Ending Human Rights Abuses and Repression across Sudan

As what we can see on the Munira posts that are explained about level on the human rights implemented in Africa, she focused on the three main problems that faced by the African countries such as deprivation from food, insecurities, and exclusion from protection.Now, I will discuss on the Sudan conflict situation as to give a more clear view in the context of insecurities and exclusion from protections problems.


Ongoing Clashes in Darfur

In Darfur, recent clashes between the governing party-led Sudan Armed Forces and rebels in September and the use of indiscriminate bombings demonstrate that the war is not over. Government air and ground attacks on villages around Korma North Darfur on September 17 and 18 reportedly killed 16 civilians, including women, and burned several villages.

Witnesses from the North Darfur town of Um Baru told Human Rights Watch that government bombing in May hit water pumps and killed and injured scores of civilians.

"They were dropping 12 bombs a day," one witness told Human Rights Watch. "They dropped in all the areas around the town."

Clashes between government and JEM rebels at Muhajariya, South Darfur, in February included an intensive government bombing campaign that killed scores of civilians and displaced 40,000. An estimated 2.7 million people in displaced persons camps in Darfur and 200,000 in Chad are unable to return to their villages for fear of the attacks and violence, including sexual violence, by government soldiers and government-allied militia.

Insecurity in Southern Sudan

In Abyei and other flashpoints along the North-South border, the GNU's failure to implement the peace agreement provisions on border demarcation and troop withdrawal and downsizing threatens to expose civilians to further abuse and danger. Both armies have failed to downsize and to integrate former militias fully, as required by the security arrangements in the peace agreement.

During the February clashes in Malakal between the northern government forces and the southern Sudan People's Liberation Army soldiers, former militias whom the armed forces failed to integrate instigated violence and human rights violations. The presidency has still not taken sufficient action to remove NCP-backed former militias from the area and reduce the threat of further violence.

Elsewhere in Southern Sudan, intense inter-ethnic fighting killed at least 1,200 civilians in the first half of 2009. The Sudan People's Liberation Movement-led Government of Southern Sudan has so far been unable to protect civilians from the civilian-on-civilian fighting, or from a steady stream of attacks by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army operating in Central and Western Equatoria since September 2008.

"The people of Southern Sudan have borne the brunt of the intense inter-ethnic fighting, rebel attacks and clashes between the northern and southern armies," Gagnon said.

Both the southern government and the national government need to do more to prevent the violence and protect civilians, Human Rights Watch said. The United Nations Mission in Sudan peacekeeping mission should also increase efforts to prevent violence and protect civilians, Human Rights Watch said.


Conclusion: Recently, there have been a serious conflict appear in Sudan and people around the world should aware with the situation as it violated the human rights. A few situation there show the human rights violation such as arbitrary arrests,harassment of civil society, suppression of information, clashes between civilian and government army, and insecurity situation in Southern Sudan. The Sudan human rights had been denied by it's own government and the leaders do not play their role efficiently in order to overcome the country problems. Besides that, the United Nations and other NGOs' should play their role by increases the peacekeeping mission so that the conflict could be reduce and protect the civilians. Lastly, Sudan and other African countries may have a discussion and cooperate with the international institutions so there would be an alternatives and plans that can ended the Sudan conflicts.

Source: http://www.hrw.org/en/africa/sudan
Posted by: Intan

The Great Wall Of China

The Great Wall of China is one of the wonder of the world. In Chinese it is called "Chángchéng/Wànlǐ Chángchéng" which loosely means a long wall or the long wall of 10,000 Li. The wall was built to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire from Mongolian attacks during the 7th century B.C and later was rebuilt in between the 6th century BC and the 16th century. The remains of the wall nowadays was bulit during the Ming Dynasty and it took 2000 years to be completed. The Great Wall stretches over approximately 8,851.8 km(5,500 miles)from Shanhaiguan in the east to Lop Nur in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia.

It was said that with the materials used to build the Great Wall, you could build 120Egyptian pyramids, or a six inch tall wall completely around the equator.
At present, the China Great Wall has already lost its military function, and many sections have been repaired and opened to the public. Among them, Badaling is the most famous and greatest which receives the most visitors from home and abroad. Mutianyu is famous for its spectacular scenery, Jinshanling and Simatai are well known for the wildness and cragginess, and Jiankou is attracted by its dangerous location. Due to these varieties, it's no wonder that Great Wall is the most welcomed scenic sight in China.


http://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/facts/

Question 2 : To find out the level of human rights implemented in Africa

For this question I will first share few of the problems faced by the African people regarding their human rights.
The level of human rights in African countries varies for it is such a large country.

