Muslim Women Refused Entry to Saudi Arabia for Hajj

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Wednesday, the Nigerian government reported that approximately 200 of its women were deported from Saudi Arabia.  Another 900 had been detained in Mecca, and three planes were turned around from Medina.  The women had attempted to enter the country to take part in a hajj, a pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, that is mandated by their religion. They were turned away for not having a male guardian with them.

Almost 1,000 Nigerian women were held in detention when they showed up for hajj without male supervision. (Photo Courtesy of Al Jazeera)

In the the eyes of Saudi law, women are no different from children.  As legal minors, they cannot work, leave the country, and often, receive medical treatment, without the consent of a male relative. These women flew into Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah airport, expecting to take part in a holy pilgrimage. Abubakar Shehu Bunu, Nigeria’s Saudi ambassador, claimed it had been agreed that the Nigerians could partake in their hajj as long as they were chaperoned by local authorities.  But instead, the Saudi ministry would not permit any woman under the age of forty-five to enter the country without a male guardian.

Those who were detained reported horrendous treatment by the Saudis. The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria remarked that the women had been kept “in very poor living conditions” where some needed “urgent medical attention.”  Nigeria is home to approximately eighty million Muslims, the largest Muslim population in sub-Saharan Africa.  One of the five pillars of Islam mandates that all Muslims who are able to must make at least one pilgrimage in their lifetime.

Halima Muhammad was one of the women who had been detained. She claimed that, “[f]rom the airport we were all rounded up and taken to a facility that is not fit for humans. No one offered us anything, we had only water and slept on bare floors.”

“Some of us were kept in two halls for five days in humiliating conditions with little food, water and other basic needs and inadequate toilet facilities,” reported Zainb Mohammed, another detainee. “Many of us have cold and fever. We did not have blankets and it was cold, especially at night.”

Saudi Arabia’s actions have greatly disturbed relations between itself and Nigeria. Namadi Sambo, Nigeria’s Vice President, said that if Saudi Arabia was not going to permit its pilgrims to perform hajj that it should have let them know that in advance. Bunu has filed a formal complaint with the Saudi authorities.  In response to the deportations and detentions, former governor and Nigerian Muslim leader Lawan Kaita called the incident “a slap in the face for Nigeria and all Muslims. Saudi Arabia has the privilege of being hosts, but it shouldn’t stop others from coming to do the hajj.”

These women came to Saudi Arabia from Nigeria believing that they were fellow Muslims, but ultimately ended up feeling as if they were infidels.

“We were held like criminals in debasing conditions,” stated Maryam Abdulah, another one of the many who were denied access.  “We deserve human treatment and as women and mothers, we deserve to be treated with honour but the Saudis have shown that they have no heart.”

For further information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Nigeria Stops Hajj Flights Over Deportations – 28 September 2012

The National – Detention of Almost 1,000 Femal Haj Pilgrims Causes Diplomatic Rift – 28 September 2012

Arabian Business – Nigeria Says Saudi Deported 150 Female Pilgrims – 27 September 2012

Guardian (UK) – Nigeria Protests After Saudis Deport Female Hajj Pilgrims – 27 September 2012

Radio Netherlands Worldwide Africa – Saudi Denies Entry to Some 1,000 Nigerian Women for Hajj – 26 September 2012

Legislation Expanding Treason Definition in Russia Could Criminalize Foreign-funded Organizations

By Madeline Schiesser
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

MOSCOW, Russia – Russian Parliament’s State Duma has, in its first reading, unanimously approved a bill that would broaden the definition of treason, equating it to espionage and potentially criminalizing many kinds of international advocacy.   According to rights activists, this legislation appears to be part of a widening crackdown on dissent.  Lawmakers claim that it would make law enforcement more effective.

The Federal Security Service (FSB), successor to the KGB, drafted the legislation widening the definition of treason.

Recently the Kremlin has moved to force the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) out of Russia.  Opposition demonstrators have seen strict criminal charges.  (See Pussy Riots and Osipova.)

In what is seen as the latest crackdown on dissent, the proposed legislation would open up the definition of treason to include financial or consultative assistance to a foreign state or organization.  The definition of high treason would include activities harming Russia’s external security.

This legislation results from Kremlin concern that foreign funding is adverse to the interests of the Russian government.  “We should include international organizations on the list of agents that can be charged with treason due to the fact that foreign intelligence agencies actively use them to camouflage their spying activity,” FSB deputy head Yury Gorbunov told the Duma.

The legislation specifically defines expands treason as “providing financial, technical, advisory or other assistance to a foreign state or international organization . . . directed against Russia’s security, including its constitutional order, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.”

Many Russian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) rely on foreign funding; such funding would be difficult to receive under the new legislation.  NGOs may be further inhibited from working with Russian citizens because the legislation would allow Russian citizens providing assistance to foreign states or international organizations to be charged with treason.

And, a person or group could be charged with high treason and sentenced to up to 20 years in prison if found to be relaying a state secret to a “foreign government or international, foreign organization.”

Environment and Rights Center (ERC) Bellona chairman Alexander Nikitin says, “This is yet another bill from the series of recent laws meant to tighten the noose around the necks of Russia’s citizens, especially those who work with NGOS, who work as journalists, who work as researchers as well as those who work as scientists.”

Furthermore, a law passed in July, which takes effect November 20, requires NGOs, or civil society organizations, that advocate and receive foreign funding to register with the Ministry of Justice as “foreign agents.”  Failure to register carries large fines and closure for the NGO and up to two year’s prison time for employees.  Status as a “foreign agent” must be stated on all literature and websites.  As the term has roots to the Stalinist purges, many NGOs are concerned that the measure is designed to destroy their credibility.

Lyudmila Alekseyeva a human rights advocate of the Moscow Helsinki Group, which has also pledged not to register as a “foreign agent,” said the treason bill is aimed at “ending any independent public activism.”

Veteran rights activist Lev Ponomaryov, pointing to the “very broad definitions of treason and espionage” said the legislation could be used to prosecute government critics.  He explained that “everyone who accidentally becomes aware of secret information can be convicted” and that Russian leaders “have now chosen an ideological course — you can even call it a national idea — to search for external and internal enemies.”

Before the legislation becomes law, it must go through two more readings in the Russian Parliament and be signed by President Putin, who is expected to support it.

For further information, please see:

Human Rights Watch – The Kremlin May Call It Treason – 28 September 2012

Bellona – Russian Parliament Votes in First Reading to Expand Treason Laws – Casting a Darker Shadow on the Future of NGOs – 24 September 2012

The Moscow Times – Treason Bill Gains Momentum – 23 September 2012

The New York Times – Russia Moves to Broaden Definition of High Treason – 21 September 2012

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty – New Russian Bill Would Widen Definition of Treason – 21 September 2012

Kenyan Minister Suspended for Hate Speech Against Maasai

By Ryan Aliman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

NAIROBI, Kenya – On Thursday, Assistant Minister for Water and Irrigation, Ferdinand Waititu was suspended from his government office after the Kenyan court charged him with hate speech, along with inciting ethnic violence.

MP Ferdinand Waititu under police custody for hate speech and inciting ethnic violence. (Photo courtesy of Capital FM News)

The charges were rooted in a statement Waititu gave to Kayole residents — most of whom belong to a lower-class residential area in Nairobi — where he encouraged them to evict members of the Maasai tribe. “All Maasais must leave; they are from Tanzania and without identification cards …. We do not want Maasais in Kayole,” he told the community.

Waititu’s statements were directed at Kayole residents who were protesting the alleged killing of a man by security guards thought to be Maasai. These protests eventually led to a full-scale ethnic riot, leaving at least two people dead. According to prosecutors, conflict between the non-Maasai and the Maasai further escalated as a result of Waititu’s statements.

As argued by prosecutor Lilian Obuo, “the utterances made by [Waititu] incited communities … and caused the crowd to hunt for the Maasai people.” “The words were calculated to bring violence to the Maasai community working in Kayole,” she added.

In his defense, Waititu said his statement was misinterpreted. According to him, he was merely referring to the security guards in particular. He claimed that it was only incidental that these security guards were from Tanzania and were Maasai. He did not intend to incite violence against the Maasai people. “When I used the word Maasai, I saw that it had come out wrongly. I accept that mistake and I apologise. Nobody can claim that they have never made such mistakes, even you, in your house, your tongue does slip, and that’s very normal,” Waititu said to the press on Tuesday. In addition to his apology, he insisted that “nobody was hurt” after his comments. The chaos already took place before his remarks and it was even him who quelled the turmoil when he visited Kayole, he argued. Waititu asserted that blaming him for the unrest was “all politics.”

The day after his suspension and subsequent arrest, however, Waititu was released after depositing a 1 million KES bond. The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) disagreed with the Kenyan court’s decision to grant his bail. The DPP objected on the ground that because he is a “serial offender”, it is likely that he will abscond. Waititu has reportedly refused to honor previous police summons.

 

For further information, please see:

Bernama – Kenyan Assistant Minister Suspended for Making Hate Speech – 28 September 2012

Capital FM News – Waititu pays Sh1m cash for freedom – 28 September 2012

Al Jazeera – Kenyan minister suspended for hate speech – 27 September 2012

Capital FM News – Kibaki suspends Waititu as assistant minister – 27 September 2012

BBC News – Kenya MP Ferdinand Waititu accused of ‘hate speech’ – 25 September 2012

Chemical Weapons Moving in Syria

By Emily Schneider
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria – As the civil war rages on, the Syrian government has taken action to safeguard its chemical weapons. US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said Friday that there had been “limited movement” to secure the chemical weapons.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta listens to a question during at a news conference at the Pentagon. (Photo courtesy of the Associated Press)

Syria has admitted to having a large stockpile of chemical weapons but has not signed the Chemical Weapons Convention or ratified the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention.  According to CIA intelligence, Syria has had a chemical weapon program for years and has developed mustard gas and Sarin, a highly toxic nerve agent. The C.I.A. also believes that the country has attempted to develop more toxic nerve agents, such as VX gas. A report citing Turkish, Arab, and Western intelligence agencies put its stockpile at around 1,000 tons of chemical weapons stored across 50 towns and cities.

Mr. Panetta told a news conference at the Pentagon on Friday: “We continue to have a concern about the security of the CBW [chemical and biological weapons] sites.”Although he added that the major sites “still remain secured by the Syrian military” there has been intelligence that there has been “some movement in order for the Syrians to better secure… the chemicals.”

“There has been intelligence that there have been some moves that have taken place. Where exactly that’s taken place, we don’t know,” Panetta told reporters. “I don’t have any specific information about the opposition and whether or not they’ve obtained some of this or how much they’ve obtained and just exactly what’s taken place.”

These chemical weapons can be deployed using aircraft, ballistic missile, and artillery rockets.  There is no evidence that Syria has used them in the 18-month conflict with the rebel forces, but has threatened to use them if the country came under attack.

President Barack Obama has declared that the threat of chemical or biological warfare in Syria is a “red line” for the U.S. meaning the U.S. will not tolerate it if the weapons fall into the wrong hands.

If the weapons do fall into the hands of militant groups, President Obama has said that at that point, it’s “an issue that doesn’t just concern Syria. It concerns our close allies in the region, including Israel. It concerns us.” With the recent, more intensified fighting throughout the country, the possibility of militant groups obtaining the chemical weapons is becoming real.

“We cannot have a situation where chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people,” said President Obama.

For further information, please see:

BBC – Syria ‘Moving Chemical Weapons to Safety’ – Panetta – 28 September 2012

Huffington Post – Syria Chemical Weapons Moved, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Says – 28 September 2012

Washington Post – Panetta: Intelligence Suggests Syria Moving Some Chemical Weapons – 28 September 2012

CBS News – Obama: Chemical Weapons in Syria are a ‘Red Line’ – 20 August 2012

Many Internally Displaced People in Sri Lanka Left to Roam

By Karen Diep
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – On Monday, the Menki Farm displacement camp’s remaining 1,160 Sri Lankan Tamils departed.  At one point, the Menik Farm lodged 300,000 people and was considered the world’s largest camp for internally displaced people (IDP).

A family finally returning home after leaving the Menik Farm camp. (Photo Courtesy of UNHCR)

In 2009, the Sri Lankan government opened the 700-hectare Menik Farm in northern Sri Lanka as an IDP location.

According to Reuters, after approximately three years succeeding the Sri Lankan civil war, authorities have closed Menik Farm, which previously housed tens of thousands of war-affected civilians.  When it the displacement camp shut down on Monday, there were 346 people left.

Although the United Nations (UN) has approved of the closing of the displacement camp, it cautioned that many still need help to restore their lives.

“This is a milestone event towards ending a chapter of displacement in Sri Lanka some three years after the civil war which ended in May 2009,” said Subinay Nandy, the United Nations’ humanitarian coordinator in Sri Lanka, this past Tuesday.

According to BBC, some are “left in the jungle” with no resources to rebuild their homes and lives.  One hundred and ten (110) families from Keppapilavu village said that they were prevented from returning home and were subsequently redirected to patches of vacant jungle area instead.

However, Sri Lanka’s army spokesman Vijtha Ravipriya rejected such claims and believed that most people were “very happy” with the help they received from the army.  “People have to go to their villages. The military is helping them renovate and reconstruct their homes so the people are very happy,” said Mr. Ravipriya.

Furthermore, erected army camps were only designated on government land.  “I categorically reject the complaints.  Some areas are no-go to prevent unnecessary accidents.  There are only very limited areas of army camps and they are on government land,” continued Mr. Ravipriya.

Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, a politician from the small and radical Tamil National People’s Front party has been publicizing the situation of the displaced persons.  “The government hurried to empty the Menik Farm camp because of the universal periodic review on Sri Lanka’s human rights situation coming up soon in Geneva,” Mr. Ponnambalam relayed to BBC.

Civil society activists estimate that about 26,000 people remain displaced by military occupation of their land in Sri Lanka.

For further information, please see:

Tamil News – Sri Lanka: Displaced Tamil families ‘left in jungle’ – 28 September 2012

BBC – Sri Lanka: Displaced Tamil families ‘left in jungle’ – 27 September 2012

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees – Sri Lanka’s displacement chapter nears end with closure of Menik Farm – 27 September 2012

Reuters – U.N. welcomes closure of controversial Sri Lankan “war” camp – 26 September 2012