February, 01 2010, 03:05pm EDT
Chad: Habre Knew of Deaths in His Jails
Still No Trial 10 Years After Dictator's Indictment
DAKAR
A new study shows that Hissene Habre, the former dictator of Chad, was well-informed of the hundreds of deaths in prisons operated by his political police, a coalition of human rights organizations said today. The announcement came on the eve of the 10th anniversary of his indictment in Senegal.
The study by the Human Rights Data Analysis Group (HRDAG) is based on thousands of documents generated by the Documentation and Security Directorate (DDS) - the state security force that pursued opponents and operated notorious prisons during the Habre regime. The files were discovered by chance by Human Rights Watch in 2001 at the abandoned Security Directorate's headquarters in N'Djamena, the Chadian capital.
"The evidence shows that Habre was not a distant ruler who knew nothing about these crimes," said Jacqueline Moudeina, president of the Chadian Association for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights, who is also a lawyer for the victims. "Habre directed and controlled the police force, which tortured those who opposed him or who simply belonged to the wrong ethnic group."
This information could be critical in the long-delayed prosecution of Habre, who has been accused of killing and systematically torturing thousands of political opponents during his rule in Chad, from 1982 to 1990, the groups said. The announcement came from the Chadian Association for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (ATPDH), the Chadian Association of Victims of Political Repression and Crime (AVCRP), the Chadian League for Human Rights, the African Assembly for the Defense of Human Rights (RADDHO-Senegal), the National Organization for Human Rights (ONDH-Senegal), Human Rights Watch (HRW), the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), and Agir Ensemble pour les Droits de l'Homme.
Habre was first indicted on February 3, 2000 by a Senegalese judge, but the charges were thrown out on a technicality. In 2006, Senegal agreed to an African Union (AU) mandate to prosecute Habre, but it has refused to act until it receives EUR27.4 million from the international community, its estimate of the cost of the trial.
"It's been 10 years since Senegal first indicted Habre, but in these 10 years, thousands of my fellow survivors have perished and we are no closer to Habre's trial," said Souleymane Guengueng, 59, who almost died of dengue fever during two years of mistreatment in Chadian prisons. "Unless Senegal acts soon, there won't be any victims left at the trial."
The analysis of prison documents reveals that there was a direct superior-subordinate relationship between Habre and his appointed Security Directorate leadership and that Habre was well-informed of its operations. This analysis shows that Habre received 1,265 direct communications from the agency about the status of 898 detainees. A total of 12,321 victims are mentioned in the documents, including 1,208 who died in detention.
"Our analysis of document flow encompasses more than 2,700 administrative records, which together illustrate a clear communication and command link between President Habre and his political police," said Romesh Silva, senior demographer for HRDAG and lead author of the report. "Our findings also confirm earlier qualitative accounts of prisoner conditions and high mortality within the DDS. Perhaps most compelling is the fact that the information gathered by the DDS and Habre to document their own abuses can now be used to hold them responsible for their actions."
Under international law, individuals can be found criminally responsible for serious human rights violations if they knew or should have known that forces under their authority or control were committing crimes and failed to act to prevent the crimes or punish those responsible.
Senegal has said that it will not move forward with the case until it receives full international funding for all the costs of the trial. Senegal's estimate of EUR27.4 million includes EUR8 million to reconstruct a courthouse. The European Union, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland have publicly or privately agreed to help finance the trial, but are waiting for a "credible" budget. Chad has offered EUR3 million as an "initial" contribution. In December 2009, a joint team from the European Union and the AU visited Senegal and is expected to propose a revised budget for finally bringing Habre to trial.
In July 2006, the AU mandated Senegal to prosecute Habre "on behalf of Africa." The upcoming AU summit of heads of state and government in Addis Ababa from January 31 to February 2 will consider a progress report on Senegal's preparations for the case. Habre's victims, and their supporters, called on the AU to press Senegal to move forward.
"The failure to prosecute Habre is a shame on Africa," said Dobian Assingar of FIDH and honorary president of the Chadian League for Human Rights. "This case is a golden opportunity for Africa to show that is capable of fighting against impunity. Instead Africa is failing its victims."
Habre's victims will mark the 10th anniversary of the indictment with a series of activities in N'Djamena.
