Worst of the worst: News from March 2009

SUMMARY:

According Freedom House, the "Worst of the Worst Report" was released in 2009 in Geneva.

The report--which chronicles countries that are the "worst human rights abusers"--includes Burma, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Chechnya, South Ossetia, and Tibet (which are territories) were also included.

Four territories and 17 countries are profiled in the report.

The countries that were examined were drawn from the 42 countries and nine territories that are currently ranked Not Free in the Freedom in the World 2009--Freedom House's annual survey of political rights and civil liberties.

Freedom House Director of Advocacy Paula Schriefer told Freedom House that the countries in the report have "regimes [that] control the daily lives of citizens by denying them basic human rights such as freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom of belief."

SOURCES:

Freedom House

China blocks YouTube: News from Mar. 25, 2009

According to Reporters Without Borders the Chinese government has blocked the video-sharing Web site YouTube since Mar. 23 because of content critical of the Communist Party.

Internet users have reported the site is inaccessible in most Chinese provinces.

Basically, a message pops up when trying to access the site that reads: “This page is not available. The Internet page corresponding to the address http://www.youtube.com is not accessible. The site may have changed its address.”

Google — which owns YouTube — said they are looking to restore access as soon as possible.

One of the main reasons for blocking the site portray videos showing the repression of the Tibetan population.

Another, which is called "Cao Ni Ma" (Grass Mud Horse), exploited the possibilities of defying government censorship.

A foreign ministry's spokesperson released a statement shortly after the site was blocked, saying that the Chinese government does not "fear the Internet."

But RWB is skeptical because they believe that the Chinese government would not block all websites — including YouTube — that are critical of the Communist Party if they didn't fear the Web.

RWB added that China currently has the world's largest number of Internet users, so to block a Web site is sending a negative message regarding free online expression in China.

YouTube has been blocked multiple times already in 2007 — Mar. 5-7 and all October.

The Communist Pary has a lot of control over audio and video-content on the Internet. New rules took effect in January 2008, which require permission to post video and audio files.

This isn't the first Google-owned service to be blocked by the government — Google’s Chinese-language search engine, Google.cn, has been censored since 2004.

SOURCES:

RSF

Public Image Domain

North Korea has reporters in captivity: News from Mar. 21, 2009

SUMMARY:

The report that two American journalists were detained in North Korea was confirmed Saturday.

According to a New York Times article, North Korea apprehended the journalists on charges of "illegally intruding" to their state through the Chinese border.

Journalists Laura Ling (a Chinese-American) and Euna Lee (a Korean-American) working for Current TV, were on a trip along the border when the were captured by North Korean border guards.

Their colleague Mitch Koss and their Chinese guide reportedly were detained, too. But according to The Chosun Ilbo--South Korea's leading newspaper--the two men later escaped.

On Friday, the U.S. government said Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was trying to get the reporters released--according to Chun Ki-won, a Christian clergyman in Seoul who helped arrange her trip.

This incident has not helped the relationship between the U.S. and North Korea.

Recently, it was discovered that the North will be launching a satellite--the U.S. thinks the launch is a cover for ballistic missile testing.

Also, according to the Japanese and South Korean governments, Saturday the North Koreans told international aviation authorities it is closing two international air routes through its airspace from April 4 through April 8 for the satellite launch.

The Chosun Ilbo, reported Saturday that the Current TV camera crew appeared to have crossed the Tumen river border while trying to get a closer shot of North Korea.

According to the The Chosun, most of the river bed is dry and the river's shallow water is frozen this time of year. It is hard to tell where the border lies and North Korean guards often hide in bunker-like guard posts in the area.

SOURCES:

New York Times

News editor acquitted of charges:News from Mar. 18, 2009

SUMMARY:

A news website editor was acquitted of defamation charges today after six months in pre-trial detention.

According to Reporters Without Borders (RWB), a Bujumbura court released Jean-Claude Kavumbagu — editor of the Net Press news Web site — who was being held on claims of defamation against President Pierre Nkurnziza.

Kavumbagu was first brought in pre-trial detention on Sept. 11, 2008. He was being held in Mpimba central prison as a result of a "complaint" brought by the government secretary-general.

The complaint was regarding an article written by Kavumbagu in which he wrote that
President Nkurnziza spent $100 million Burundian francs (about $94,125 U.S. dollars) during his visit to the Olympic Games' opening ceremony in Beijing.

The Burundian government secretary-general insisted the president was only given $50 million for the trip.

Reports of Kavambagu's arrest were made public on the RWB Web site on Sept. 11, 2008.

Kavumbagu was arrested multiple times under the previous government in 2001 and 2003. His site was suspended by the media regulatory body in 2005.

MY OPINION:

Maybe it is just a bias because I am a journalism student. Or maybe it is because I believe that many governments--if not all--around the world are corrupt and that the Bujumbura government lied to the public.

But I sincerely feel that the reporter was truthful in the information he reported.

It is good to see he has been released, but I'm sure he will have a "target on his back" for the rest of his journalistic career.

SOURCES:

RSF.org

Internet control: News from Mar. 12, 2009

RWB issued a report today — "Enemies of the Internet" — examining internet censorship and threats to online free expression in 22 countries.

According to RWB, the considered "12 'Enemies of the Internet'" — Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Saudia Arabia, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam — are censoring internet access in their respective country.

They have done this by transforming the citizens' access of the internet to an intranet, which will help keep their population from accessing certain undesired information.

In addition to the 12 Enemies of the Internet, RWB is monitoring 10 other governments including Australia and South Korea — both countries have democratic systems in place.

