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Five jailed in Chile ten years after Pinochet arrest

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:26:24 +0000

Chile's Supreme Court jailed five retired military officials on Wednesday for involvement in the "Caravan of Death" – one of the cases of military government-era killings for which the former President Augusto Pinochet was placed under house arrest ten years ago.

The "Caravan of Death" was a military delegation that travelled around northern and southern Chile by helicopter after Augusto Pinochet's 1973 coup, ordering the deaths of suspected political opponents.

Those jailed for between four and six years include Sergio Arellano Stark, who headed the delegation, a Supreme Court official said. He was jailed for six years.

Augusto Pinochet was arrested in London ten years ago on 16 October 1998. He was arrested on an extradition request from a Spanish judge after the relatives of thousands of victims submitted criminal complaints to Spanish courts, as well as the courts of other states. Subsequently, Belgium, France and Switzerland sought his extradition for crimes under international law.

During Augusto Pinochet’s presidency in Chile, more than 1,100 people were forcefully disappeared, more than 2,000 were extra-judicially executed or died under torture and over 20,000 were tortured over the nearly two decades of military rule in Chile under former President Pinochet.

Amnesty International was the first international non-governmental organization to alert governments to exercise their responsibilities under the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment when it was known that former President Pinochet was visiting Europe in September 1998.

The organization mobilized its membership to put pressure on the United Kingdom government to allow his extradition. It also went to court with victims and other non-governmental organizations in the House of Lords to convince it that the United Kingdom was required to grant the extradition request, leading to an historic decision that a former head of state could be extradited to face trial on the basis of universal jurisdiction.

The case laid the foundations for universal jurisdiction to become a reality in practice and led to the arrest of former Chadian President Hissene Habré in Senegal, accused of committing torture, war crimes and crimes against humanity during his Presidency. It also paved the way for the fight in national courts against impunity at the highest level, such as the ongoing trial of former President Alberto Fujimori in Peru.

Amnesty International, however, has said that although the Pinochet case sent a powerful warning to human rights abusers around the world, the rule of universal jurisdiction – under which he was detained – is at risk.

"The detention of Augusto Pinochet heralded a turning point in the practice of universal jurisdiction by recognizing that heads of state are not above the law and could be arrested and tried in foreign courts for crimes committed in their own country," said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

"Ten years later, there remains a great deal to be done to fulfil the hope for justice created by the arrest of Pinochet. Thousands of perpetrators of crimes under international law are still at large, avoiding justice in safe havens around the world."

Amnesty International has condemned the current failure to use universal jurisdiction to enforce international law when states where the crimes took place fail to investigate or prosecute. With only a small number of cases arrested and prosecuted since the landmark moment of Pinochet’s arrest, Amnesty International is calling for the adoption of effective laws that provide for universal jurisdiction and enable police and prosecutors to fulfil their duty.

In connection to this, Amnesty International is publishing today two papers, one on Germany and the other on Spain. They are the first of 192 such tools for justice in its No safe haven series designed to help lawyers for victims to identify states where universal jurisdiction cases might be brought and to enable civil society to press for reform of national law and practice to make universal jurisdiction effective.

The practice of international justice is also under attack on the International Criminal Court for trying to reach the topmost levels of the government in Sudan. Further damage could be done if the campaign being led by Rwanda calling for the UN General Assembly to condemn "abuses" of universal jurisdiction by foreign judges seeking to prosecute crimes committed in that country were to be successful.

"This is a time to remember the remarkable achievement of the relatives of Pinochet’s victims whose tireless efforts led to his arrest in 1998, under universal jurisdiction," said Irene Khan. "This achievement set a precedent that the international community has a duty to build on, arresting and trying or extraditing people suspected of crimes under international law."

Video: Murat Kurnaz, former detainee at Guantánamo and Afghanistan

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 13:55:34 +0000

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Murat Kurnaz was arrested in Pakistan in November 2001, and then held in US custody in Afghanistan and Guantánamo.

He was detained without charge or trial for nearly five years.

Released in August 2006, he is now back home in Bremen, Germany.

