SOUTH EAST ASIA/PACIFIC
AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA WILL BECOME STRONGER ‘IF WE HELP EACH OTHER’
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced that legislation had been introduced into Indonesia under which people smugglers could be sent to prison for up to five years. Both Indonesian and Australian police would continue to work together to track down terrorists, he said. Officials have produced a framework
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced that legislation had been introduced into Indonesia under which people smugglers could be sent to prison for up to five years. Both Indonesian and Australian police would continue to work together to track down terrorists, he said. Officials have produced a framework
He also said that he and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd had agreed to upgrade the
relationship between the two countries which meant that the two leaders would meet annually and there would be more frequent meetings between respective ministers and other representatives.
He said his message was clear and simple: Indonesia and Australia could have a great future together as neighbours, friends and strategic partners but the relationship needed to be kept sustained.
He was addressing a joint meeting of members and senators in Parliament House, Canberra, on Wednesday when he said he brought a message of goodwill and friendship from the people of Indonesia. He was the fifth visiting leader to address a joint house meeting.
He honoured Australians who had died while working to aid Indonesia by reading out their names and said he was pleased that the Indonesian language, Bahasa Indonesian, is taught in some Australian schools. He said he believed that whatever party was in power in Indonesia, co-operation with Australia would continue, but, “we have to continue to earn each other’s trust.”
He was concerned to learn from a Lowy Institute poll last year that 54 per cent of Australians doubted whether Indonesia would respect international laws and said both countries had mindsets which fostered stereotypes of the other, such as Indonesia being authoritarian and a centre of Islamic extremism.
“We must expunge these preposterous caricatures,” he said. Speed bumps might at times affect the relationship, and it was the job of both countries to solve problems. He urged that more diplomatic forums should be put in place to sustain the partnership’s momentum.
He said East Timor had been a low point and that it should be understood that Aceh and Papua were seen by Indonesia as matters of unity.
Areas of co-operation included the G20 process, disease control, people smuggling, and climate change – he and Kevin Rudd were members of the 26 leaders who put together the Copenhagen agreement. He said that there was much both countries could do before any new climate change treaty was introduced. He appreciated the support Australia gave Indonesia regarding the South East Asia Nuclear Weapon Free Zone establishment. Both nations saw a need for UN reform.
He concluded by saying that Australian and Indonesia would become stronger “if we help each other.” For two countries who were so different and once so apart, he hoped in the near future, legislators, journalists and others would remarked upon “the good things we are doing,” and that because of this example of positive action, the world would become a better place. He was given a standing ovation.
Welcoming him, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the relationship between Indonesia and Australia had never been stronger. “We have built an enduring partnership for the 21st Century, based on shared interests and common values. Though neighbours by circumstance, we were close friends and partners by choice.
“We have a mutual stake in each other's progress and prosperity. We share a commitment to maintaining peace and advancing security and prosperity in our region.
“From the foundation of our strengthened bilateral ties, Indonesia and Australia are working together to address regional and global challenges. Our partnership is a strategic asset, and we are committed to increasing our cooperation in regional and global forums to advance common interests.
“We have agreed to upgrade our comprehensive partnership. We have resolved, as leaders, to meet annually in either Australia or Indonesia. We have also agreed that our respective foreign and defence ministers should meet jointly each year. We will continue to build on the contribution of the Australia Indonesia Ministerial Forum towards strengthening our relationship.” SPEECH: http://www.pm.gov.au/node/6556
JOINT FRAMEWORK ON PEOPLE SMUGGLING ‘NOT INSTANT SOLUTION’
Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said the new Australia-Indonesia framework on people smuggling was not an instant solution to the problem, the ABC reported (11/3/10).
He also said details of the framework, agreed during the Indonesian President's visit to Australia, won't be revealed publicly. It has been under negotiation for several months and grew out of incidents involving Sri Lankan asylum seekers attempting to get to Australia by boat via Indonesia.
Mr Smith has told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program the new framework is part of wider regional work to combat people smuggling, but would remain secret.
