Tag: Amnesty International

Iran: at least 1,000 detained protesters at risk of torture; Amnesty International

Photo: Protests have spread rapidly across the country since late December © Getty Images via Amnesty International.

 See also:

Iconic Photo of Woman Freeing Herself of Hijab Becomes Symbol of Iran Protests

Protest leaders could face the death penalty for ‘enmity against God’
‘Peaceful protest is a right, and many people in Iran want to exercise that right’ – Philip Luther

The Iranian authorities must ensure the right to peaceful protest, investigate reports that security forces have unlawfully used firearms against unarmed protesters, and protect hundreds of detainees from torture, Amnesty International said today amid concerns that the crackdown against demonstrations in the country is intensifying.

Official statements have confirmed that at least 22 people, including two security officers, have been killed since 28 December, when thousands of Iranians began flocking to the streets to speak out against poverty, corruption and political repression.

Videos and eyewitness testimonies have emerged on social media and media outlets showing or describing riot police and other security forces using excessive and unnecessary force, including firing ammunition at unarmed protesters, beating protesters with truncheons and using tear gas and water cannon to disperse demonstrations. Amnesty has not been able to verify the videos or witness accounts.

More than 1,000 people have been arrested and detained in jails notorious for torture and other ill-treatment over the past seven days, with many denied access to their families and lawyers. The Human Rights Activist News Agency has reported that in Tehran’s Evin prison alone, the authorities registered at least 423 detainees during 31 December and 1 January.

Many of the hundreds of detainees are believed to be held in overcrowded conditions in the “quarantine section” of Evin prison, which only has capacity for approximately 180 people. This area is where detainees are often held shortly after arrest and checked to see if they’re carrying drugs or infections before transfer to a general ward. Some have been transferred to sections of the prison that are run by the Revolutionary Guards or Ministry of Intelligence.

Most of the demonstrations appear to have been peaceful, but in some cases violence by protesters has erupted, including stone-throwing, acts of arson and other damage to buildings, vehicles and other property.

Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Middle East Research and Advocacy Director, said:

“All detainees should be protected from torture and other ill-treatment.

“Given the alarming scale of the current wave of arrests, it is highly likely that many of those held are peaceful protesters who have been detained arbitrarily and now find themselves in prisons where conditions are dire and torture is a common tool to extract confessions and punish dissidents.

“Those suspected of criminal conduct should be promptly charged with a recognisable criminal offence and tried in proceedings which meet international standards for fair trial or released. Their legal status and exact whereabouts should also be immediately disclosed to their families.

“The Iranian government must promptly launch an effective and independent investigation into the killings and other reports of excessive or unnecessary force, and bring all those responsible for human rights violations to justice.”

Protest leaders could face the death penalty

Despite President Hassan Rouhani’s assurance on 30 December that protesters have the right to criticise the government, the authorities’ subsequent rhetoric has suggested they intend to respond to the unrest in an increasingly ruthless manner.

On 1 January, Judiciary Chief Sadegh Larijani demanded a “strong approach” from “all prosecutors”.

On 2 January, the Head of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran, Mousa Ghanzafar Abadi, warned that the Ministry of Interior had declared the protests illegal and that those who continued to engage in protests would face severe penalties. He threatened that the protest leaders and organisers could be charged with “enmity against God”, which is punishable by the death penalty, “as they are connected with foreign intelligence services and are implementing their agendas”. The same day, Iran’s Supreme Leader, Sayed Ali Khamenei, accused the country’s “enemies” of stirring the protests.

On 3 January, Iran’s Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, said the popular social messaging application Telegram would remain blocked unless it agreed to remove “terrorist content”. Telegram’s CEO has said it has refused the authorities’ request to shut down channels that peacefully promote and support the protests.  Instagram also remains blocked. On 31 December, Mr Jahromi had said the blocking of access to Telegram and Instagram, which began that day, would be temporary.

The authorities’ aggressive rhetoric has been accompanied by state-sanctioned media outlets publishing a wanted list of protesters with their faces showing, and calling on members of the public to identify and report them to the authorities.

Philip Luther added:

“The Iranian authorities have an appalling track record of carrying out mass arbitrary arrests of peaceful demonstrators.

“The escalation in the intimidation of protesters and the grossly disproportionate restrictions imposed on the right to freedom of expression online over recent days heightens fears that the Iranian authorities may resort to increasingly heavy-handed tactics to crush dissenting voices.

“Peaceful protest is a right, and many people in Iran want to exercise that right. Instead of opting for repression and absurdly accusing protesters of collusion in foreign-orchestrated plots, the Iranian authorities should address their own record of failure to respect a range of civil, political, economic and social rights.”

Mashhad protests

Since 28 December, protests that started in Mashhad, Iran’s second largest city, have spread to some 40 locations across Iran. Slogans chanted at the demonstrations have expressed a mix of economic and political grievances – ranging from complaints over poverty, high unemployment, corruption and inequality – to demands for the release of political prisoners and outright rejection of the ruling political system, which some protesters have denounced as a “clerical dictatorship”. Iran has not seen protests on this scale since those following 2009’s disputed presidential election. Then, more than 100 protesters were killed and thousands suffered arbitrary arrest and detention, as well as torture and other ill-treatment.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran is a state party, upholds the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.