Different voices

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:52:17 +0000

When Amnesty International presented Report 2008 to the media at The Foreign Press Association in London on 27 May, several people involved in human rights campaigning around the world were invited as special guests. We caught up with three of them.

The first female judge to work at the High Court in Pakistan, Majida Razvi, is now retired. She is currently a women's rights defender and one of seven trustees of the Panah Shelter Home for women in Karachi.

Panah seeks to provide a peaceful haven and temporary refuge for women who are victims of domestic violence or sexual abuse, or under threat of honour killings.

Majida Razvi says she's happy to support the launch of Amnesty International's Report 2008 because "we established the shelter homes in 2001 and the seed money was given by Amnesty International to start with. Also other organizations connected to Amnesty International have been helping us in Karachi. So I think Amnesty International has been a great help and I hope it will be in the future."

Since starting Panah, Majida Razvi says the greatest change she has noticed is the overall awareness of the issues surrounding violence against women. "We are not only providing shelter for these women but we are also trying to create awareness amongst these women by holding workshops and the like."

"There's a greater awareness amongst the public now too. We've also been successful in changing the attitude of the police and the judiciary, trying to get them to be more sympathetic and polite to women who are victims. We need a revolution in the mind of the public and in the minds of men and also in the minds of the women who are governed by their husbands, and by the mullahs of the area."

A young Brighton-based Zimbabwean, Alois Mbawara, has been living in exile in the UK since 2002. He is one of the founding members of Free-Zim Youth, an organization that tries to influence institutions and organisations to take a tougher stance on Harare.

"We are young Zimbabweans in exile who fled the repression and political violence in Zimbabwe," says Mbawara. "As citizens of Zimbabwe we need to be exposing the gross human rights violations being perpetuated by the Mugabe regime. So that's how we came up with the idea for this civic organization to lobby the African Union, to get it to take a stance on what is happening in Zimbabwe.

Mbawara explains why he agreed to join Amnesty’s launch event "It's good exposure. In particular it gives us a multilateral venue to express what is happening in Zimbabwe. It is an historical opportunity to express our views on the political nature of Zimbabwe."

He adds that Amnesty’s work has been helpful in "documenting the day-to-day lives of the ordinary person in Zimbabwe. I have to stress that, due to the lack of free press and media, even people who work for human rights organizations don't have access to information about the political violence in Zimbabwe and are unable to publicize it. So, Amnesty International plays a very pivotal role."

Since starting Free-Zim Youth, Mbawara says their advocacy work, lobbying and demonstrations have had an effect. "Some may call it undiplomatic but we had to confront South African leaders when they came over to the UK and say to them 'now look here, you need to be in a position to do something'" he says, recalling the group's protest during South African Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dhlamini Zuma's 2006 lecture at the London School of Economics.

"We have been having a positive response from that. The South African government has since released a critical statement that they will take a tough stance on what is happening in Zimbabwe."

Released from Guantánamo on 24 August 2006, German-born Turkish national Murat Kurnaz had been held for four years and eight months without charge or trial, despite little evidence to link him to "terrorist" activities. Both US and German intelligence services secretly acknowledged this, yet it took years to secure his release.

Kurnaz has alleged that he was subjected to torture and ill-treatment while in US custody. His book, Five Years of My Life: An Innocent Man in Guantánamo, was launched at an Amnesty International event in Belfast on May 8. John Le Carre called it "The most compassionate, truthful and dignified account of the disgrace of Guantanamo that you are ever likely to read." Patti Smith wrote a song about Kurnaz called "Without Chains" in 2006. She also wrote the foreword to his book.

Kurnaz says he agreed to attend the launch of the Amnesty International Report 2008 because "I like to use all the chances I have to talk, not for me, because I am already a free man, but I'm still trying to help the ones still held in torture camps and prisons and I'm campaigning against those people supporting torture and building torture camps."

Speaking about Amnesty International, Kurnaz says "Amnesty International is trying to show the people what is going on. It's up to the people, when they know the truth, then they can try to make things change."