REPORT: http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/stories/201003/2842977.htm?desktop
He also said details of the framework, agreed during the Indonesian President's visit to Australia, won't be revealed publicly. It has been under negotiation for several months and grew out of incidents involving Sri Lankan asylum seekers attempting to get to Australia by boat via Indonesia.
Mr Smith has told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program the new framework is part of wider regional work to combat people smuggling, but would remain secret.
REPORT: http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/stories/201003/2842977.htm?desktop
YUDHOYONO CALLS FOR CHANGE
Indonesia’s president has broken out of the polite ceremonials of a state visit to Australia to tell us bluntly the central problem with the relationship, Peter Hartcher writes in the Sydney Morning Herald (11/3/10). It is the old ideas we each carry in our heads about the other, according to Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. He's right.
The leader of the world's third-most populous democracy said he was ''taken aback'' by a Lowy Institute poll last year that found 54 per cent of Australians doubted Indonesia would act responsibly in international relations.
He pointed out that some Australians still see Indonesia as a military threat or a hotbed of Islamic extremism. And in Indonesia, ‘Australiaphobes' harboured their own set of conspiracy theories. White Australia remained alive, and Australia supported the break-up of Indonesia.
SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO COOL ON KEVIN RUDD'S ASIA PLAN
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told Kevin Rudd that Indonesia was unlikely to support his push for a new Asia- Pacific community as Jakarta sees the existing ASEAN bloc as its priority, The Australian reported (10/3/10). The Prime Minister discussed the community plan when he telephoned Dr Yudhoyono in Jakarta on Sunday.
RUDD, SBY SIGN PEOPLE-SMUGGLING FRAMEWORK
Australia and Indonesia have agreed to work together to do more to stop people smuggling and terrorism in the region, the ABC reported (10/3/10). Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono made the pledge after an extensive meeting on a range of topics.
Officials had signed an implementation framework on people smuggling and trafficking, Mr Rudd said. "This will enhance and intensify our co-operation on dealing with this complex regional and global challenge."
REPORT: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/10/2841853.htm
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was due to visit Papua New Guinea later in the week, Radio Australia reported.
INDONESIAN CHARGED WITH PEOPLE SMUGGLING
An Indonesian man has been charged with a people smuggling offence after an alleged attempt to facilitate the arrival of 53 people to Australia, an Australian Government media release stated (9/3/10). This brings the total number of people charged by the AFP with people smuggling offences since September 2008 to 111. REPORT: http://www.afp.gov.au/media_releases/national/2010/man_charged_with_people_smuggling3.html
BALI MASTERMIND BELIEVED KILLED
Indonesian media reported that one of the masterminds of the 2002 Bali bombing had been shot dead during a police raid outside Jakarta, the ABC reported (10/3/10). Anti-terrorist police were involved in a shootout with suspected militants at an internet cafe, killing three men and arresting several others.
Indonesian media reported that one of the men killed was senior Jemaah Islamiah figure Dulmatin, one of the masterminds of the 2002 Bali bombings, who was believed to have been hiding in the southern Philippines.
AUNG SAN SUU KYI TO BE BARRED FROM POLLS AND PARTY
Myanmar opposition icon Aung San Suu Kyi has been barred from standing in polls this year and may be excluded from her own party under the military junta's new election laws unveiled on Wednesday, the Sydney Morning Herald reported (11/3/10). Myanmar is an alternative name for Burma.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) - which won Myanmar's last elections in 1990 but was stopped from taking power by the junta - would in turn be abolished if it failed to obey the rules. The Nobel Peace laureate was sentenced to three years' jail in August over an incident in which a US man swam to her lakeside home. This was later commuted to 18 months under house arrest.
UN SECRETARY-GENERAL SAYS NEW LAWS DON’T MEET UN EXPECTATIONS
Aung San Suu Kyi
New electoral laws unveiled by authorities in Myanmar do not meet United Nations expectations of what is required for an inclusive political process in the Asian country, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned (10/3/10).
The UN is carefully studying the laws as they are being published by the government in preparation for planned national elections later this year, Mr Ban said in a statement issued by his spokesperson.
According to media reports, the new laws relate to the registration of political parties and prohibit anyone with a criminal conviction from being a member of an official party.
