Help our local partners realise their vision of hope for their communities
2 April 2015
News from HART
– On the 10th anniversary of the UN Security Council’s referral of the Darfur case to the ICC, 78 Sudanese and international humanitarian and human rights organisations, including HART, have written a letter to the UN.
– This week, Ivaylo Hristev has published a blog entry on the recent elections in Nigeria. He explores the possible implications Muhammadu Buhari’s presidency will have on democracy in the country. Read the blog here.
– We have just sent our April e-newsletter to our mailing list. Read it here.
Burma
– The Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK today released a report detailing that Temporary Registration Certificates, known as ‘White Cards’ expired on 31st March 2015. This will disenfranchise around a million people, mostly ethnic Rohingya, from the upcoming general election due in Burma in November 2015.
– The text of the first ever draft Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) was agreed between the government and ethnic armed leaders on Tuesday, March 31, but: “Even if they sign the NCA the fighting might continue because they won’t have agreed on the details.” No details of the draft NCA have been made public yet. Analyst Phuong Nguyen says the draft agreement is reason to be “cautiously optimistic”.
– Burma’s new investment law fails to protect human rights or prevent environmental damage, Human Rights Watch has warned.
– The Arakan Army (AA) and the Burma Army fought on the border of Arakan and Chin Sates on 29 March at 00:30am, the first time they have clashed in the region for decades. A report from the Arakan Information Department, which disseminates information about the Arakan Army on Facebook, said two Burma Army soldiers were killed and two were detained near Kyauktaw Township in the weekend fighting, during which the department said Burma Army guns and ammunition were also seized.
India
– Indian police have made four more arrests in connection with the rape of an elderly nun in West Bengal state. Police said the four men were all Bangladeshi and were being held in the northern state of Punjab. It takes the number of arrests in the case to six. The incident caused outrage in India and led to street protests in many cities across the country.
– In related news, five men have been detained in connection with the alleged kidnapping and gang rape of two girls, said to be 12 or 13, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The incident occured in Bandaun district late on Tuesday. Badaun gained notoriety last year after two girls were found hanged – relatives alleged rape and murder but authorities concluded they took their own lives.
Nagorno-Karabakh
– Seven political parties will be running for the parliament in the elections scheduled for May 3 in Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), the Karabakh central electoral commission reports.
– Fresno County (California) Supervisor Andreas Borgeas will observe the upcoming Nagorno Karabakh elections. “We see the upcoming elections as yet another opportunity to reaffirm the adherence of Nagorno Karabakh people to universal freedoms and liberties and therefore attach great importance to international election observation mission,” Ghulyan wrote in his letter of invitation to Borgeas.
– Armenian news sources claim a Nagorno-Karabakh soldier was killed along the line of contact on 29th
Nigeria
– Muhammadu Buhari will be Nigeria’s next president. He will be sworn in power on the 29th
– A day after the results came out, General Buhari vowed to crush the Boko Haram insurgency and bring back peace.
– A critical point in Buhari’s presidency may be the people he selects around him. There is a suspicion that his presidency may imply reformist policies.
– Bad management, misreading the importance of the Chibok girls’ kidnappings and corruption are listed as the primary reasons why Goodluck Jonathan lost the election race.
South Sudan
– U.S. President Barack Obama declared South Sudan conflict a national security on Tuesday.
– The government of South Sudan has declared its position ahead of the upcoming peace talks with the rebel leader of the SPLO-IO. The plan seeks to narrow the gaps and assure everyone the government is committed to a peaceful resolution.
– The British government has permitted the deployment and usage of its royal air force by the UNMISS. Flights will primarily focus on delivering vital supplies.
Sudan
– Two million doses of measles vaccines have been delivered to Sudan for mass immunization. According to UNICEF, the number of confirmed measles cases had reached 1,120.
Uganda
– Joan Kagezi, the top Ugandan state prosecutor in the trial of 13 men accused of a deadly al-Shabab bomb attack, has been shot dead in Kampala. Ms. Kagezi was targeted on her way home by motorbike gunmen, officials say. The trial of the men, accused of links to the 2010 Kampala suicide bombing which killed 76 people, has been suspended. This comes a week after the U.S embassy in Uganda warned of a possible terrorist attack.