http://ownme.msk.ru Сервис свежайших превью новостей правительства США Wed, 28 Jul 2010 17:20:51 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/zloupotreblenie-pravami-cheloveka-v-zimbabve-prodolzhaetsya-pod-pravitelstvo-nacionalnogo-edinstva/ http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/zloupotreblenie-pravami-cheloveka-v-zimbabve-prodolzhaetsya-pod-pravitelstvo-nacionalnogo-edinstva/#comments Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:04:59 +0000 aron 15355 at http://www.amnesty.org
Amnesty International on Wednesday called on Zimbabwe's President Mugabe and Prime Minister Tsvangirai to fulfil their promise to reform state institutions, in a bid to end human rights violations that have continued in the country since the formation of the unity government one year ago.
 
Torture, harassment and politically motivated prosecutions of human rights defenders and perceived opponents have persisted, while villagers in parts of Zimbabwe have suffered ceaseless intimidation by supporters of former ruling party ZANU-PF.   

"The Attorney General's office, police and army have been left to freely violate human rights in pursuit of a political agenda," said Erwin van der Borght, director of Amnesty International's Africa programme.

"By delaying reform, the situation in Zimbabwe remains fragile as perpetrators continue to escape justice and are instead effectively given the all clear to continue violating human rights."

Amnesty International called on the unity government to end on-going harassment of human rights defenders. Several peaceful protests organized by civic movement Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) were violently broken up by police in 2009.

Seventeen human rights and political activists who were abducted by state security agents in 2008 continue to face charges that are widely believed to be trumped up. One of them, Jestina Mukoko, director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, had her prosecution permanently stayed by the Supreme Court in September 2009 because of overwhelming evidence that she had been tortured.

"The government must end the incessant harassment of human rights activists and take steps to seriously protect rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly," said Erwin van der Borght.

The Zimbabwean army and intelligence services, as well as the Attorney General's office, have remained under ZANU-PF control, following an agreement brokered by the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) in 2008. The police are co-chaired by ZANU-PF and MDC-T ministers.

"The onus is on President Mugabe and ZANU-PF to ensure that key institutions under their control are reformed to end the culture of impunity that still threatens stability in the country," said Erwin van der Borght.   

Amnesty International's call for reform comes amid reports that villagers in parts of Zimbabwe are being threatened with violence by army backed supporters of ZANU-PF, in an attempt to force them to endorse the heavily criticized Kariba draft constitution.   

The Kariba draft constitution, agreed by unity government parties in September 2007, has been strongly criticized by some civil society organizations as an attempt by the parties to impose a constitution without consultation.

Villagers in Mutoko, Muzarabani and MT Darwin are reportedly being warned that they will face beatings unless they support the ZANU-PF position. Similar threats were made and materialized in the run-up to the June 2008 presidential elections.

"These are early warning signs that the situation could deteriorate if no urgent measures are taken to stop state security agents from carrying out violent political campaigns," said Erwin van der Borght.
 
"Past involvement on their part has resulted in gross human rights violations, including deaths and torture of perceived opponents."

The government has so far failed to investigate gross human rights violations allegedly carried out by security forces during the run-up to the second round of the 2008 presidential elections, which left at least 200 people dead, over 9,000 injured and tens of thousands displaced.

"The unity government must investigate past and present allegations of human rights violations by state security agents, including torture and ill treatment of detainees," said Erwin van der Borght.

Gross human rights violations have also been taking place within the army.

At least two soldiers were tortured to death in October 2009 while being interrogated by intelligence and military police officials in Harare. Another soldier was reported to have committed suicide while in solitary confinement and several others are still receiving medical treatment for injuries caused by torture.

The victims had been arrested along with at least 95 others, on suspicion of breaking into an armoury at Pomona barracks and stealing 21 guns.
 
"Zimbabwean state bodies are riddled with human rights abusers that in many cases carry out violations with impunity," said Erwin van der Borght.   

"Without genuine reform of institutions this abuse is very likely to persist."]]> http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/zloupotreblenie-pravami-cheloveka-v-zimbabve-prodolzhaetsya-pod-pravitelstvo-nacionalnogo-edinstva/feed/ 0 http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/shri-lanki-prizval-polozhit-konec-posle-vyborov-podavlenie-inakomysliya/ http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/shri-lanki-prizval-polozhit-konec-posle-vyborov-podavlenie-inakomysliya/#comments Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:58:02 +0000 aron 15227 at http://www.amnesty.org  
Opposition supporters and journalists have been arrested, several prominent newspaper editors have received death threats and trade unionists and opposition supporters have been harassed since the poll.
 
The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) reported more than 85 post-election incidents, including two murders and several assaults. The CMEV has not released details of these incidents.
 
Pressure on government critics has been mounting since President Mahinda Rajapaksa was re-elected on 26 January, defeating his former Chief of Defence Staff - retired army general Sarath Fonseka.
 
“Victory against the Tamil Tigers followed by an historic election should have ended political repression in Sri Lanka but instead we have seen a serious clampdown on freedom of expression,” said Madhu Malhotra, Amnesty International's Asia- Pacific Deputy Director.
 
