Sudan: Alarming increase in executions in Darfur Region

28 June 2002

There is a sharp increase in executions and the use of thedeath sentence as punishment in
Darfur region, Western Sudan."Since the beginning of the year, at least 19 people are
reported to have been executed in Darfur region. Many others are at imminent risk of

losing their lives in the coming days, weeks
and months if this alarming trend is not halted," the
organization said today.

In May 14 men were executed by hanging in al-Fashir
prison after being convicted of armed robbery in trials by
"Emergency" courts. These trials fall far short of international
standards for fair trial. Five other men are reported to have
been executed in al-Fashir in March, after being convicted of
banditry and murder by an "Emergency" court.

Amnesty International knows of 18 named men currently on
death row in Northern and Southern Darfur and has received
unconfirmed reports that a further 21 were sentenced to death in
September 2001. The organization fears the number awaiting
execution may be much higher.

"This is state sanctioned killing at its worse, with
those suspected having little or no recourse to defend
themselves. The judicial authorities in Sudan must ensure that
all prisoners are guaranteed every opportunity to defend
themselves, including the right of appeal to a higher tribunal,
and to seek commutation of the sentence," the organization added.

Whilst recognizing the rights and responsibilities of all
governments to bring to justice those convicted of recognizably
criminal offences, Amnesty International considers the death
penalty to be the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading
punishment, and to have no proven deterrent effect on crime.

"In allowing death sentences to be passed, the Sudanese
authorities are going against the fundamental tenet of the right
to life as stated in the Bill of Rights. All pending death
sentences should be commuted immediately and the trial procedures
of Emergency courts should be reviewed and amended in accordance
with international standards," Amnesty International stated.

Sudan's penal code, which is based upon the government's
interpretation of Shari'a (Islamic law), includes a number of
penalties, such as limb amputation, death and death followed by
crucifixion, which Amnesty International regard as cruel, inhuman
or degrading punishments and therefore inconsistent with
international human rights law and Sudan's obligations, in
particular under the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR) and the United Nations' Convention
against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment (CAT), both of which Sudan has ratified.

Emergency courts were established in Northern and
Southern Darfur in May 2001 to deal with offences such as armed
robbery, murder and possession and smuggling of weapons.
These courts are headed by two military judges and one civil
judge and do not allow legal representation for the accused until
the appeal stage of proceedings.

Under international human rights standards, people
charged with crimes punishable by death are entitled to the
strictest observance of fair trial guarantees and to certain
additional guarantees. Nevertheless, Amnesty International
believes these additional safeguards are not a justification for
the retention of the death penalty.

USA: Time to rethink the death penalty - 30 years after landmark court ruling

28 June 2002

Politicians in the United States should use the 30th anniversary
of Furman v Georgia, the Supreme Court decision which overturned
the country's capital laws, to reflect upon the USA's
increasingly isolated position on the death penalty and to begin
to work towards its abolition, Amnesty International said today.

"US officials should be troubled by the damage that the death
penalty inflicts on their country's reputation in an increasingly
abolitionist world", Amnesty International said. "The failure of
their predecessors to seize the opportunity presented by the
Furman decision to lead their country away from judicial killing
is coming home to roost 30 years on".

The Furman v Georgia ruling was handed down on 29 June 1972. It
found that the arbitrary manner in which the death penalty was
being applied rendered it unconstitutional. Although only two of
the Justices found the death penalty unconstitutional per se, the
ruling nevertheless overturned existing death sentences.
However, instead of progressing towards abolition, the country's
legislators set about rewriting their capital statutes. In 1976,
the US Supreme Court upheld the new laws, and executions resumed
in 1977 with the killing of Gary Gilmore in Utah.

"Nearly 800 executions later, the evidence continues to mount
that the capital justice system is tainted by arbitrariness,
discrimination and error", Amnesty International continued. "At
the same time, the number of countries that have abolished the
death penalty in law or practice has risen to 111, a clear
majority worldwide".

The USA frequently violates international minimum safeguards in
its pursuit of the death penalty, including in its use against
people whose guilt remains in doubt; defendants denied their
right to adequate legal representation; the mentally impaired;
foreign nationals denied their consular rights; and child
offenders -- those under 18 at the time of their crimes.

Last week the US Supreme Court finally ruled that the execution
of people with mental retardation violates the Constitution. The
ruling came 13 years after a resolution was adopted at the United
Nations calling on all retentionist countries to abolish such use
of the death penalty.