About HRDAG
The Benetech Human Rights Data Analysis Group develops database software, data collection strategies, and statistical techniques to analyze large-scale human rights violations. Based in Palo Alto, California, HRDAG has worked with nine truth commissions, international criminal tribunals, and non-governmental human rights organizations around the world. HRDAG incorporates information technology and scientific methods to create an accurate historical record of past conflicts and provide evidence to hold perpetrators accountable. See https://www.hrdag.org.
Copies of the HRDAG report in English and French are available at:https://webmail.hrw.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=https://webmail.hrw.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=https://www.hrdag.org/about/chad.shtml
For more information on the case against Hissene Habre, please visit:
https://www.hrw.org/fr/affaire-habre (French)
https://www.hrw.org/en/habre-case (English)
https://www.fidh.org/-Affaire-Hissene-Habre (French)
https://www.fidh.org/-Hissene-Habre-Case (English)
Human Rights Watch is one of the world's leading independent organizations dedicated to defending and protecting human rights. By focusing international attention where human rights are violated, we give voice to the oppressed and hold oppressors accountable for their crimes. Our rigorous, objective investigations and strategic, targeted advocacy build intense pressure for action and raise the cost of human rights abuse. For 30 years, Human Rights Watch has worked tenaciously to lay the legal and moral groundwork for deep-rooted change and has fought to bring greater justice and security to people around the world.
LATEST NEWS
GOP Senators Threaten ICC: 'Target Israel and We Will Target You'
"You have been warned," wrote 12 Republican lawmakers led by Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas.
May 06, 2024
Just over a week before the International Criminal Court issued a statement condemning threats against the institution, a dozen Republicans in the U.S. Senate sent a letter to the ICC's prosecutor warning him against pursuing charges against Israeli officials over war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip.
The letter, dated April 24 and reported exclusively by Zeteo on Monday, explicitly threatens U.S. retaliation against the ICC if it issues arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or other top Israeli officials.
"Target Israel and we will target you," reads the letter, which was led by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a notorious war hawk, and signed by 11 others, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).
The letter specifically threatens to sanction ICC employees and associates and bar them and their families from entering the United States, which is not a party to the ICC.
"You have been warned," states the letter, which invokes the American Service-Members’ Protection Act—a 2002 law informally known as "The Hague Invasion Act."
As Zeteo explained, the law "authorizes the U.S. president 'to use all means necessary and appropriate' to bring about the release not just of U.S. persons but also allies who are imprisoned or detained by the ICC."
Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.), who delivered the infamous GOP response to President Joe Biden's State of the Union Address earlier this year, told Zeteo that the letter is "not a threat," but "a promise."
Read the letter from 12 Republican senators threatening ICC chief prosecutor @KarimKhanQC with "severe" consequences for him, his family & staff if he goes ahead with an arrest warrant for Netanyahu. "You have been warned."
Oh and subscribe to Zeteo too: https://t.co/pVvXi4IB6CÂ pic.twitter.com/aXfKH03T16
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) May 6, 2024
The 12 Republicans sent their letter days before the office of ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan released a statement warning that its "independence and impartiality are undermined... when individuals threaten to retaliate against the court or against court personnel" as they conduct their investigations.
"Such threats, even when not acted upon, may also constitute an offense against the administration of justice under [Article] 70 of the Rome Statute," the statement added. "The office insists that all attempts to impede, intimidate, or improperly influence its officials cease immediately."
While the ICC statement did not mention any individuals or governments by name, it is apparent that its message was directed at least in part at Republican lawmakers in the U.S.
The Biden White House and Netanyahu have also spoken out against the ICC amid reports that it is considering arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister and other senior officials.
"We've been really clear about the ICC investigation," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters late last month. "We do not support it. We don't believe that they have the jurisdiction. And I'm just gonna leave it there for now."
Since October 7, Israeli forces have killed more than 34,600 people in Gaza—a death toll that could surge if Israel moves ahead with its planned ground invasion of Rafah. Women and children account for up to 70% of those killed by Israel's military thus far.
Like the U.S., Israel is not a party to the ICC, but the court says it has jurisdiction over the occupied Palestinian territories. In 2021, the ICC launched a probe into alleged war crimes in the territories, including Gaza.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Putin's Tactical Nuclear Weapons Drills Called 'Dangerous and Irresponsible'
"What is needed now is de-escalation," said ICAN. "Russia can still stop the exercises and should be called on to do so immediately by all states."