While positive, Kurnaz concedes that change won't happen overnight. "Because things that have happened in the past have come to light, maybe they won't happen again in the future. I feel like even if it's very slow, things are going to get changed. A few days ago I was the first former Guantánamo detainee to testify before the American Congress. It was the first time they had talked about Guantánamo. I hope this will mean big changes for the future."

Parliamentarians meet US authorities over illegal detentions

Wed, 14 May 2008 08:49:40 +0000

International parliamentarians are meeting with US government officials from 14-16 May 2008 to discuss Amnesty International's framework to end illegal US detentions.

Sir Menzies Campbell, Member of the UK Parliament, and Christophe Strasser, Member of the German Bundestag, will represent the 1,236 parliamentarians from 30 countries that have already joined the call to US authorities to end illegal detention at Guantánamo and elsewhere, in accordance with Amnesty International's framework.

Sir Menzies Campbell and Christophe Strasser will meet with officials from the US Department of State, the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee, the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Office of Senator McCain and the US Navy, among others.

Replica Guantánamo cell touring the US

Since 8 May, a replica of a maximum security cell at Guantánamo has been touring the US. The tour, organized by Amnesty International, is a way to enable people to get a glimpse of the harsh realities of illegal detention and prolonged isolation.

Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland, ex-UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and a representative of the Global Elders, visited the cell in Miami on 10 May and spoke to Amnesty International activists who had gathered for a concert and rally.

Video: Worldwide actions to close Guantánamo

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:28:43 +0000

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Thousands of people, including Amnesty International members and supporters from around the world, have taken action to mark the sixth anniversary of the first transfers of detainees to Guantánamo. Amnesty International staged protests in 30 countries on Friday, 11 January.

The world shouts 'Close Guantánamo'

Sat, 12 Jan 2008 12:55:25 +0000

Click on the pictures to the right to watch a slideshow with images of the day.

More than simply a call for closure, Amnesty International once again presented the US government with the organization’s framework for ending illegal detentions, whether at Guantánamo or elsewhere. This time, the framework was supported by over 1,200 parliamentarians from around the world.

In some countries, including Belgium and Ireland, some of the parliamentarians accompanied Amnesty International activists at their events and demonstrations.

The infamous orange jumpsuit – closely associated with the inhumanity and illegality of Guantánamo – became once more the icon of this anniversary. There was also street theatre, poetry readings, the recreation of Guantánamo cells in city centres, speeches, rallies and cyber activism.

US military chief wants to close Guantánamo

On Sunday, two days after the anniversary, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, US Navy Admiral Michael Mullen became the latest US official to say that Guantánamo should be shut down.

“More that anything else, I just think it has been the image – how Gitmo has become around the world, in terms of representing the United States. I believe from the standpoint of how it reflects on us that it’s been pretty damaging.”

What you can still do

Go to tearitdown.org and add your support to Amnesty International’s framework to end illegal US detentions.

Post a tearitdown banner in your website or blog.

Murat Kurnaz has been released from Guantánamo!

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 15:21:36 +0000

"Thank God, I am well, but just God that created us knows when I will come back."

Murat Kurnaz wrote these words to his family from Guantánamo in March 2002. His dreams of returning home to Germany have only now, finally, been realised.

Released from Guantánamo on 24 August 2006, Murat Kurnaz had been held for four years and eight months without charge or trial. The only contact he had been allowed with his family was through heavily censored letters.

In a statement, his German lawyer said: "He is now again in the circle of his family. Their joy at embracing their lost son again is indescribable".

Murat's mother, Rabiye Kurnaz, dedicated these past years to campaigning for her eldest son's release. In November 2005 she attended an international conference organized by Amnesty International and Reprieve where she spoke of her hopes of being reunited with her son. Now these hopes have become a reality.

Murat Kuraz is a Turkish national who was born in Germany in 1982. His prolonged detention in Guantánamo had been complicated by his status – lacking German citizenship, the German authorities had refused his return to Germany. The Turkish authorities had shown little interest in his case.