“The indications available so far suggest that they do not measure up to our expectations of what is needed for an inclusive political process,” Mr Ban said.
The Secretary-General reiterated his call for the Myanmar authorities to ensure such an inclusive political process leading to fair, transparent and credible elections in which all citizens of Myanmar, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, could freely participate.
Ms Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), a prominent opposition leader, has been under house arrest for much of the past two decades. In August last year she was sentenced to an additional 18 months of detention after being convicted of violating State security laws.
Last month Mr Ban expressed disappointment that Ms Suu Kyi’s appeal against her house arrest was rejected and reiterated his call for her release. Myanmar is slated to later this year conduct its first elections in over 20 years as part of a government-designed timetable towards greater democratisation.
TIME FOR AUSTRALIA ‘TO CUT LIFELINE OF BURMA'S OPPRESSIVE REGIME’
The Australian Government has been asked to work with other governments to establish a UN commission of inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity and war crimes being committed in Burma (Myanmar).
Greens Senator Scott Ludlam planned a motion to the Senate to ensure that Australian companies with links to Burma's oil and gas industry were not contributing to the financial stability of the military regime (9/3/10).
"We know that since mid January of this year more than 2,000 civilians have been forced to flee new attacks in eastern Burma with villagers being shot on sight. There's every sign the violence will get worse in the run up to this years sham election,” he said.
"Only last week in New York an International Tribunal on Crimes against Women in Burma recommended that the UN Security Council refers Burma to the International Criminal Court and that countries in the Asia-Pacific not invest in Burma's oil and gas industry.
"Australia has to add our full support to these initiatives.” The Greens fully supported the international day of action by Karen Organisations to raise awareness and urge governments to act decisively," he said.
The Australian Government has been asked to work with other governments to establish a UN commission of inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity and war crimes being committed in Burma (Myanmar).
Greens Senator Scott Ludlam planned a motion to the Senate to ensure that Australian companies with links to Burma's oil and gas industry were not contributing to the financial stability of the military regime (9/3/10).
"We know that since mid January of this year more than 2,000 civilians have been forced to flee new attacks in eastern Burma with villagers being shot on sight. There's every sign the violence will get worse in the run up to this years sham election,” he said.
"Only last week in New York an International Tribunal on Crimes against Women in Burma recommended that the UN Security Council refers Burma to the International Criminal Court and that countries in the Asia-Pacific not invest in Burma's oil and gas industry.
"Australia has to add our full support to these initiatives.” The Greens fully supported the international day of action by Karen Organisations to raise awareness and urge governments to act decisively," he said.
DETAILS: Fernando on 0417 174 302.
BURMA/MYANMAR OVERVIEW
A New York Times overview reports (8/3/10) that Myanmar’s military government has begun the largest sell-off of state assets in the country’s history, including more than 100 government buildings and a large stake in the national airline, as the government introduces elections for the first time in 20 years and a new constitution under which the military seems likely to perpetuate its rule from behind the scenes.
SEE ALSO Articles in Focus
SOLOMONS TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION BEGINS
Old wounds have been reopened in the Solomon Islands as the country delves back into its violent past, Radio Australia reported (9/3/10). Victims of ethnic violence have shared their stories at the first public hearings of the country's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. School students lined the entrance to the commission - a symbol the proceedings are not just about the country's past but also its future.
Commission chairperson, Father Sam Ata, said it was important victims of the ethnic violence that rocked the country between 1997 and 2003 were able to speak, "so the entire country listens and begins to accept this tragedy as part of its own history". REPORT: http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/stories/201003/2841138.htm?desktop
Commission chairperson, Father Sam Ata, said it was important victims of the ethnic violence that rocked the country between 1997 and 2003 were able to speak, "so the entire country listens and begins to accept this tragedy as part of its own history". REPORT: http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/stories/201003/2841138.htm?desktop
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL WELCOMES START OF PUBLIC HEARINGS
The commencement of public hearings at the Solomon Islands Truth and Reconciliation Commission on March 9 represented an historic opportunity to address the legacy of the country’s violent past, Amnesty International said (8/3/10).