May 06, 2024
Disarmament advocates on Monday denounced the Russian Defense Ministry's plans to hold tactical nuclear weapons drills "in the near future," an announcement that came over two years into Russia's war on Ukraine.
"Russia announcing nuclear weapons exercises near Ukraine is dangerous and irresponsible. It must be widely condemned," the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) declared on social media. "This kind of brinkmanship, typical of 'nuclear deterrence' thinking, can spiral out of control and result in catastrophe."
'"Saber-rattling' like this is part of how all nuclear-armed states show they are serious about using nuclear weapons. But it's reckless: It increases the risk of nuclear weapons use, whether intentionally or by accident, at a time when it is at its highest since the Cold War," ICAN continued. "And let's not forget these 'exercises' train military personnel to mass murder civilians in seconds."
While strategic nuclear weapons are intended to wipe out cities, nonstrategic or tactical arms have shorter ranges and lower yields, and are designed for battlefield use. However, as ICAN highlighted, "'tactical' nuclear weapons could have up to 20 times the destructive power of the bomb the U.S. dropped on Hiroshima."'
"What is needed now is de-escalation. Russia can still stop the exercises and should be called on to do so immediately by all states," the group said, urging all "responsible states opposed to nuclear drills and nuclear blackmail" to join the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), passage of which
earned ICAN the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize.
Since invading Ukraine in February 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other officials have
ramped up fears of nuclear war. Russia has the largest arsenal of the nine nuclear-armed nations, followed closely by the United States—which has armed Ukrainians throughout the ongoing war. The other countries known to have nukes are China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom. None of them support the TPNW.
As
Reutersreported on Monday:
Some Western and Ukrainian officials have said Russia is bluffing over nuclear weapons to scare the West, though the Kremlin has repeatedly indicated that it would consider breaking the nuclear taboo if Russia's existence was threatened.
"We do not see anything new here," said Andriy Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukrainian military intelligence. "Nuclear blackmail is a constant practice of Putin's regime."
The Russian Defense Ministry said Monday that its exercises would involve troops of the Southern Military District—which, as The New York Timesnoted, is "an area that covers Russian-occupied Ukraine and part of Russia's border region with Ukraine."
The ministry explained on social media that its plans "to practice the preparation and use of nonstrategic nuclear weapons" come "in response to provocative statements and threats of individual Western officials against the Russian Federation."
Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesperson, echoed that reasoning for the drills, citing statements from British, French, and U.S. officials, according toTASS. He also told reporters that "deploying NATO soldiers to confront the Russian military in the latest escalation of tensions is an unprecedented move. And, of course, it requires special attention and special measures."
NATO in January launched the Steadfast Defender 2024 drills—its largest exercises since the Cold War, involving more than 90,000 troops, over 1,000 combat vehicles, and dozens of ships and aircraft. The drills in Poland are due to end this month.
Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, said that while "Putin has previously used nuclear rhetoric against [the] West during his war in Ukraine," this is the first time he knows of that the Russian leader has ordered tactical nuke drills in this district "with explicit reference to West," and it is "obviously intended as a signal."
"For NATO this is an opportunity to double down on condemnation of nuclear threats, reaffirm that nuclear war can't be won and should never be fought, and study how Russia operates its tac nuke forces in exercise," the expert added. "Just don't take the bait and respond with NATO nuke operations!"
Pavel Podvig, the Geneva-based director of the Russian Nuclear Forces Project, agreed that "this is, of course, a signal." He urged Western leaders to "avoid... getting sucked into this" and rally the world around the message that "nuclear threats are inadmissible."
Responding to Podvig's remarks on social media, former ICAN executive director Beatrice Fihn pointed out that over 70 nations condemned threats to use nuclear weapons at the first TPNW meeting.
"I wish more NATO states would work with the TPNW states that have close connections to Russia to strengthen and support this kind of work," she said.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Romney Admits Push to Ban TikTok Is Aimed at Censoring News Out of Gaza
A conversation between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Republican senator offered an "incredible historical document" showing how the U.S. views its role in the Middle East.
May 06, 2024
A discussion between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Sen. Mitt Romney over the weekend included what one critic called an "incredible mask-off moment," with the two officials speaking openly about the U.S. government's long-term attempts to provide public relations work for Israel in defense of its policies in the occupied Palestinian territories—and its push to ban TikTok in order to shut down Americans' access to unfiltered news about the Israeli assault on Gaza.
