RugbyRebels

Yesterday former US-backed Chadian dictator Hissene Habre was sentenced to life-imprisonment. Dubbed the African 'Pinocet,' Habre tortured and killed tens of thousands of politicial opponents in the 1980s. He also carried out ethnic cleansing of native communities, and indulged in sexual slavery. Some estimates put the number of victims at 40,000, with hundreds of thousands more tortured. His favorite methods included burning, gassing and forcing victims to put their mouths to the exhaust pipes of cars with running engines. The CIA helped bring him to power and the Reagan administration sent him millions of dollars of weapons and trained his infamous secret police. Why? Because Habre was the arch-enemy of Muammar Gaddafi, and with US & French support Chad defeated Libya in a border dispute war. Habre's case made history as the first occasion in which an African leader had been tried for crimes against humanity in Africa itself, rather than in an international court in Europe. His trial was held in Senegal, to where he fled after being overthrown in 1990. The conviction came about largely as a result of the tireless efforts of his many, many victims. Habre is now 72-years-old, and unlikely to see the outside of a prison cell again.

Unfortunately HRW has zero credibility these days.

I'm not saying he's wrong in this instance but everything HRW says must be viewed with skepticism.

You mean Human Rights Watch? Why have their views been discredited?

rowan wrote:You mean Human Rights Watch? Why have their views been discredited?

Obviously their reports on Palestine have been grossly Israel-centric for some time. And their Sudan work was highly unethical. Their treatment of the populist leftist governments of Latin America was almost comical.

But their work as cheer leaders for regime change in Libya and now their anti-Syrian propaganda is beyond the pale.

I did some work for them more than 20 years ago and I came away with a very bad taste in my mouth. Seems I was right.

They're just another agency of the US State Department.

Thanks for the heads up. I'm not sure that I've read much of their stuff, but there's been a fairly intense Facebook campaign to pin the entire blame for the Syrian war on Assad & Putin which I suspect they may have been partly behind, & that is total B/S - barely any more subtle than the WOMDs. One can only conclude from this that the Americans, Saudis, Israelis & Turks are not through yet and are attempting to get public opinion on their side as they prepare for a second attempt at forcing regime change in yet another Middle Eastern nation.

Meanwhile, it's good to see a little justice being served elsewhere this week: Aside from the conviction of former Argentine junta leader/dictator Reynaldo Bignone, mentioned in the above video link, 21 more suspects from the 2002 Gujarat Riots have also been found guilty. There were over 30 convictions a few years ago, though current prime minister Narendra Modi, along with the district police chief, were cleared of charges. Modi was the Chief Minister at the time of the riots and apparently did nothing to try and prevent them. He has even been accused of aiding and abetting them. Hindu mobs killed around 700 Muslims and wounded approximately 2500 more. Some estimates put the death toll at 2500. Raping was widespread, children were burned alive, and looting followed the slaughter. It was all sparked by a fire aboard a train which killed 59 Hindus, for which the entire Muslims community was blamed.

rowan wrote:Thanks for the heads up. I'm not sure that I've read much of their stuff, but there's been a fairly intense Facebook campaign to pin the entire blame for the Syrian war on Assad & Putin which I suspect they may have been partly behind, & that is total B/S - barely any more subtle than the WOMDs. One can only conclude from this that the Americans, Saudis, Israelis & Turks are not through yet and are attempting to get public opinion on their side as they prepare for a second attempt at forcing regime change in yet another Middle Eastern nation.

Meanwhile, it's good to see a little justice being served elsewhere this week: Aside from the conviction of former Argentine junta leader/dictator Reynaldo Bignone, mentioned in the above video link, 21 more suspects from the 2002 Gujarat Riots have also been found guilty. There were over 30 convictions a few years ago, though current prime minister Narendra Modi, along with the district police chief, were cleared of charges. Modi was the Chief Minister at the time of the riots and apparently did nothing to try and prevent them. He has even been accused of aiding and abetting them. Hindu mobs killed around 700 Muslims and wounded approximately 2500 more. Some estimates put the death toll at 2500. Raping was widespread, children were burned alive, and looting followed the slaughter. It was all sparked by a fire aboard a train which killed 59 Hindus, for which the entire Muslims community was blamed.

Modi is a full on fascist.

Meanwhile, Kagame runs around rubbing shoulders with the global power elite, getting medals and acclamation. And they're encouraging a coup in Burundi next door.

Some good news today on this front:

The decision to grant reparation to thousands of victims in the case against former Chadian president Hissène Habré marks a significant moment in their long and determined quest for justice, Amnesty International said today.

“Today’s decision is a significant step in enabling the victims of crimes in the case against Hissène Habré to move on with their lives,” said Erica Bussey Amnesty International Senior Legal Advisor Africa.
“It is also a victory for the victims of human rights violations all over the world as it demonstrates the urgent need for reparation even when decades have passed since the crimes were committed.”

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/ ... eparation/