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Turkmenistan - Turkmen President's visit to France a key opportunity to urge improvements

January 28, 2010 by Anonymous

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France: Press Turkmen Leader to End Rights Abuses

Turkmen President's Visit a Key Opportunity to Urge Improvements

President Nicolas Sarkozy should use the upcoming state visit by his Turkmen counterpart to speak out about Turkmenistan's abysmal human rights record and to press for concrete improvements, the French League for Human Rights, Human Rights Watch, International Federation for Human Rights, and Reporters Without Borders said today. President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov is scheduled to begin a three-day visit to France on February 1, 2010.

Turkmenistan is one of the most repressive countries in the world. Unknown numbers of political prisoners languish in its prisons, and the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly, movement, and religion are subject to draconian restrictions. Independent civil society and media cannot operate openly, if at all. The government threatens, harasses, and arrests those who question its policies, however modestly.

“Hosting Turkmenistan's president comes with a duty to speak out about abuses there, and to press for concrete improvements,” said Veronika Szente Goldston, advocacy director for Europe and Central Asia at Human Rights Watch. “President Sarkozy needs to send a clear message that respect for human rights is at the core of France's engagement with Turkmenistan.”

Turkmenistan remains closed to independent human rights monitors, including Human Rights Watch and International Federation for Human Rights. In September 2008, the UN special rapporteur on freedom of religion became the first UN special rapporteur to visit the country, but the government has refused to grant invitations to nine other UN monitors despite their longstanding requests for access.

Turkmenistan is rich in natural gas, and is considered an important strategic partner by many governments, including France. A number of French businesses have pursued investment opportunities in Turkmenistan, including most notably the conglomerate Bouygues, and business talks are expected to be a dominant part of the agenda.

The visit comes at a time when the French parliament is considering ratification of a major EU accord with Turkmenistan. The accord – the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement – would significantly upgrade relations between the EU and Turkmenistan. It has been frozen for years over human rights concerns, but a renewed push to move forward with it is currently under way. The agreement requires ratification by the national parliaments of EU member states, and France and the United Kingdom are the only remaining holdouts.

“French parliamentarians have a key opportunity to ensure that upgraded relations with Turkmenistan are linked to concrete human rights improvements,” said Jean-Pierre Dubois, president of the French League for Human Rights.

The agreement contains a clause committing both parties to respect human rights and providing for possible suspension if either party violates this principle.

“Given the appalling state of human rights in Turkmenistan, no sooner would the EU have concluded the agreement than it would be compelled to initiate proceedings to suspend it,” said Jean-François Julliard, secretary general of Reporters Without Borders. “European governments have squandered precious time and leverage by turning a blind eye to Turkmenistan's human rights problems and proceeding with the agreement despite this absurd situation. This needs to change.”

The French League for Human Rights, Human Rights Watch, International Federation for Human Rights, and Reporters Without Borders called on France and other European governments to recognize that Turkmenistan's rights record is at odds with the agreement's human rights clause. They should clearly articulate the specific human rights improvements Turkmenistan needs to make in exchange for enhanced relations, and engage proactively before the agreement is concluded to help secure them.

“The EU's stance to date on human rights in Turkmenistan has been disappointingly weak, but France now has a great chance to rectify this,” said Souhayr Belhassen, president of International Federation for Human Rights.

The French League for Human Rights, Human Rights Watch, International Federation for Human Rights, and Reporters Without Borders called on France and other European governments to press the Turkmen leader to take the following specific steps:

- Free all those imprisoned for political reasons, including the human rights activists Annakurban Amanklychev and Sapardurdy Khajiev and the dissident Gulgeldy Annaniazov;

- Establish a nationwide, transparent process to review all cases of political imprisonment to establish the real number of prisoners held on politically motivated charges, and ensure that victims of abuse are provided redress;

- Lift travel bans on students, activists, and relatives of opposition members, and dismantle the system that allows for interference with citizens' ability to leave and return to Turkmenistan;

- Allow activists, civic groups, and journalists to operate freely and without fear of persecution;

- Ensure access to the country, including to places of detention, for independent human rights monitors and extend invitations to all United Nations monitors who have requested access.

For more information, please contact:

- For Human Rights Watch, Veronika Szente Goldston (French, English, Swedish, Finnish, Hungarian): +1-917-582-1271 (mobile)

- For International Federation for Human Rights, Sacha Koulaeva, (French, English, Russian): +33-6-48-05-94-80 (mobile)

- For Reporters Without Borders, Elsa Vidal (French, English, Russian): +33-1-44 83 84 67; or +33-6-61-82-93-36 (mobile)

(Photo : AFP)

Sri Lanka - Websites blocked just hours before poll results due to be announced

January 26, 2010 by Anonymous

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Reporters Without Borders condemns the imposition of additional restrictions on online free expression in Sri Lanka as the country held a presidential election today. Access to the independent news websites Lankaenews, Lankanewsweb, Infolanka and Sri Lanka Guardian have been blocked by the country's main Internet Service Provider.

