The student-led movement to end mass atrocities.

Weekly News Brief, 5.26.10 – 6.3.10

In this week’s issue: More clashes are reported in South Darfur; a splinter group of Burma’s NLD registered for the elections; MONUC will transition to MONUSCO in July with a greater focus on civilian protections

The Week That Was, May 26 to June 2, 2010, compiled by Joshua Kennedy of GI-Net and the STAND E-team.

Sudan
Burma
  • The UN group of experts monitoring sanctions on North Korea believes that North Korea is exporting nuclear and ballistic missile technology to Burma.  
  • Leaders of the splinter political group of Burma’s National League for Democracy registered their party at the Election Commission office in Naypyidaw on Thursday, claiming they were gathering increasing support across the country.
    Senator Jim Webb will once again meet with junta officials, less than one month after the visit of Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell.  There is speculation that the junta will use the opportunity to release political prisoners as a symbol of concessions to the international community before the elections take place.
  • The EU and ASEAN called on Burma’s rulers to ensure that this year’s planned election is “credible, transparent, democratic and inclusive” in a joint statement released on Wednesday.
Democratic Republic of Congo
  • The Group of Experts on the DR Congo released a new interim report on the conflict in the country. In the report, the experts charge that former CNDP rebels exercise de facto control of North Kivu and parts of South Kivu. The report also claims that while the FDLR is still recruiting, its operations have been disrupted by the recent Amani Leo and Kimia II operations. The Group also stated that it believes that nearly all mining deposits in North and South Kivu were under the control of an armed faction, including the CNDP, the FLDR, FARDC subunits and Mai Mai militia.
  • The MONUC peacekeeping mission will transition to the MONUSCO peacekeeping mission on July 1, 2010. The new mission will include a greater focus on civilian protection and may include a force reduction of nearly 2,000 troops.
Afghanistan
Iraq
Pakistan

 

Weekly News Brief, 5.14.10 – 5.21.10

In this week’s issue: Violence is escalating between Darfuri rebels JEM and the Sudanese police; the US has formally extended sanctions against Burma for another year; representatives from different industries met with the Department of State to discuss ensuring their minerals are conflict-free
 
Weekly News Brief, May 14 to 21, 2010, compiled by Joshua Kennedy of GI-Net and the STAND E-team. To received weekly news briefs, email education@standnow.org.
 
Sudan
 
Burma
  • The United States has formally extended sanctions against military-ruled Burma for another one year, despite its policy of engaging the regime. Obama said the crisis between the US and Burma that resulted in the imposition of sanctions had not been resolved and therefore Burma’s actions and policies were hostile to US interests.
  • Some leading members of NLD, who disagreed with the party’s decision to boycott this year’s general election, have founded a new political party, named the National Democratic Force, which will contest the polls.  Aung San Suu Kyi said that the act of forming a new party by some of the NLD leaders is incompatible with the democratic process, according to her lawyer, Nyan Win, after meeting her on Friday.
  • Around 1,000 members of several small militia groups will become border guard forces under Burmese military command after militia leaders reached an agreement with Lt-Gen Ye Myint, the Burmese junta chief of Military Affairs Security, at a meeting on Tuesday morning. The militia groups are primarily smaller forces aligned with the Shan State Army-South in the Tachilek district of Shan state.
  • The Burmese military is using local forced labor to relocate people set to be displaced by the construction of dams on the Irrawaddy River.
  • The United Nations issued a report on Friday naming the Burmese Army and two ethnic armed groups responsible for the recruitment of child soldiers over the past five years.
 
Democratic Republic of Congo
 
Afghanistan
 
Pakistan
 
Somalia
 
Around the World
Madagascar
 

Sri Lanka

 
Thailand

 

 

Weekly News Brief, 5.9.10 – 5.14.10

In this week’s issue: at least 107 people have been killed in inter-tribal fighting in Darfur since March; officials warn that Burma’s elections will not be legitimate; Congress passed an act to address the ongoing LRA threat in Central Africa

 

Weekly News Brief, May 9 to 14, 2010, compiled by Joshua Kennedy of GI-Net and the STAND E-team. To receive weekly news briefs, email education@standnow.org.

 

Areas of Concern

Sudan
 
Burma
 

Democratic Republic of Congo

 
Afghanistan
 
Iraq
 
Somalia
 

Around the World

Thailand

 

Weekly News Brief, 4.30.10 – 5.9.10

In this week’s issue: an official from Sudan’s National Election Commission recognized cases of vote rigging; 10,000 Karen have fled to Thailand escaping expected clashes; Five people were killed when Mai Mai militia attacked a town in North Kivu
 
Weekly News Brief, April 30 to May 9, compiled by Joshua Kennedy at GI-Net and the STAND E-team. To receive weekly news briefs, email education@standnow.org.
 
