The ecclesia christian collective

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Jailed Taliban suspects on hunger strike in southern Afghanistan, demand fair trials

: More than 200 Taliban surmises have got gone on a hungriness work stoppage in the Kandahar prison house to demand just trials, functionaries said Sunday.

The captives have got not eaten for about six days, and three are in mediocre condition, said Bismillah Afghanmul, one of the provincial council members who met with the captives to seek to decide the situation. He said he met with nine captives who had taped their oral cavities shut.

The captives are demanding just and independent trials as well as the presence of defence lawyers during the probes and hearings, the Afghani Mugwump Person Rights Committee said in a statement.

They also complained that some of the lawsuits have got not gone before a court, leaving the detainees' fates in limbo, the committee said.

Justice Curate Mohammad Sarwar Danesh said they are right to be upset. Today on IHT.com

"The captives have got ground to criticise because the justness system is working a small slowly," Danesh said.

He said the country's top justice met with the Kandahar governor on Saturday, and a Supreme Court deputation would ran into with local functionaries in an attempt to decide the problem.

According to the human rights commission's statement, the captives complained that foreign military personnel searched their places on the footing of faulty intelligence, many lawsuits had languished without trial, and they were tortured and humiliated during the investigations.

Police standing about 100 paces from the prison house barred journalists from nearing the installation Sunday. Photographers were forbidden to take images of it.

About 100 women went to the prison house after hearing about the hungriness strike, but were also prohibited from entering.

International Committee of the Red Cross spokeswoman Graziella Leite Piccolo said it visited the captives on Saturday and Lord'S Day and is providing medical attending and endovenous fluids as needed.

Rights groupings complaint that Islamic State Of Afghanistan is prosecuting many political detainees transferred from U.S.-run prison houses in arbitrary and partial trials with small evidence.

In a study last month, New York-based Person Rights First said many political detainees — formerly held in the U.S. prison houses at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and Bagram, Islamic State Of Afghanistan — were tried in legal legal proceeding based on small more than than allegations by American officials.

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Monday, March 31, 2008

Kenya: Ruto Appears Before Human Rights Body - AllAfrica.com

Joseph Murimi And Sherwood Anderson OjwangNairobi

ODM Pentagon member, Mister William Ruto, have appeared before the Republic Of Kenya National Person Rights Committee (KNHRC) to reply inquiries on post-election violence.

Ruto visited the KNHRC and was met by two commissioners and two functionaries who took his statement for nearly two hours.

Eldoret North MP, Mister William Ruto, talks to journalists after a award giving ceremonial at Segero Amalgamated Secondary School in his constituency on Saturday. He said elections should be held if Kibaki and Raila neglect to hold on a new cabinet. Picture by Simon Peter Ochieng

"We had a blunt and blunt treatment and I establish them (KNHRC) unfastened minded, unlike others conducted by groupings set on pointing fingers and creating theories," he said.

According to a KNHRC statement, Ruto defended himself on Friday against any engagement in the post-election violence, saying he was in Capital Of Kenya when pandemonium erupted in Rift Valley.

The Eldoret North military policeman termed the treatment 'genuine'.

He told the commissioners that he left Eldoret on December 28 and never returned until after two months.

The committee later called a fourth estate conference to explicate why it had summoned the legislator.

"Ruto came here and was met by our commissioners. We are not hiding anything. We called him and he came," said the committee Vice-Chairperson, Multiple Sclerosis Firenze Simbiri-Jaoko.

She said they called Ruto as a senior politician in the state and because he hailed from a part that was heavily affected by the post-election violence.

" He came to share with us the information he has. We necessitate cooperation from all Kenyans," said Jaoko.

Ruto hailed the mode the rights committee was handling its investigations. He termed the commissioners' attack 'genuine'.

Seperately Ruto desires elections held should the two principals - Kibaki and Raila -fail to hold on the composition of cabinet.

Ruto said the continued hold in announcing the cabinet was creating unneeded latent hostility and anxiousness among Kenyans.

He expressed optimism that Kibaki and Raila would interrupt the deadlock.

"We have got ceded enough evidence and if Cabinet composition is about 'kuleta noma' (bring trouble), then we should travel for an election because we won in the last one," he said.

Speaking at Segero Girls, Ruto said ODM would stay house against a distended cabinet.

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At the same time, Ruto lost his father on Saturday morning.

Daniel Kipruto Cheruyoit Samoei, 78, died at his Kamagut place in Uasin Gishu District.

Prime Minister-designate Raila Odinga sent his commiserations to the family. "I knew Mzee personally. He was my good friend and we shared a lot," he said.

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Thursday, February 21, 2008

Uganda: Human Rights Body Explains Sh323m Funds - AllAfrica.com

Alfred WasikeKampala

THE Republic Of Uganda Person Rights Committee have said the money it paid for the treatment of Father Toilet Virgin Mary Waliggo was approved by President Yoweri Museveni because he was critically ill.

Waliggo was suffering from tummy cancer.

Presenting the supplementary demands to the NRM caucus on Monday, finance minister, Dr. Ezra Suruma, said the Government had spent sh323m on settling Waliggo's medical bills.

"The commissioner (Waliggo) underwent the first operation in St. Francis Hospital Nsambya in March 2006. The docs realised that the state of affairs was complicated and they could not manage it," the committee secretary, Gordon Mwesigye, said yesterday.

"Nsambya referred him to a infirmary in South Africa. He tried to utilize his nest egg and wage but both could not provide for the treatment. Margaret Ssekagya, the commission's chairperson, wrote to the President requesting for authorities intervention."

"Before the money was secured, Waliggo had to wing to Johannesburg to Morningside Clinic. He was in a critical state," Mwesigye said.

"President Museveni asked the Ministry of Finance to let go of the finances for his treatment. Most of it paid for his chemotherapy to last for six months. He underwent two surgeries in South Africa and he was admitted to the intensive attention unit," Mwesigye added.

Waliggo returned place after Christmastide last year.

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"He is about to travel back for more than treatment. All the money have not been used up yet. We have got so far given him sh200m and sh123m is still on an business relationship in Depository Financial Institution of Uganda. May be he will not necessitate it.

We only let go of the money when the infirmary directs original written documents for accountability," Mwesigye said.

When The New Vision contacted Waliggo at his Nsambya home, he said: "I experience better. I have got just had luncheon and going to rest."

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