Peace and Justice Post

UN News Centre

1 July 2008 – A three-member United Nations team investigative team has received accounts of grave economic, health and human rights conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly in Gaza, from witnesses it interviewed in Jordan, the second stop on a three-nation visit that also includes Egypt and Syria. In a statement issued at the end of its visit to Amman, the UN Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories expressed serious concern about reports it received about the “strangulation” of the Palestinian economy, the impact of the separation wall on the human rights of Palestinians, expanding settlements, and the condition of the Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons and detention centres. Witnesses spoke about the impact of the Israeli border control regime and other trade-related restrictions and obstacles on the economy in the occupied Palestinian territory. The team also heard about difficulties in accessing water, worsening sanitary conditions in Gaza and deteriorating health conditions, particularly among children. According to the testimony received, serious restrictions on the right to freedom of movement has in turn severely curtailed a wide range of other human rights including the rights to health, education, work and family life. Several witnesses detailed infringements on the human rights of more than 10,000 Palestinian detainees including women and children in Israeli prisons and detention centres, such as lack of legal guarantees, torture and ill-treatment and harassment. “Such policies and practices affecting Palestinian people are a serious threat to the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people and must be halted immediately,” the Special Committee said. The group was particularly concerned by testimonies received about a draft Israeli Law regarding civil damages, by which residents of the occupied Palestinian territory would be prevented from seeking compensation for damages inflicted on them by Israeli security forces, even in cases where damages – to property or to the person, including torture – were caused outside the context of military operations. The Special Committee will continue its visit to the region in Syria from 1 to 5 July.

Monthly Review, June 2008
Ellen Brun and Jaques Hersh

In trying to comprehend the virus of Islamophobia now infecting Europe, the small country of Denmark offers powerful insights. Shakespeare’s phrase that “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” seems appropriate to describe the transformation taking place in this former bastion of tolerance and conviviality.

In the course of one generation, beginning in the 1980s, a process has altered the ideal picture that many informed people throughout the world had of Danish society. The transition has been dramatic and the end point of the process difficult to fathom. Even politically aware Danes are somewhat at a loss to explain what exactly has been happening to the Danish political culture.

The Danish body politic has of course never been an undifferentiated monolith. The Second World War was an ambivalent chapter in the country’s history. Although there were substantial pro-Nazi sentiments among the upper sections of the population and the Danish government collaborated with the German occupation forces, there was an armed resistance movement and ordinary Danes helped a considerable number of Danish Jews escape to neutral Sweden.

In the postwar era, the Social Democratic Party benefited from the general progressive mood of the population. In the context of the defeat of Nazi-Germany and its Danish sympathizers on the one hand, and the existence of strong pro-Socialist sentiments within the working class on the other, Social Democracy aimed at humanizing capitalism through the construction of a “welfare state.” The project of “capitalism with a human face” served a variety of political purposes. It neutralized the anticapitalism of the working class while preserving the interests of the capitalist class. It also offered a counterpoint to the Soviet model of state socialism with regard to the post-colonial world. Especially in Africa, comparatively generous and effective Danish development assistance, implemented by Social Democratic governments, promoted an alternative to strategies of self-reliance or dependency on the socialist bloc. The vision of “capitalism with a human face” was thought accomplished, until the liberalization of capital controls in the 1980s and the onslaught of neoliberalism began to dismantle the “welfare state.” Paradoxically, what had been considered a Social Democratic project was not defended by the Danish Social Democratic party.

Significant changes in the demographic composition of the population took place parallel to the socio-political evolution of the country. This was principally related to the three phases of Muslim immigration which were, in turn, a function of the need of Danish capitalism for labor power, and later the result of political disturbances in predominantly Muslim countries.

The first influx of immigrants, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, came from Turkey, Pakistan, Morocco, and Yugoslavia to find work in Scandinavia. The end of the “golden age” capitalist boom of the 1960s also hit Denmark, with the average annual GDP growth falling from 4.6 percent in 1960–73 to 1.5 percent in 1973–82. And as Danish women started entering the labor market in large numbers, the need for “guest workers” decreased. Unemployment soared from the 2 percent level of the 1960s and early 1970s to rates well over 6 percent in the mid 1970s, and “guest worker” immigration ceased for good. The second wave of immigration in the 1980s was composed of political refugees who came predominantly from Iran, Iraq, and Palestine, and a third wave of political refugees arrived in the 1990s, mainly from Somalia and Bosnia. The category of asylum seekers accounts for about 40 percent of the Danish Muslim population as it came to include the reunification of families and marriages. In 2002, the Folketing, the Danish parliament, passed a law making such reunifications much more difficult as well as countering arranged marriages in the country of origin.

