K E R A L A M O N I T O R . C O M

The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Babu Lal Gaur, the Chief Minister of Kerala, Shri Oommen Chandy, the Chief Minister of Uttaranchal, Shri N. D. Tiwari and the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Mulayam Singh Yadav at the 51st Meeting of National Development Council in New Delhi on June 27, 2005.

Israel: Bill Would Deny Compensation for Rights Abuses

(Jerusalem, June 26, 2005)—Members of the Israeli Knesset are debating a bill that would prohibit residents in the Occupied Palestinian Territories from seeking compensation for death or injury at the hands of Israeli soldiers, even if the soldiers are found to have acted unlawfully. Human Rights Watch said that Israel has not upheld its obligation under international law to provide an effective remedy to victims of human rights abuses in the Territories, and this bill is yet further evidence of that. On Thursday, Human Rights Watch attended the hearing of the Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee in which members of parliament debated an amendment to the Civil Wrongs (Liability of State) Law, 5712-1952. The proposed amendment would prohibit "a national of an enemy state or a resident of a conflict zone" from bringing claims for compensation against the state in an Israeli court for harm inflicted by Israeli forces. This would apply even if Israeli forces have clearly acted wrongfully and regardless of whether the harm occurs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories or beyond.

The bill would give the minister of defense the authority to define all of the Occupied Palestinian Territories as a "conflict zone," thus precluding compensation for all Palestinians in the territories. The government has stated that it will exclude settlements from "the conflict zone," thus preserving compensation rights for Israeli citizens. The bill seeks to expand an already problematic Israeli law that prohibits compensation for "war operations," which are defined to include "any action combating terror, hostile acts or insurrection, and also an action intended to prevent terror, hostile acts, or insurrection that is taken in a situation endangering life or limb." This would prohibit all residents of a "conflict zone" from seeking compensation whether or not the harm they have suffered is related to any specific operation.

"If implemented, this bill would prohibit Palestinians under occupation from seeking compensation even if an Israeli soldier is found guilty of killing a civilian without any justification at all," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "It sends the message that Israel will offer no remedy to certain victims, no matter
how wrong or unlawful the conduct of its soldiers." Under international human rights law, every state is obliged to provide effective remedies to victims of human rights violations. That requirement includes the obligation to provide victims and their relatives with fair and adequate compensation. In addition, Israel is obligated to investigate, prosecute and punish those responsible for the abuses. Although Israel disputes that its international human rights obligations apply to the Occupied Territories, this view has been rejected definitively by the international bodies responsible for monitoring state compliance under these treaties. Israel is a party to five international human rights treaties that require the state to ensure a remedy to persons whose human rights are violated. "The Knesset should respect Israel’s international legal obligation to provide victims of human rights abuses with compensation," said Whitson. The Israeli government maintains that it has no duty under international law to pay compensation to civilians during a time of armed conflict. The government also claims that there is a permanent state of armed conflict in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. However, as the occupying power, much of the time Israel is policing and performing law enforcement duties instead, Human Rights Watch said.

More than 1,600 civilians have been killed in the territories in situations outside of armed conflict since September 2000. But if implemented as the government has suggested, this bill would preclude compensation for any of the victims of unlawful conduct even in cases outside armed conflict. "Even a situation of actual armed conflict does not preempt all human rights obligations," Whitson said. "Israel still has an obligation to ensure remedies for serious violations." In addition, the Israeli government has claimed that lawsuits filed by Palestinians for compensation would place an undue burden on the state and on reservists who would have to testify. The government also
argued that such cases may require it to disclose classified military intelligence regarding the conduct of military operations. Inconvenience to state agencies and actors, however, is no justification for denying certain victims their rights under international law, Human Rights Watch said.