It was only after intense lobbying from his family, lawyers and AI members around the world, including in his home town of Bremen, that the German authorities began to act on his behalf, finally paving the way for his return.

Murat Kuraz had been arrested in Pakistan in November 2001. Soon afterwards he was transferred to US custody in Kandahar, Afghanistan. His family learnt that he was held in Guantánamo in January 2002 and received the first letter from him in March that year. He has alleged that he was subjected to torture and ill-treatment while in US custody.

Like many others held at Guantánamo, Murat Kurnaz was held for years despite little evidence to link him to "terrorist" activities. Both US and German intelligence services had secretly acknowledged this, yet it took years to secure his release. In January 2005, a US federal judge cited his case as illustrative of the inherent unfairness and fundamental flaws of the administrative review process the military authorities conduct in Guantánamo.

Murat Kurnaz is finally reunited with his family, but the effects of his long-term detention in Guantánamo will remain. His release is a victory for human rights, but also serves as a reminder that more than 400 men remain detained. Under the administrative review procedure, about 300 of these detainees are currently neither slated for release nor transfer to the custody of another government.

AI members worldwide continue to call on US authorities to close Guantánamo and for the release or fair trial of all those held. AI also continues to lobby governments to act on behalf of people from their countries – residents or nationals – detained at Guantánamo.

Germany - Amnesty International Report 2007

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:23:16 +0000

Germany was implicated in abuses linked to the US-led "war on terror". Asylum laws left refugees whose status had been withdrawn vulnerable to deportation to unsafe countries.

Background

In September, Germany signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

Renditions

The authorities failed to hold anyone responsible for Germany's involvement in the USA's programme of secret detentions and renditions - the unlawful transfer of people between states outside of any judicial process.

In May, a parliamentary committee of inquiry decided to investigate the case of German citizen Muhammad Zammar. He was apprehended in Morocco in December 2001, allegedly by Moroccan security services, and subsequently transferred to Syria, reportedly on a US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) plane. He was reportedly tortured in the Palestine Branch (Far' Falastin) of Military Intelligence in Damascus, the Syrian capital. In November 2002, a delegation of German intelligence and law enforcement officials interrogated Muhammad Zammar in Syria for three days. Even though he was detained without access to family, a lawyer or German embassy officials, the delegation did nothing to help him and failed to inform the German embassy or his family about his situation. In October 2006 Muhammad Zammar was apparently charged by Syria's Supreme State Security Court, including with offences related to membership of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. At the end of 2006 he was reportedly held in Sednaya prison on the outskirts of Damascus. Germany had not held to account anyone responsible, directly or indirectly, for any human rights violations suffered by Muhammad Zammar.

In May the same parliamentary committee of inquiry began looking into the case of Khaled el-Masri, a German citizen who was detained in Macedonia in December 2003, handed to US officials, and later secretly flown to Afghanistan via Iraq. In Afghanistan, he said he was beaten and given insufficient food. He was interrogated repeatedly by US agents and by a uniformed German-speaking man. In May 2004 he was released and returned to Germany via Albania. On 1 June the German Federal Intelligence Service declared that one of its staff members had been told about Khaled el-Masri's detention in December 2003, but had failed to report it.

Torture and other ill-treatment

In relation to alleged terrorist suspects, Germany failed to respect the prohibition on torture and other ill-treatment.

In August, after negotiations between the government and the US authorities, German-born Turkish citizen Murat Kurnaz was released from US detention at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Classified government documents leaked in March showed that the USA had offered to release Murat Kurnaz in 2002, but Germany had proposed that he be sent to Turkey even though there was no evidence that he had committed a crime. Following his release, Murat Kurnaz said that while held earlier in US detention in Kandahar, Afghanistan, German soldiers banged his head on the ground. The prosecutor's office in Tübingen started an investigation into this allegation. German soldiers who helped guard the prison in Kandahar confirmed that there had been a German-speaking detainee there.

In November the German Federal Court of Justice found Moroccan citizen Mounir el-Motassadeq guilty of being an accessory to murder on 246 counts in connection with the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York on 11 September 2001. He was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment. In June 2005, the Hamburg Supreme Court had ruled that evidence possibly obtained under torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment was admissible in the retrial, a ruling that breached international law.

