A barbarous campaign of rape
Rape and other forms of sexual violence continue to be used as weapons in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Although the government and rebel groups signed a ceasefire agreement in January, nothing seems to have changed in the eastern border provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu. UN reports tell of gang rapes, forced incest and a thriving sex slave culture. (The Economist, 05/01/08).
Freed Sudanese cameraman calls Gitmo history’s worst jail
Sami al-Haj, an Al Jazeera cameraman, was held for a total of 2,340 days under suspicion of being a courier for an Islamist organization. Al-Haj believes that his arrest and detention was solely done to punish Al Jazeera for reporting on U.S. human rights violations in Afghanistan. Al-Haj’s claims as to his inhumane treatment do not come as a surprise after a U.S. government agency this week released a report that showed that 66 detainees had died (UPI, 05/05/08) in immigration custody from January 2004-November 2007. (Yahoo! News, 05/05/08).
Somali police kill 5 food protesters: witnesses
A tragic set of events led to the killing of five protesters in Mogadishu this week. Spiralling inflation caused food traders this week to stop accepting old bank notes on the grounds that they could be counterfeit. This in turn led many Somalis into the street in protest. A number of encounters with the police left five dead altogether. Amnesty International reports that there have been widespread incidents of murder and rape across the country as the government spends its energy fighting rebels (Amnesty International, 05/06/08). (Al Arabiya, 05/05/08).
Nigeria: Bread strike threatens food supply
The Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria has gone on strike to protest rising flour prices, causing bread supplies to dwindle across the nation. The Nigerian government blamed the international shortage of grain as the cause of the rising prices. (IRIN News, 05/05/08).
Zimbabwe: 59 protesters beaten up, 11 arrested
(IRIN News, 05/06/08)
Members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) were attacked by police in Bulawayo as they protested to end political violence. Reports indicate that a police van drove into the crowd of protesters, whereupon policemen beat up more than 50 of the group’s members and arrested 11 of its leaders.
Tears, anxiety as IDPs arrive home
Kenyan refugees returned home by the thousands this week as the Kibaki-Raila government stabilized itself. The return was not completely joyous, since claims of forced resettlement and government threats have been voiced by the already-frightened returning refugees. (The Standard, 05/06/08).
Kurdish rebels threaten suicide attacks against U.S.
Turkey’s latest military campaign against the Kurdish Workers’ Party led to 150 fatalities. The rebels, who are present in Turkey, Iraq and Iran, claimed that they had now targeted the U.S. for sharing intelligence on their whereabouts with Turkey. (Yahoo! News, 05/05/08).
Supposed progress in Palestine
Israel has jubilantly declared, in the week of its 60th anniversary of statehood, renewed progress on drawing out the borders of a future Palestinian state (AFP, 05/05/08). Additionally as its anniversary comes close, Israel has put the West Bank on lockdown for three days so that celebrations will not be tarnished by anything Palestinian (Al Arabiya, 05/05/08). The Palestinians are not too impressed either, and have asked the U.S. to monitor the talks (The New York Times, 05/04/08), especially in terms of border lines. The talks may also be clouded over by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s tarnished image in light of fresh allegations of corruption that have been leveled against him (Al Jazeera, 05/04/08).
Turkey’s PM to form new party if AKP closed
With the public prosecutor planning to try and ban both the AK Party as well as 71 of its members from politics for anti-secular activities, Prime Minister and AK Party leader Tayyip Erdogan swung back. Though earnestly refuting the claims against his party, Erdogan claimed that if the party were shut down, he would run as an independent candidate. (Al Arabiya, 05/05/06).
Scores killed in Yemen clashes
A major offensive by the Yemeni army to recapture a military base in Saada led to the death of 20 Shi’ite rebel fighters and the injury of six soldiers. Rebel leader Abdel Malak al-Hawthi said that tribal elders were fostering a cease-fire between the government and Shia rebels, but warned that the latter were willing to go to war if needed. (Al Jazeera, 05/05/08).
