Human Rights Watch

The daily update of human rights events around the world.

COLOMBIA: FARC killed more than 300 hostages

Colombia’s largest rebel group FARC killed more than 300 of its hostages, Ervin Hoyos of Caracol Radio’s Las voces del secuestro (voices of abduction) said Tuesday.  Colombia Reports

DRC: Conflict Risk Alert

The Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda have struck a deal for military cooperation that risks a new escalation of combat in the eastern Congo and an even greater humanitarian crisis without assurances that it will solve the region’s political and security problems.  International Crisis Group

GAZA: U.S. Envoy Urges Cease-Fire After Gaza Violence

Israeli warplanes bombed what the military described as smuggling tunnels on Egypt’s border with Gaza early Wednesday in reprisal for the death of an Israeli soldier as a senior American envoy pursued President Obama’s first foray into Middle East peace diplomacy.  NY Times

U.S.: The Employee Free Choice Act & Human Rights

The briefing paper details some of the glaring deficiencies in current US labor law that significantly impair the right of workers to freely choose whether to form a union.  Human Rights Watch

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This is an interview with Carol Chodroff, U.S. Program Director with Human Rights Watch in Washington DC. Carol discusses her experiences on three trips to Guantanamo Bay, where she attended hearings of detainees charged with terrorism. She describes the problems with the legal process in the military tribunal system and lays the foundation for closing this troubled facility.

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As reported in previous Global Investment Watch posts, the name Bernie Madoff has become synonymous with the word greed. One angle on the Madoff mess that is particularly distressing to us is that a number of organizations that we rely on for our research at JMR Portfolio Intelligence have been harmed. In the last few days I have received appeals from the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre and from Eli Pariser at MoveOn.org asking for money on behalf of the following organizations: The Brennan Center for Justice, Human Rights Watch, the Advancement Project, and the Center for Constitutional Rights. These organizations rely on support from foundations that trusted Madoff with managing their funds.

As far as bailouts go, I certainly don’t mind chipping in to help these organizations continue their good work, but what a sad scenario. It reminds me of the question asked in the brilliant 2001 animated film Waking Life: “Which is the most universal human characteristic: fear, or laziness?” I love the question, but I have often thought that greed should be one of the choices.

Here’s to a new year with a little less greed, fear and laziness. Cheers!

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Yesterday Lincoln Mitchell posted Rethinking the American Electorate after an Obama Victory on The Huffington Post. Mr. Mitchell points out that an Obama victory will cause millions of people both within and outside the U.S. to rethink their views of the American Electorate as narrow-minded and anti-progress. It is an exciting prospect and it ties in with one of the thrilling visions I have had about an Obama presidency: a vision of real action on the part of the U.S. working with the international community to address human rights violations in countries around the world like those committed in the ongoing conflict in Burma.

In her RNC convention speech Sarah Palin snidely asked the audience “What does he (Obama) actually seek to accomplish, after he’s done turning back the waters and healing the planet?” Do I think that Obama can heal the planet during his years in office? No, but lord knows the planet needs healing and Obama can do a great deal to get things moving in the right direction both at home and abroad. For starters, Obama won’t wage preemptive wars that do more damage than good.

Regarding Burma, in a statement on his senate website from September 2007 Obama asserts, “While, ultimately, change must come from within Burma, the international community has an important role to play to signal strong support for the courageous Burmese people. I have supported sanctions against Burma and welcome the additional sanctions the President announced at the UN General Assembly. But far more needs to be done — immediately. It is not enough for the US to act alone. We must take the lead in working with the other key international players, particularly ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), India, Japan, the European Union, and especially China, to join the United States in pressing for the peaceful resolution of the current crisis in Burma…”

And, let’s not forget, the crisis in Burma is ever-current. For a recent update on the conflict please read Human Rights Watch’s report: Burma: One Year After Violent Crackdown, Repression Continues. Indeed, the world is in desperate need of a U.S. leader who will work with the international community to begin a healing process that has long been compromised. In less than two weeks I believe we will receive affirmation that we are officially on the right path towards change.

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Human Rights Watch and the  Center for Human Rights and Global Justice (CHRGJ) at New York University School of Law have jointly published a report entitled, “On the Margins of Profit: Rights at Risk in the Global Economy.”

This report can be found at the HRW web site or by clicking here.

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