"US officials frequently promote their country as the world's
most progressive force for human rights", Amnesty International
said. "Their continuing failure to put an end to the ultimate
cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment starkly gives the lie to
that claim".

Since judicial killing resumed in the USA in January 1977, 784
men and women have been put to death nationwide. More than 500
of these executions have occurred since 1995.

Mexico: Crunch time for President Fox's commitment to combat "disappearances"

28 June 2002

Mexico City -- The Mexican authorities are facing the crucial
challenge to show that the steps taken to tackle the country's
outstanding human rights concerns - including "disappearances" -
can actually mark a clean break with a past of human rights
violations and widespread impunity, Amnesty International said
today, launching a report on past and current "disappearances" in
Mexico.

"Hundreds of cases of 'disappearance' -- mainly dating
back to the 'dirty war' on opposition activists in the '70s and
'80s -- remain unresolved, despite the unfaltering determination
of relatives, friends and campaigners to uncover the truth and
obtain justice," the organization said.

"However, as evidence shows, 'disappearances' are not
just a bitter legacy of the past: people continue to 'disappear'
in a number of states across the country," Amnesty International
continued.

In its report, Amnesty International highlights four
cases of "disappearance" that have occurred since President Fox
took office in December 2000, in the states of Chiapas, Colima
and Guerrero. The organization stressed that the actual number
of cases could well be much higher.

"A number of cases are just not reported due to lack of
trust in the justice system or fear of reprisals, which makes it
difficult to assess the real number of 'disappearances' taking
place," Amnesty International said.

"These cases show disturbing similarities with past
patterns of state reluctance to act openly and urgently to
establish the fate of the 'disappeared', identify and bring to
justice those responsible, and provide adequate compensation to
the victims' families," Amnesty International added. "The only
means of making a dent in this wall of impunity, remains, as
ever, the courage and determination of relatives of victims to
bring such cases to national and international attention. Sadly
it is only this pressure that seems to make any difference to the
authorities."

The recent opening of state archives on the 'dirty war'
is a positive and overdue step to shed some light on the fate of
hundreds of the "disappeared", and follows a series of other
potentially important measures including: the appointment of a
Special Prosecutor to investigate "disappearances"; the partial
criminalization of "disappearance" in the Federal Penal Code;
the National Commission on Human Rights' report on political
"disappearances" from the '70s and '80s; and the ratification of
the Inter American Convention on Enforced Disappearance of
Persons.

"The Mexican authorities have argued nationally and
internationally that these measures demonstrate a new start for
human rights in Mexico," Amnesty International said. "However,
these initiatives in themselves do not constitute the end of
impunity, nor provide justice for the victims and their
relatives. Too many times in the past reforms supposedly intended
to end impunity, have in fact ended up further entrenching it".

"The rhetoric of human rights is easy to adopt, but
turning these principles into practice and positive change is
what counts, and this requires the political will to see changes
through at every level of the state and in every corner of the
country," Amnesty International emphasised.

Amnesty International is concerned that some of the steps
taken by the authorities appear to be flawed from the start. For
example, while Mexico ratified the Inter American convention on
Disappearance, it lodged a reservation allowing for cases to be
tried in military courts. This runs counter to the spirit of the
convention and to the recommendations of international human
rights bodies to the effect that serious human rights violations
-- including "disappearances" -- cannot be considered acts of
service and should be handled by civilian courts.

Moreover, the scope of the Convention is severely
undermined by an interpretative declaration also lodged by Mexico
to the effect that it will only be applicable to cases of
"disappearance" which occurred after its entry into force.

"Forced disappearance is recognized in international law
as a continuing crime, which is not resolved until the fate and
whereabouts of the victim have been established," Amnesty
International stressed.

"To limit the applicability of the Convention means
denying relatives of hundreds of Mexican 'disappeared' their
fundamental rights to truth, justice and reparation, and
subjecting them to the continuous torture of not knowing what
happened to their loved ones," the organization continued. "The
ratification of the Convention with this reservation and
interpretative declaration casts serious doubts on the real
commitment of this government to end impunity."

As for the Special Prosecutor's Office, Amnesty
International observed that it will be possible to judge it only
on the basis of its ability to produce concrete results that meet
international standards and to earn the confidence of the
victims' relatives. Until this is proved, serious doubts will
remain as to the real independence of the Office, the quality of
its investigations and the transparency of its decisions.