Furthermore, claims for compensation raise no greater need for disclosure of sensitive information than already exists when courts investigate misconduct by the Israeli military. Israeli courts can determine on a case-by-case basis whether and how to disclose sensitive information in a manner that does not compromise national security. Several Israeli legal scholars have testified that the proposed amendment would contravene not only international law, but Israeli law as well. Mordechai Kremnitzer, professor of constitutional and criminal law at Hebrew University, testified at the hearing that the bill "contradicts Israel’s Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty and … will not withstand judicial scrutiny…. The bill contributes to and reflects the process of the demonization of the Palestinians." Kremnitzer also pointed out that the amendment would enable plaintiffs to successfully seek redress in foreign courts based on their lack of remedy in Israeli courts. Orna Kohn, a staff attorney at the domestic human rights organization Adalah, also testified in opposition to the bill. She said that "approving this bill would not only deprive Palestinians from the right to obtain a basic form of justice — compensation for the wrongs they have suffered — it would also further contribute to the military’s lack of accountability by taking away an important form of sanction for human rights violations committed under its command."

Human Rights Watch on Wednesday released a report, "Promoting Impunity: The Israeli Military’s Failure to Investigate Wrongdoing," documenting how the Israeli government has failed in its legal obligation to investigate whether soldiers have killed or injured Palestinian civilians unlawfully or failed to protect them from harm. The report found that Israeli authorities have investigated fewer than five percent of fatal incidents to determine whether soldiers were responsible for using force unlawfully. When investigations were undertaken, they frequently fell far short of international standards for an independent and impartial inquiry. Human Rights Watch called on Israel to establish an independent, civilian commission authorized to receive complaints and investigate human rights violations by Israeli forces.

Infiniti Supports Oman Awards for Excellence

Muscat, June 16 2005 - Infiniti supported the Oman Awards for Excellence 2005 as a show of support towards business development within the region. The Oman Awards for Excellence is an annual award programme established in 1998 and developed by the private sector to provide recognition for more organizations in the fields of business excellence. The programme also celebrates the accomplishments of individuals, companies and other contributors who are creating jobs and driving the Omani economy. Each of the award categories, which included the 'Investment Project of the Year' and 'Flame of Excellence', not only highlighted applicants on their financial growth achievements, but also recognized flair, innovation, originality and creation of employment. Takeshi Nakajima, deputy managing director at Infiniti Middle East said: "Infiniti, as a key leading brand within the tier 1 luxury brand automotive market is pleased to support such initiatives to further develop the world-class business environment in Oman and throughout the GCC". The Infiniti brand has been represented in the Middle East since 2002 through the limited import of the Q45 luxury sedan. The new range of five INFINITI vehicles was recently launched in the Middle East as the second region outside of North America to sell a complete range of INFINITI vehicles, supported by eight dealers across the region.

Shell Global Solutions organises regional symposium in Dubai for its key customers

Over 40 customers from 11 countries representing the refining, gas and petroleum industries attend the two-day event.

June 27, 2005 Forty customers from eleven countries representing the refining, gas and petrochemical industries attended a Shell Global Solutions regional symposium held at the Emirates Towers Hotel in Dubai. The two-day symposium focused on key industry issues, with keynote addresses from several technical experts and leaders in the industry. “We were delighted with the response to this event,” said Mike Mitchell, Regional Vice President Business Development, Shell Global Solutions. “Delegates at the symposium discussed important regional issues including the availability of adequate resources for the future, and the value of optimising capital investment.”“Beside illuminating the present situation in the Middle East, the regional symposium also discussed ways to enhance the performance of existing business operations. The event served as an ideal platform to effectively address these issues and presented excellent networking opportunities for our customers from all parts of the region,” he added. A highlight from the event was a presentation entitled ‘SASREF Business Improvement - Key Learning Points’ by Mohammed Al Omair, President of Saudi Aramco Shell Refinery (SASREF). It focussed on how SASREF influenced its competitive position by improving business processes and reorganizing its structure. “The event attracted a large number of senior leaders in the industry. We hope that they benefited from the discussions and informal interactions with both industry experts and the other delegates.” concluded Mitchell.

Talks on Iran-Pakistan India Pipeline

Nilofer Suhrawardy

While India and Iran have been talking about the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline project since 1994, its prospects of becoming a reality have gained ground only in the recent past. Earlier, hampered by Indo-Pak hostility, the project was viewed as impractical. Now the improving relations between India and Pakistan may make it possible.
Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar has described his recent talks with his Iranian and Pakistani counterparts as a "great and historic" beginning. The initiation of ministerial level talks is suggestive of the project having received the required green signal from political headquarters in the three countries. To quote Aiyar: "The pipeline looks like a certainty now".

