Maghrib & Libya
WESTERN SAHARA Human rights overview
DISPUTED SOVEREIGNTY
HISTORY OF CONFLICT ◼ 1884- Berlin conference. Spain gains colonial control. ◼ 1940s- Discovery of large phosphate deposits (Drury) ◼ Early 1970s- Polisario founded in opposition to Spanish colonial presence ◼ November 1975- “Green march.” King Hassan II calls for Moroccans to settle/incorporate Western Sahara. Over 300,000 Moroccans enter Western Sahara uncontested by Spain ◼ International Court of Justice ruled that neither Mauritania nor Morocco had legitimate claims to territory ◼ 1976- Spain leaves Morocco without holding referendum. ◼ 1978- Mauritania drops claims to territory ◼ 1980-87 Morocco constructs wall partitioning occupied west from Polisario controlled east. [RSC]
MOROCCAN WALL
MORE BACKGROUND ◼ Morocco backed by France and US. Polisario backed by Algeria, Libya, USSR. ◼ 1988 UN brokered cease fire ◼ 1991 MINURSO formed to hold referendum (only UN mission without human rights component) [HRW] ◼ Over 70 non-european countries have diplomatic relations w/ SADR [RSC] ◼ Second longest refugee crisis (after Palestinian) estimates range between 90,000-165,000 refugees in Algeria [HRW] [RSC]
DISPLACED SAHRAWI
ISSUES ◼ Polisario policy/international perception of camps as “ideal”[RSC] normalizes refugee camps ◼ Polisario accused of limits on speech [HRW] ◼ Malnutrition in refugee camps (improved since 1999) [RSC] ◼ Morocco limits press, freedom of speech, right to assemble.[HRW] [AI] [KC] ◼ Moroccan justice system: persecution of activists [HRW] [AI] [KC] ◼ Moroccan police/military abuse in occupied territory [HRW] [AI] [KC] ◼ Moroccan security forces accused of torture [HRW] [AI] [KC]
2010 -- GDEIM IZIK PROTEST CAMP
SOURCES ◼ [RSC]: Refugee Studies Center. “Protracted Sahrawi displacement” 2011 ◼ (Drury): “Global Futures and Government Towns: Phosphates and the Production of Western Sahara as a Space of Contention” 2013 ◼ [KC] RFK Center for Justice & Human Rights – “Accounts of human rights abuses persist in wake of November unrest.” 2011 ◼ [AI] refers to an Amnesty International report from 2014 ◼ [HRW] refers to a Human Rights Watch report from 2014
Al Maghrib
Freedom from Monarchical Rule with Equitable Political Representation
Monarchical Living versus Mud Houses
Disparity in Living Conditions
Prison Abuse Trials
Abuses of Undocumented Migrants
Child Domestic Servitude
Womens Rights Violations over Conflicts with Shari’a Law
West Sahara Violations over Disputed Land
Tunisia Basic Info: - Tunisian Republic - Population: 10.7 million - Ethnic groups: Arab 98%, French Berber - Language: Arabic (Official) - Religion: Muslim 99.1% (Sunni), 1% Christian, Jewish - Independence from France: 1956
Before the Arab Spring - Homogeneous society - Investment in - Urbanized country education - Market-oriented - Outstanding rights for economy since 1956 women - exports - Secular state - FDI - tourism
What led to the uprisings? Strict one-party state too much power in one hand Corruption no opportunities for others
Major Human Rights Issues - Freedom of expression - Torture and ill-treatment - Poor detention conditions - Lack of judicial independence - Poor administration of justice
Freedom of expression “Freedom of opinion, expression, press,publication, assembly and association are guaranteed and exercised according to the conditions set forth by the law.” http://www.hrw.org/reports/2011/12/16/tunisia-s- repressive-laws-0 - Press Code vs. Penal Code
Torture - New government ratified the Convention against Torture and Punishment but it is still widely used for for detention and interrogation - More file complaints but judges do little to pursue these issues - On-site interviews with prisoners
Detention Center & Prison Conditions - No legal counseling - Insufficient food - Bad sanitary conditions - Overcrowded cells - No medical facility - Forced confessions
Judicial independence - New constitution guarantees independence - BUT the president appoint judges - Use of military court for human rights violations
Algeria ● 39.2 Million People ● Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1% ● Predominantly Sunni Muslim ● Small portions (around 1%) of Christian, Jewish, Baha’i minorities. ● 1962 Independence from France.
