Inés and Valentia

The case of Inés and Valentina were featured in December's Global Write-a-thon and was slated to be a Get On The Bus 2012 action.

From Amnesty International:

Indigenous women Inés Fernández Ortega and Valentina Rosendo Cantú were raped by Mexican soldiers in 2002. Although they were brave enough to report the attacks to the authorities and to follow up their cases, no substantive investigation has taken place and no-one has been brought to justice. The stories of Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo represent the stories of several other Indigenous women who have suffered sexual violence at the hands of members of the Mexican military and whose cases remain in impunity. In August 2010 the Inter-American Court of Human Rights ordered the Mexican state to investigate the human rights violations against Inés Fernández and Valentina Rosendo, bring those responsible to account, provide adequate reparation and take steps to ensure that these violations will not be repeated in the future. The Court also ordered Mexico to end the application of military jurisdiction in cases of human rights violations committed by members of the military. 

Inés Fernández, Valentina Rosendo and their families have suffered acts of intimidation in an apparent attempt to stop the two women from publicising their case and demanding justice. In the most recent incident, on 28 August 2010, a daughter of Inés Fernández was accosted by two men in the nearby town of Ayutla de Los Libres. The two men threatened the Fernández family with death if they remained in Ayutla. The Inter-American Court had ordered the Mexican government to guarantee the safety of Inés Fernández and her family on 7 April 2009 but the protection measures have not been fully implemented.

On December 15 of last year, the Mexican government made a public acknowledgement of responsibility, a big step in the right direction. Stay tuned for updates on how this will affect the GOTB action.

Full story here (Spanish).

More good news from Burma

According to Irrawaddy.com, as many as 200 prisoners were released Friday in Burma under a new presidential pardon. Among the prisoners released was would-be Get On The Bus 2012 priority action U Khun Htun Oo, whose case was adopted by Group 133 last year.

Pro-democracy activist Htay Kywe was among those released from prison yesterday in Burma.

From Irrawaddy.com (full story here):

Min Ko Naing, Ko Ko Gyi, Htay Kywe, Mya Aye and Nilar Thein are among 650 prisoners released on Friday under a new presidential pardon. 

Family members of political prisoners told The Irrawaddy on Friday that they were informed by the authorities that their relatives are on the list of freed prisoners. It was also reported that former Burma spy chief Khin Nyunt and intelligent official ex-Col San Pwint have also been released, as were ethnic political prisoners including Hkun Htun Oo and prominent Buddhist monk U Gambira, who was an organizer of the 2007 'Saffron Revolution.” Journalists including Zaw Thet Htwe were also freed. 

Speaking with The Irrawaddy on Friday from outside Thayawady prison, Nilar Thein, said, “I’m happy, and I will be very happy to see my family. We will get involved in democratic reform with Auntie [Aung San Suu Kyi].” 

“The reforms introduced by President Thein Sein and Auntie Suu are what we have so long been waiting for. But we have to work harder for the remaining colleagues who are still in prison. If all of them are released, that will be a beautiful image for all of us,” she said. 

[...] 

Amnesties under the new government that freed more than 27,000 convicts since last May were disappointing as they included only 200 or so political detainees. The current estimate of political prisoners ranges from about 600 to 1,500, though the government insists no one falls into the category because they are simply criminal convicts. 

The government TV announcement read on Thursday: “For the sake of state peace and stability, national consolidation and to enable everyone to participate in political process and on humanitarian grounds, the government will grant amnesty to 651 prisoners so that they can take part in nation building.”  

More coverage on Amnesty International USA:

But as more than a thousand political prisoners may remain behind bars, many of whom are prisoners of conscience, the amnesty must continue until all are freed according to Amnesty International.  

"This release of political prisoners is a major step forward, but more must be released," said T. Kumar, Amnesty International USA's director of international advocacy. There were high expectations that all political prisoners would be released following Secretary Hillary Clinton's landmark visit to Myanmar in December 2011. Yet, more than a month has passed, and there may be more than one thousand political prisoners still in custody. Secretary Clinton should insist that all prisoners of conscience be released immediately and urge the Burmese authorities to lift any conditions attached to the released prisoners."

Progress in Burma

Yesterday, from NPR:

The United States announced Friday that it will exchange ambassadors with Myanmar, also known as Burma, partly in response to the release of hundreds of political prisoners there. This is the latest development in what appears to be a dramatic turnaround for the repressive government in that Southeast Asian nation. President Obama calls the prisoner release "a substantial step forward for democratic reform." Currently, the U.S. Embassy is headed by a charge d'affaires rather than an ambassador.

The rest of the story here.

NYT coverage of Burma

See the New York Times front page article here.

Case Update: Sri Lanka

From the Christian Science Monitor:

UN report faults Sri Lanka, Tamil Tigers over war conduct

A UN panel has found 'credible allegations' of war crimes committed by both sides as the long-running civil war drew to a close in May 2009.

April 19, 2011
Bangkok, Thailand

Sri Lanka’s civil war, which ended nearly two years ago with the battlefield defeat of the Tamil Tigers.
  The panel’s findings contradict many of Sri Lanka’s assertions about the conduct of its troops, who are accused of deliberately shelling civilians caught in the war zone. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whose leadership was wiped out at the end of the war in May 2009, is also cited for violations such as child recruitment and using civilians as human shields. Tens of thousands of Tamil civilians trapped behind enemy lines may have died during the fighting.
  Sri Lanka’s government, which refused to cooperate with the panel, has already criticized its findings as “fundamentally flawed” and based on unverified claims. An executive summary of the report was leaked last week to a Sri Lankan newspaper after the UN sent a copy to the government.The panel’s findings contradict many of Sri Lanka’s assertions about the conduct of its troops, who are accused of deliberately shelling civilians caught in the war zone. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whose leadership was wiped out at the end of the war in May 2009, is also cited for violations such as child recruitment and using civilians as human shields. Tens of thousands of Tamil civilians trapped behind enemy lines may have died during the fighting.

Read the rest of the story here.