Palestinian Prisoners Threaten to Renew Hunger Strike
By Ali Al-Bassam
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
TEL AVIV, Israel–Palestinian prisoners in Israel threatened to resume a hunger strike on Sunday. They claim that Israeli prison authorities have reneged on an agreement to make changes to their current prison policies.
On April 17, about 1,600 prisoners launched a massive hunger strike in efforts to obtain improvements to their conditions, and an end to certain practices such as limited visitation rights, and solitary confinement. The original hunger strike ended on May 14, when Palestinian prisoners were promised a package of measures in exchange for ending their hunger strike, and also to not engage in militant activity. In return, Israel promised the prisoners visitation from relatives in Gaza, and to also transfer detainees out of solitary confinement. Also part of the agreement was Israel’s promise to not extend its program of administrative detention, where suspects could be held without charge for renewable periods of up to six months.
The Palestinian Minister of Prisoner Affairs, Issa Qaraqaa, said that Israel failed to keep its promise. At a press conference in Ramallah, Qaraqaa stated that “Israel has begun to violate the deal it signed with the prisoners, and within ten days after announcing the end of the strike, Israel renewed administrative detention orders for approximately 30 prisoners.” Qaraqaa also said that he does not believe Israel that would grant visitation rights to prisoners. “So far, we don’t know if Israel will even allow families of prisoners from Gaza to visit their imprisoned relatives,” he claimed.
An Israeli defense official, who preferred to remain anonymous, refuted Qaraqaa’s claims. The official said that “as of the end of last week, three administrative detention orders were renewed.” The official also stated that Israel is currently working towards enabling visitation between Palestinian prisoners and their family members. But it is a process that “would take some time,” however, because it “involves many different bodies.”
In his press conference in Ramallah, Qaraqaa discussed the situations of two prisoners, Mahmud Sarsak and Akram Rikhawi, who are currently on extended hunger strikes. Sarsak, a recognized prisoner of war from Gaza, began his hunger strike on March 23. He went without food for 53 days until May 14, when he temporarily ceased his hunger strike after the agreement was signed. He resumed with his strike the following day. Rikhawi wants the prison authority to deliver his medical file before he appears in front of a prison release committee so that his release may be expedited. Qaraqaa stated that “both prisoners are currently on the verge of a coma and have a low heart rate.”
Sivan Weizman, an Israeli Prison Service spokeswoman, said the two were under medical supervision in Ramle Prison, located near Tel Aviv. Should further care prove necessary, they will be transferred to a nearby hospital.
For further information, please see:
The National — Palestinian Prisoners Threaten New Hunger Strike — 4 June 2012
Al Jazeera — Jailed Palestinians Warn of New Hunger Strike — 3 June 2012
The Daily Star — Palestinians Threaten to Relaunch Prisoner Hunger Strike — 3 June 2012
The Jerusalem Post — Palestinian Prisoners Threaten to Strike Again — 3 June 2012
Government Officials Steal $4 Billion from South Sudan
By Tara Pistorese
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa
JUBA, South Sudan—South Sudan President Salva Kiir has accused past and present government officials of stealing $4 billion in public funds from South Sudan. The alleged corruption follows less than one year after the nation seceded from Sudan.
The Sudanese government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army were locked in battle from 1983-2005. The civil war claimed approximately two million lives—the highest civilian death toll since World War II.
In July, South Sudan’s capital city, Juba, split from the North and claimed 75 percent of the region’s oil. To this day, South Sudan is still battling with Khartoum over oil revenues, crude transit fees and border delineation.
South Sudan filed a complaint with the U.N. Security Council on Friday against Khartoum for repeated airstrikes against South Sudan border states. Khartoum, however, denies the accusations.
In January, South Sudan shut down the vast majority of its oil output to stilt Sudan’s ability to seize the oil in lieu of what Sudan called unpaid export fees. At that point, oil production formed 98 percent of the South Sudan’s revenue.
According to South Sudan’s Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin, more than half of the stolen funds were taken during the “durra” scandal, when a large government purchase of sorghum, the country’s staple food, was never distributed.