At the Sedona Forum in Sedona, Arizona on Friday, the Utah Republican asked Blinken at the McCain Institute event's keynote conversation why Israel's "PR been so awful" as it's bombarded Gaza since October in retaliation for a Hamas-led attack, killing at least 34,735 Palestinians—the majority women and children—and pushing parts of the enclave into a famine that is expected to spread due to Israel's blockade.
"The world is screaming about Israel, why aren't they screaming about Hamas?" asked Romney. "'Accept a cease-fire, bring home the hostages.' Instead it's the other way around, I mean, typically the Israelis are good at PR. What's happened here? How have they, and we, been so ineffective at communicating the realities there?"
Blinken replied that Americans, two-thirds of whom want the Biden administration to push for a permanent cease-fire and 57% of whom disapprove of President Joe Biden's approach to the war, are "on an intravenous feed of information with new impulses, inputs every millisecond."
"And of course the way this has played out on social media has dominated the narrative," said the secretary of state. "We can't discount that, but I think it also has a very, very challenging effect on the narrative."
Romney suggested that banning TikTok would quiet the growing outrage over Israeli atrocities in the United States.
"Some wonder why there was such overwhelming support for us to shut down, potentially, TikTok or other entities of that nature," said Romney. "If you look at the postings on TikTok and the number of mentions of Palestinians relative to other social media sites, it's overwhelmingly so among TikTok broadcasts."
The interview took place amid a growing anti-war movement on college campuses across the U.S. and around the world, with American police forces responding aggressively to protests at which students have demanded higher education institutions divest from companies that contract with Israel and that the U.S. stop funding the Israel Defense Forces.
Right-wing lawmakers and commentators have suggested students have been indoctrinated by content shared on social media platforms including TikTok and Instagram, and wouldn't be protesting otherwise.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), who co-sponsored a recent bill to ban TikTok—included in a foreign aid package that Biden signed late last month—said last week that "there has been a coordinated effort off these college campuses, and that you have outside paid agitators and activists."
"It also highlights exactly why we included the TikTok bill in the foreign supplemental aid package because you're seeing how these kids are being manipulated by certain groups or entities or countries to foment hate on their behalf and really create a hostile environment here in the U.S.," said Lawler.
Social media has provided the public with an unvarnished look at the scale of Israel's attack, with users learning the stories of Gaza residents including six-year-old Hind Rajab, 10-year-old Yazan Kafarneh, and victims who have been found in mass graves and seeing the destruction of hospitals, universities, and other civilian infrastructure.
U.S. college students, however, are far from the only people who have expressed strong opposition to Israel's slaughter of Palestinian civilians and large-scale destruction of Gaza as it claims to be targeting Hamas.
Human rights groups across the globe have demanded an end to the Biden administration's support for Israel's military and called on the U.S. president to use his leverage to end the war. Josep Borrell, the European Union's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, in February lambasted Biden and other Western leaders for claiming concern about the safety of Palestinians while continuing to arm Israel, and leaders in Spain and Ireland have led calls for an arms embargo on the country. The United Nations' top expert on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories said in March that there are "reasonable grounds" to conclude Israel has committed genocidal acts, two months after the International Court of Justice made a similar statement in an interim ruling.
Romney and Blinken didn't mention in their talk whether they believe social media and bad "PR" have pushed international leaders and experts to make similar demands to those of college students.
The conversation, saidIntercept journalist Ryan Grim, was an "incredible historical document" showing how the U.S. government views its role in the Middle East—as a government that should "mediate" between Israel and the public to keep people from having "a direct look at what's happening."
"Romney's comments betray a general bipartisan disinterest in engaging Israel's conduct in Gaza on its own terms, preferring instead to complain about protesters, interrogate university presidents, and, apparently, muse about social media's role in boosting pro-Palestinian activism," wrote Ben Metzner at The New Republic. "As Israel moves closer to a catastrophic invasion of Rafah, having already banned Al Jazeera in the country, Romney and Blinken would be wise to consider whether TikTok is the real problem."
Enterpreneur James Rosen-Birch added that "Mitt Romney flat-out asking Antony Blinken, in public, why the United States is not doing a better job manufacturing consent, is wild."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular