Day: January 12, 2023

The past year has seen human rights crises worsening around the world, from Ukraine to China to Afghanistan, Human Rights Watch said in its latest annual report, released Thursday.

But new voices of leadership for championing human rights have emerged, according to the report.

World Report 2023 looks at the state of human rights in nearly 100 countries where the New York-based organization works.

“The obvious conclusion to draw from the litany of human rights crises in 2022 —from Russian President Vladimir Putin’s deliberate attacks on civilians in Ukraine and Xi Jinping’s open-air prison for the Uyghurs in China to the Taliban’s putting millions of Afghans at risk of starvation — is that unchecked authoritarian power leaves behind a sea of human suffering,” the report says.

“But 2022 also revealed a fundamental shift in power in the world that opens the way for all concerned governments to push back against these abuses by protecting and strengthening the global human rights system,” says the report.

Ukraine

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the report’s authors say the global community deserves credit for unleashing what it calls the "full arsenal" of the human rights system, including an investigation by the International Criminal Court.

“We saw immediate responses from the international community to mobilize around key human rights supports, including establishing international justice mechanisms [and] evidence gathering for war crimes,” Tirana Hassan, acting executive director at Human Rights Watch, told VOA.

In towns such as Bucha and Izyum, there is widespread evidence of the torture, execution and rape of Ukrainian civilians by occupying Russian soldiers. The United Nations Human Rights Council has documented several hundred civilian killings, thought to be a fraction of the total.

Following a visit to Ukraine in December, Volker Türk, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said the war "continues to be marked by gross violations of international human rights law."

“In some cases, Russian soldiers executed civilians in makeshift places of detention. Others were summarily executed on the spot following security checks — in their houses, yards and doorways. Even where the victim had shown clearly that they were not a threat, for example, by holding their hands in the air. There are strong indications that the summary executions documented in the report may constitute the war crime of willful killing,” Türk told reporters Dec. 15.

Human Rights Watch said the West could have acted against Russia before its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

“Putin’s brazenness has been made possible largely because of his long-standing free hand to operate with impunity," the report says. "The loss of civilian life in Ukraine comes as no surprise to Syrians who suffered grave abuses from airstrikes following Russia’s intervention to support Syrian forces under Bashar al-Assad in 2015.”

China

Human Rights Watch highlights ongoing abuses in China, including the mass detention, torture and forced labor of as many as a million Muslims in the Xinjiang region. Beijing denies the accusations.

In October, a U.N. resolution to open a debate on abuses by Beijing against the Uyghurs fell short by two votes. However, the report says the closeness of the vote “shows the potential in cross-regional alliances and fresh coalitions to come together to challenge the Chinese government’s expectation of impunity.”

Hassan said the U.N. vote was an important moment.

“What we have seen for the first time in a very long time is cracks in the authoritarian armor,” she told VOA.

Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, the Taliban have imposed numerous laws violating the fundamental rights of women and girls, including freedom of movement, right to work and a livelihood, and access to education and health care.

“Taliban security forces throughout the year carried out arbitrary detentions, torture, and summary executions of former security officers and perceived enemies,” the reports says.

Iran

In Iran, protests triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini after she was detained by morality police have grown into nationwide anti-government demonstrations.

Human Rights Watch said the execution of at least four protesters in recent weeks must trigger a stronger global response.

“We need to move beyond international solidarity for protesters and need to make sure that governments all over the world are holding Iranian officials to account,” Hassan told VOA.

Myanmar

The report cites increasing human rights abuses in Myanmar, where the authors say the regime is launching assaults on communities across the country that oppose the 2021 military coup.

“The junta security forces have carried out mass killings, arbitrary arrests, torture, sexual violence, and other abuses that amount to crimes against humanity," the report says. "Freedom of speech and assembly face severe restrictions. Expanded military operations have resulted in numerous war crimes against ethnic minority populations in Kachin, Karen, Karenni, and Shan States.”

Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, Human Rights Watch says the recent African Union-led peace process has resulted in a fragile truce.

“Ensuring that there is accountability for the egregious crimes that took place in the Tigray region, for example, is going to be critical for this cease-fire and this truce to actually hold,” Hassan said.

Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, Human Rights Watch criticized the government for abusing Rohingya refugees.

"Rohingya refugees, facing impossible conditions for safe and voluntary return to Myanmar, suffer threats, extortion, and ill-treatment by Bangladeshi security forces and other authorities," the report said.

HRW also said refugees reported threats, extortion, arbitrary arrests and torture by police.

Climate change

Human Rights Watch says climate change is having an increasing impact on basic rights in every corner of the world, from devastating floods in Pakistan to wildfires in the United States. It says governments have a legal and moral obligation to regulate industries such as fossil fuel extraction that are incompatible with protecting basic rights.

“Governments should act with urgency in upholding human rights in their responses to climate extremes and slow-onset changes that are already inevitable, protecting those populations most at risk, including Indigenous peoples, women, children, older people, people with disabilities, and people living in poverty,” the report says.

Source: Voice of America

Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu will on Friday, 13 January 2023, officially recommission aqueduct 1 and open reservoir 3 at Umgeni's Durban Heights Water Treatment Plant.

According to a media statement, Umgeni Water as the implementing agent, recently refurbished both water infrastructures.

Aqueducts 1 and 2 were severely damaged during the floods that ravaged KwaZulu-Natal last year.

In addition, the reservoir was taken offline in 2019 for repairs due to safety issues identified at the water storage structure.

Durban Heights Reservoir 3 is a 350ml reservoir outside the Durban CBD and supplies drinking water to over 500 000 people in Durban and the surrounding area.

“Both aqueducts 1 and 2 were damaged by rock falls on five sites due to torrential rains that caused flooding and massive landslides. Aqueduct 1 is made of steel and has a capacity of 105 Ml/d, while aqueduct 2, a mainly prestressed concrete pipe transfers 155 Ml/d.”

Aqueduct 1, according to the department, was completed in December 2022, while aqueduct 2 will be commissioned by 10 June 2023.

According to the department, Mchunu will be joined by the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government delegation led by Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube, eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, and Umgeni Water Board Chairperson Ziphozethu Mathenjwa.

The commission will take place at the Durban Heights Water Treatment Plant from 09:00, while the formal programme will start at 11:00 at the Winchester Venues in Reservoir Hills.

Source: South African Government News Agency

LEBOWAKGOMO - The SAPS in Lebowakgomo are searching for a missing man, Sekonya Leslie Mampe of Atok, Mohlahlaneng village.

According to the information, the 46-year-old man went to Lebowakgomo hospital on Thursday, 12 January 2023 at about 09:30 for medical treatment accompanied by his younger brother. On arrival, the younger brother left him at the waiting area to collect his file and when he returned he was nowhere to be found.

He then searched for him on the premises with assistance from the security guards but he could not be located.

Police were notified and an extensive search operation was conducted at the local taxi ranks and surrounding areas without success.

Police investigation and search operations are still continuing and they urge anyone with information on the whereabouts of this missing person to contact the investigating officer Lieutenant Colonel Nyamanyawo Thomas Baloyi on 082 565 8234 or the Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or the nearest police station.

Source: South African Police Service

The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr Blade Nzimande, says he remains confident that the police will arrest those behind the suspected assassination attempt on the University of Fort Hare Vice-Chancellor, Sakhela Buhlungu.

This comes after Buhlungu’s Executive Protection Officer, Mboneni Vesele, was shot and killed over the weekend.

Nzimande visited the University of Fort Hare on Wednesday following a pattern of assassinations and threats on staff at the university.

In March 2022, a number of attacks also took place at the homes of the Vice-Chancellor and two other senior officials from the university.

“I remain outraged by this inhumane act of disdain and strongly condemn it. I however remain more confident that the law enforcement agencies, led by the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele have already begun with investigations into this outrageous act to find and hold those responsible accountable,” Nzimande said.

Nzimande further appealed to the community to provide any meaningful information that will assist SAPS in this regard.

“This pertains to both information related to the killings of Investigation Mr Vesele’s and Mr Peter Roets who was the university’s fleet and transport manager who lost his life in May 2022.

“It is also important that I emphasise that their attack is not only an attack on the University of Fort Hare but also an attack on the entire Post School Education and Training sector,” he said.

Fight against corruption, maladministration and capture of institutions

Nzimande said his team is determined to fight any acts of corruption, maladministration and institutional capture everywhere it emerges in all Post-School Education and Training institutions, including at the University of Fort Hare.

The Minister said this includes putting appropriate safety and security measures to protect both employees and staff.

“I also once more encourage all the Vice Chancellors (VC) and TVET College Principals to engage with my department on all security related issues to enable us to engage with the Cabinet Security Cluster, particularly on security concerns that have an impact on the institutions’ ability to perform their duties,” he said.

Nzimande said that part of the interventions include working together with the sector stakeholders - namely, former administrators, researchers, university registrars, representatives from the Council on Higher Education (CHE) and Universities South Africa (USAf).

He said the aim is to develop the Guidelines for Good Governance Practice and Governance Indicators for Councils of South African Public Higher Education Institutions in order to develop governance indicators and monitor governance practices of universities.

On the attempted assassination on the VC, Nzimande said that in terms of their own assessments, these events are most likely linked to the work of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), which has been underway since the Presidential Proclamation of 5 August 2022 (Gazette 47199).

The proclamation followed a request from the University in 2020 to the SIU and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the University and the SIU in June 2020.

The terms of reference of the SIU are outlined in the gazette and include investigating corrupt and unlawful activities over a ten-year period from 2012 to 2022.

The schedule also specific focus on procurement irregularities in cleaning and gardening services (between 2012 and 2019); leasing of student accommodation since 2013; appointment of a service provider for maintenance and repair of air conditioning systems (2018); and collusion of officials and suppliers or service providers.

The schedule also focuses on alleged maladministration in the affairs of the University’s Faculty of Public Administration in the awarding of honours degrees; mismanagement of funds and sourcing of public servants to study in various programmes for individual financial gain.

“These allegations are also linked to the University’s suspension of Professor Edwin Ijeoma, who was Head of Department, and who subsequently resigned in February 2021. The disciplinary processes continued following his resignation and he was found guilty on all charges.

“There were reports of how deep maladministration was entrenched in the institution, which Professor Buhlungu had reportedly been actively rooting out since he assumed office. These endeavours saw several senior managers and staff members suspended, some resigning and others dismissed,” Nzimande said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

TZANEEN - The South African Police Service in Tzaneen are seeking public assistance to locate a 38-year-old male, Steven Ndlala who reportedly went missing last year on Saturday, 24 December 2022.

The man is a resident at Morutji village, Bolobedu South and was reportedly last seen by his sister while at Ditaba's Tavern after a fight broke out between her brother and a mob who attacked him with pangas and knives.

Reportedly, Steven managed to flee an angry mob from the tavern and disappeared into the nearby bushes and has since disappeared.

Attempts to locate him at friends, relatives and surrounding hospitals were unsuccessful.

There is no clear description of the type of clothes he was wearing at the time of his disappearance.

Anyone with information that can help in locating the missing man is requested to urgently contact the Investigating Officer, Warrant Officer Jeffrey Ngobeni on 072 5885949 or 082 414 3309 or Crime Stop number 08600 10111 or nearest police station or MySAPS App.

The search for the missing man is continuing.

Source: South African Police Service

President Cyril Ramaphosa has conveyed a message of condolence to the government and people of the Republic of Senegal following a bus accident, which resulted in the death of about 40 passengers and injuries to 80 travellers.

The accident is reported to have happened in the early hours of Sunday morning, 8 January 2022, when two buses collided in Senegal’s central Kaffrine region.

“On behalf of the people of South Africa, the government and myself, I wish to extend our condolences to my dear brother, President Macky Sall, his government, the bereaved families and the people of Senegal for their tragic loss.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time of mourning their loved ones,” President Ramaphosa said.

Source: South African Government News Agency