Malawi's refusal to arrest Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted for war crimes in Darfar, has sparked international condemnation. Bashir arrived in Malawi for a trade summit on Thursday. Human rights groups and the European Union have urged Malawi, a signatory to the ICC, to arrest Bashir. A n arrest warrant was issued for Bashir, by the International Criminal court, in 2008. In a statement released on Friday, EU foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said, " The European Union is a staunch supporter of the ICC and the fight against impunity ." " The Court is a valuable instrument of the international community to ensure that there is no impunity for the most serious crimes of international concern : genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes must not go unpunished and their prosecution must be ensured by measures at both domestic and international level ,"
Human Rights Watch has accused the Philippines army of falsely labeling innocent children as members of the rebel New People’s Army and taking them into custody. In a press release , Elaine Pearson deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said, “The army is concocting stories of rebel child soldiers that are putting children at risk for propaganda purposes. The government should get the military to stop this despicable practice and investigate the officers involved.” The New York-based group investigated three cases of alleged child soldiers being captured by the government forces and...
Amnesty International has stated that upto 2500 Gaddaffi forces being detained by Libya's National Transitional Council are beign subjected to beating, torture and abuse. In a report released on Thursday, Amnesty alleges that whipping and screaming could be heard from detention centres and those prisoners who have subsequently been interviewed by the human rights group have confirmed such reports. Amnesty's deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa, Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, said, "There is a real risk that without firm and immediate action, some patterns of the past might be repeated...
Serbia must re-engage with Kosovo and improve relations in order to become a candidate for joining the European Union said the European Commission in a report released today. Enlargement commissioner for the EU Stefan Fule said he recommended granting candidate status to Serbia "on the understanding that Serbia re-engages in the dialogue with Kosovo and is moving swiftly to the implementation in good faith of agreements reached to date." Membership talks will commence when further steps are taken to normalise relations with Kosovo, Mr Fule added. Serbia has handed over the last two war crimes...
The British Foreign Secretary has summoned the Syrian ambassador and warned that Britain will not allow the intimidation of Syrian dissidents in the UK. William Hague told Parliament on Thursday, "The Syrian ambassador was summoned to the Foreign Office this morning and told that any harassment or intimidation of Syrians in our country is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. " British police are also launching an investigation into allegations that Syrian diplomats photographed pro-democracy protestors in London and sent them back to Damascus. It is alleged that these photos were then...
Amnesty International has called on the Canadian government to arrest former US President George W. Bush. Amnesty opines that enough evidence exists in the public domain to give rise to an obligation for an arrest by Canadian authorities if Bush arrives for a planned visit on the 20th of October. Former President Bush is accused of having authorised the CIA to conduct a secret detention programme where acts of torture were committed and of publicly stating that he himself authorised the use of waterboarding on individuals whose torture has been confirmed. As the former Commander-in-Chief for...
Recent developments in Burma have been cautiously welcomed by western diplomats, while NGO’s accuse the Burmese government of war crimes. Burma has seen a shift in policy since the first elections in 20 years and the release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in November last year. Talks between the Nobel Peace laureate and the government are thought to be behind positive steps taken by the government to address concerns of the Burmese population.
In a sign that they may be losing patience with the Syrian regime, China called on President Assad to speed up with implementing reforms as anti-government protests continue to rock the country. Foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin gave a statement saying , “China is highly concerned about the situation in Syria, is against the use of violence, and we hope not to see any more bloodshed and casualties.” "We believe the Syrian government should move faster to honour its reform pledges and swiftly start to push forward the inclusive political process with the broad participation of all parties...
Israel and Hamas have come to an agreement to free Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit for over 1,000 Palestinian political prisoners. The deal, brokered by Egypt was met with jubilation on both sides of the border. 25 year old Gilad Shalit was captured in June 2006 in a cross-border raid by Hamas and has been held captive in Gaza since. 1,027 Palestinian detainees are expected to be released, said Hamas leader Khaled Meshal. The prisoners will be freed in two phases, with 450 released within one week and another 550 within two months, after the release of Gilad Shalit. Priority has been given to...
The UN Decolonisation Committee reaffirmed its belief that self-determination and independence are the inalienable right of all people on Monday with particular reference to the people of Western Sahara, currently living under Moroccan rule. South Africa's representative condemned the UN's inaction over the issue, describing the UN as "paralysed". Highlighting the thirty year delay in the referendum, originally mandated by the UN Security Council, he called for a renewed affort to hold such a referendum. Timor-Leste's representative, comparing Western Sahara's struggle for self-determinatnion...