Universal jurisdiction

In March, the German Attorney General decided not to prosecute the former Uzbekistani Minister of Internal Affairs Zokir Almatov, who was reportedly one of the commanders of the security forces responsible for a mass killing in the Uzbekistani city of Andizhan in May 2005. Zokir Almatov had already fled Germany, where he had been receiving medical treatment, after he was alerted to an attempt to persuade the federal prosecutor to open a criminal investigation against him under Germany's Code of Crimes against International Law. This law allows courts to exercise universal jurisdiction in cases of alleged crimes against humanity, war crimes or genocide, irrespective of where they were committed or the nationality of the accused and the victims.

In November a criminal complaint was filed against the US former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and other high-ranking US officials for alleged crimes under international law committed in Iraq and at Guantánamo Bay. The complaint was based on the Code of Crimes against International Law.

Refugees at risk

The Federal Agency for Migration and Refugees continued to withdraw refugee status from individuals, particularly those from Afghanistan and Iraq, even though they would not be safe if returned. After refugee status was withdrawn, the residence permits of the individuals concerned were often cancelled, putting them at risk of deportation to their country of origin. In November the Interior Minister declared that people could be deported to northern Iraq.

The government proposed new asylum legislation that did not fully conform to international refugee laws and standards as well as European Union directives. For example, individuals would not be properly protected against religious persecution. The proposal also failed to resolve the issue of the approximately 200,000 people with "leave to remain" status, among whom were people whose asylum claims had been rejected but who had not been deported for humanitarian reasons. Their continued stay in Germany was decided on a monthly basis and they had restricted access to the labour market. The proposal would give these people a two-year residence permit provided that they had found employment by the end of September 2007.

Police accountability

In November, the Regional Court of Dessau refused, on grounds of insufficient evidence, to open proceedings against two policemen allegedly involved in the death of Sierra Leonean citizen Oury Jalloh, who died in 2005 after being burned alive in a police cell. He had been chained to his bed allegedly because he had resisted arrest. Preliminary investigations by the State Attorney concluded that the fire alarm in Oury Jalloh's cell had been switched off during the incident.

AI country reports/visits

Report

Partners in crime: Europe's role in US renditions

(AI Index: EUR 01/008/2006)

Germany - Amnesty International Report 2008

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:38:14 +0000

Germanyfailed to address human rights violations committed in the context of the US-led “war on terror”, including its involvement in renditions (unlawful transfers of suspects between countries). Additionally, Germany made attempts to obtain diplomatic assurances in deportation cases where individuals may be at risk of serious human rights abuses, in violation of its obligations under international law.

Ill-treatment, including in the context of renditions

In August the Tübingen state prosecutor reopened investigations into allegations that German-born Turkish citizen Murat Kurnaz was tortured and otherwise ill-treated by German Special Forces Command officers while in US custody in Afghanistan in 2002. The reopening of the investigation was prompted by the emergence of three new witnesses. Before his release in 2006, Murat Kurnaz had been detained for four years and nine months in total, mostly in Guantánamo Bay.
In late 2007 the parliamentary committee looking into Germany’s role in human rights violations committed as a result of its counter-terrorist activities began investigating the case of German national Muhammad Zammar. During the hearings, it emerged that the Federal Criminal Police Office had informed the US authorities of Muhammad Zammar’s travel dates for his trip to Morocco in November 2001, from where he was illegally transferred to Syria.

By the end of December 2001 he had been handed over by Moroccan officials to Syria and placed in incommunicado detention, where he was reportedly subjected to torture and ill-treatment.In November 2002, Muhammad Zammar was interrogated for three days by German intelligence and law enforcement officials whilst in Syrian detention. Upon return to Germany, the officers did not disclose information to the authorities about his whereabouts. He remained in detention at the end of 2007.

In September the German government announced that it would not pursue the extradition of 13 US citizens, including at least 10 US Central Intelligence Agency operatives, suspected of illegally detaining a Lebanese-born German national, Khaled el-Masri.