Vampires, Blood Suckers, Witchcraft, Resurrection and more in Malawi

Bloodsucker reports are still being dealt with in Malawi, creating panic and inspiring violence. According to a story in the Maravi Post on 10.10.17, the headline reads “Malawi legislature admits the existence of bloodsuckers.” According to the story:

Mulanje south legislature Bon Kalindo has admitted the existence of bloodsuckers in his area and has since called the authorities to take the matter as an urgent.

Speaking with a local radio, Kalindo said it sad to see that some authorities are denying the existence of bloodsuckers in Mulanje district while describing the residents’ action as primitive.

According to him, the bloodsuckers change into dogs or ghost when the community wants to deal with it.

“As a legislature of Mulanje south, bloodsuckers are indeed there and they are tormenting lives of the community,” he said.

He said he don’t believe that the soldiers and police who have been deployed to the area will manage to deal with bloodsuckers.

Kalindo further warned strangers who want to visit the district at night hours saying the will be killed by the community.

“Don’t try to visit our area at night hours, if you do that see what the community will do to you because they will suspect you as bloodsucker,” he warned.

However, the legislature denied to comment on government position that there is no bloodsuckers in the district saying “I speak for my people who are facing this problem but those denying speak for government and they have their rights.”

Meanwhile, the community has penned President Peter Mutharika to address them as well as provide security concern the problem.

Almost six people suspected to be bloodsuckers have been killed by the angry mob.

The residents believe that the bloodsuckers are sent by government or politicians thus why they are failing to deal with the problem.

Government spokesperson Nicholas Dausi put the blame on opposition parties and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) for the problem.

However, President of Malawi Congress Party, Dr Lazarus Chakwera and CSOs are accusing government including President Mutharika for failing to save the lives of innocent people in the district.

Aside from mob killings, the blood sucker scare has led to a temporary withdrawal of the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) workers in the affected areas. According to an update in the Maravi Post dated 10.11.17, the panic has led to the deaths of those suspected to be blood sucking vampires as well as those who may be harboring the blood suckers. There have also been road blocks, destruction of private homes and stoning of ambulances suspected of transporting these vampires.

Fears are also related to electronic or mechanical devices and villagers fear blood may be sucked through “biometrics machines,” aerial devices on vehicles and mobile phones. Some villagers are afraid to sleep indoors and suspect the blood suckers have been deployed by the government of Mozambique, or possibly their own government is involved. The population embracing the myth is generally poverty-stricken and illiterate. Some mobs use the excuse of entering a home to attack a blood sucker as an opportunity to steal. Others claim to have been “blood sucked” but physical examinations show no evidence. Some village leaders are afraid to denounce the rumors because they may be attacked as one of the vampires.

Belief in blood sucking vampires is only one myth affecting the citizens of Malawi. Fear of witchcraft is also a problem, according to published reports in Malawi’s media.

On 10.3.17, a report of spontaneous fires was described by the Malawi News Agency as occurring in the Chiradzulu communities. Reports were received of mysterious fires burning the clothes off of victims but leaving them unhurt, furniture catching on fire inside a home but leaving the home intact, and “another case involved a bag whose contents started burning whilst inside one of the resident’s house and when it was taken outside the house, all the contents inside the bag got burnt but the bag was left intact without any damage from the fire.”

On 8.23.17, the Malawi News Agency reported a villager in Chikwawa was arrested for killing his mother after she practiced witchcraft. He beat her to death with a stick “fortified with charms.”

On 8.16.17, the Malawi News Agency announced “Ntcheu ‘Resurrected’ woman taken to witchdoctor for checkups” eighteen days after her death. A family member was quoted as saying, “We have no plans to take her to the hospital since she is okay. We have taken her to the witchdoctor just because we feel its witchcraft related death, so we rely upon the witchdoctor to make Jana a normal person again.” Her sister added that the only thing different was that the resurrected woman could now speak fluent Yao, a dialect not spoken in the area.

Similarly, on 10.6.17, another resurrection occurred in Chiradzulu, this time a 14-year old girl, also attributed to witchcraft.

On 8.7.17, the Malawi News Service advised the public that the rumors circulating regarding National Identification Cards were not the “mark of the beast,” referring to the number 666. An official in the Mzimba District noted: “All our neighbours have implemented their national ID system. Why is the issue of 666 only in Malawi? Luke chapter 2 verse 1 onwards talks of Joseph and Mary going for registration in their homeland. Was that 666 as well?”

And finally, Amnesty International has drawn attention to the custom of killing albinos in Malawi. Hunting albinos for their body parts has seen a resurgence since January 2017.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/get-involved/take-action/stop-albinism-killings-in-malawi/