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	Outrage in India as 11 men convicted of rape walk free by Zeba Warsi PBS Newshour, BBC News, agencies   Aug. 2022   Warning: This story contains recollections of sexual violence and abuse.   The bitter irony was not lost on Bilkis Bano, who watched as the group of men who raped her 20 years ago were released from prison by a state government in western India– the same day that in an independence day commemoration speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed for greater respect toward women.   Bano was 21 when she was attacked by a violent Hindu mob in the 2002 anti-Muslim riots in the state of Gujarat. The 11 men convicted of gang raping her when she was 21 and pregnant, and murdering 14 members of her family, walked free last week.   “How can justice for any woman end like this?” Bano asked in a statement released by her lawyer. “The release of these convicts has taken from me my peace and shaken my faith in justice.”   A petition challenging their release has been accepted by India’s top court and may come up for a hearing this week as calls for ‘Justice For Bilkis’ grow louder in India.   Bano’s attackers were released as India also marks 10 years since another heinous sex crime: the brutal gang rape of a young woman on a bus in New Delhi that sparked nationwide protests and led to stricter laws on sexual violence. Yet, according to official government data released in 2020, a woman is raped every 15 minutes in India. Bano’s case is particularly striking as it reflects not only the grim situation for women, but also the rising levels of anti-minority discrimination in India.   The attack against Bano, a Muslim woman, was one of the most horrific episodes of the sectarian violence that began after Muslim Indians were accused of starting a train fire that killed nearly 60 Hindu pilgrims in 2002. An estimated 800 Muslims were killed in retaliatory violence, according to official government reports. Modi was then the chief minister of Gujarat state and his government was accused of not doing enough to stop the killings. Following the riots, the United States imposed a travel ban on Modi under a federal law that prohibits foreigners who have committed “severe violations of religious freedom” from entering the country. The ban was lifted only after he was elected prime minister of India in 2014.   Amid the 2002 violence, sword-wielding men raped Bano and her mother multiple times. She was made to watch as her 3-year-old daughter and 13 other relatives were killed. In 2008, after a long legal battle, the 11 men involved in the attack were convicted and sentenced to life in prison. On Wednesday, they walked free after their application for a “remission” of their sentence was approved by the state government.   “The trauma of the past 20 years washed over me again,” Bano said about their release. “I was bereft of words. I am still numb.”   Around 6,000 civil rights activists, writers, filmmakers and journalists have written to India’s Supreme Court with pleas to revoke the early release of Bano’s rapists.   “We urge women in India to break their silence, to go to courts. But today, so many are wondering, what’s the point?” said journalist Barkha Dutt, who has covered the Bano case since the beginning. “At that time, I was young, bewildered, overwhelmed and angry. Twenty years later, I am even angrier. What message is this sending to India’s women?”   Bano also said that she sees her grief as a collective call to action. “My sorrow and my wavering faith is not for myself alone but for every woman who is struggling for justice in courts.”   The release of her attackers came with no prior notice.   “We learnt about it on the news. Neither Bilkis, nor her legal team were notified about the decision,” said Shobha Gupta, Bano’s lawyer. “The kind of exceptional violence which was caused is beyond imagination. This was a case which was 100% unfit for any sort of clemency or early release.”   Impartiality called into question   In India, life sentences generally last until the death of those imprisoned, but convicts are eligible to apply for a remission after spending 14 years in prison. The latest federal policy disallows those convicted of serious crimes, including rape and murder, from seeking an early release. But Bano’s attackers were released under a 1991 policy that was in effect at the time of their conviction, when no such restrictions were in place.   Questions have been raised about the impartiality of the decision. Five of the 10 members of the review panel that recommended their release are affiliated with Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is currently in power both in the state of Gujarat and at the federal level. C.K. Raulji, a BJP lawmaker who sat on the panel, told Indian media outlet MoJo Story that the convicts are “Brahmins” — upper-caste Hindu — and had “good values.”   “Their family’s activity was very good; they are Brahmin people,” Raulji said, referring to their privileged caste. “And as it is with Brahmins, their values were also very good.”   “His remarks conclusively close the debate on whether there was any intent to rehabilitate the convicts. Reformation is not the intent here. What we are seeing is the worst sort of impunity,” said Dutt, who is the founder of MoJo Story. Despite widespread outrage by civil society and opposition leaders, there’s been no official statement released by the government.   