Khaled el-Masri was arrested and unlawfully detained while in Macedonia in December 2003. He was handed over to US agents and secretly flown to Afghanistan as part of the US programme of renditions. Following five months of alleged ill-treatment, he was flown to Albania and released after the US authorities apparently realized they had the wrong man.Extradition warrants for the 13 US citizens were issued by a Munich prosecutor in January 2007. In April, the Federal Constitutional Court found the prosecutor’s decision to tap Khaled el-Masri’s lawyer’s phone to be illegal.

On counter-terrorism, the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights recommended in July that Germany develop specific guidelines for intelligence services regarding the questioning of detainees abroad; ensure that evidence obtained under inhuman or degrading treatment or torture is not admissible in court; and fully investigate alleged cases of renditions on German territory and adopt effective measures to prevent future unlawful renditions.

Diplomatic assurances

On 3 October the European Court of Human Rights indicated to the German government that Hasan Atmaca should not be extradited to Turkey until further notice. On entering Germany in February 2005, Hasan Atmaca was arrested by the German authorities on suspicion of belonging to a criminal organization. The Turkish authorities requested his extradition to Turkey to stand trial on charges of activities in favour of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

In May 2006 the German government sought diplomatic assurances from the Turkish authorities that Hasan Atmaca would be detained in a high security prison meeting international standards and that German authorities could visit him. The Turkish authorities pledged that these assurances would be favourably assessed.The Frankfurt Higher Regional Court had declared his extradition admissible. However, on 31 May 2007 the Darmstadt Administrative Court instructed the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees to declare Hasan Atmaca a refugee and stated that he could not be deported to Turkey as this might constitute refoulement (forcible return to countries where a person may be at risk of serious human rights violations). Under Section 4 of the German Asylum Procedures Act, receiving refugee status does not impede the German authorities from extraditing a person, in contravention of international standards.In February it was reported that the Federal Ministry of the Interior had sought diplomatic assurances from Algeria not to torture anyone suspected of involvement in terrorist activity, when returned there from Germany.In July, an Under Secretary of State travelled to Tunisia to request similar assurances from the Tunisian Minister of Interior over two Tunisian nationals suspected of having links to terrorist organizations. The German authorities then issued deportation orders for the two Tunisian nationals who later contested this decision in court. The judicial reviews were still pending at the end of the year.

Migrant and refugee rights

New legislation implementing 11 European Union (EU) directives in the field of asylum failed to provide adequate protection in cases of people fleeing violence. This meant that, for example, asylum-seekers from central and southern Iraq who were not members of a targeted minority often did not receive adequate protection.

On 11 July the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights issued a report on his 2006 visit to Germany. Regarding asylum and immigration, the Commissioner called on Germany to introduce protections for refugees who experience persecution because of outward manifestations of religion or sexual orientation.
On 18 April a report was issued on Germany by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT). It recommended that, in all German states, “the detention of immigration detainees be governed by specific rules reflecting their particular status” and that “the authorities of Hamburg and Niedersachsen, as well as of all other states in Germany, take the necessary measures to ensure that immigration detainees are accommodated in centres specifically designed for that purpose.” The CPT also recommended that the Brandenburg authorities “take steps to ensure the regular presence of a psychologist at Eisenhüttenstadt Detention Centre and develop programmes for the provision of psychosocial care to foreign nationals held there.”

Police custody

In January the Regional Court of Dessau, overturning an earlier judgment, opened proceedings against two police officers suspected of involvement in the death of Sierra Leonean Oury Jalloh while in police custody. He died in his cell in January 2005.

One police officer was accused of bodily harm with fatal consequences for allegedly switching off the fire alarm several times. Another officer was accused of killing caused by negligence on the grounds that he may have overlooked a lighter during a personal search.Oury Jalloh had been chained to his bed allegedly because he had resisted arrest. He died of heat shock. Preliminary investigations by the State Attorney concluded that the fire alarm had been switched off during the incident.