Amnesty International's report sets out a series of
concrete recommendations to the Mexican authorities. These
include:

- introducing legislation to make "disappearance" perpetrated by
all state agents -- whether federal, state or municipal -- or
those acting on their behalf, a criminal offence, punishable by
sanctions commensurate with the gravity of the crime, in line
with international standards;

- initiating prompt and thorough investigations into new cases,
including the apparent complicity of the authorities in covering
up these crimes, to bring to justice those responsible and ensure
relatives of victims receive adequate reparations;

- investigating and prosecuting through the civilian justice
system any state agent implicated in "disappearances" no matter
how much time has elapsed since the commission of the crime;

- conducting a review of all police and military practices of
arbitrary detention which currently encourage "disappearance".

"Only when government commitments to end impunity and
'disappearances' result in truth and justice for the victims and
their relatives, and when the practice of this gross violation of
human rights by the police and security forces is ended, will the
government have fulfilled its commitments. Until then Amnesty
International and others will continue to document cases and call
on the authorities to meet their obligations," the organization
concluded.

Algeria: Habib Souaidia's trial highlights concerns over failure to conduct investigations

28 June 2002

Amnesty International today called on the Algerian authorities to
stop obstructing investigations of grave human rights abuses in
the run-up to a libel trial brought against former Algerian army
officer Habib Souaidia by the former Algerian defence minister,
retired General Khaled Nezzar, that is due to begin in Paris on
Monday.

Habib Souaidia is the author of a book published in 2001
called La Sale Guerre (The Dirty War), which details reports of
torture, extrajudicial executions and other grave human rights
abuses committed by the security forces, state-armed militias and
armed groups during the current conflict. He is being sued by
Khaled Nezzar for defamation following comments he made about the
retired general on a French television channel in May 2001.

"Serious allegations have been made by Habib Souaidia,"
said Amnesty International. "With thousands of families still
waiting up to 10 years to learn the truth about what happened to
murdered or 'disappeared' relatives, it is high time the Algerian
authorities meet their international obligations by taking
concrete steps to establish the truth about these crimes and many
others like them."

The organization once again reiterates its call to the
Algerian authorities to set up an independent and impartial
commission of inquiry without further delay to investigate the
thousands of killings, "disappearances", reports of torture and
other human rights abuses committed since 1992 by the security
forces, state-armed militias and armed groups.

Meanwhile, a worrying development recently emerged in a
torture case brought against Khaled Nezzar in France in April
2001. One of the three plaintiffs, Abdelouahab Boukezouha,
withdrew his case in April 2002 following the arrest of his son
in Algeria on charges of having links with an armed group. The
case was filed by two torture victims and the family of a third,
all of whom live in France, who alleged that Nezzar was
responsible for torture committed while he was Algeria's Defence
Minister from 1990 to 1993.

Rachid Mesli, an Algerian human rights lawyer who lives
in exile and who is expected to appear as a defence witness in
the trial starting today, has, since April 2002, been the subject
of an international arrest warrant issued by the Algerian
authorities. He is accused of being involved in a "terrorist
group conducting its activities abroad". The charge appears to be
based on Rachid Mesli's intention to send a mobile telephone to
an Algeria-based contact who relayed information to him on the
human rights situation in the country.

The contact himself and at least three others known to
have had links with Rachid Mesli have themselves been targeted
for particularly harsh treatment. Arrested in separate incidents
in March and April 2002 on charges of having links with a
"terrorist" group, they were all allegedly detained in the
Military Security base of Ben Aknoun and there repeatedly
tortured over several days.

" It is an irony that on the same day the International
Criminal Court enters into effect, such a trial will take place
while the Algerian authorities continue to put obstacles in the
way of those who raise concerns about the human rights situation
in the country," Amnesty International added.

Recent months have seen a clampdown on local human
rights activists, while UN human rights mechanisms and
international human rights organizations such as Amnesty
International continue to be denied access to the country.

Background
Following the publication of his book, an arrest warrant was
issued against Habib Souaidia. On 29 April 2002 he was sentenced
by a criminal court in Algiers to 20 years' imprisonment,
convicted of participating in efforts to undermine the morale of
the army and of state security offences. Habib Souaidia lives in
exile in France and the trial was conducted in his absence.
According to the prosecution, Habib Souaidia is quoted on a
website as saying that he was "ready to return to the country to
take up arms" against senior army officers.