From a political perspective, it is interesting that most asylum seekers came from regions affected directly or indirectly by the policies of the United States or its allies. This applies especially to the Middle East where the United States and Israel have had a direct responsibility for the region’s political evolution. The experience and integration problem of the asylum seekers is quite distinct from that of the foreign workers who filled a temporary gap for labor power. Many in the latter category decided to remain in Denmark and obtain Danish citizenship. This variety of cultures and political backgrounds makes it difficult to speak of the Muslim community as a homogenous bloc. An understanding of why these different people came to Denmark is seldom evident in the on-going debates about the Muslim immigrants.

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Authorities Should Act Against Those Responsible

Source: Human Rights Watch

(New York, July 1, 2008) – The Jammu and Kashmir state government should protect Parvez Imroz, an award-winning human rights lawyer who survived an armed attack on June 30 in Srinagar by alleged security forces members, Human Rights Watch said today. The state government and Human Rights Commission should launch an immediate and thorough investigation into the attack and take criminal action against those responsible.

The Kashmir government should investigate whether the attack on Imroz was related to his work. All members of the security forces found responsible, no matter how far up the chain of command, should be prosecuted. Meenakshi Ganguly, senior South Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch.

Related Material “Everyone Lives in Fear”: Patterns of Impunity in Jammu and Kashmir Report, September 12, 2006 India: UN Rights Council Should Tackle Impunity Press Release, April 7, 2008 More on human rights and India Country Page Free Email Newsletter

“The Kashmir government should investigate whether the attack on Imroz was related to his work,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, senior South Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch. “All members of the security forces found responsible, no matter how far up the chain of command, should be prosecuted.”

According to Imroz, on the night of June 30, nine or 10 men wearing uniforms of the state police and the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force appeared at his Srinagar home and demanded that he come outside. Imroz had recently been investigating scores of unmarked graves in Kashmir to determine if those buried were “disappeared” or part of “fake encounter killings.”

Apprehensive because of previous assassination attempts, Imroz and his wife refused to open the door and called for the help of his brother, Sheik Mustaq Ahmad, who lives next door. Ahmad came out with a flashlight and asked the group of men to identify themselves, but they refused and ordered him to switch off the light. When Imroz’s nephew ran out toward Imroz’s house, one of the men opened fire, but missed. Another man then tossed a grenade at Imroz’s house, which exploded but caused no injuries. When neighbors began to gather, the men left after using tear gas and firing blank shots to disperse the crowd. They also beat up a male neighbor.

Imroz, president of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society and a founder of the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons, was awarded the Ludovic-Trarieux International Human Rights Prize in 2006. For many years, he has been documenting abuses and filing court cases to address the widespread problem of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Kashmir. His work investigating unmarked graves is done as a convener of an unofficial tribunal created by human rights activists. Indian intelligence officials have repeatedly questioned tribunal members.

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By Gareth Porter | War In Iraq, July 2, 2008

WASHINGTON – New arguments by analysts close to Israeli thinking in favor of United States strikes against Iran cite evidence of Iranian military weakness in relation to the US and Israel, and even raise doubts that Iran is rushing to obtain such weapons at all.

The new arguments contradict Israel’s official argument that it faces an “existential threat” from an Islamic extremist Iranian regime determined to get nuclear weapons. They suggest that Israel, which already has as many as 200 nuclear weapons, views Iran from the position of the dominant power in the region rather than as the weaker state in the relationship.

The existence of a sharp imbalance of power in favor of Israel and the United States is the main premise of a recent analysis by Patrick Clawson and Michael Eisenstadt of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) suggesting that a US attack on Iranian nuclear facilities is feasible. Chuck Freilich, a senior fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center on Science and International Affairs, has also urged war against Iran on such a power imbalance.

All three have close ties to the Israeli government. WINEP has long promoted policies favored by Israel, and its founding director, Martin Indyk, was previously research director of the leading pro-Israel lobby, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Freilich is a former Israeli deputy national security adviser.

These analysts, all of whom are pushing for a US, rather than an Israeli attack, argue that Iran’s power to retaliate for a US attack on its nuclear facilities is quite limited. Equally significant, they also emphasize that Iran is a rational actor that would have to count the high costs of retaliation. That conclusion stands in sharp contrast to the official Israeli line that Iran cannot be deterred because of its alleged apocalyptic Islamic viewpoint on war with Israel.

Continued . . .

Muslims in Indian-administered Kashmir charged that the transfer was an attempt to tip the Hindu-Muslim ratio of the area in favor of Hindus. The protests have widened to support for independence.

The land transfer, which was seen by some as an attempt to change the Muslim-Hindu ratio in this Muslim-majority area, sparked huge – sometimes violent – protests in the capital, Srinagar. The protests, in which four people were killed and hundreds injured, were the biggest in Kashmir for years.