Iran woman activist gets suspended jail sentence
In an effort to crack down on dissent, the Iranian Revolutionary Court is handing down several suspended sentences to noted activists. Parvin Ardalan received her second suspended sentence this week for playing a part in a gathering of activists last year. She has also been barred from leaving Tehran to accept a Swedish human rights award. (Reuters, 05/05/08)
Iran accused of training Shi’ite militants in Iraq
Iraqi Shi’ite militia members are training (Reuters, 05/05/08) in a camp near Tehran, the U.S. claims, basing its intelligence on supposed knowledge gathered during interrogations of militia members. Iraqi legislators have been influenced enough by this information to have declared the set-up of a committee (UPI, 05/05/08) to investigate these allegations. Iran seems to be, as with all other allegations leveled against it, playing a cool hand (Asia Times Online, 05/03/08). Iran has, however, ended all hopes of holding talks with the U.S. over Iraqi security while the latter continues to fight Shi’ite forces in Sadr City.
Luxury hotels and golf: welcome to the Green Zone
A new scheme by the Pentagon seeks to build a golf course, luxury hotel and other such sectors into the Green Zone in an effort to bring tourism to the area. The $5 billion project may be the army’s way to try and make some money out of its extended sojourn in the country. Despite the visions of serene putting greens, visitors will have to tend with the very real possibilities of being killed by militants (Reuters 05/05/08). (The Guardian, 05/06/08).
A Turkmen dismantles reminders of old ruler
(International Herald Tribune, 05/05/08)
A 246-foot tall pedestal and statue of former Turkmenistan dictator Sapamurat Niyazov is the latest sign of old times to be removed by President Gurbanguly Burdymukhammedov. Other such items that have been removed include Niyazov’s name from the days of the week, as well as bans on the opera and circuses.
Taliban claim victory from a defeat
U.S. and coalition forces may have captured the stronghold of Garmsir, but the real fight is ongoing. Taliban training camps are still churning out many new fighters, a disturbing 60% of whom are Pakistani (The Guardian, 05/05/08), according to a local intelligence chief. Leftover mines are becoming deadly problems as well (Al Jazeera, 05/05/08), with the most recent of explosions having claimed six lives, of which three belonged to children. The recent assassination attempt on President Hamid Karzai by defense personnel shows that the government has as much to fear from itself as it does from militant groups on the fringes of the country (Al Jazeera, 05/05/08). (Asia Times Online, 05/03/08).
Anger in Pakistan at poll delays
Leading political parties have decried the delay of some by-elections by two months as a step back for democracy. The election commissioner claims that the delay is taking place partly due to security concerns because of the unstable conditions in Pakistan’s north-west territories that continue to be a stronghold for the Taliban and al Qaeda. President Pervez Musharraf assures that he had nothing to do with the delay. (BBC News, 05/05/08).
South Korean beef overcooked
President Lee Myung-bak may not yet be able to have the steady relationship with the U.S. that he yearns for. Tens of thousands of youth have taken to the streets of Seoul to protest Lee’s caving in to U.S. pressure to un-ban American beef imports. (Asia Times Online, 05/06/08).
China backpedals
China is facing environmental challenges from within as well as without. U.S. President George Bush’s recent comments against the country and its neighbor India noted its substantial consumption and pollution rates (Asia Times Online, 05/06/08). A recent grassroots anti-pollution march in the west of China gave the government even more to worry about as citizens decried the construction of a petrochemical factory and oil refinery there (International Herald Tribune, 05/05/08). China could do little other than concentrate on its other headache – Tibet. Though agreeing to hold more talks with Tibetan protesters (Al Jazeera, 05/04/08), China has Slyly accused the Tibetan Young Congress (TYC) of having links with that most over-used of terrorist groups – al Qaeda (The Times of India, 05/06/08). Few people outside the country are backing up China’s opposition to Tibetan protesters other than one of the Olympics main sponsors – Adidas (Der Spiegel, 05/03/08).
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For more exclusive reports from GNN contributors, read Nathan Coe’s Labor News Roundup, Charles Mostoller’s Turtle Island Roundup and mwm’s If you knew…