The 8.6 million people in South Sudan suffer some of the most devastating education and health statistics in the world. Similarly, just last month, the World Bank expressed its “deep concern” for Juba’s economy.
“We fought for freedom, justice and equality. Many of our friends died to achieve these objectives. Yet, once we got to power, we forgot what we fought for and began to enrich ourselves at the expense of our people,” reads a letter written on May 3 by President Kiir.
The letter, which was verified by Minister Benjamin on Monday, was addressed to 75 former and current government officials and asked for the return of all or a portion of the stolen funds in return for amnesty. “The credibility of our government is on the line,” President Kiir pleads.
Although it is unclear exactly when the money was taken, President Kiir believes it has “been taken out of the country and deposited in foreign accounts,” or that the funds were used to make cash property purchases.
President Kiir has reached out to leaders of eight other nations in regions of Europe, the Middle East, the United States, and Africa, for help recovering the missing funds.
For further information, please see:
Chicago Tribute—South Sudan Officials Have Stolen $4 Billion-President—4 June 2012
CTV News—S. Sudan President Asks Officials to Return Stolen Funds—4 June 2012
Expatica Switzerland—Sudanese Refuge Spike to South Worries U.N.—4 June 2012
Modern Ghana—Corrupt South Sudan Officials Have Stolen $4 Billion: Kiir—4 June 2012
Reuters-Africa—Sudan, South Sudan Start First Security Talks Since Border Clash—4 June 2012
Syrian Revolution Digest: 3 June 2012
THE COMMENTARY IN THIS PIECE DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF IMPUNITY WATCH.
*WARNING VIDEOS MAY CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES*
Abkhazia on the Mediterranean!
By announcing that he is no longer the president of all Syrians but only of those who accept his rule, Bashar Al-Assad formalized his “divorce” from the revolutionaries. Now the fight over division of “marital” assets begins at earnest. Unsurprisingly this will translate into more bloodshed; after all, this was an unfriendly divorce. “Friends” will also sort themselves out. Iran and Russia will stand by their man in hope of getting a foothold in the upcoming Abkhazia on the Mediterranean. While the “Friends of Syria,” for all their dithering, will have to deal with the remaining mess.
Sunday June 03, 2012
Today’s death toll: 33. The Breakdown: 23 in Damascus (Douma, Daraya, Artouz, Saqba, Assal Al-Ward, Qudsaya, Damascus City), 7 in Homs (including 3 in Qusayr), 3 in Hama, 3 in Aleppo, 1 Daraa (a child).
In the Damascene suburb of Douma, the known activist Adnan Wahbi, a co-founder of the National Coordination Body, was assassinated in his home by unknown assailants. Colleagues blame pro-Assad death squads. This Mr. Wahbi’s bodyhttp://youtu.be/Pacf5IKlxdw
In the Hiffeh District, Lattakia Province, local activists report that inhabitants of a number of Sunni villages have been forced to evacuate after days of pounding and raid by local pro-Assad militias.
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Video Highlights
Many of Houla’s inhabitants, Homs Province, have been forced to flee into neighboring communities where their living conditions are dismal: the children in this video are not dead, for now, they’re just sleeping. International dithering might yet seal their fatehttp://youtu.be/AGaYrIn5P3I Meanwhile, the pounding of the town continued, even as Bashar Al-Assad delivered his speech and blamed the massacre of Houla on monstershttp://youtu.be/JphA0S_Fg9w A new report by Syrian TV clams that 800 heavily armed men came into this town besieged by the regular loyalist troops and conducted the massacre, then left. There is no explanation of why the current pounding is taking place.
In the town of Douma, Damascus Suburbs, clashes left over 10 locals dead: the poundinghttp://youtu.be/q8dVhBYQBSk The martyrs http://youtu.be/t0dm7lspNu4 ,http://youtu.be/DfGoXRPnE3E , http://youtu.be/b-r_jgmIcZo , http://youtu.be/FCAqP-2VICE , http://youtu.be/-xuxjzUF4L8 (Graphic) http://youtu.be/6CGaqaIJ-6w The body of activist Adnan Wahbi http://youtu.be/Pacf5IKlxdw
The town of Saqba, Damascus Suburbs, comes under fire http://youtu.be/aUJaDRSsdnw ,http://youtu.be/2IEagS9FueM Chopper surveying the scene http://youtu.be/71tXwQjKuEI
Fields around the village of Al-Rami, Idlib Province, catch fire after intense poundinghttp://youtu.be/i1Dz1BtEEEc A number of locals were killed and immediately buriedhttp://youtu.be/ZnuOFsPjoNI
The pounding of Ariha, Idlib Province, continues http://youtu.be/XgcaIRxMZz0 ,http://youtu.be/YJ9tTXv6joI
The town of Mourik, Hama Province, comes under heavy poundinghttp://youtu.be/qpJkgtBnte4
In Aleppo Province, loyalist troops move into the town of Hayanhttp://youtu.be/V5bbBx7tWPI the pounding sets many installations on firehttp://youtu.be/LMS1oE8fQqE
The pounding of Old Homs continues http://youtu.be/xk0YLIRBbdI ,http://youtu.be/3AUFzqi46O0
The town of Ghabaghib, Daraa Province, comes under heavy poundinghttp://youtu.be/8rBfSBXZNMg
Self-Immolations Spark Chinese Detentions of Tibetans and Further Governmental Restrictions
By Jenna Furman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia
BEIJING, China — After fourteen months, Tibetan self-immolations continue in protest of Chinese policies and restrictions aimed to repress a Tibetan movement for political and cultural autonomy.
Last week, two Tibetan men set themselves on fire in front of the main temple in Lhasa, the Tibetan capital. One of the men reportedly died from his injuries. The fact that the self-immolations were the first to occur in the heavily guarded Tibetan capital demonstrates the growing strength and force of Tibetan protests against Chinese rule.
In response to these latest self-immolations, the Chinese Government aired a documentary stating that those who self-immolated were terrorists, criminals, or mentally ill.
Tibetan activists not only protest Chinese rule, but also call for the return of their exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. The Chinese Government has deemed the Dalai Lama a separatist and accuse him of inciting the Tibetan self-immolations. The Dalai Lama, in turn, blames the Chinese Government for the self-immolations and states that China’s “cultural genocide” against Tibetans and their lifestyle has led to desperation among Tibetans to have their voices heard.
In a separate incident, a 33-year-old Tibetan mother, Rechok, set herself on fire last Thursday outside of a Buddhist monastery in a small town in Aba county, located in the adjacent province of Sichuan. She died shortly thereafter. Sichuan has been the scene of repeated self-immolations throughout the past year.
Rechok’s self-immolation was the 35th Tibetan self-immolation to occur since March of 2011 and the fourth to occur in the town of Zhongrangtang, also known as Barma in Tibetan. At least 27 self-immolators have died to advocate Tibetan political and cultural freedom.
Following last week’s self-immolations, Chinese authorities detained an estimated 600 Tibetan residents and pilgrims. Reports indicate that even witnesses suspected of recording the self-immolations were detained by authorities. Those protestors who were not residents of Tibet were expelled.
Additionally, the Chinese Government has passed new legislation which allows police to act without reporting to higher authorities in emergency situations and allows for severe sentences for people who allegedly spread rumors. This new legislation reflects on the Chinese Government’s fear of unrest during a month-long Buddhist festival that began last week.
The Chinese Government claims the legislation is intended to promote stability in the Tibetan region amidst a wave unrest marked by increasing numbers of self-immolations.
For further information, please see:
BBC News – Detentions Reported in Tibet Capital After Immolations – 31 May 2012
The Guardian – Tibetan Woman Dies After Setting Herself on Fire – 31 May 2012
Reuters – “Hundreds Detained” in Tibet After Self-Immolations – 31 May 2012
The Washington Post – Groups say Tibetan Woman Latest in Recent Wave of Self-Immolations to Protest Chinese Rule – 30 May 2012
The Times of India – Lhasa Burning: 2 Tibetans set Themselves Ablaze – 29 May 2012