RWB makes it known that new forms of online censorship are emerging such as "orchestrating the posting of comments on popular websites" or "organizing hacker attacks" to scramble content.

According to the article, 70 people are detained because of, what the government views as, dissenting online postings. China currently has the most people imprisoned for cyber-dissidents.

MY OPINION:

For some reason, I feel like this type of censorship is worse than censoring a journalist. I know this is probably an irrational feeling because I know most, if not all, censorship is wrong.

But to disallow and dictate what someone can post on the internet from the privacy of their home is ludicrous.

I leave comments on websites such as ESPN.com and could never imagine having my comment deleted (unless it had profanity) if it was solely because of my opinion.

And I know this example is on a lesser scale than saying something about the government, but I believe it is a way to truly grasp the magnitude of the situation in these countries.

It is just another form of government control and it's disgusting.

Sources:

Reporters Without Borders

Public Image Domain

CIA videotape destruction: News from Mar. 5, 2009

SUMMARY:

The American credibility of human rights is hanging in the balance.

Or at least that's what Reporters Without Borders (RWB) believes after confirmation that federal authorities, including the CIA, destroyed 92 videotapes in 2005 containing interrogations of detainees at a secret prison in Thailand.

A letter from Acting U.S. Attorney Lev Dassin on Mar. 2, 2009 confirmed the report.

The CIA — which has admitted to destroying some of the tapes — has not said exactly what was on the videos.

But one news organization has reported on what the tapes supposedly contain.

According to the New York Times, the videos show “waterboarding” — a method used, but not invented, by the Bush administration where interrogators essentially torture the prisoners by making them feel like they are drowning.

Basically, what happens is interrogators strap the prisoner down and pour gallons and gallons of water on the face of the inmate.

And like most torture techniques, this is to get the prisoner to divulge information.

This method has been used by the U.S. government on suspected al-Qaeda member Abu Zubaydah and on Abdel Rahim al-Nashiri — who is believed to been involved in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole off the coast of Yemen.

Also, according to the New York Times, former CIA head of undercover operations José A. Rodríguez Jr. ordered the videos to be destroyed.

This has led RWB to push for the Obama administration to start an investigation on the issue.

RWB believes these actions are an "infringement of the American people's constitutional rights" and that Obama's administration should "punish those who are responsible."

The American Civil Liberties Union is bringing the CIA to trial. New York Judge Alvin Hellerstein will hear the case.

The CIA has until Mar. 6 to prepare records on the destroyed tapes and to compile a list of possible witnesses of the tape destruction.

Existence of the videotapes was made known at the end of 2007 — just before the announcement of reformation of the Freedom of Information Act — when former CIA chief Michael Hayden said they destroyed them to protect the identity of agency operatives.

The Obama regime has vowed that it will not use torture during prisoner interrogation.

One reporter who was released in May 2008, Sudanese journalist Sami al-Haj, was being held in Guantanamo without any charges against him.

He was victim to more than 200 interrogations, some involving waterboarding.

MY OPINION:

Initially, this waterboarding idea did not sound too cruel to me. But after thinking about it more and more, I understand why people are upset at what happened to these prisoners.

To make someone feel like they are drowning to get them to talk is kind of appalling. The prisoners probably have emotional problems for a while after because of the actions they are subjected to.

I guess these methods somewhat bother me but at the same time they are criminals. There are worse methods that could be enacted.

But what really upsets me that the CIA destroyed the videotapes because it just goes to show how the government will never be fully transparent.

Barack Obama has vowed to make the government transparent, but I will remain skeptical for some time because of the secretive actions American officials have performed in the past.


SOURCES:

Reporters Without Borders

Public Image Domain

Reporter freed, waiting on release of another: News from Mar. 3, 2009

SUMMARY:

Imagine working hard at a profession to make a living. Now, imagine getting arrested for that work even though everything being done was legal.

That is exactly what is happening to many journalists throughout the world.

According to a Reporters Without Borders (RWB) article, a journalist and human rights activist was released by the Zimbabwean government.

The journalist, Jestina Mukoko, was being held on charges of creating a "terrorist plot" against President Robert Mugabe and recruiting volunteers to engage in military training to overthrow the government.

Mukoko was freed on $600 (U.S.) bail.

And though Mukoko is free the government still has charges posed against her — which RWB is advocating be dropped. In addition, she is required to report routinely to the police.

According to the article, Mukoko was kidnapped from her home on Dec. 3, 2008 by 15 plainly-clothed men.

She reportedly was not allowed to speak until her first meeting with a Zimbabwean judge 21 days later.

Mukoko was allegedly placed in solitary confinement in the Chikurubi high-security prison, where she was tortured and mistreated by guards.

These guards allegedly punched and hit her repeatedly with sharp objects. And they made her kneel naked on the gravel.

RWB is, however, waiting on the release of another reporter in custody — freelance photographer Shadreck Manyere.

Manyere is being held because he supposedly has involvement in the bombings at various locations — the Criminal Investigations Department headquarters in Harare, the Manyame Bridge, and the Harare Central Police Station.

Manyere, he was kidnapped by government agents on Dec. 13, 2008. He was brought before a Harare court on Jan. 7, 2009 on charges of banditry, terrorism, and sabotage.

He faces a prison sentence ranging from 20 years to life.

MY OPINION:

I am getting so sick of seeing these journalists imprisoned for being involved in things that are simply "speculation."

I highly doubt that either journalist had a hand in any of the charges that are being brought against them.

To be honest, I do not really have too much to say about this because to me this situation is similar to the other postings I have recently made about injustices against journalists: ridiculous, saddening, and terrifying.

SOURCES:

Reporters Without Borders

Public Image Domain