Relatives of Bano’s attackers and members of Hindu nationalist groups greeted the men with sweets as they came out of prison and touched their feet as a mark of respect. The scene was reminiscent of an episode in 2018 when eight men convicted of anti-Muslim hate crimes were honored with garlands by a sitting BJP cabinet minister.   Discrimination and hate crimes against India’s Muslims have increased sharply in the years since Modi’s Hindu-right government came to power in 2014. Arrests of Muslim journalists and activists have become common in India. Hindu nationalist leaders with ties to the BJP have made open calls for genocide of India’s Muslims. Even a Hindu monk issued rape threats to Muslim women; the accused in both instances have been released from jail on bail. But a Muslim fact-checker, Mohammed Zubair, who exposed these events was arrested and jailed under multiple charges ranging from ‘hurting religious sentiments’ to criminal conspiracy. Zubair was released only after Supreme Court’s intervention.   In June, an activist who has campaigned for justice for the victims of the Gujarat violence – Teesta Setalvad – was arrested on charges of conspiracy. Human rights activists warn that Bano’s case is yet another setback in a series of anti-Muslim policies and practices adopted by the BJP-led government.   “The BJP in India represents a certain mindset, which suggests that not only is it OK to do this to other Indians of a different community and a different faith, but if you should do this, we will have your back and we will be able to protect you,” said Aakar Patel, former chief of Amnesty International India.   Bano is fearful of her safety. Those who snatched away her peace and so much of her life two decades ago have returned to live in the same village as she.   “Please undo this harm. Give me back my right to live without fear and in peace,” she pleaded in a recent statement.   http://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/ghost-of-the-2002-gujarat-violence-haunts-india-again-as-11-men-convicted-of-rape-and-murders-walk-free http://www.dw.com/en/india-will-sexual-violence-against-dalits-ever-end/a-63167654 http://www.hrw.org/news/2022/10/21/un-chief-admonishes-india-protect-rights-minorities http://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/31/human-rights-watch-submission-universal-periodic-review-india http://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/14/bbc-offices-india-raided-tax-officials-modi-documentary-fallout http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-64634711 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65048602 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65173980 http://mondediplo.com/2023/03/11india http://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/05/twitter-accused-of-censorship-in-india-as-it-blocks-modi-critics-elon-musk http://www.hrw.org/news/2023/04/05/indias-hindu-festivals-bring-increasing-anti-muslim-violence http://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/06/indian-government-accused-of-rewriting-history-after-edits-to-schoolbooks http://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/17/mahatma-gandhis-killer-venerated-as-hindu-nationalism-resurges-in-india Visit the related web page
	West Darfur: Health workers, children, among 200 killed in ‘senseless and brutal attacks’ by UN News, AFP, Al Jazeera, agencies   28 Apr. 2022   West Darfur: Health workers, children, among 200 killed in ‘senseless and brutal attacks’. (UN News, agencies)   Recent intercommunal violence in areas of West Darfur, Sudan, that has left scores dead and must stop immediately.   UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Wednesday called on the Sudanese authorities to protect the population of West Darfur and take urgent steps to prevent further outbreaks of communal violence after 200 people were killed in attacks by armed assailants between 22 and 24 April.   “I am appalled by reports that at least 159 people were killed in Kerenik on 22 and 24 April, 107 injured and thousands displaced from their homes, and at least five villages in the region were also attacked,” she said.   “I am concerned that this region continues to see repeated, serious incidents of intercommunal violence, with mass casualties. While initial measures taken by the authorities to calm tensions are welcome, I urge the authorities to address the underlying causes of violence in this region and fulfil their responsibility to protect the population.”   At least 21 children, including an 11-month-old baby, were reportedly killed in the violence, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Thursday.   Adele Khodr, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, underlined that “children are not a target” in hostilities.   “The killing of children is a grave violation of their rights. Nothing justifies killing children. We renew our appeal for peace and call on the authorities in Sudan to protect children in Darfur and across Sudan from harm and violence at all times,” she said.   25 Apr. 2022   Sudan: Tens of thousands flee after deadly attacks in West Darfur. (NRC)   Armed violence that broke out on Friday in Kreinik town, West Darfur, has displaced tens of thousands of people.   “Towns in West Darfur are burning before our eyes, and communities are being assaulted over and over. This tragedy is quickly becoming a catastrophe. The deadly spiralling violence must end,” said Will Carter, Country Director for the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) in Sudan.   Most families affected by the fighting in Kreinik town were already displaced by prior violence. Many saw their homes set ablaze five months ago in a previous attack and have since been living in makeshift settlements.   NRC fears the violence could spread beyond Kreinik to reach West Darfur’s state capital of Al Geneina. The city hosts about 100,000 displaced people, many of whom are living in makeshift tents, with nothing to protect them stray bullets or violence.   As tensions have risen in recent days, gunfire has been heard in the city, leading scores of terrified families to flee from settlement to settlement in desperate search for safety.   “We call all parties to immediately de-escalate and restrain from further harming civilians. Safe and free passage of fleeing civilians and access for humanitarian assistance must be urgently restored,” said Carter.   “After experiencing brutal violence, these communities are once again left neglected and vulnerable, with no protection or accountability. The entire Darfur region is quickly sinking into conflict and needs urgent attention from the international community.”   Over the past months insecurity has spread across at least three areas of West Darfur, as well as in the neighbouring states of North and South Darfur. The violence in Darfur is threatening the upcoming harvest season. Over 18 million people are likely to face acute food insecurity by September across Sudan because of the combined effects of insecurity, economic crisis and poor harvests.   http://news.un.org/en/story/2022/04/1117212 http://reliefweb.int/report/sudan/sudan-bachelet-appalled-darfur-killings-warns-against-escalation http://reliefweb.int/report/sudan/sudan-tens-thousands-flee-after-deadly-attacks-west-darfur http://www.acaps.org/country/sudan/crisis/west-darfur-violence http://www.globalr2p.org/countries/sudan/ http://sudan.un.org/en/184863-statement-adama-dieng-un-designated-expert-situation-human-rights-sudan-end-his-visit   13 Apr. 2022   Attack in Central Nigeria leaves more than 150 people dead   The death toll from attacks on villages in Nigeria’s Plateau state has soared to 154 and an estimated 4,800 people have fled their homes fearing further violence.   Villagers were attacked by gunmen on motorbikes who shot sporadically into homes and businesses during the rampage on Sunday in central Plateau state.   Houses and shops were burned to the ground and people who tried to flee and hide were pursued and shot, their bodies only being discovered in past days, local officials said.   “All in all we have in our records the number of those killed at 154, including those found in bushes,” said Ya’u Abubakar, a senior councillor of Garga rural district in the Kanem local government area of Plateau.   Abubakar said mass burials were under way as shocked communities in the area tried to come to terms with the slaughter. Soldiers have been deployed to pursue the gunmen.   Nigeria’s Information Minister Lai Mohammed told reporters that armed criminal gangs and Boko Haram fighters were responsible for the attacks.   “What is happening now is that there is a kind of an unholy handshake between bandits and Boko Haram insurgents,” the minister said.   Locally known as bandits, criminals gangs have terrorised villagers for years through kidnappings for ransom. They have recently become more brutal, killing and pillaging communities where state security agents are rarely seen. Such attacks are not common in Plateau state, officials said.   Nigeria’s Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Sadiya Umar Farouq said she ordered immediate deployment of relief materials including food, water, blankets and sleeping nets to the displaced victims.   “Five communities including Kyaram, Gyambau, Dungur, Kukawa, Shuwaka villages under Garga District were attacked … scores were reportedly killed during the mayhem,” a spokeswoman for the minister said. “The number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) are said to be over 4,800, comprising mostly women and children,” the spokeswoman added in a statement.   Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country with 206 million people, has been battling violence in its troubled north.   An alliance between the criminal and rebel groups could worsen the crisis, said Oluwole Ojewale of the Africa-focused Institute of Security Studies.   The partnership between the groups “might drive further attacks on innocent civilians and state infrastructure,” as the fighters move their rebellion beyond the northeast where they had been largely restricted for many years, Ojewale said.   Feb. 2022   Amid hunger, people are “lucky to be alive” in northwest Nigeria. (MSF)   Although the annual peak in malnutrition cases should now be over in Nigeria, dozens of severely malnourished children continue to occupy beds in Médecins Sans Frontières’ (MSF) intensive therapeutic feeding centre in Katsina City, in the country’s northwest. Some doctors, like Dr Alibaba Nurudeen, who works in the centre, say that this is only the tip of the iceberg in a region that is also facing a wave of severe violence.   