Challenging Task

Compared to Europe and America, Asia is home to few pipelines. Besides, in general, the length of pipelines is less than 1,000 km and as most of these do not cross a third country, no transit fee is involved. While Singapore gets its gas from Malaysia and Indonesia through three pipelines, Thailand gets it from Myanmar. In addition, there are speculations about opposition at domestic and international levels. It is well known that the United States has time and again expressed its reservations against the project. It would like to see India and Pakistan devote themselves to other pipelines as alternatives such as the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) pipeline and the Gulf South Asia (GUSA) pipeline. Though India is open to negotiations regarding these pipelines too, New Delhi and Islamabad are well aware that these would not be enough to meet their requirements in the coming years.

Critics of American intervention have said that the United States should not equate Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline as a matter of its domestic jurisdiction. Diplomatically, they have defined it as a "bad practice" without any legal credibility or sanction. Prospects of Pakistan succumbing to American pressure are held to be as good as non-existent against the revenue that the country could get every year as transit fee, without much investment. The revenue from the pipeline will benefit Pakistan and resolve the country's energy crisis, analysts said. The economic attraction has prompted some Pakistani analysts to say that Pakistan would go ahead with this pipeline project even if India decides otherwise at the last minute.

The United States cannot ignore the fact that its closest allies and friends including Great Britain have gone ahead and normalized their relations with Tehran. Clearly, the noise made by the US against developing relations with Iran together with its threat of imposing sanctions have not been effective in constraining countries interested in furthering ties with Tehran. Against this backdrop, the present timing is ideal for the countries involved to progress on the pipeline talks. Prospects of this pipeline being extended to China are also being considered. "Iran has given the green signal on our embarking on serious dialogue with the Chinese on whether this pipeline could be extended to China", said Aiyar.

India, Iran and Pakistan are now engaged in deliberations over a 2,600 km pipeline of which around 1,100 km would be in Iran, 990 km in Pakistan and 510 km in India. The seriousness with which India, Iran and Pakistan are moving towards furthering this project is marked by the new alacrity with which the three countries are holding talks with each other and reaching agreements. The aim of the three countries is to ensure a world class and safe project with security of supply. The month of June began with India and Pakistan holding ministerial level talks for the first time and reaching an agreement regarding the viability of the pipeline project.

Agreeing to address each other's concerns on Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline, the two countries decided to give momentum to the concerns related to the project. The two countries have agreed that the pipeline would go a long way in meeting their energy requirements. This was followed by India and Iran signing an agreement targeting the project takeoff by the end of the year. Spread over 25 years, starting from 2009, and valued at $18 billion, this is one of India's largest commercial agreements. The coming six months are going to witness more than a dozen meetings of special joint working committees formed to thrash out detailed execution of the project. At the bilateral level, the delegations would exchange information about the financial structuring, technical, commercial, legal and related issues of the project. Several more bilateral meetings at the ministerial level are also on the cards. The Petroleum Minister's Pakistan and Iran visits have been followed by the Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zengeneh's Pakistan visit. While Pakistan's Oil Minister Amanullah Khan Jadoon will be visiting India by August, Aiyar is expected to be in Pakistan again in November.

At a later stage, the India-Pak, India-Iran and Pak-Iran bilateral discussions would be converted into a trilateral form.
India is keen on securing the gas at affordable prices. Presently India needs about 100 million standard cubic metres of gas everyday which is in addition to the supplies from domestic production and Regasified Liquified Natural Gas (RLNG) import. By 2025, Pakistan's requirements of gas would be 300 million standard cubic metres a day while that of India would be 200 million standard cubic meters per day. Both India and Pakistan have no other option but to further this project since no alternative sources are there to meet the requirements. India hopes to overcome any domestic opposition to the project on the ground of reality. India cannot afford to be an energy-deficit country in the future. This is why India is pursuing the project cautiously and optimistically. If the project takes off by early next year as planned, gas from Iran, via Pakistan, would be flowing into India from early 2010.