“The authorities blocked access to several independent websites just hours before the results of a very close presidential election were due to be announced,” Reporters Without Borders said. “Such censorship reflects a beleaguered government's nervousness and readiness to resort to manipulation.”

The press freedom organisation added: “The free flow of news and information during an election offers one of the few guarantees against massive fraud. We urge the government to restore access to these sites as the electoral commission has requested.”

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Lankaenews journalist told Reporters Without Borders that the site had been rendered inaccessible within Sri Lanka since this morning by Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), the country's main ISP. It can still be accessed from abroad. Other Internet users told Reporters Without Borders the site can also still be accessed via the privately-owned ISP Dialog Wemax.

“According to a source working for SLT, verbal directives were given to block the site,” the Lankaenews journalist said. “We complained to the electoral commission, which has referred the complaint to the SLT. We also asked the head of SLT but so far we have not had any answer. Meanwhile, our staff have been getting threatening phone messages with comments such as ‘We are coming to deal with you'.”

The journalist added that he had still received no news of his Lankaenews colleague, political analyst Prageeth Eknaligoda, who has been missing since the evening of 24 January. Eknaligoda had just written a long piece comparing the two leading presidential candidates and expressing a preference for the opposition candidate.

Fellow journalists fear that Eknaligoda's disappearance is linked to his article (http://www.rsf.org/spip.php?page=article&id_article=36196). One of his colleagues said he saw police search Eknaligoda's home this morning.

This latest act of censorship comes after days of all-out exploitation of the state media to support the president's reelection bid and a wave of threats and intimidation of journalists (http://www.rsf.org/All-out-propaganda-and.html).

Last March, Reporters Without Borders added Sri Lanka to its list of “countries under surveillance” because of concern about threats to online free expression. The press freedom organisation publishes a list of “Enemies of the Internet” and “countries under surveillance” every March, on Online Free Expression Day.

Sri Lanka was added to the list because access to Tamil-language sites and the Human Rights Watch website had been blocked, while the Lankadissent site ceased to operate in January 2009 following threats.

Sudan365: A beat for peace

January 18, 2010 by Anonymous

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Thousands of Activists Gather in 15
Countries to Warn of Worsening Conflict

 

Celebrities and Activists
Caution One Year to Prevent War in Sudan

 

(LONDON)
Today (9 January 2010) thousands of activists are gathering at events in 15
countries in a global coordinated effort, calling on world leaders to take
urgent steps to prevent a return to severe and widespread conflict in Sudan.

 

Sudan365 (www.sudan365.org), a year of campaigning
for Sudan, has been organised by a coalition of groups including Amnesty
International, Human Rights Watch, Save Darfur Coalition, FIDH, Refugees
International, Darfur Consortium and Arab Coalition for Darfur. [The full list
of participating countries and groups can be found at: www.sudan365.org[PD1]].

 

The effort comes with one year remaining until a
referendum that will decide the future of Sudan
and marks the five year anniversary of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that
ended the civil war between Northern and Southern Sudan
and called for this referendum. With many highly contentious issues still to be
resolved and amidst increasing inter-ethnic violence in the South and continued
attacks on civilians in Darfur, there is a
real risk of a return to conflict that could destabilise the entire region and
place civilians in grave danger.

 

Sudan365 is being supported by some of the world's most
famous drummers - including Phil Selway,
Radiohead; Stewart Copeland, The Police; Nick Mason, Pink Floyd; Jonny Quinn,
Snow Patrol; Caroline Corr; Richard Jupp, Elbow;  Middle Eastern star
Mohammed Mounir and Mustapha Tettey Addy who has been drumming since the 1970s.
The celebrity drummers are coming together to create a ‘beat for
peace' in Sudan.
A film of this global beat for peace, featuring drummers from five continents,
will be released to coincide with the launch of the campaign. Today, activists
will also drum along at events worldwide to call on governments to take action
to prevent worsening violence and ensure civilians are protected.

 

Activists are calling on world leaders to dramatically
increase their engagement to:

 

  • Provide
    intensive and coherent diplomatic support to Northern and Southern Sudanese
    parties on unresolved issues such as wealth sharing, borders and security, and
    legislation for the referendum;
  • Increase
    international monitoring and reporting on human rights violations throughout
    Sudan in the run-up to the April elections and referendum, and support measures
    to protect civilians from potential violence related to these events;
  • Push
    the United Nations Security Council to strengthen the civilian protection
    mandate of the Sudan
    peacekeeping force (UNMIS) by increasing its presence in remote and volatile
    areas and by rapidly deploying its personnel to conflict-prone areas.

 

The 2011 referendum will determine whether or not the
Southern region of Sudan
becomes independent from the North. Experts fear that instability in the run-up
to the referendum or its aftermath could reignite a civil war and cause massive
human rights abuses unless international efforts are intensified to find a
peaceful path through the next 12 months.