One of the basic human right is that everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care according to Article 25.


First problem that Africa faced is deprivation from food. In Mali, there were demonstration organized against the rise of price in the basic commodities and against plans to privatize the supply of water in Lere, in the north-west of the country. At least six people were injured in November, one of whom died later in hospital, when security forces shot at the demonstrators.

According to Article 19 and 20 , everyone have the right to freedom of opinion and expression, this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. Everyone also has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

But in Zimbabwe, the activist that were protesting the dramatic decline in the economy and social infrastructure were arrested and detained without charge. They were broken up by the police using excessive force and the government continued to manipulate access to food for political motives even though by the end of the year the UN estimated that about five million people were in need of food aid. Thousands of people, mostly in rural areas, became displaced as a result of the state-sponsored political violence and no longer had access to their food stocks, land or other forms of livelihood. So they migrate to other countries to improve their families’ lives.

The rapid urbanization and prevailing poverty in African countries means that many people will not have adequate housing and usually living in the slums. They also are at risk of being forcibly evicted by the authorities and in the slums they did not have access to basic facilities such as water and sanitation. Such as in Lagos and Nigeria there were numerous people were forcibly evicted without due process and did not receive any compensation or alternative housing.

Second problem faced by African countries is insecurities. The insecurity in several African countries forced thousand of people to flee from their homes, trying to find international protection across borders or some form of security within their own country. In some of the worst armed conflicts still affecting the region, government forces and armed groups completely disregarded the dignity and physical integrity of the population. The civilian population was routinely the object of attacks by parties to the conflict; rape and other forms of sexual violence remained widespread; children were often recruited to take part in hostilities; and humanitarian workers were targeted. Those responsible for crimes under international law, committed in the context of these armed conflicts, were hardly ever held to account.

In both Kenya and Zimbabwe, the violence and insecurity not only affected the people’s physical security, but also their capacity to earn a livelihood as thousands lost their homes, food supplies, access to land and other sources of income. Hundreds of thousands of people became dependent on humanitarian assistance for their basic needs as a result of political violence.


Third problem is exclusion. There is still many groups in African countries face discrimination and exclution from protection or the means to get redress for the abuses they suffered.

People in Africa suffered discrimination within their families and communities because of their gender or HIV status. Women were also discriminated against in various societies under customary laws and traditional practices. The customary laws of certain ethnic groups in Namibia, for example, discriminate against women and girls, specifically laws on marriage and inheritance.

In various countries, notably Tanzania, albino people were murdered in what were believed to be ritual killings. Although the government of Tanzania denounced the killings, nobody was prosecuted in relation to them during 2008, even though a number of people were arrested


There is still an enormous gap between the rhetoric of African governments, which claim to protect and respect human rights, and the daily reality where human rights violations remain the norm.

In 2008, Africans deprived of their rights took to the streets. Protests often became violent, with resentment fuelled by the repressive attitudes of governments towards dissent and protest. These protests are likely to continue.



Source - http://thereport.amnesty.org/en/regions/africa

Conclusion on First Question

The general concept of human rights in Africa is not something new. It has been there for quite sometime, infact before their independence from British. It is only the legal concept that are a late bloomer. Therefore the standard of human rights in this continent is still low if compared to other countries in this world. Until today the people of Africa is still fighting for their freedom, equality, justice and dignity whether in civil or political rights. They are still surviving for their basic needs despite of the substained economic growth in Africa over these past years. This is due mainly to political repressions that have been going on for centuries all over the nations.

Africa is ongoing process to change their political system and although the number of countries that had adopted democracy has increased but there are still been haunted by the aparteid system which have been dominated Africa for years. Most leaders still rule their subjects using their own laws thus making the implementation of international laws a hard work. Cruel rules and poverty making people depressed. Demonstrations and conflicts are everywhere and happened almost everyday. People are fighting for their lives and needs and sometimes will do just about anything to achieve it.

Realizing that human rights is a world's problem, United Nation are working with a few non-government organizations in Africa to promote a better implementation of human rights according to The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The African Commission on Human and People's Rights which came later were part of this motion. Under this comission they urge the leaders and people of Africa to unite and working on achieving a better conditions and life for everyone. The draft of human rights' laws in Africa were based on their traditonal values and cultures so that it will charter everyone's needs regardless of their nationality, sex, race, religion, language and other differences.