Sri Lankan journalists have given Amnesty International a list of 56 of their colleagues who face serious threats, including some working for the government-owned Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, as well as Independent Television Network, Lak Hada and the Lake House Group.
 
“Threats, beatings and arrests mean that Sri Lankan human rights activists live in fear of the consequences of expressing their political opinions,” said Madhu Malhotra.
 
Security officials detained 13 former military officials supporting the defeated presidential candidate Gen Sarath Fonseka on 29 January during a raid on the candidate’s campaign office. They are being held incommunicado, according to opposition lawyer Shiral Lakthilaka.
 
The government has accused Fonseka and his supporters of plotting a coup d'etat.  
 
Also on 29 January, police officers from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) raided the office of newspaper Lanka Irida and arrested chief editor Chandana Sirimalwatte, who remains in detention.

The newspaper had openly campaigned for opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka during the elections. The office was raided again the following day.
 
Offices of the popular internet site, Lanka E News, were sealed off by the authorities and Amnesty International received reports that a number of unidentified gunmen visited the Lanka E News office on at least two occasions during last week.
 
Sri Lankan journalist and political analyst Prageeth Eknaligoda, a contributor to the site, disappeared on his way home from work two days before the election and is still missing.

When his wife reported his disappearance to the Homagama police, she was herself detained for several hours. Eknaligoda had been actively reporting on political events in the run-up to the election and had recently spoken out in favour of Sarath Fonseka.
 
“President Rajapaksa’s government has to show that it will now try to deal with the human rights violations that have plagued Sri Lanka, instead of using the post-election period to launch a new crackdown,” said Madhu Malhotra.
 
Numerous serious assaults by unknown perpetrators against journalists have not been properly investigated or prosecuted. Amnesty International calls on the Sri Lankan authorities to change this pattern and demonstrate their commitment to human rights standards by ensuring the prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigation of these recent attacks.]]> http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/shri-lanki-prizval-polozhit-konec-posle-vyborov-podavlenie-inakomysliya/feed/ 0 http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/pravo-na-risk-v-jemene-uvelichilos-sredi-razgona-bezopasnosti/ http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/pravo-na-risk-v-jemene-uvelichilos-sredi-razgona-bezopasnosti/#comments Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:02:01 +0000 aron 15139 at http://www.amnesty.org
Amnesty International on Tuesday warned that the government’s heavy-handed response to the threat posed by al-Qa’ida puts Yemen at risk of being locked in a downward spiral on human rights.

In its latest briefing paper on Yemen, published ahead of Wednesday’s international high level meeting in London, Amnesty International highlights an increase in human rights violations against those who criticize or oppose the government.

"The fear is that international demands for a crackdown on suspected supporters of al-Qa’ida will be interpreted by the government as a green light to crush all opposition with no consideration for human rights," said Malcolm Smart, Director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa programme.

The government appears to have further intensified its new sweep against al-Qa’ida suspects following reports that a Nigerian national alleged to have tried to blow up a plane over Detroit last December had received training in Yemen.

Security forces claim to have killed and captured a number of leaders and activists of the group. Family members of such suspects have also been killed by government forces.

Attacks by al-Qa’ida, and groups apparently linked to it, have occurred sporadically throughout the last decade.

But most human rights abuses have taken place during conflict between government forces and armed rebels from the Zaidi Shi’a minority in the north and a strengthening, largely peaceful separatist movement in the south, both reportedly unconnected to al-Qa’ida.

"The government has resorted to increasingly repressive methods to counter this opposition, including waves of arrests, incommunicado detention and unlawful killings," said Malcolm Smart.

"Counter-terrorism is no excuse to sideline human rights. Whilst the government has a duty to protect people and hold to account those engaged in terrorism it must abide by its obligations under international law."

In Sa’da, in the north of the country, the long running conflict between government forces and the Huthis, armed fighters belonging to the Zaidi Shi’a minority, resumed with new intensity last August and has been marked by serious abuses on both sides.

Both sides are alleged to have killed civilians and according to the UN’s refugee agency, so far more than the 200,000 people have been forcibly displaced.

The government has sealed off the area, preventing independent reporting of the conflict, and aid agencies have faced continuing problems as they seek humanitarian access to those at risk

Civilians have also been put at risk, and some possibly killed, by Saudi Arabian security forces that have carried out attacks against rebels in Yemen’s northern border region. These attacks lacked any safeguards for the protection of civilians.

In Aden and other cities and towns in the south the government has faced growing protests from local people over the government’s failure to address discrimination.

The government’s response to these protests has been heavy-handed, with unarmed demonstrators being shot in the streets and those leading local demands arrested and detained. Since the protests began in 2007, the security forces have arrested and detained, in many cases arbitrarily, thousands of demonstrators and bystanders.

Independent media in Yemen has also come under sustained attack in connection with the unrest in the south of the country. The authorities have stormed newspaper offices, blocked distribution of newspapers and arrested journalists critical of the government.]]> http://ownme.msk.ru/obrazovanie/pravo-na-risk-v-jemene-uvelichilos-sredi-razgona-bezopasnosti/feed/ 0