 

"The people of Sudan
experienced 22 years of civil war," said Tawanda
Hondora, Deputy Director of Amnesty
International's Africa Programme. "The
conflict was finally ended by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement which required
massive investment and support from the international community. We now see a
real risk of this agreement breaking down and a return to devastating conflict
with disastrous consequences for the people of Sudan and for the region. Our
leaders must provide intensive diplomatic support over the next year."

 

"We are already seeing a
grave increase in inter-ethnic violence in the South and violence continues in Darfur," said Tawanda Hondora. "The
coming year poses serious threats to human rights in Sudan that can be prevented if
governments act now."

 

More than 2 million people lost their lives in the 22
year long civil war between the North and the South. 2009 has seen a serious
spike in violence in which more than 2,500 have been killed and 350,000
displaced in South Sudan. In Darfur,
the conflict in which hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed remains
unresolved and millions continue to suffer daily in camps.

 

"Ideally the parties will
reach agreement on a path to avoiding renewed conflict," said
Joel Charny, Acting President of
Refugees International. "At the
same time the international community must be prepared to respond to increases
in violence, attacks on civilians and new population flows, which may occur
around the referendum. We recognize the real potential for renewed conflict and
we must prepare ourselves to respond."

 

"We urge world leaders to pay particular attention
to the human rights situation in Sudan in 2010 and to act to prevent
the country from spiralling again into bloodshed, violence and impunity," said
Souhayr Belhassen, President of FIDH.

 

"This campaign is
unprecedented. It's incredibly exciting. Thousands of drummers from some of the
most famous drummers in the world - Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Snow Patrol, Elbow -
to community groups across 5 continents coming together to create a global beat
for peace in Sudan. The next 365 days will be critical for the people of Sudan,"
said Jamie Catto, founder
member of 1 Giant Leap and Faithless. "And this global drumbeat is a cry for positive action from world
leaders to prevent conflict from returning."

Iran - Iran is world's biggest prison for journalists again

January 6, 2010 by Anonymous

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The Islamic Republic of Iran has recovered its status as the world's biggest prison for the media, with a total of 42 journalists detained following the confirmation of Ahmad Zeydabadi's six-year sentence on appeal on 4 January and a Tehran revolutionary court's decision the same day to sentence Bahaman Ahamadi Amoee to 34 lashes and seven years and four months in jail.

Also on 4 January, 36 parliamentarians who support President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad presented a bill under which detained government opponents would be regarded as “mohareb” (enemies of God) who should be executed “within a maximum of five days” of their arrest. It would also reduce to five days the period allowed for an appeal in cases of “disturbing public order” and “moharebeh” (war against God), instead of the 25 days currently allowed under article 236 of the criminal code.

“We are very disturbed by the calls repeatedly made by the most senior officials for Iran to impose the ‘supreme punishment' on detainees, including journalists,” Reporters Without Borders said. “The danger is imminent. The regime hardliners are capable of having the crackdown's witnesses executed. There is an urgent need for international bodies to take action before a tragedy takes place, before political prisoners begin being executed.”

An intelligence ministry representative said at a news conference on 4 January: “Several agents from foreign countries have been arrested with cameras and video cameras.” The ministry also released a list of 60 NGOs and news media regarded as having incited and participated in rioting.

They included the BBC (especially its Persian service), Voice of America and human rights groups such as Human Rights Watch. It is now strictly forbidden for Iranian citizens or organisations to cooperate or have any contact with the listed organisations.

Arrested on 14 June, Zeydabadi is meanwhile still being subjected to considerable pressure from intelligence ministry interrogators to publicly request a pardon from the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, for its articles critical of the government. Previously detained in 2000 and 2003, he is still being held in solitary confinement in Evin prison's Section 2009.

A winner of the World Association of Newspapers' Golden Pen of Freedom Award in 2009, Zeydabadi received the six-year sentence on 23 November. He was also sentenced to be banished to Gonabad, a remote northeastern town. It was his wife, Mahdieh Mohammadi, who revealed that the sentence has been upheld on appeal.

The news of Amoee's sentence was announced by his lawyer, Fraideh Gheyrat. A contributor to various pro-reform publications, Amoee was arrested at his home on 20 June. His wife, fellow journalist Jila Baniyaghoob, who was arrested at the same time, was released on 19 August after payment of 100 million toman (90,000 euros) in bail.

The intelligence ministry and Revolutionary Guards began rounding up government opponents and journalists again after further opposition demonstrations on 27 December. Around 20 people have been arrested in the latest wave, including a dozen or so journalists and cyber-dissidents. The relatives of the detained journalists are still lining up outside Evin prison in an attempt to get news of those believed to be held there.

Kimberley Process meeting in Namibia - Zimbabwe's blood diamonds

This week all of the members of the Kimberley Process is meeting in Swakopmund, Namibia November 2 - 5 to mainly discuss what to do about Zimbabwe's diamonds.