors believe that for these boys, “the road back to normality will be a long one.” The boys will have to learn to cope with their reality without the use of violent tactics.

For more information, please see:

BBC – Chad Child Soldiers Scrutinized – 19 July 2007

HRW – Chad: Government Keeps Children in Army Ranks – 16 July 2007

HRW – Early to War: Child Soldiers in the Chad Conflict – 07 July 2007

BBC – Country Profile: Chad – 21 May 2007

Justice Delivered in Sierra Leone

By Meryl White
Impunity Watch, Africa

The United Nation’s war crimes court in Sierra Leone has sentenced three militia leaders for war crimes including rape, mutilation, and murder. Alex Tamba Brima and Santigie Borbor Kanu received a fifty year sentence, while Brima Kamara received a forty-five year sentence. Last month, these men were convicted of eleven of fourteen war crimes charges, including terrorism, enslavement, rape and murder.

All three men were senior members of the Armed Forced Revolutionary Concil, a militia that overthrew the Sierra Leone government in 1997. These sentences were the first assigned by the UN backed court since the civil war concluded five years ago. Moreover, these militia leaders are the first to be convicted of recruiting and training child soldiers.

When Judge Julia Sebutinde passed the judgment in the capital, Freetown, he stated, “The men committed “heinous, brutal, atrocious, crimes never recorded in the history of mankind.”

Presently, the defendants have the right to appeal their convictions. However, if they lose the appeal, they will serve their lengthy prison terms in Europe rather than in Sierra Leone due to safety concerns.

The UN backed court has indicted twelve criminals in connection with the Sierra Leone war. Liberian President Charles Taylor is accused of supporting the rebels. Currently, Mr Taylor is on trial in The Hague in order to prevent disruption in West Africa between Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Critics are skeptical of the UN backed court because they believe that the court has been “slow in delivering justice to the people of Sierra Leone.” For example, three indicted criminals in Sierra Leone died before their verdicts were ever delivered.

For more information, please see:

BBC – First S Leone War Crime Sentences – 20 July 2007

BBC – Country Profile: Sierra Leone – 20 June 2007

Jerusalem Post – Sierra Leone War Crimes Court Hands Out Sentences – 20 July 2007