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was created with a mandate to examine the causes and impacts of the 1998- 2003 armed conflict, which resulted in killings, torture and internal displacement of large numbers of Solomon Islanders.
Gender-based violence against women and girls was an entrenched feature in the five-year conflict but this violence was marginalised, if not ignored. Those responsible - whether police personnel, members of armed groups or private individuals - were rarely brought to justice, it said. The commission is to conduct investigations, hold public hearings and record victims’ statements with a view to facilitating reconciliation between ethnic communities.
Amnesty International Australia Campaign Coordinator Hannah Harborow said, “We hope the Truth and Reconciliation Commission will ensure that those who suffered during the conflict are heard and their experiences acknowledged.”
“Amnesty International closely monitored the human rights situation during the ethnic conflict in the Solomon Islands, with a particular focus on the violation of the rights of the most vulnerable members of the community.” AI hopes the hearings will give women who experienced violence an opportunity to tell their stories without fear of reprisals.
Amnesty International said it believed that the work of the commission is an opportunity for the Solomon Islands Government to recommit to its international human rights obligations. However, AI remained concerned about certain limitations on the use of information gathered by the commission and believed that its mandate should have allowed for findings to be made available for possible use in criminal prosecutions. The commission is composed of five members, three nationals of the Solomon Islands and two nationals of other countries.
DETAILS: Roxanne Macara: roxanne.macara@amnesty.org.au; on +61 (0)423 280 658 or +61 (0)2 8396 7644; www.amnesty.org.au
ANWAR IBRAHIM LOSES FINAL COURT BATTLE
Malaysia's former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim has lost his final court battle to declare as unlawful his dramatic sacking in 1998, his lawyer says, according to the Sydney Morning Herald (8/3/10).
Mr Anwar was sacked from his posts as deputy premier and finance minister by then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad in September 1998. Mr Anwar launched a legal suit the same year, arguing the move was unconstitutional.
He was sacked in 1998 and convicted on sodomy and corruption charges but was released in 2004 after the sexual misconduct count was overturned. He made a comeback to politics as the leader of a resurgent opposition. Now Mr Anwar fights new sodomy charges which threaten to end his political career.
REPORT: http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/malaysias-anwar-loses-sacking-appeal-20100308-psj2.html
ASIA
UN POLITICAL CHIEF IN NEPAL AS APPEAL FOR AID LAUNCHED
B. Lynn Pascoe (centre) meets with Nepali
Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala.
Right, Special Representative Karin Landgren
B. Lynn Pascoe, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, arrived in Nepal to assess the state of the peace process which ended 10 years of fighting between the government and Maoists this week, the UN News reported (10/3/10).
The visit comes as the peace process which ended the country’s civil war remains largely stalled, threatened by tensions and mistrust between Maoists, the government and the army. The war claimed some 13,000 lives.
The signing of a peace accord ended the conflict in 2006. After conducting Constituent
Assembly elections in May 2008, Nepal abolished its 240-year-old monarchy and declared itself a republic.
Mr Pascoe held talks with Nepali Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala and other congressional leaders, as well as with Pushpa Kamal Dahal, chairman of the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M), and Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal.
During these meetings, Mr Pascoe underscored the importance of rebuilding trust and pushing ahead with the peace process.
He also conferred with the officials on the continuing contribution made by the UN political mission in Nepal, known as UNMIN.
Nearly half of the country’s districts are short of food and the aid workers estimate that nearly 2.5 million people face extreme food insecurity, mainly in the Mid- and Far-Western Hill and Mountain Regions of western Nepal.
“As a country emerging from conflict, Nepal needs sustained international humanitarian support to see it through this fragile period of transition,” said John Holmes, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. With some 28,000 children dying every year from preventable diseases, including from the consequences of severe malnutrition, “most of these problems can be solved with adequate donor support,” he said.
REPORT: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=34031&Cr=nepal&Cr1=
AFGHANISTAN: MINES PREVENT RESUMPTION OF NORMAL LIFE
While active fighting has ended in the Marjah area of Helmand province, improvised mines and other explosive devices are preventing a return to normal life and will continue to put lives at risk, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) warned (8/3/10).
"Improvised mines and other explosive devices are posing a deadly threat to civilians in Marjah," said Reto Stocker, the head of the ICRC delegation in Kabul. "They make it almost impossible for people to venture out or to evacuate the sick and wounded, who therefore receive little or no medical care."
As neither patients nor medical staff have been able to move about safely within the town of Marjah, several clinics have closed. Little food has reached the town recently, as very few commercial vehicles have been able to enter. Exact figures are hard to come by, but the number of displaced families still unable to return to their homes following the fighting runs into the thousands.
"Sooner or later, residents and displaced persons will have no choice but to move about, if only to find food and water," said Mr Stocker. "Sadly, there will almost certainly be casualties, as improvised mines and unexploded homemade bombs do not differentiate between a military vehicle and a boy on a bicycle."
The ICRC first-aid post in the town of Marjah is operating again, having been closed during most of the offensive carried out by Afghan and international forces against the armed opposition. The ICRC has managed to move additional medical supplies and medical staff from other agencies into the town, but basic health care services that were interrupted during the offensive have still not been fully restored. People from Marjah continue to depend on medical facilities in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah, which is extremely difficult to reach.
The widespread use of improvised mines and the presence of makeshift unexploded bombs in Marjah along with the absence of precautionary measures to protect civilians runs counter to the most basic principles of international humanitarian law, which prohibit indiscriminate attacks and require that all feasible precautions be taken to avoid or minimize incidental harm to civilians, says ICRC.
Decades of conflict have left Afghanistan with a lethal legacy, in the form of millions of anti-personnel mines. Any use of these weapons, which are prohibited in the country under the Mine Ban Convention just as they are in 155 other countries, is completely unacceptable.
International humanitarian law requires that parties to an armed conflict take all possible measures to protect the civilian population from the dangers posed by mines and explosive remnants of war in areas they control after active fighting. Such measures include marking, fencing, and monitoring affected areas, warning the civilian population about their location and clearing such areas as soon as feasible.DETAILS: Pauline Wall on 61 (0)2 9388 9039; sydney.syd@icrc.org
TERRORISTS EXECUTE WORLD VISION WORKERS
There are concerns aid groups are becoming targets for militant groups in Pakistan, after six aid workers were killed when militants struck a World Vision office in the North West Frontier Province, the ABC reported (11/3/10). It is not the first time an aid group has been targeted; World Vision has suspended its operations in Pakistan, saying the office was targeted because it was running programs to help women.
A group of about 15 gunmen stormed into the offices in the Mansehra district on Wednesday.
Witnesses say they gathered the staff together and dragged them off one by one to a separate room, where they were executed.
World Vision Australia chief executive Reverend Tim Costello said, "In the past there have been threats and the community have said to us, 'Let us deal with it, we want you here'," he said. "So it's not as if there isn't a very strong basis of support within the community to do what we're doing. REPORT: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/11/2842468.htm
NORTH KOREA TO STRENGTHEN ITS NUCLEAR DETERRENT
North Korea says it will strengthen its nuclear deterrent in response to American military threats - and is prepared for both dialogue and war with Washington, Radio Australia reported (9/3/10).
The comment comes a day after the launch of an annual US and South Korean military exercise that Pyongyang claims is a rehearsal for invasion. Pyongyang says it has ordered its military onto full alert and announced its readiness to "blow up" South Korean facilities. The US and South Korea say the annual Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercise, which involves 18,000 American and 20 ,000 South Korean troops, is defensive.
The comment comes a day after the launch of an annual US and South Korean military exercise that Pyongyang claims is a rehearsal for invasion. Pyongyang says it has ordered its military onto full alert and announced its readiness to "blow up" South Korean facilities. The US and South Korea say the annual Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercise, which involves 18,000 American and 20 ,000 South Korean troops, is defensive.
CHINESE PLAN TO SELECT NEW DALAI LAMA
The Chinese Government has said that it, rather than the Dalai Lama, will have the final say on who succeeds him as Tibet's spiritual leader.
REPORT: http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-hardens-line-on-next-dalai-lama-20100309-pvv3.html
QUERY OVER ADEQUACY OF TROOPS’ TRAINING
Concerns about the readiness of Australian troops involved in a bungled raid in which six people died were expressed before they were deployed to Afghanistan, the Sydney Morning Herald reported (9/3/10).
Australian Defence Force sources have told the Herald that the reservist commandos, some of whom serve as special operations police in NSW and Victoria, were still in Australia when senior officers were warned they were insufficiently trained.
The family of the six victims, which included four children, an adolescent and an adult, told SBS's Dateline that the troops burst into their compound in the small hours of the morning in February last year and attacked with machine-guns and grenades. One of the women present told SBS the troops said they were searching for the Taliban leader Mullah Noorullah.
LEADING JAPANESE POLITICIAN ‘ESPOUSES 9/11 FANTASY’
Yukihisa Fujita is an influential member of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan. As chief of the DPJ's international department and head of the Research Committee on Foreign Affairs in the upper house of Japan's parliament, to which he was elected in 2007, he is a Brahmin in the foreign policy establishment of Washington's most important East Asian ally, says a Washington Post editorial (8/3/10). He also seems to think that America's rendering of the events of Sept. 11, 2001, is a gigantic hoax.
EDITORIAL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp- dyn/content/article/2010/03/07/AR2010030702354.html?wpisrc=nl_pmopinions
MIDDLE EAST
IRAQIS DEFY BLASTS IN STRONG TURNOUT FOR PIVOTAL ELECTION
“Iraqis are not afraid of bombs anymore,” said Maliq Bedawi, 45, defiantly waving his finger, stained with purple ink, to indicate he had voted, as he stood near the rubble of an apartment building in Baghdad hit by a huge rocket in the deadliest attack of the day. Insurgents here vowed to disrupt the election, and the concerted wave of attacks — as many as 100 thunderous blasts in the capital alone starting just before the polls opened — did frighten voters away, but only initially,the New York Times reported (6/3/10). The shrugging response of voters could signal a fundamental weakening of the insurgency’s potency. At least 38 people were killed in Baghdad. But by day’s end, turnout was higher than expected.
“Iraqis are not afraid of bombs anymore,” said Maliq Bedawi, 45, defiantly waving his finger, stained with purple ink, to indicate he had voted, as he stood near the rubble of an apartment building in Baghdad hit by a huge rocket in the deadliest attack of the day. Insurgents here vowed to disrupt the election, and the concerted wave of attacks — as many as 100 thunderous blasts in the capital alone starting just before the polls opened — did frighten voters away, but only initially,the New York Times reported (6/3/10). The shrugging response of voters could signal a fundamental weakening of the insurgency’s potency. At least 38 people were killed in Baghdad. But by day’s end, turnout was higher than expected.
BAN SPEAKS OUT AGAINST ISRAELI PLAN TO EXPAND SETTLEMENTS
Israeli settlement in West Bank
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who has repeatedly called for Israel’s settlement construction to come to a halt, condemned its announcement that it is building 1,600 new housing units in East Jerusalem (10/3/10).
“He reiterates that settlements are illegal under international law,” according to a statement by his spokesperson issued last night in New York. “Furthermore, he underscores that settlement activity is contrary to Israel’s obligations under the Roadmap, and undermines any movement towards a viable peace process.”
The Roadmap, endorsed by the diplomatic Quartet consisting of the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and Russia, calls for two states – Israel and Palestine – living side by side in peace and security.
The Secretary-General noted last month that while Israel’s efforts and willingness to resume peace talks were welcome, returning to negotiations was hampered by developments on the ground, including continued settlement expansion in the occupied Palestinian territory.
“At this crucial juncture, Israel should refrain from taking steps which have the potential to prejudge negotiations and create tensions,” especially in East Jerusalem, where settlements are expanding and Palestinians are being evicted, he said in a message to the UN-backed International Meeting in Support of Israeli-Palestinian Peace held in Qawra, Malta.