Kidnapping for ransom, murder, rape, and attacks by armed gangs are threatening thousands of lives. The violence also prevents farmers from cultivating their land and families from going to the market, hospital or school.   “2021 was already very bad, and the prospects for 2022 are very worrying”, warns Michel-Olivier Lacharité, Head of MSF’s Emergency Operations. “Poor harvests and soaring global food prices may well negatively impact the nutritional situation across the region, including in northwest Nigeria.”   “International donors and humanitarian organisations need to take urgent action to head off the worst effects of this looming crisis,” says Lacharité.   Shot by a group of Nigerian filmmakers, “Lucky To Be Alive” tells the stories of mothers like Hadiza and Fatima who travel for kilometres along dangerous roads to get treatment for their malnourished children, in a region where malnutrition is a problem at the best of times, and health workers and funding are woefully lacking.   http://www.msf.org/documentary-lucky-be-alive-amid-hunger-nigeria http://www.ipcinfo.org/ipcinfo-website/alerts-archive/issue-53/en/ http://www.wfp.org/emergencies/nigeria-emergency   06 Apr. 2022   Mali: UN expert urges probe into grave rights violations in Moura - urges Mali to step up measures to end extrajudicial executions and vicious cycle of impunity.   A UN human rights expert today called for a full and independent investigation into alleged mass crimes committed in central Mali, and pleaded with all parties to ensure the absolute protection of civilians and to end the vicious cycle of violence.   Alioune Tine, the Independent Expert on the human rights situation in Mali, expressed alarm about unconfirmed reports that members of the Malian armed forces, accompanied by Russian private military personnel, executed dozens of civilians during a military operation from 27 to 31 March, in Moura, in the Mopti region.   In addition to summary executions and other killings, the expert said there had also been reports of rape, arbitrary arrests, looting and theft.   “In view of the serious allegations of mass crimes, with dozens of civilians killed during these operations, I call on the Malian authorities to conduct a thorough, independent, impartial and effective investigation into all alleged violations as soon as possible,” Tine said. “The findings must be made public and the alleged perpetrators brought to justice.   “The information received at this stage raises serious questions and concerns about potential serious violations of international human rights law and/or international humanitarian law. In addition, some of these violations may constitute crimes within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court,” the expert added.   In a statement on 1 April, the Malian Army Etat-Major confirmed that the armed forces had conducted a "large-scale" military operation in the Moura area from 23 to 31 March. As a result, it said, 203 fighters from "armed terrorist groups” were killed and 51 people arrested. In a statement on 5 April, the Malian Army Etat-Major denied its involvement in human rights violations in Moura.   Failure to bring alleged perpetrators of human rights violations to justice could undermine the confidence of the population in the armed forces and be exploited or instrumentalized by armed groups, presenting themselves as a credible alternative to the failure of the state, Tine said. “The fight against impunity is therefore a priority and a constituent element of the fight against terrorism,” he added.   “I urge the transitional Malian authorities to grant unhindered access to the Human Rights and Protection Division of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) so that it can conduct a thorough investigation to shed light on allegations of serious human rights violations, in accordance with the mandate of the UN Security Council.”   The UN expert repeated his call for the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to open investigations as soon as possible to establish criminal responsibility for crimes under the Rome Statute that have been committed in the past and that continue to be committed in Mali.   A wave of attacks by groups such as the Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), as well as some operations by the Malian Defense and Security Forces, have trapped civilians in the grip of jihadist and military violence since the start of the year.   http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/04/mali-un-expert-urges-probe-grave-rights-violations-moura http://www.ohchr.org/en/statements/2022/04/comment-un-human-rights-office-spokesperson-seif-magango-malian-authorities http://www.fidh.org/en/region/Africa/mali/allegations-of-crimes-against-civilians-in-moura-mali-an-independent http://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/05/mali-massacre-army-foreign-soldiers http://www.thenation.com/article/world/mali-massacre-russia-france/ http://bit.ly/3jIHtaG
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