Sudan
 
Burma
 
Democratic Republic of Congo
 
Afghanistan
 
Pakistan
 
Iraq
  • Two bombings killed three and wounded five last weekend, when buses carrying Christian students exploded in Mosul last Sunday.
  • The Iraqi civilian death toll rose significantly in April to 274, demonstrating militants’ resolve to resort to violence to affect change. Despite the increase, levels of violence remain lower than their heights in 2006 and 2007, as well as lower than levels recorded by the Iraq Body Count in 2008 and 2009.
 
Somalia

 

Sudan news wrap up

Watch this video blog for an update on recent events in Sudan.

The past few weeks have been eventful for Sudan. Current President Omar al-Bashir was re-elected during Sudan’s first multi-party election in decades with sixty-eight percent of the vote; Salva Kiir retained his position as the president of Sudan’s semi- autonomous south with almost ninety-three percent of the vote. The National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) have vowed to work together to form the new government, accepting the election results at all levels.

      Even though the election process was relatively peaceful, violence followed the elections. More than fifty-two civilians were killed and fifty-five others wounded in renewed tribal clashes in Sudan’s South Darfur State, in a class between Rizeigat and al-Sada tribes at various areas, about sixty kilometers north of Nyala, the capital city of South Darfur State. The same week, cattle raiders killed as many as seventeen villagers and displaced many more after they attacked Yirol East County in South Sudan. Over three days, the raiders took both cattle and children.Armed conflict has also broken out in Darfur between Arab nomads and South Sudan’s army along the north-south border. It left dozens dead and many more displaced.

      Fortunately, the four South African peacekeepers, who were kidnapped in Darfur prior to the elections, have been released. Also, the UN Security Council extended the mandate of the UNMIS peacekeeping mission until April 30, 2011.  The new resolution called for UNMIS to use its authority to implement a mission-wide civilian protection program and mechanisms to resolve tribal conflict.  UNMIS was also tasked with playing a lead role in preparations for the upcoming referendum in South Sudan.  

      The technical committee responsible for the north and south border started its work on Tuesday.  The physical demarcation of the border is expected to be completed by the January referendum.

      

Keep your eye on the Sudanese news, and watch out for more updates!

-Emma Smith, National Sudan Education Coordinator

 

 

Weekly News Brief, 4.23.10 – 4.30.10

In this week’s issue: Tribal clashes in South Darfur left 52 dead; several ceasefire groups officially rejected Burma’s Border Guard Force proposal; ICG released a report on responding to the LRA threat in central Africa
Weekly News Brief – April 23 to 30, 2010, compiled by Joshua Kennedy of GI-Net and the STAND E-team. To receive weekly news briefs, trivia, and a discussion guide, email education@standnow.org.
 
Sudan
Burma
  • The Obama administration on April 22 defended its policy of engagement with the Burmese military junta following calls from several US senators to review the policy, saying that sanctions without engagement have not yielded results in the past.
  • As the junta’s deadline for the Border Guard Force plan passed on Thursday, the largest of Burma’s armed ethnic groups, the United Wa State Army met this week with other cease-fire groups with which it has allied to discuss the potential threats they face in the near future.
  • The New Mon State Party has officially rejected the military regime’s Border Guard Force and militia proposals and have stated that they will use force if attacked by the regime’s army.  However, analysts question in the NMPP is prepared for the outbreak of war.  The KIA and KNU Peace Council have also rejected the regime’s Border Guard Force proposal.
  • In a major development that may lead to fresh armed conflict between the armed ceasefire groups and the Burmese Army, the National Democratic Front has declared that it will join hands with its allies to attack the junta on multiple front lines.
  • European Union foreign ministers have renewed the bloc’s “Common Position” on Burma, extending existing sanctions until April 2011, but have stated that it will “respond positively” to progress and hopes to maintain a dialogue with the regime.
  • Human Rights Watch released a new report on Burma, charging that humanitarian space in the country is constricting in advance of the coming elections, obstructing the continued recovery from the 2008 Cyclone Nargis disaster.
Democratic Republic of Congo
Afghanistan
 
Iraq
Pakistan
Somalia

 

Trivia and Discussion: Prioritizing Conflicts

While STAND began as a Darfur group, recent years have seen our mission expand to concern all areas of genocide and mass atrocities world-wide. Fulfilling such an expansive mission is no easy task. As strong of an organization as STAND is, it is unrealistic to think that we could educate and advocate on any and every spot in the world where civilians are targeted for systematic violence. To be most effective, we must prioritize and focus on a few, most urgent, crises around the world. How do we decide?