Syria: Stop targeting peaceful critics

26 June 2002

Amnesty International today condemned the sentencing by the
Supreme State Security Court (SSSC) of Riad al-Turk and Habib
Saleh as a gross violation of Syria's obligations under human
rights treaties to which it is a state party.

The SSSC today sentenced Riad al-Turk (72) to two and a
half years in prison on charges of "attempting to change the
constitution by illegal means". Two days earlier another prisoner
of conscience, Habib Saleh (52), was sentenced to three years on
charges of "opposing the objectives of the revolution" and
"inciting ethnic and sectarian strife."

Amnesty International calls for the immediate and
unconditional release of Riad al-Turk and Habib Saleh as they
have been tried solely for peacefully exercising their right to
freedom of expression. Riad al-Turk, who suffers from a heart
condition and diabetes, had been released in 1998 after having
been arbitrarily detained without charge or trial for over 17
years.

"The Syrian authorities must ensure that the right to
freedom of expression is guaranteed in accordance with the
provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights to which Syria is state party. Critics must not be
penalized for peacefully expressing their opinion," Amnesty
International said.

Riad al-Turk and Habib Saleh and eight others were
arbitrarily arrested and detained in August and September 2001
for their involvement with emerging civil society groups and
forums. Two parliamentarians, Riad Seif and Mamun al-Humsi, were
referred to the Criminal Court on similar charges and sentenced
to five years in prison after unfair trials. The remaining six
prisoners, including 'Aref Dalila, are still being tried before
the SSSC. 'Aref Dalila, alleges to have been ill-treated and
beaten while being held at Adra prison.

"The Syrian authorities must investigate Dalila's
complaints of ill-treatment by prison authorities and no evidence
or confession extracted under torture should be used against him
in court," Amnesty International said.

New projects help communities near Kazakhstan nuclear test site

Thursday, 27 June 2002: Three new projects funded by Japan are underway to help communities recover from a legacy of environmental damage and poverty left by 40 years of nuclear weapons testing in the Semipalatinsk Region of Kazakhstan.

The Soviet Union detonated more than 500 nuclear devices there between 1949 and 1989.

The projects will support entrepreneurs, small loans for poor women and small grants for community organizations and other civil society groups. UNDP is carrying out the projects in close cooperation with the Semipalatinsk local government.The international community began mobilizing support for the region's recovery in recent years.

Japan has contributed US$1.1 million for the three projects to the Trust Fund for the Semipalatinsk Relief and Rehabilitation Programme that UNDP established for the Government of Kazakhstan to facilitate contributions and ensure transparency and accountability. Such projects draw on UNDP experience in Kazakhstan and the expertise of the UNDP global network."This will really help the villagers, because, for the first time ever, resources will go directly to the rural districts," said Larissa Surgutanova, representative of Women of Beskaragay, a local civil society group. The organization encourages women's political participation, works to improve livelihoods, and runs a small bakery.

The small business project will set up a training centre to provide consulting and advisory services on how to start a business, prepare a business plan, and do marketing research. It will also offer entrepreneurs legal and technical advice on how to register their businesses.

The small loans project will enable women to borrow funds at low interest rates, a maximum of 3 per cent, with no collateral required. It aims to expand an ongoing loan project for poor women, now the largest and most vulnerable group among the unemployed.

The grants project will award grants of up to $3000 each to community organization and other civil society groups to strengthen their capacity to solve local problems. An independent selection committee will review project proposals and select recipients based on merit. Awareness-raising activities will accompany the distribution of funds to encourage community participation in the projects.

"Organizations in our district are ready to compete for grants offered by the project," said Kulmaira Imangazina, Deputy Governor of Beskaragay, a district in eastern Kazakhstan.

Fikret Akcura, UNDP Resident Representative, said the Government of Kazakhstan, by closing down the nuclear weapons test site, has demonstrated political will and determination to join the international community as a non-nuclear state and contribute to the building of a world free from nuclear threat. "It is now the responsibility of the international community to extend a helping hand to the people of Semipalatinsk to address poverty, unemployment and other socio-economic ills," he said.

Major donors have thus far pledged $20 million for recovery efforts in Semipalatinsk, and 14 projects have been implemented out of 38 proposed following a UN mission coordinated by UNDP to assess needs.For further information, please contact Saule Akanayeva, UNDP Kazakhstan, or Erin Trowbridge, UNDP Communications Office.