Category: Justice

Brussels Ankara repatriation deal betrays refugees

27/5/2016

Imagine years of living here

The USD 6.7 billion deal between Brussels and Ankara is falling off the rails. As one country after another slammed the gates shut on the million or so people fleeing the civil war in Syria, governments in Europe came under increasing pressure to ‘do something’ about the millions of people seeking safety from warfare.

The solution was criticised from the beginning. Some said that it violated human rights while others pointed out that Turkey was not safe for refugees. Turkey was already host to about a million safety seekers but agreed to take back people who had left Turkey and become stuck in Greece.

To achieve Turkey’s cooperation, the government in Brussels agreed to pay Turkey nearly seven billion dollars and to accept one Turk for every Syrian accepted back from Greece. This became known as the 1:1 plan. The plan is not working.

Refugees who agreed to return to Turkey have had a cruel and possibly deadly joke played on them. The German news outlet, Der Spiegel, recently reported the plight of a young, pregnant, married woman who agreed to go back to Turkey as she was blocked from joining her husband in London. This woman taught French before the civil war. When her boat landed in Turkey, she was immediately incarcerated in a squalid detention camp on the Syrian border.

The prison camp prohibits entry to journalists, aid organizations and attorneys. The young woman has been denied medical attention and access to attorney help. This violates the agreement. Others who have fled fighting have been deported to Syria and Afghanistan. These two countries are definitely not safe.

President Erdogan has recently tightened his grip on power. He has indicated that he will make the rules about who will be put forward to leave the prison camps for European countries. And it is becoming evident that there is a preponderance of serious medical cases and those will very poor education being allowed to leave. Some refugees already approved for exit have had their papers cancelled when authorities discovered that they were professionals.

Today the policy was made clear. This is a violation of the agreement.

Turkey has now officially informed the UNHCR that Syrian academics and their families are no longer permitted to leave the country by way of the 1:1 mechanism. Der Spiegel

I don’t have the answers to this humanitarian crisis. I suggest one way to help finance the costs to decently house people fleeing warfare could be to tax at 100% arms and munitions being sold to foreign countries. Simply put, if France arms dealers sell a billion dollars’ worth of weaponry to Libya, they would have to contribute an equal amount of money to refugee support.

Sources:
Der Spiegel

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Egypt court postpones journalists release

5/8/2015

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Democracy in Egypt has failed to take root

August 4, 2015: Journalists Mohamed Fahmy, Baher Mohamed and Peter Greste have to wait another month for the verdict in their appeal on terrorist charges is read. They were arrested on December 29, 2013 charged with telling lies and aiding a terrorist organization, the Muslim Brotherhood, charges they have maintained that they are innocent of.

They were covering the turmoil in Egypt as the former head of the Egyptian military, Abdel Sisi, used the military to oust Mohamed Morsi, the elected president. Morsi was the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization since declared a terrorist group.

The trio of journalists were covering street demonstrations when they were arrested along with many others. At a trial that was stunning in its lack of credible evidence they were convicted of aiding the Muslim Brotherhood. In spite of the lack of evidence, each journalist was sentenced to ten years in an Egyptian prison. Fahmy was sentenced to an additional two years for having a bullet casing in his pocket, evidence that live ammunition was being used against demonstrators.

The news corporation Al Jazeera has kept up ongoing publicity about their employees but that has failed to budge the Egyptian power brokers. Australian Peter Greste was released and deported in February of this year. Greste still has the Egyptian court sentence hanging over him.

February saw Fahmy and Mohamed released on bail. Fahmy carried dual Egyptian/Canadian citizenship. He renounced his Egyptian citizenship under the advice that it would facilitate his deportation as well. It was to no avail.

The latest postponement will mark the tenth time that their liberty has been denied.

There is speculation as to why they are still being held without verdict. One reason may be the visit of US Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to Egypt. Talks were held concerning security in the Middle East region between Kerry and Sisi. Kerry is known to have lectured the foreign minister on the subject of human rights. In the end the fight against terrorists in the region trumped and pledges of friendship and military aid were made.

A second reason that has been floated is that no disruptive news is to be allowed to spoil the party attendant on the opening of the newly expanded Suez Canal.

Meanwhile two award winning journalist remain trapped in Egypt as the promise of a new and more democratic Egypt fades as repression grows.

Sources:
Wikipedia
Al Jazeera
The Washington Post

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Omar Khadr granted bail by Alberta judge

25/4/2015

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Khadr at end of fatal fire fight

Omar Khadr, former child soldier in Afghanistan, has been granted bail by Alberta judge June Ross. The Conservative government has announced that they will appeal bail.

Omar Khadr was wounded and taken prisoner by American forces following a fierce fight in Afghanistan. He was 15 at the time. After he had partially recovered from his bullet wounds he was moved to Guantanamo Prison. Guantanamo Prison is an offshore American prison which operates outside the rule of law.

In a murky action against the child soldier, testimony changed and eventually Khadr was named the murderer of a US Army medic. Sergeant Christopher Speer was killed. At first it was reported that Speer was killed by one of the deceased Afghanis, but after Khadr was found to be still alive, he was tagged with the murder.

It has been admitted by the US government that various forms of torture were routinely used to extract information and/or confessions. There were suspicious deaths. After years of incarceration, many of the men were deemed not to be dangerous but still could not be released.

Khadr was faced with life in Guantanamo if he did not confess to the murder. He did confess and received a prison sentence.

He later recanted his confession and was subsequently repatriated to an Alberta prison with an eight year sentence.

His appeal cites a U.S. court ruling declaring retroactive war-crimes laws unconstitutional. The United States made it a war crime for enemy combatants to engage in battle with U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, but that was several years after Mr. Khadr’s capture. Globe and Mail

Khadr’s sentence expires October 2018. Currently he is being held in a minimum security prison. He will remain in prison at least until May 5th when bail conditions will be announced.

Khadr, now 28, is a Canadian citizen. His mother and sister survive as well as a disabled brother. His father was a fund raiser for Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. His parents can be described as toxic and his sister has been vociferous in her support for terrorism. Khadr at age 14 was introduced to bomb making by his father.

Sources:
The Globe and Mail
CBC News

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Brussels Ankara repatriation deal betrays refugees

Egypt court postpones journalists release

Omar Khadr granted bail by Alberta judge

Barbara McPherson

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