REPORT: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=34030&Cr=palestin&Cr1=
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH, UN AND GOLDSTONE DELIVER SAME FINDINGS
Amnesty International says in its report, ‘Israel/Gaza Operation ‘'Cast Lead’': 22 days of death and destruction’', that it was Israeli soldiers who used Palestinians as human shields, Moammar Mashni, the son of a Palestinian refugee born and bred in Australia.
He writes in The Age/Sydney Morning Herald (5/3/10), “Amnesty's conclusion was unambiguous. It "did not find evidence that Hamas or other Palestinian groups violated the laws of war to the extent repeatedly alleged by Israel … In particular, it found no evidence that Hamas or other fighters directed the movement of civilians to shield military objectives from attacks." But it did find ''that Israeli forces on several occasions during Operation ‘'Cast Lead’’ forced Palestinian civilians to serve as 'human shields'.''
“Human Rights Watch, the UN and the internationally respected jurist Justice Richard Goldstone delivered similar findings. Goldstone, a South African Jew and ardent Zionist, has been savagely attacked by Israel and its lobbyists since his report on violations by both Hamas and Israel was released.”
BIDEN PROMISES ISRAEL STRONG SUPPORT
The US Vice President Joe Biden promised the Israeli government that it had the strong support of Washington and said the US was committed to preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, the London Guardian reported (9/3/10). "There is no space between the US and Israel when it comes to Israel's security," he said, after meeting the Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, in Jerusalem.
BIDEN CONDEMNS ISRAEL’S 1600 NEW HOMES PLAN
US Vice-President Joe Biden condemned Israel's approval of 1,600 new homes for ultra-Orthodox Jews in East Jerusalem, the BBC reported (9/3/10). Mr Biden, in Israel as part of US attempts to kick-start the peace process, said it was "the kind of step that undermines the trust we need". Palestinian leaders also condemned the controversial move. Israel insisted it was a procedural step with no connection to Mr Biden's visit. The international community considers East Jerusalem occupied territory. Building on occupied land is illegal under international law, but Israel regards East Jerusalem - which it annexed in 1967 - as its territory. REPORT: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8558850.stm
BIDEN: PLEDGED US SUPPORT FOR A VIABLE PALESTINIAN STATE
US Vice President Joe Biden told Palestinian leaders on Wednesday that Washington will hold accountable any side that hurts peace prospects, pointedly citing Israel's settlement expansion plans. He also pledged US support for a viable Palestinian state and put his full weight behind indirect talks the Palestinians reluctantly agreed to hold with Israel after a 14-month hiatus. "I promise you, Mr President," he said, turning to Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas, "the United States will also stand with those who take the risks that peace requires."
REPORT: http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/biden-condemns-israel-settlement-move-at-palestinian-talks- 20100311-pzkg.html
AFRICA
UN RIGHTS CHIEF CALLS FOR NEW APPROACH TO END NIGERIAN VIOLENCE
Nigerian soldier runs past a
burnt-out truck in Jos
The UN human rights chief said she was appalled by the latest “massacre” of hundreds of villagers in northern Nigeria, and called for authorities to tackle the underlying causes of the tension in the region, the UN News reported (9/3/10).
As many as 500 people in the area around the city of Jos may have been killed last weekend during the latest wave of clashes between Christians and Muslims, which followed similar attacks in January and in November 2009.
“In both cases, women and children and elderly people were among those who were viciously slaughtered,” High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said in a news release. “After the January killings, the villages should have been properly protected.”
She stressed that better security is clearly vital, but added that it would be a mistake to think of the situation as simply sectarian or ethnic violence, and to treat it solely as a security issue.
“What is most needed is a concerted effort to tackle the underlying causes of the repeated outbreaks of ethnic and religious violence which Nigeria has witnessed in recent years, namely discrimination, poverty and disputes over land,” she stated.
“The government needs to address these issues head-on.” Ms Pillay said it was essential that the forces of law and order in the Jos region act in a “visibly even-handed fashion,” and that justice is seen to be done by all sides.
REPORT: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=34015&Cr=nigeria&Cr1=
NIGERIAN GANGS KILL 100 WEILDING MACHETED
At least 100 people have been reported killed in suspected religious clashes near the central Nigerian city of Jos, the BBC reported (7/3/10). Witnesses said several villages just outside of the city were attacked simultaneously overnight.