Annually, the Genocide Intervention Network and the STAND E-team re-evaluate current conflicts of concern and other spots of violence around the world to determine which should remain or be instated as priorities. We read the annual Conflict Barometer report published by the Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research. We then code conflicts according to type and scale of violence, and assess whether they ought to be on our list of areas of concern. Those that don’t make the list but are still conflict hot spots will be monitored regularly though less in depth. Currently, GI-Net is finalizing this process, and will soon release the list of areas of concern for 2010. Keep an eye out for these developments!

Trivia: What were STAND’s Areas of Concern for 2009?

Discussion: When and under what conditions do we decide to remove a conflict from the list?

Conflict Selection criteria:
 

  • Systematic, deliberate targeting of civilians for killing, severe torture, or rape on a massive scale
  • Degrees of Harm and capability:
    • Harm to combatants/political leadership
    • Some impact on civilians, political opponents, but largely minimizes civilian casualties
    • Indifference to impact on large civilian population
    • Tactical killing of civilians
    • Tactically mobilizing essentialist motives of some
    • Essentialist motives of primary killers
  • Scale:
    • Very Small
      • under 100 civilian fatalities, under 1,000 displaced
    • Small
      • 100-500 civilian fatalities, 1,000-10,000 displaced
    • Moderate
      • 150-250 civilian fatalities, 10,000-50,000 displaced
    • Large
      • 250-1,000 civilian fatalities, 50,000-100,000 displaced
    • Very Large
      • 1,000+ civilian fatalities, 100,000+ displaced
  • Learn more here.

 

Email education@standnow.org to receive weekly trivia, a discussion guide, and news briefs.

 

 

Answers and Analysis: MONUC withdrawal from Congo?

Last week’s trivia and discussion concerned the possible MONUC withdrawal from Congo and consequences as a result.

Trivia: possible repercussions of MONUC leaving Congo

  1. MONUC has spent the last about three years trying to train DRC’s army FARDC in both field tactics and cohesive action. If MONUC leaves next year, there is a chance that FARDC may decline back into preying on civilians, as they have recently been accused of doing.
  2. There is a chance that since President Joseph Kabila himself asked MONUC to leave, he has a plan in mind. He might be feeling that his military is ready to take care of its country, and has drawn an operation schedule.
  3. However, before this plan comes to fruition, rebels and FARDC members alike might jump to use the opportunity of a power vacuum to assault civilians. Or worse, there might be no such plan

Discussion:

      While the rebels are killing us, MONUC takes notes and makes reports. What good is that?” Congolese citizen, Kisangani. November 2002, Refugees International

      Started in 1999 and initially called the Joint Military Commission, MONUC was formed to monitor compliance with the 1999 Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement. Like many UN operations, this one’s mandate has never been and will never be to forcibly bring peace to DRC. It is an operation meant to enforce peace and use military force only in self protection and very limited civilian protection. This would explain the constant complaints that MONUC is not doing enough to help the civilians. For a conflict where people are being murdered and raped by the thousands, of what use is a force that simply observes and takes notes?

In 2002 thousands of Congolese civilians in Kisangani were murdered by the Rwanda backed RCD-Goma, under the nose of a 1200 men strong MONUC force; protection of civilians from this military attack was apparently not only outside MONUC’s mandate but also beyond their capabilities. When it comes to civilians, MONUC’s biggest disappointment so far has been the false hope that they would protect innocent Congolese from military attacks. Most recently, they embarked on Kimia II (January 2009) in which they partnered with FARDC to assault the FDLR, an operation that turned counterproductive when the FDLR renewed violence and the FARDC continued to prey on the very civilians it is supposed to be protecting. By September 2009, 800,000 more people had fled.

If MONUC leaves, there is possibility of escalated violence not because they used to protect the people but because of a restraint vacuum:; the attackers who might have feared MONUC counter attacks will now feel free to attack. Secondly, MONUC’s leaving will be a huge disappointment to not only local people but the global citizens who look to UN missions to protect civilians and resolve conflict, as opposed to occupying conflict zones, making minimal progress, taking risky steps like Kimia II and then suddenly withdrawing and leaving civilians uncertain about their future. Many East Congolese civilians are in danger, no doubt. The way things are going, their lives and security will be at the mercy of the rebels or in the hands of the government, which we hope will step up to the task. Should MONUC actually stay or attempt a future return, it is advisable that they give more weight to civilian protection in their mandate, support only pacifist operations of FARDC and partner more with civilians.