EGYPT: Journalists and human rights activists demand elimination of torture

CAIRO, 27 June (IRIN) - Egyptian journalists and human rights activists marked international day for the elimination of torture on Sunday by denouncing inhumane practices against prisoners. Muhammad Abdel Koddous, head of the Egyptian press syndicate's liberties committee, speaking at a conference at the Egyptian press syndicate in the capital, Cairo, described Egypt as using torture extensively as a means of interrogation.

"Torture is a widespread phenomenon in all detention centres and police stations in Egypt and it has led to many deaths," he said. "This is a symptom of an authoritarian regime which is supported by the state of emergency in Egypt," he added.The syndicate has a history of fighting for civil liberties. It has constantly opened its headquarters for human rights activists to gather.

The conference was organised by several human rights organisations, including the El-Nadim centre for the management and rehabilitation of victims of violence, Hesham Mubarak centre, and the Egyptian Association Against Torture (EAAT).The EAAT took the opportunity to announce its most recent report published under the title of, 'Torture: the cultivation of a year of reform'. The report covers the period June 2004 to May 2005.

"In this period, the report has monitored 31 death cases as a result of torture in prisons, detention centres and police stations," the EAAT's Dr Ragia al-Garzawy said. "This is approximately the same number of cases that were monitored in the three years before the process of reform started," she added. The government's reform process entails a gradual transformation to a more representative democracy, opening up the political system to allow pluralism, meaningful elections and transparency.

The Ministry of Interior (MoI) has responded to several statements made by human rights organisations. According to official accounts, victims either commit suicide themselves, fight with others until they die, or die of exhaustion one or two days after being taken into the custody of the Egyptian police. "Ministry of Interior officials confirmed to Human Rights Watch (HRW) in February 2004 that there had not been a single criminal investigation of SSI officials for torture or ill-treatment in the past 18 years and no internal disciplinary measures were imposed, despite numerous credible allegations of serious abuse," HRW's 2005 report said.

The conference was interrupted by a group of women and children whose male relatives have been imprisoned and tortured. Other victims of torture attended the conference and gave graphic accounts of their experiences. Ahmed Ibrahim was arrested in mid-June 2005 but was not charged. "I was taken to a police station and they started putting out cigarettes on my body," he said. The mother of Saddam Hussein Hafez, aged 17, said her son died in December 2004 as a result of torture. "When I saw my son four days after his arrest I found torture marks all over his body," she said. "He told me that he was being exposed to extreme torture in an attempt to force him to become a police informer," she added.

Hafez died a week after his detention. The prosecutor informed his family that other inmates 'fell over him while he was sleeping',resulting in his death. Gamal Abdel Aziz, director of the Arab Human Rights Information Network (AHRIN), held the Egyptian general prosecutor responsible for the continuation of torture in the country. "The general prosecutor hardly accepts any torture cases and when he does, the investigation takes many years," he said. "I strongly believe that the main obstacle between the people and the judges is the general prosecutor, who does not move to help eliminate torture in Egypt," he added. According to Abdel Azziz, none of the state security officers who have supervised the practice of torture against prisoners have been put on trial.

"Every now and then a police officer is put on trial. This not because torture is not a systematic practice but simply because his practices have been revealed," he said, adding that this was only a cosmetic improvement in the appearance of the system and was not a reflection of serious action to eliminate systematic torture. At the end of the conference Ahmed Seif el-Islam of the Hesham Mubarak Centre announced the launch of a programme for the elimination of torture, demanding the president, Hosni Mubarak, denounce torture and officially apologise to the Egyptian people for the practice and to take steps to eliminate it.

IRAQ: NATO to open training centre in capital

BAGHDAD, 27 June (IRIN) - The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) has announced the opening of a new training centre in the capital, Baghdad, for Iraqi security forces. The move comes as daily attacks continue inside the country and the US steps up measures to deploy Iraqi troops in the front line against the insurgency. "We have reached a consensus that it will be a better way to serve the Iraqi forces with a better equipped and specialised centre inside the country," NATO spokesman Robert Pszczel said from the Belgian capital, Brussels.

The centre will be located in the Rustmiyah district, southeast of the capital. NATO advisers will be offering training and education on human rights law to Iraqi officers. "We expect that the centre will be fully equipped and ready for work at the end of September and as soon as it starts, it will be training more than 1,000 Iraqi officers annually," Pszczel added. A US force spokesperson in the capital told IRIN that nearly 200,000 Iraqi soldiers had been trained by them so far.

However, there are reports that hundreds of Iraqi troops had deserted the new force due to the risks they face with increasing insurgency in the country. Since the new government assumed power in April 2005, it has insisted on the importance of the presence of Coalition forces inside the country. Insecurity remains the biggest challenge to reconstruction and economic and political development. According to Ministry of Defence (MoD) officials, there are now about 60 NATO advisers in Baghdad, working with senior Iraqi generals to establish a national military command structure. With the opening of the new centre this number is going to triple.

"Iraq still requires the presence of foreign security forces in the country and this will be the best way to decrease our need by training our officers with the best people such as NATO advisers, so that soon we can take control of security in Iraq," Ra'ad Sami, a senior official in the MoD, said. Sami added that more than 4,000 officers had already been trained by NATO in Iraq or in courses conducted outside the country. The Iraqi government will build the centre with NATO playing half of the force protection, training staff and management of costs. The other half will be met by Coalition forces.

EGYPT: Village declares itself Female Genital Mutilation free

CAIRO, 26 Jun 2005 (IRIN) - In a symbolic attack on the widespread practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Egypt, religious leaders and gender activists, have signed a public declaration calling for an end to FGM, in the hamlet of Abou Shawareb, near Aswan in southern Egypt. FGM is a crudely performed operation to remove the clitoris from adolescent girls. It has been misinterpreted in strongly Islamic communities in parts of the Middle East and Africa, where it is widely practiced, as a religious rite of passage. However, the Islamic holy book, the Quran, does not call for female circumcision.

"Not all traditions are good. Female genital mutilation represents violence against women and is a violation of human rights," Antonio Vigilante, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative said. The UN agency was a sponsor of the signing ceremony. The agreement represents a significant step towards eliminating FGM in Egypt. Infections following such an operation, often carried out in unhygienic circumstances, are common and can lead to sterility, severe period pains and complications during childbirth, as well as loss of pleasure during sex.

"The UNDP has been working energetically with national partners to discontinue this harmful practice. Today we witness a clearly growing trend of rejection especially among youth, which makes us hope that FGM can be eliminated in Egypt within the next decade," he added. The anti-FGM declaration was part of programme called "The FGM free Village Model." The campaign was established in 2003 by the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM), UNDP and various other donors. The purpose was to counteract community and cultural pressures that led to FGM and to eliminate the practice in 60 villages within the six governorates of Assuit, Aswan, Beni Suef, Minya, Quena and Sohag in Upper Egypt.

After two years, the project's use of various education and training approaches reaching out to families, health workers and religious leaders, has made inroads. According to UNDP, the community of Abou Shawareb was able to overcome cultural pressure and convince families not to circumcise their girls and symbolically declare themselves an FGM-free village. Although the practice is officially illegal in Egypt, statistics show that the vast majority of females still suffer from various versions of FGM around the country. The practice is almost universal in rural areas.

According to a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) study in 2000, 97 percent of Egyptian women had under gone some form of genital cutting. Since the mid 1990s, the government has actively campaigned to end the practice of FGM with information and education campaigns and the incorporation of the topic into school curricula. In 2003, the Egyptian First Lady, Suzanne Mubarak, threw her weight behind the issue by launching the "Egyptian Girl" campaign, which sought to end all forms of violence and abuse, including FGM, aimed at young girls.

On a larger scale, the FGM free village model project has established a mechanism to coordinate a national movement against the practice under the umbrella of the NCCM and to incorporate hundreds of Egyptian volunteers working to end FGM. The project plans to expand cover from 60 to a total of 120 villages in the near future.