Widows in Dutch court, Shell may face legal action over activists’ deaths

DutchNews, June 29, 2017 

Photo: Depositphotos.com

The widows of four activists executed by Nigeria in the 1990s are in court in The Hague on Thursday, hoping to force the prosecution of oil giant Shell for complicity in their deaths. 

In particular, they say Shell helped the Nigerian authorities suppress demonstrations against drilling for oil in the Ogoniland area of Nigeria at the beginning of the 1990s. 

Nine men who had campaigned against Shell’s involvement in the region and the military regime were hung in 1995. Their number included the writer Ken Saro-Wiwa. 

The civil case has been brought by Esther Kiobel, the widow of Barinem Kiobel, and three other women. She accuses Shell of complicity in the unlawful arrest and detention of her husband; the violation of his personal integrity; the violation of his right to a fair trial and his right to life, and her own right to a family life. 

‘Shell encouraged the government to stop Ken Saro-Wiwa and MOSOP, knowing this was highly likely to result in human rights violations being committed against them. Shell had plenty of evidence that the Nigerian military was responding to the Ogoniland protests with abuse,’ said Audrey Gaughran, senior researcher at Amnesty International, which is supporting the women. 

Shell has always denied any involvement in the case.

‘The executions of Ken Saro-Wiwa and his fellow Ogonis in 1995 were tragic events that were carried out by the military government in power at the time. We were shocked and saddened when we heard the news of the executions. SPDC appealed to the Nigerian government to grant clemency,’ the company said in an emailed statement. 

‘SPDC did not collude with the authorities to suppress community unrest and in no way encouraged or advocated any act of violence in Nigeria.  In fact, the company believes that dialogue is the best way to resolve disputes.’ 

Esther Kiobel first filed a case against Shell in New York in 2002, but in 2013 the US Supreme Court ruled that the US did not have jurisdiction. She now hopes that the case can be heard in the Dutch legal system.

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In Rome, C. Africa govt inks peace deal with rebel groups

Yahoo – AFP, June 19, 2017

L-R: National Convergence Kwa Na Kwa party general secretary Bertin Bea,
Republic of Central Africa foreign minister Charles Armel Doubaned and
Central African president political advisor George Isidore Alphonse Dibert
pose on June 19, 2017 in Rome (AFP Photo/FILIPPO MONTEFORTE)

Rome (AFP) - The Central African Republic's government on Monday signed an "immediate ceasefire" deal with rebel groups at a meeting in Rome aimed at ending violence in the strife-torn country.

The accord, negotiated over five days, was hailed as a precious chance to stabilise one of the world's most volatile and poorest countries.

Under it, armed groups will be given representation in the political arena in exchange for an end to attacks and blockades, and their members will be brought into the country's armed forces.

"We commit to the immediate implementation by political-military groups of a country-wide ceasefire, to be monitored by the international community, as a fundamental step on the way to definitive peace," the deal read.

"The government undertakes to ensure military groups are represented at all levels" and are "recognised as part of the reconstruction efforts", it said.

The accord was brokered by the Community of Sant'Egidio, a group rooted in the Catholic church that promotes dialogue with other religions and non-believers. It has been an active mediator in many African conflicts.

The rebel groups pledged to ensure "the free movement of people and goods by removing illegal barriers as an immediate consequence of the ceasefire".

State authority

The signatories also committed to "restoring the (authority of the) state across the national territory."

One of the world's poorest nations, CAR has been struggling to recover from a civil war between the Muslim and Christian militias that started in 2013 when President Francois Bozize was overthrown by a coalition of Muslim-majority rebel groups called the Seleka.

They in turn were ousted by a military intervention led by former colonial ruler France.

Those events sparked the bloodiest sectarian violence in the country's history as mainly Christian militias sought revenge.

Christians, who account for about 80 percent of the population, organised vigilante units dubbed "anti-balaka", in reference to the machetes used by the rebels.

The signatories of Monday's agreement included various factions of the Seleka as well as Christian and animist groups.

Members of armed groups will be "integrated" into the country's armed forces, "in line with pre-established criteria" and after an "upgrade," according to the deal.

Sant'Egidio's president Marco Impagliazzo described the accord as "an historic agreement, a deal full of hope".

CAR's foreign minister, Charles Armel Doubane, echoed those remarks, speaking of a "day of hope" for the country.

The UN's special representative on CAR, Parfait Onanga-Anyanga of Gabon, who is also head of the UN's stabilisation force there, attended the talks. Several heads of CAR political parties also took part.

The agreement announced on Monday comes against a backdrop of mounting concern.

Last month, the UN's humanitarian coordination agency OCHA reported on an "alarming" rise in violence, with "clashes (that) have taken an increasingly religious and ethnic connotation,."

It said the number of internally displaced people is now over half a million for the first time since August 2014, while a further 400,000, out of a population of 4.5 million, had fled to neighbouring countries.

The country's armed forces are estimated to number about 8,000, backed by 900 French troops and 10,000 troops and 2,000 civilians serving in a UN force called MINUSCA.