-Sharon Muhwezi, National Congo Education Coordinator

 

Story of an Iraqi Refugee

 Iraqi refugee, Ihab Basri, is a freshman at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. His life story is a powerful one—a story of war, of family, of survival, and of hope that peace is coming to Iraq once again.

      Ihab says that he remembers a time in Iraq when everything was peaceful, when no one was afraid to walk down the streets of Baghdad. He says that when he was a child and even up until the invasion, no one cared about whether their neighbors were Muslims or Christians. Everyone lived in peace. Now, no one can walk down the street without risking his or her life. Everyone is afraid because everyone is a target. “Right now,” he says, “We don’t want food; we just want peace.”

      Everything started for Ihab Basri in 2007, after some unknown men attempted to kidnap him on his way to his university. He was in the first few stages of medical school there in Baghdad. Ihab does not know why he was the target; although, he speculates that it might be because he is Christian. After this traumatic event, his family decided to move out of Baghdad to Northern Iraq. Life was very difficult there: no one accepted them because they were Arab, the cost of living was high, and there was no work for them. In July 2007, they escaped to Syria as refugees, where they were still not allowed to work. Ihab says that they had to renew their residency every two months, and they were in constant danger of being expelled from Syria. Ihab was forbidden from continuing his studies at any of the Syrian universities, even if his family had had the money to pay the steep university fees.

      That’s where the Iraqi Student Project came in. They helped him improve his English, guided him through the college application process, and sent him to the United States to finish his studies. He says, “They have been here with me every step of the way. They are like my family.” They continue to help him with life in the United States; he even has an internship this summer at a New York hospital through them. All they ask of him is that he “remember them and make the most of his opportunities to help his fellow Iraqis.” This, he says, “I can do.”

      Even now that he is at Dartmouth College, life is still hard for him. He is not allowed to leave the United States until he has finished his degree. His family, including his two younger sisters (ages 9 and 19), is still in a refugee camp in Syria, unable to work or provide food for themselves. His parents have applied for immigration to Canada; although, that process often takes up to five years.

      But Ihab is hopeful and adamant that he will make the most of his time here in the United States. Ihab is currently attempting to set up a direct liaison between Dartmouth and Iraqi refugee students who have had their studies interrupted by the war. He believes that the Iraqi students are the future of Iraq; they will be needed when peace prevails once again in Iraq. Until then, he suggests that students across the United States make people aware that the violence has not stopped in Iraq and that millions of innocent citizens are suffering everyday because of it.

-Emma Smith, Dartmouth STAND and National Sudan Education Coordinator

 

Weekly News Brief, 04.16.10 – 04.23.10

In this week’s issue: fifty people were killed reportedly due to cattle raiding south of Nyala; Kachin Independence Organization troops are training opposition groups who refused to join Burma’s Border Guard Force; FARDC executed 49 civilians earlier this month in Congo

Weekly News Brief, April 16 to 23, 2010, compiled by Josh Kennedy at GI-Net and the STAND E-team. To receive news briefs, along with trivia and a discussion guide, email education@standnow.org.

 
Sudan
Burma
  • Three bombs killed 10 and injured 170 at the Burmese New Year water festival in Rangoon on Thursday.  Army and police sources say that Sr.-Gen. Nay Shwe Thway Aung, Than Shwe’s grandson, was the target of the attacks, while a state newspaper blamed the attacks on exiled Burmese opposition groups utilizing terrorist tactics.
  • US senator Judd Gregg has introduced a resolution calling on US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to assess whether the Obama administration policy of engagement with the Burmese military junta has been effective in furthering US interests, asking the administration to strengthen sanctions and engage with regional governments and multilateral organizations to push for the establishment of democratic rule in Burma.
  • Wa leadership recently met to discuss the Border Guard Force and the future of the United Wa State Army and decided once again to reject the BGF plan, following previous, unsuccessful attempts by the Wa leadership to negotiate with the SPDC.
  • The New Mon State Party and the Kachin Independence Organization also declined the offer to integrate into the government’s border guard force.
  • Kachin Independence Organisation troops are providing military training to people from the ethnic minority after the group refused to join the Burma Army’s Border Guard Force, and New Mon State Party leaders and soldiers are making preparations to travel to jungle bases in anticipation of an outbreak in hostilities between the Mon cease-fire group and the Burmese army.
 
Democratic Republic of Congo
Afghanistan
Iraq
Pakistan
Somalia

Around the World

Northern Ireland

Ethiopia
Thailand