Bangladesh War Crimes Lawyers Harassed – HRW

Human Rights Watch (HRW) have criticised an armed police raid on the offices of a prominent defence lawyer in the Bangladeshi war crimes trials, calling the raid ‘a grave affront to the basic tenets of fair trials.’ Asia Director at HRW, Brad Adams said: “A raid by armed intelligence officers on the offices of defence lawyers without a warrant and for no discernible reason marks a very dangerous turn in an already flawed process,” “The Bangladeshi government needs to publicly condemn this action or risk the appearance of being responsible for this egregious violation of fair trial standards...

Cameron urges for patience on Iran nuclear issue

British Prime Minister David Cameron has urged the international community to show “courage” and allow the sanctions, which have been imposed on Iran, to take effect. Speaking at a United Jewish Israel Appeal in London he said that this was not the time for Israel to take military action against Iran. "I have said to Prime Minister Netanyahu that now is not the time for Israel to resort to military action. "Beyond the unpredictable dangers inherent in any conflict, the other reason is this: at the very moment when the regime faces unprecedented pressure and the people are on the streets; and...

Karadzic tells court - 'I should be rewarded'

Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic began his defence against charges of genocide at The Hague on Tuesday, telling the court that he should be rewarded for his actions during the Bosnian war. In his statement he told the court, "I should have been rewarded for all the good things that I've done because I did everything within human power to avoid the war and to reduce the human suffering, "Neither I nor anyone else that I know thought that there would be a genocide against those who were not Serbs." Dismissing the charges against him as "lies, propaganda and rumours", Karadzic continued to...

Video shows Sudanese crimes against humanity claims activist group

Satellite imagery and a video from the mobile phone of a Sudanese soldier shows that the Sudanese armed forces are continuing to commit crimes against humanity in the Nuba mountains, according to activist group the Satellite Sentinel Project (SSP). The video shows a teenager being tied up in a truck by Sudanese security forces while a village erupts in flames in the background. The SSP stated that the video shows Sudanese police, army and militia forces attacking the village of Gardud al Badry in South Kordofan. John Prendergast, co-founder of the Enough Project, a partner in the SSP, stated...

Serbian President denies genocide - again

Serbia President Tomislav Nikolic has once again denied that genocide took place in Srebrenica in comments made to an Italian newspaper. Nikolic told Corriere della Sera , "Genocide did not take place in Srebrenica... This is about individual guilt of members of the Serb people. The Serbian parliament condemned this crime, but did not say it was genocide. No Serb recognises that genocide took place in Srebrenica, and I am no different." Predrag Simic, professor at the Belgrade Faculty of Political Sciences commented on Nikolic's statement, saying that the majority of Serbs still do not...

Hague - 'Rape is a weapon of war. We must confront it'

Writing in The Times newspaper, the British Foreign Secretary William Hague, asserted that "rape is a weapon of war" and "Britain will lead a global effort to end the culture of impunity that surrounds this monstrous crime." See here for full article. Extracts reproduced below: From Bosnia to the Democratic Republic of Congo we have seen rape used as a terrifying weapon of war. Inflicted systematically and sometimes to order from the highest levels, it is as much a means of waging war as are bullets or tanks. And more often than not it is carried out not by invading armies but by one group against another: deliberately to destroy, degrade, humiliate and scar political opponents or entire ethnic and religious groups. The number of victims involved is utterly chilling. In Rwanda alone, up to 400,000 women are estimated to have been raped in the 100-day genocide of 1994. The vast majority of victims are women and children, but men are often targeted too. Guilt lies with those who commit these crimes, but the shame falls on the whole world. For we have failed to act in a concerted way against this problem and have allowed a culture of impunity to develop. The shocking truth is that very few perpetrators have ever been put on trial for rape in conflict and even fewer have gone to prison. In wartime Bosnia, up to 50,000 women were raped, but only 30 men have ever been convicted. Given this record, the government forces and militia committing rape in Syria today probably expect they will simply get away with it. As a man I feel appalled by this, and as Foreign Secretary I believe that it is within our power to do something about it. Moreover, I am convinced that this is a cause that Britain must champion. Ours is one of the few countries in the world with the global reach, resources and diplomatic network to be able to set a lead and so it is our responsibility to do so. I believe that the time has come for a concerted international effort to challenge the use of rape as a weapon of war and to shatter the culture of impunity.

MILF and Philippines sign peace plan

The Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have signed a peace plan they agreed earlier this month. The deal was signed by representatives of both parties and witnessed bythe Philippine president, Benigno Aquino, and the leader of MILF, Murad Ebrahim. The deal will see the establishment of an autonomous region in the Muslim-majority south of the country. The agreement stipulates that the leaders of the new autonomous region, named Bangsamoro, would be given more political and economic powers and that law enforcement would gradually be transferred back to the police, after...

EU renews Belarus sanctions due to continuing human rights concerns.

The European Union reinstated its sanctions against individuals and companies linked to the Belarus government for another year, due to Belarus’ failure to improve its human rights record. The Council of the European Union called on the Belarusian authorities to mend their ways, stating, “The Council again calls upon the Belarusian authorities to stop the harassment of civil society, the political opposition and the independent media.” According to an EU official, recent elections conducted by the Belarusian president Lukashenko, were marred by the widespread harassment of critics, the use of...

5 UK marines charged with Afghanistan murder

The British Ministry of Defence has stated that 5 Royal Marines have been charged with murder, over an incident that occurred in Afghanistan in 2011. The 5 are part of a group of 9 that were initially arrested, with 4 later released. The arrests occurred after a video was found showing the Marines discussing whether to give medical aid to an injured Taliban fighter. Philip Hammond, the Secretary of State for the Defence, declined to comment on the case but said , “Everybody serving in theatre knows the rules of engagement, they carry cards in their uniforms with the rules on them in case they...

'Historic agreement' on Scottish independence referendum

The Scottish First Minister, Alex Salmond, and the British Prime Minister David Cameron signed the agreement for a referendum on Scottish independence in 2014 - 'The Edinburgh agreement'. The referendum will be a simple yes/no vote, despite Salmond's push to have a third option of "devo max", however, as Salmond had campaigned for, the vote will be extended to 16 and 17 year olds. The agreement is a Section 30 Order must be agreed by the governments of Holyrood and Westminister. After being approved the Scottish government will instigate legislation for the vote, which must take place before...

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