Germany, Facing Internal Pressure, to Expedite Deportations of Refugees

by Shelby Vcelka

Impunity Watch Desk Reporter, Europe

BERLIN, Germany–

After weeks of debates within the government regarding the recent “overwhelming” influx of refugees, Germany is preparing to expedite the process of deporting asylum seekers. On Thursday, Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that an agreement had been reached between the coalition government, allowing for three to five reception centers that would either accept or deport refugee applicants. For weeks, the opposition government has requested the majority party to reduce the number of refugees allowed in Germany, citing struggling local authorities.

Germany has been facing internal pressure to deport refugees from the country, as resources have been stretched thin. (Photo courtesy of Al-Jazeera)

The leader of the opposition party, Horst Seehofer of the Christian Social Union, called the agreement “very very good,” and said his relationship with Merkel had been “cemented again.” However, he did not revoke his threat to file a legal complaint against the government over its expansive refugee policy. Other members of the opposition parties have criticized the agreement, stating that the number of refugees entering the country far exceeds the resources available.

Robert Habeck, a critic of the agreement and a member of the Green Party commented, “people are waiting for half a year before their asylum applications can even be submitted. It is a complete mystery as to how the federal government can conclude the process within a few weeks in the special reception centers.”

Other critics within Merkel’s coalition government believe the agreement curtails the rights of refugees, and questioned the legality of detaining asylum seekers and refugees for an indefinite period of time. Initially, Merkel requested that “transit zones” be set up across the country, where new refugees would be detained before their status was determined. The Social Democratic Party, who claimed these zones would be akin to “internment camps”, rejected this.

Up to 10,000 refugees have entered Germany daily since January, totaling around 758,000 migrants. The influx has shown no signs of stopping, with the 800,000 refugee limit set by the German government likely to be exceeded sometime in the near future.

For more information, please see—

Chicago Tribune– Merkel ally says government will survive refugee turmoil— 04 November 2015

Al-Jazeera– Germany to expedite deportations of refugees— 06 November 2015

Irish Times– Germany agrees compromise on refugees after ‘intense’ talks— 06 November 2015

Wall Street Journal– Germany Steps Back Hours after Tighter Asylum Rules Are Unveiled— 06 November 2015

5th Circuit Upholds Blockage Of Obama Immigration Plan

By Samuel Miller
Impunity Watch Desk Reporter, North America and Oceania

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States of America — The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday upheld a Texas-based federal judge’s injunction blocking President Barack Obama’s plan to protect parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents along with more immigrants who came to the country as children. The Obama administration will ask the Supreme Court to weigh in on the president’s plan to shield as many as 5 million immigrants living in the country illegally from deportation.

Protesters Hold a Rally Outside the Court of Appeals in New Orleans. (Photo Courtesy of BBC News)

Lawyers for the administration had been expecting the Fifth Circuit ruling to go against the president, noting the high number of judges appointed by Republican presidents.

The three-judge panel for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans ruled 2 to 1 against an appeal by the Obama administration, saying a lawsuit brought by 26 states to block Mr. Obama’s actions was likely to succeed at trial.

Mr. Obama announced last November that he would use his executive authority to effectively stop deporting the undocumented parents of American children. That program, known as Deferred Action for Parents of Americans, would also allow the parents to work legally in the United States.

The plan was first blocked in February by a Federal District Court judge in Texas, who ruled that allowing millions of illegal immigrants to remain lawfully in the United States would prove costly to the State of Texas. The judge at that trial also said the government had not followed the proper procedures for enacting the new immigration rules.

Writing for the two judges in the majority, Judge Jerry Smith found that Texas had established it was in a strong legal position to bring the lawsuit because it would be harmed by new costs for issuing driver’s licenses to immigrants. He also found that the program would undercut the will of Congress.

In a scathing dissent, Judge Carolyn King said the two other judges, as well as the District Court judge, had misstated the basic facts of the case. She accused her colleagues of basing their decisions on conjecture, intuition, or preconception.

In the last several weeks, administration officials and other supporters of the immigration actions had expressed frustration that the appeals court had taken so long to rule. Marielena Hincapié, the executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, said that while the appeals court ruling might be seen as another defeat for her cause, “the silver lining is that this is just in the nick of time for the administration to go to the Supreme Court.”

Under normal circumstances, in order for the Supreme Court to hear the case this term, briefing would have to be completed by mid-winter. The National Immigration Law Center has called for a quick Supreme Court appeal.

For more information please see:

BBC News — Federal appeals court halts Obama immigration action – 10 November 2015

CNN — Court upholds block on Obama’s immigration plan – 10 November 2015

USA Today — Appeals court deals crippling blow to President Obama’s immigration plan – 10 November 2015

US News — Obama appeals to Supreme Court in immigration case that could protect 5 million – 10 November 2015

Washington Post — Immigrants now must rely on Supreme Court for deportation relief – 10 November 2015

NY Times — Appeals Court Deals Blow to Obama’s Immigration Plans – 9 November 2015

Egyptian Journalist Detained by Military Intelligence

By Brittani Howell

Impunity Watch Reporter, The Middle East

On Sunday, an independent, investigative journalist was detained by Egyptian military intelligence. The journalist, Hossam Bahgat, is the founder of the human rights group, Egyptian Personal Rights.

Hassam Bahgat is an independent investigative journalist and founder of Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. (Photo Courtesy of BBC News)

Bahgat was summoned to the Military Intelligence, headquartered in Cairo, where he was interrogated from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. when he was finally allowed to call his lawyer. Bahgat is to be detained overnight and the prosecutors are to decide on Monday whether they will send Bahgat to trial.