Background ● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2om_F2uaCxA ● History of corrupt elections ○ Civil War ● State of Emergency 1992-2011
Key Actors ● Abdelaziz Bouteflika (National Liberation Front) ● National Rally for Democracy ● Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb ● Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) ● Berber Community
Government Oppression ● Security ● Freedom of Expression ○ Press, Association, Assembly ■ April 18th, 2014 ■ Al-Atlas TV Station ■ Algerian Blogger ● Unemployment ○ 10,000 joined to protest lack of jobs in Sahara town in oil rich regions where jobs exist but are not being offered. Protests were eventually broken up violently. (March 2013). ● Food Security, Water security, Judicial Law
Terrorism AQIM (Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb) ● Amenas Gas plant ● French murders (Sept 2014, June 2013) ● Consistent accounts of kidnapping and bombings.
Refugees 90,000 Western Saharan Sahrawi, mostly living in Algerian-sponsored camps in the southwestern Algerian town of Tindouf. ● Nearly four decades ● Harsh conditions ● Slavery ● Little to no job security ● Inability to settle outside of the camps ● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCNDTo_iVt8
Berber-Arab Conflict Berbers have been focused on linguistic and cultural recognition in Arab- dominated states. Both have also called for greater democratization within a secular framework. ● March 22, 2014 ● Historical ● Non-recognition
Women’s Rights ● Gender based violence. ● Divorce and Child Rights ● Rape ● Sexism/General Equality
Libya
Overview ● Gained independence from Italy in 1943 ● Ethnicity : 97% Berber and Arab ● Language : Islam ● Population : 6.2 million and Immigrants make up about 12% of the population ● Libya’s economy is structured primarily around the nation’s energy sector, which generates about 95% of exports
The 2014 Crisis General Khalifa Haftar who launched the anti- A large majority of the fighting occurred in Tripoli Islamist operation on May 16, 2014. and Benghazi
The 2014 Crisis ● At the beginning of the year, the General National Congress (GNC) governed the state since June 2013. The Islamist GNC voted to enforce sharia law at the end of 2013. General Khalifa Haftar ordered the GNC to dissolve, but he was ignored, so forces loyal to him launched a large-scale offensive against Islamic armed groups in Benghazi ● The elections in June appointed a council to replace GNC by a landslide, so Islamist politicians launched ● Since July 13, 2014, militias and armed groups have launched indiscriminate attacks in urban areas of the capital with disregard for civilians and civilian objects ● People were forced to seek protection in safer parts of Libya or across international borders Operation Libya Dawn to seize the airport
2014 Crisis Continued ● Fired into crowded civilian areas hitting mosques, hospitals, and homes which caused shortages in electricity, water, food, fuel, and medical supplies. ● In October - Derna was taken over by ISIL militants ● On 6 November, the supreme court in Tripoli, controlled by the Islamists, declared the Council of Deputies dissolved. The Council of Deputies rejected this ruling as made "under threat" and remains the internationally recognized elected parliament.
Abuses of the Law in the 2014 Crisis ● The toppling of long-term leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 led to a power vacuum and instability with no authority in full control. ● In the absence of law and order, and after over 3 years of no accountability, individuals, paramilitaries, and militias are imposing “self-justice” according to their own standards of beliefs --> legal void. ● Transitional authorities have been unwilling or unable to rein in the 100s of militias formed during and after the 2011 conflict. They are killing people, making arbitrary arrests, torturing detainees and forcible displacement and terrorizing entire communities --> reckless (killing/maiming bystanders). ○ Act above the law, committing crimes without fear of punishment ● UNHCR est. – 287,000 people were displaced within and around Tripoli and Benghazi as of October 10, 2014. 100,000 people have fled to neighboring countries
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