Acting President Goodluck Jonathan has put security forces in central Nigeria on full alert.
In January hundreds of people were killed in riots in Jos, which lies between the mainly Muslim north and the more Christian south. Ethnic and religious riots also broke out in 2008, killing hundreds.
The attack happened before dawn on Sunday morning when gangs of men descended on several communities, centred on the village of Dogo-Nahawa, and attacked people with machetes, reports say.
A resident of Dogo-Nahawa said the attackers had fired guns as they entered the village.
"The shooting was just meant to bring people from their houses and then when people came out they started cutting them with machetes," Peter Jang told Reuters. An aid worker with the Christian charity Stefanus Foundation, Mark Lipdo, said at least 100 people had been killed. REPORT: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8554304.stm
RED CROSS ASSISTING VICTIMS OF JOS VIOLENCE
In the wake of last Sunday's violent attacks south of Jos, in northern Nigeria, the Nigerian Red Cross Society is distributing food and water to about 5,000 displaced people (IDPs), who had taken refuge in police stations and to some 300 detainees (11/3/10).
An additional 3,000 people have fled from Jos to camps in the neighbouring state of Bauchi, where some 3,800 people displaced by violent clashes that occurred in January were already sheltered. Nigerian Red Cross volunteers are currently registering newly displaced people in Bauchi and assessing their situation in coordination with the National Emergency Management Agency.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is working alongside the Nigerian Red Cross to evaluate further needs of those harmed by the clashes. So far, some 50 individuals have been reported missing. A Red Cross team is collecting their names and photographs with the aim of finding them and reuniting them with their families.
The violent attacks in five villages 30km south of Jos in Plateau state left hundreds of people dead and forced thousands more to flee their homes, according to government estimates. Nigerian Red Cross volunteers evacuated 28 injured persons to Jos University Teaching Hospital and gave first aid to 137 wounded detainees at the city's police headquarters.
$60M NEEDED TO AID 110 000 CONGOLESE REFUGEES
DRC refugees living close to the border
between the Republic of Congo and the CAR
The UN and its partners launched an appeal for just under $60 million to help more than 100,000 refugees from the north west of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) who fled ethnic violence to seek refuge in neighbouring Republic of Congo (ROC), the UN News reported (9/3/10).
The funds will help some 110,000 refugees, the vast majority of whom are women and children, as well as 58,000 people in the Republic of Congo’s host areas for a six-month period.
Clashes broke out last October when Enyele militiamen launched deadly assaults on ethnic Munzayas over fishing and farming rights in the Dongo area of Equateur province. The tensions enveloped most of Equateur, sending some 114,000 to the Republic of Congo, driving some 60,000 to other parts of the province, and forcing an additional 17,000 people to seek refuge in the Central African Republic (CAR).
The government and people of the ROC have once again responded generously to refugees escaping fighting in the DRC, said John Holmes, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. “But they have very limited resources and a small population, over half of whom subsist on $1.25 per day,” he said. “Significant support is therefore required from the international community.”
The refugees are scattered across more than 100 sites – living with host families, sheltering in abandoned huts or building makeshift settlements – along a 500km stretch of the Oubangui River. In most areas, they vastly outnumber the local population by five to one. Low river levels are also compounding difficulties, resulting in relief supplies having to be ferried or flown in. REPORT: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=34020&Cr=democratic&Cr1=congo
EUROPE
END OF NORTHERN IRELAND STRIFE HAILED
The devolution of policing and justice powers to Northern Ireland marks the end to decades of strife, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said, the BBC reported (9/3/10).
Out of the 105 votes cast in the NI Assembly, a total of 88 supported the move, with 17 against. Mr Brown said the politics of progress had now replaced politics of division.
"It sends the most powerful message to those who would return to violence: that democracy and tolerance will prevail," he said. "The courage and leadership of the parties who voted to complete devolution at Stormont will be noted around the world." Policing and justice powers will now be devolved on April 12 after a 38-year gap.
REPORT: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/8558466.stm