They have stabilised the situation, but around half the country -- which covers almost 623,000 square kilometres (241,000 square miles), a little less than Afghanistan or Chile -- remains outside government control.

Egypt parliament agrees island transfer to Saudi Arabia: state TV

Yahoo – AFP, June 14, 2017

The deal to hand over the Red Sea islands of Tiran (foreground) and Sanafir
(background) to Saudi Arabia provoked accusations that Cairo had "sold"
the strategic islands (AFP Photo/STRINGER)

Cairo (AFP) - Egypt's parliament approved on Wednesday a controversial maritime agreement with Saudi Arabia that transfers two Red Sea islands to the kingdom, state television and a lawmaker said.

The deal, which is still under challenge in court, had sparked rare protests in the country with the opposition accusing the government of selling Egyptian territory to its Saudi benefactors.

The vote came after days of heated debate in parliament with opponents even interrupting one committee session with chanting.

Courts had struck down the agreement, signed in April 2016, but a year later another court upheld it.

Lawyers are now challenging the deal before the constitutional court.

The accord had sparked rare protests in Egypt last year, with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi accused of having traded the islands of Tiran and Sanafir for Saudi largesse.

The government has said the islands were Saudi to begin with, but were leased to Egypt in the 1950s.

Opponents of the agreement insist that Tiran and Sanafir are Egyptian.

On Tuesday evening dozens of journalists protested against the agreement in central Cairo, before being dispersed by police, journalists' union official Gamal Abdel Rehim told AFP.

Several were briefly arrested before being released but "three reporters are still detained, and contacts are being made with the interior ministry to get them released," he said.

Netanyahu woos West African leaders at Liberia summit

Yahoo – AFP, June 4, 2017

Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu told ECOWAS head Ellen Johnson Sirleaf:
'Israel is coming back to Africa' (AFP Photo/Zoom DOSSO)

Monrovia (AFP) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday joined West African leaders at a summit in Liberia, where they hailed peacekeeping efforts in the region but warned about threats to stability.

Netanyahu, who had visited east Africa in July 2016, vowed that they had "no better partner" than his country after he was received by Liberian President and outgoing head of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

"Israel is coming back to Africa and Africa is coming back to Israel. I believe in Africa. I believe in its potential, present and future. It is a continent on the rise," said the Israeli leader.

"Africans are seizing the future. Israel wants to seize this future with you. You truly have no better partner for this mission than Israel," he added.

Sirleaf hailed the contribution of ECOWAS forces in restoring peace in her country, wracked by a bloody civil war from 1989-2003.

"This marks a turning point in the post-conflict recovery in the reconstruction of our country," she said. "Many ECOWAS citizens made the ultimate sacrifice with their lives for the uninterrupted peace we continue to enjoy.

But she warned "Today, terrorist attacks are endangering the stability in our regions."

On Saturday a Gambian protester died of gunshot wounds after being shot as supporters of former Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh clashed with ECOWAS forces, deployed in the country since January.

Thousands rally in Morocco for release of protest leader

Yahoo – AFP, May 31, 2017

Demonstrators in Morocco's neglected northern Rif region hold pictures of arrested
protest leader Nasser Zafzafi during a night-time rally in the city of Al-Hoceima
on May 30, 2017 (AFP Photo/FADEL SENNA)

Al Hoceima (Morocco) (AFP) - Several thousand people took to the streets in Morocco after dark on Tuesday to demand the release of the leader of months of protests in the neglected northern Rif region.

The region has been shaken by social unrest since the death in October of fishmonger Mouhcine Fikri, 31, who was crushed in a rubbish truck in the fishing port of Al-Hoceima as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Nasser Zefzafi, who has emerged as the head of the grassroots Popular Movement, was arrested on Monday after three days on the run.

Demonstrators came out near the centre of Al-Hoceima for a fifth straight night at around 10 pm (2200 GMT), after the breaking of the daytime fast observed by Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan.

The protesters shouted slogans including "We are all Zefzafi" and "End militarisation", with hundreds of them brandishing photographs of the detained leader.

Anti-riot police attempted to disperse the protest, but pulled back following a tense but non-violent standoff with the demonstrators.

A similar demonstration took place in the neighbouring town of Imzouren, with a strong police presence, images on social media showed.

Demonstrators in Morocco's neglected northern Rif region crowd the streets of 

the city of Al-Hoceima on May 30, 2017, gathering for a fifth straight day

(AFP Photo/FADEL SENNA)

Smaller protests were held in the capital Rabat and the commercial capital Casablanca but were broken up by police, Moroccan media reported.

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque on Friday and called for further demonstrations.

Prosecutors charged that he had "obstructed, in the company of a group of individuals, freedom of worship" at the mosque in Al-Hoceima.

He was arrested on Monday "along with other individuals" and transferred to Casablanca, prosecutors said.

As of Monday evening police had arrested 40 people in connection with the disturbances in Al-Hoceima, according to officials.

Human rights groups gave higher figures.

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities, and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.