The Associated Press reported on Monday that protesters had dismissed the government’s claim that it would renege on transferring the land and vowed to continue with the protests.

By Sunday, the protests appeared to have evolved into pro-independence agitations.

“Our protests will continue until we achieve freedom from Indian domination,” Mirwaiz Omer Farooq, head of the moderate faction All Parties Hurriyat Conference, told a crowd of protesters in Srinagar. The crowd chanted “We reject Kashmir’s auction” and “We want freedom.”

Greater Kashmir, a local newspaper, elaborated upon the separatist leader’s motivations.

Mirwaiz termed the present struggle as peoples’ movement. “The resentment of people is not only against land occupation, but also against cultural, political and army aggression of New Delhi in Kashmir. It is sentiment for Azadi (freedom) and New Delhi should without any further delay address the basic issue. Even if the land transfer order is revoked, sentiment of Azadi will remain,” he added.

The government had originally said it would transfer 99 acres of forest land to the Amarnath Shrine Board, which manages a Hindu shrine in the area, saying it was necessary to build huts and toilets for the many pilgrims that visit the area.

Each year, thousands of Hindus trek to a Kashmir cave, situated at an altitude of 3,800 meters (2.3 miles), which they believe is an abode of the god Shiva. Last year, 400,000 pilgrims visited the cave, staying in tents and prompting the government to find new ways to accommodate them.

The BBC reported the view of separatists who believe that the land transfer “was part of a ‘conspiracy to settle non-local Hindus in the valley with a view to reducing the Muslims to a minority’.”

The Hindu, an Indian daily, reported that the situation was a little calmer on Sunday after the authorities imposed a curfew in Srinagar. The police had used batons and tear gas against protesters, who had responded by throwing stones. But the report also hinted at more trouble to come.

As the authorities imposed “undeclared curfew” with stringent security measures, the level of protests came down but the Mirwaiz led a protest in downtown and demanded the revocation of the land order. He said a sea of people would throng the city on Tuesday in response to a “Srinagar Chalo” call by the Action Committee on Land Transfer (ACALT).

The Kashmir Observer reported on Sunday that the situation remained tense, and that life was becoming increasingly difficult for some in the area.

However in more volatile areas where pro-freedom sentiments have traditionally been high, police failed to keep youth off the roads. The protesters, mostly young and teenagers, burned tires, created road blocks and held noisy protests chanting ‘favourite’ slogan – Ham Kya Chahtay: Azadi or “we want freedom”.

Similar reports have come in from other major towns where for last seven days people are observing a spontaneous strike.

This despite the fact that people are facing acute shortage of essential commodities, including vegetables, milk and bread because truck services bringing in such commodities from rural areas and from outside the state too have been grounded for past one week.

The political fallout of the controversy is likely to last longer than the protests themselves.

On Saturday night, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), a key partner in Jammu-Kashmir’s ruling coalition, which is led by the Congress party, withdrew its support of the government, saying it had not acted fast enough to quell the protests.

The Calcutta Telegraph later reported that Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad did not want his former allies in the PDP to rejoin the government, even though his government had been significantly weakened by their withdrawal.

Azad, who has accused the PDP of pushing the land deal and then doing an about-turn, today got the governor to accept the resignation of its ministers.

Other parties castigated the government for succumbing to pressure over the land transfer, according to the Indian television news channel NDTV.

CNN-IBN, another leading Indian news channel, said India’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had called for a general strike to protest the government’s decision to back down.

“The whole issue has been given a communal colour by the Congress and the PDP, and they are being supported by the National Conference in that. People in Jammu feel hurt,” state BJP In-charge, R P Singh said.

The government has said that, in the future, it will provide accommodations for pilgrims traveling to the sacred cave.