Bahgat has not been formally charged, but he may be facing charges of “publishing inaccurate and false information that harms national interest,” stated Bahgat to the Mada Masr news chief editor. His lawyer also stated that Bahgat could also face charges for insulting the military.

Bahgat’s most recent report investigated the convictions of 26 officers accused of planning a coup against the government. In the report, Bahgat explored whether there was dissent in the ranks and if there would be retribution against officers who may have crossed the secret police.

According to the human rights lawyer who attended the interrogation to support Bahgat, the article Bahgat wrote was the focus of the interrogation.

Bahgat also allegedly mocked the news media, in a review, regarding the media’s conspiracy angle, blaming terrorism for the Russian jet crash. He wrote, “ the West is conspiring against Egypt and punishing Russia because it is fighting in Syria, and Egypt is the one who is paying the price.”

The Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Amnesty International stated, “The arrest of Hossam Bahgat today is yet another nail in the coffin for the freedom of expression in Egypt.” He continued, “The Egyptian military cannot continue to consider itself above the law and immune from criticism.”

When a military spokesman was questioned regarding the charges Bahgat is facing he stated, “You can ask him yourself when he gets out.” New York Times then asked if Bahgat would et out, to which the general replied, “I have no idea.”

For more information, please see:

Al-Jazeera – Egypt Military Arrests Journalist in ‘Blow for Freedom’ – 8 November 2015

BBC News – Independent Egypt Journalist Hossam Bahgat ‘Arrested’ – 8 November 2015

The New York Times – The Egyptian Military Files Charges Against Investigative Journalist – 8 November 2015

The Washington Post – Egyptian Journalist Faces Accusations by Military – 8 November 2015

Chile Disputes Creation of Peruvian District

By Kaitlyn Degnan
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

SANTIAGO, Chile — Chileans are protesting in reaction to the Peruvian government’s creation of the new La Yarada-Los Palos district. The Peruvian Congress passed the decision last month and was signed into law on Saturday morning. The Chilean government has issued a statement rejecting the move.

The creation of the district would allow residents of the area to elect representation to the Peruvian Congress and to take part in national politics. President Ollanta Humala hopes the move will also push development in the area.

Peruvian President Ollanta Humala. (Photo courtesy of La Prensa SA).

A communique from the Heraldo Munoz, head of the Chilean Foreign Ministry, said that the new district “includes territory that is unquestionably Chilean.” Munoz also said that although Chile would keep open channels of diplomatic communication to resolve the matter, the new district has “significantly deteriorate[d]” the relationship between the two countries.

The area in question has been in dispute since the end of the 1879-1883 War of the Pacific. Following the war, Peru and Bolivia lost territory in the region to Chile, including Bolivia’s only outlet to the sea.

A land treaty laying out the border was signed in 1929, but both Peru and Chile have different interpretations of the treaty. As a result, both countries claim the so-called “land triangle,” which covers 37,610 square meters.

The International Court of Justice issued a ruling on the border in 2014 which awarded additional ocean territory to Peru.

The incorporation of the district comes only days after Chile complained of Peruvian military presence at the border. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet alleges that the Peruvian military travelled to an area known as Milestone 1 in vehicles and took photos. Chile interprets Milestone as the site of the border between the two countries.

Chile claims that the presence was in violation of a 1994 bilateral accord dictating procedures for the surveillance and patrol of the Peru-Chile border. Peru denies that the incident occurred. Chile has also cancelled a scheduled bilateral meeting, set for December 7.

 

For more information, please see:

BBC – Peru-Chile border defined by UN court at The Hague – 28 January 2014

Peru this Week – Chile upset over Peruvian military presence at border – 5 November 2015

Andina – Peru Ambassador: Land boundaries with Chile are perfectly established – 6 November 2015

Fox News Latino – Peru denies posting troops on border with Chile – 6 November 2015

Peru this Week – Chile border: Peru denies military presence – 6 November 2015

La Prensa – Humala enacts law to create border district despite Chile objections – 7 November 2015

Yahoo News – Peru steps up border dispute with Chile – 7 November 2015

BBC – Chile and Peru in border spat over La Yarada-Los Palos area – 8 November 2015

Costa Rica Star – Border Conflict Between Chile and Peru Intensifies – 8 November 2015

Protection of Human Rights Defenders — November 2015 New Tactics in Human Rights Newsletter

November Conversation:

Evaluating the Human Rights Defender ‘Protection Regime’

Since the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders in 1998, there has been considerable effort to recognize and protect the rights of people to defend their own and others’ human rights. Over time an international protection regime for human rights defenders has emerged, aimed at protecting and supporting defenders in the face of threats and risks. Based upon the international human rights framework, this protection regime focuses on human security, and consists of a variety of actors and mechanisms operating at national, regional, and international levels.

In a Special Issue in the International Journal of Human Rights on ‘Critical Perspectives on the Security and Protection of Human Rights Defenders’, scholars and practitioners critically appraise the construction and functioning of this protection regime, examining: (i) the definition and use of the term ‘human rights defender’; (ii) the effectiveness of protection mechanisms; and, (iii) the complex relationship between repression, activism and risk.

In this conversation, we explore these areas, asking: How do we define who is and who is not a ‘human rights defender’? What are the effects of these decisions? How effective are current protection mechanisms for defenders? How do defenders manage their security as they face risks? How should ‘protection’ work in practice?

Join New Tactics and the authors of the papers in this Special Issue from November 16-20, 2015.
Copies of these papers are available for free here: http://explore.tandfonline.com/page/pgas/ijhr-volume19-issue7 until December 31, 2015.

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