IRIN News

Photo: Masoud Popalzai/IRIN An armed guard travels with a WFP food consignment. WFP said it has suffered 40 attacks on its food aid trucks over the past 18 months KABUL, 30 June 2008 (IRIN) – Conflict and natural disasters have caused a “serious” and “deteriorating” humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and the aid community must scale up its efforts to meet the needs of vulnerable people, John Holmes, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told IRIN in Kabul. Hear the radio version of this report in Dari or Pashto Holmes arrived in Afghanistan on 26 June for a four-day visit to get first-hand knowledge of the humanitarian problems there and assess the response capacity. “It [the humanitarian situation] is serious and I think it is deteriorating. We need to give it more attention and that’s why I am here,” Holmes said. Afghanistan – the fifth least developed country in the world – is facing multiple humanitarian challenges largely resulting from an intensifying conflict, drought and large-scale refugee repatriation from neighbouring countries. Humanitarian strategy needed While the Afghan government and donors are allocating more funding to development and institution-building in the country, Holmes said more resources are needed to respond to the emergency needs of millions of vulnerable people. “We need to have more of a humanitarian strategy, an action plan, than we had before. That’s very much on the agenda for us and I think that will need to go with more resource mobilisation. We need more resources,” said Holmes, adding that donors “will respond generously” to a “right kind of strategy and a right kind of scaling up of our activities”. International donors have spent over US$15 billion on rebuilding and humanitarian initiatives in Afghanistan over the past six years. But aid agencies such as Oxfam International have repeatedly said that aid money has not been used effectively and appropriately and as a result the needs of most Afghans had largely remained unmet. Holmes, who also heads the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that aid agencies are “waking up” to the realities in Afghanistan and some of the humanitarian issues that had been “neglected” for a while after 2001 have regained importance. “No magic solution” Photo: Emmanuel Dunseath/IRIN “There is not a magic solution and while the conflict is going on we have to work around the conflict. We cannot solve the conflict as humanitarians. What we can try to do is to help the victims of it.” John Holmes However, Holmes acknowledged the hazardous conditions in which aid agencies were trying to operate. Insecurity and attacks on humanitarian actors have been impeding aid agencies’ access to large swathes of the country, denying urgent assistance to thousands of people. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said it has suffered 40 attacks on its food aid trucks over the past 18 months in which 1,000 metric tonnes of food, worth $800,000, have been lost. Consequent delays in aid delivery to vulnerable people across Afghanistan have caused frustration among some communities and aid agencies have been criticised for their inability to respond timely and effectively. “There is not a magic solution and while the conflict is going on we have to work around the conflict. We cannot solve the conflict as humanitarians. What we can try to do is to help the victims of it,” Holmes said, adding that attacks on WFP aid convoys were a “violation of international humanitarian law”. But he also stressed the need to engage with opposition groups purely for the purpose of facilitating the delivery of aid to volatile areas. Holmes said the humanitarian community does this in other countries and that it may become necessary in Afghanistan too. “It’s important that where, for example, there are vaccination campaigns which need to be conducted – particularly against polio, but also against other diseases – we are able to negotiate days of peace or days of tranquillity or humanitarian corridors so that those operations can proceed peacefully and without incident,” he said. ad/at/ed

By BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer

SF Gate, Monday, June 30, 2008

sfgate_get_fprefs(); (06-30) 14:44 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) —

President Bush on Monday signed legislation to pay for the war operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of his presidency and beyond, hailing the $162 billion plan as a rare product of bipartisan cooperation.

“This bill shows the American people that even in an election year, Republicans and Democrats can come together to stand behind our troops and their families,” Bush said in an Oval Office ceremony.

Bush made clear to thank members of both parties in Congress, singling out some sponsors of the long-delayed, compromise measure for praise. His positive comments contrasted with the confrontational tone that has dominated the debate between Congress and his administration over Iraq.

The legislation will bring to more than $650 billion the amount Congress has provided for the Iraq war since it began more than five years ago. For operations in Afghanistan, the total is nearly $200 billion, according to congressional officials.

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U.S. Offical Sees Two ‘Red Lines’ That Could Prompt Strike

Senior Pentagon officials are concerned that Israel could carry out an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities before the end of the year, an action that would have enormous security and economic repercussions for the United States and the rest of the world.

Wearing protective clothes, an Iranian security person walks at a part of the Uranium Conversion Facility, just outside the city of Isfahan, 410 kilometers south of the capital Tehran, Iran, March 30, 2005.

(Vahid Salemi/AP Photo)

A senior defense official told ABC News there is an “increasing likelihood” that Israel will carry out such an attack, a move that likely would prompt Iranian retaliation against, not just Israel, but against the United States as well.

The official identified two “red lines” that could trigger an Israeli offensive. The first is tied to when Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility produces enough highly enriched uranium to make a nuclear weapon. According to the latest U.S. and Israeli intelligence assessments, that is likely to happen sometime in 2009, and could happen by the end of this year.

“The red line is not when they get to that point, but before they get to that point,” the official said. “We are in the window of vulnerability.”

The second red line is connected to when Iran acquires the SA-20 air defense system it is buying from Russia. The Israelis may want to strike before that system — which would make an attack much more difficult — is put in place.

Some Pentagon officials also worry that Israel may be determined to attack before a new U.S. president, who may be less supportive, is sworn in next January.

Pentagon officials believe the massive Israeli air force exercise in early June, first reported by the New York Times, was done to prepare for a possible attack. A senior official called it “not a rehearsal, but basic, fundamental training” required to launch an operation against Iran.

“The Israeli air force has already conducted the basic exercise necessary to tell their senior leadership, ‘We have the fundamentals down.’ Might they need some more training and rehearsals? Yes. But have they done the fundamentals? I think that is what we saw,” the official told ABC News, adding that if Israel moves closer to military action, he expects to see more exercises like the one conducted in early June.

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