ICC GRANTS TEMPORARY RELEASE FOR FORMER CONGOLESE LEADER FACING TRIAL

The International Criminal Court (ICC) today decided to grant the request of Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo for a conditional release until the start of the former Congolese leader's trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Mr. Bemba, the former vice-president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), faces charges for alleged crimes committed in the Central African Republic (CAR) between October 2002 and March 2003, including rape, murder and pillaging.

"Today, 14 August 2009, Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court decided to grant the request of Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo for interim release, albeit under conditions," the Court announced in a news release.

Mr. Bemba will be released once the conditions have been set, and it has been determined which country will take him in until his trial, added the Court, which is based in The Hague.

The ICC also announced that Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will today appeal the decision to grant Mr. Bemba conditional release.

The Prosecution "considers that Mr. Bemba, who is still physically in detention in The Hague, should stay in prison. The Appeals Chamber will review whether the decision to release Mr. Bemba is correct."

"The judges of the ICC have confirmed that Mr. Bemba must stand trial to answer the very serious charges that have been brought against him" said Mr. Moreno-Ocampo. "Victims and witnesses can be confident that the trial will take place in the near future and that the Court will continue to guarantee their safety."

The ICC is an independent, permanent court that investigates and prosecutes persons accused of the most serious crimes, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
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UNESCO CHIEF URGES CULPRITS IN MURDER OF FILIPINO JOURNALIST BE BROUGHT TO JUSTICE

The head of the United Nations agency tasked with defending press freedom has condemned the latest murder of a journalist in the Philippines and called for the perpetrators of the crime to be brought to justice.

Radio journalist Godofredo Linao was shot on 27 July by two unidentified men near the offices of Radyo Natin, where he worked as a commentator, in Surigao del Sol province on southern Mindanao Island.

"Journalists in the Philippines have been made to pay an intolerably heavy price to exercise the basic human right of freedom of expression and to inform all Philippines citizens of events affecting their society," Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said in a news release.

"I trust that the authorities will spare no effort in bringing to justice the culprits of these crimes, which undermine the rights and freedoms of all the citizens of the Philippines," he added.

The manager of Radyo Natin reportedly said that Mr. Linao may have been targeted for his political broadcasts. He was involved in local politics and was due to run as a candidate in the 2010 elections.

The attack follows a similar incident in early June in which Crispin Perez, a journalist who hosted a morning programme on Radio DWDO in the central Philippine province of Western Mindoro, died near his home in San Jose after being stabbed by an unknown attacker.
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BAN VOICES CONCERN AT PATTERN OF POLITICAL KILLINGS IN GUINEA-BISSAU

BAN VOICES CONCERN AT PATTERN OF POLITICAL KILLINGS IN GUINEA-BISSAU
New York, Jun 5 2009 5:00PM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has voiced his concern at the "emerging pattern of killings" of high profile personalities in Guinea-Bissau, where a presidential candidate and a member of parliament were gunned down today, just months after the country's president and his chief of staff were assassinated.

Mr. Ban is "dismayed" by the news of the assassinations of Baciro Dabo, a candidate in the forthcoming presidential elections, and Helder Proenca, a Member of Parliament and former Minister of Defense, along with others, his spokesperson said in a <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=3904">statement.

Coming so soon after the assassinations in March of President João Bernardo Vieira and his Chief of General Staff, General Batista Tagme Na Waie, "these criminal acts are a tragic setback for efforts to restore the rule of law and democratic processes in the country, but they should not be allowed to deter the forthcoming presidential elections," the statement said.

"These developments underscore once again the importance and urgency of conducting a thorough, credible and transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the assassinations in Guinea Bissau," it added.

Mr. Ban called on national authorities, including the military, to ensure that the human rights of all citizens are upheld and protected.

Today's statement added that the UN will be consulting with national authorities and the International Contact Group on Guinea-Bissau to explore what more needs to be done to end impunity and restore respect for the rule of law in the country.

In a report released last month, Mr. Ban had said that assassinations in March highlighted the need for the West African nation's justice, defence and security sectors to be reformed. The country has struggled in recent decades to combat drug trafficking and organized crime, and also to sustain economic growth and political stability amid a series of civil conflicts, coups d'état and uprisings.
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UN FORCE MOURNS PEACEKEEPERS MURDERED IN EASTERN CHAD

The United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) today expressed its dismay over the killing yesterday of a peacekeeper and two soldiers of the European Union force (EUFOR) by a fellow soldier in a camp in Abeché in eastern Chad.

"A French soldier of the EUFOR military operation killed two of his cohorts as well as a Togolese UN peacekeeper for reasons yet to be determined," the Mission said in a news release issued in N'Djamena.

Chadian authorities, in collaboration with France and EUFOR, are investigating the incident and searching for the perpetrator.

MINURCAT reiterated its full confidence in EUFOR and conveyed its condolences to the families of the victims.

In September 2007, the Security Council approved the establishment of a UN-mandated, multidimensional presence, including EU military forces, in Chad and CAR to help protect civilians and facilitate humanitarian aid to thousands of people uprooted due to insecurity in the two countries and neighbouring Sudan.

On 15 March, UN peacekeepers took over the military and security responsibilities of EUFOR after the Council approved the deployment of an additional 5,500 blue helmets to serve with MINURCAT.
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Turkey: Transgender Activist Murdered

(New York) - The killing of Ebru Soykan, a prominent transgender human rights activist, on March 10, 2009, shows a continuing climate of violence based on gender identity that authorities should urgently take steps to combat, Human Rights Watch said today. News reports and members of a Turkish human rights group said that an assailant stabbed and killed Ebru, 28, in her home in the center of Istanbul.

Members of Lambda Istanbul, which works for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and transsexual (LGBTT) people, told Human Rights Watch that in the last month Ebru had asked the Prosecutor's Office for protection from the man who had beaten her on several occasions and threatened to kill her. Lambda Istanbul was told that a few weeks ago police detained the man but released him two hours later. The same man is under police custody as the murder suspect.

"The Turkish police have a duty to respond to all credible threats of violence, whoever the victim," said Juliana Cano Nieto, researcher in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights program at Human Rights Watch. "Investigating violence against LGBT people, prosecuting suspects, and passing effective legislation to ensure equality are all critical to ensuring that these murderous abuses end."

This is the second killing of a member of Lambda Istanbul in the past year. In July 2008, an unknown person shot and killed 26-year-old Ahmet Yildiz as he was leaving a café near the Bosporus. No one has been charged with this crime.

Members of Lambda Istanbul described Ebru as a leading figure in the organization, who worked to end police harassment and ill treatment of transgender people in Taksim, a central area in Istanbul. The LGBTT Platform for Human Rights, a coalition of several LGBTT organizations in Turkey, held a vigil on March 12, 2009 in front of Ebru's home.

In 2007, Lambda Istanbul twice submitted a file of 146 cases they had documented to the Istanbul Provincial Human Rights Board, many dealing with reports of violence against transgender people, including cases of violence by the police. Several of these cases had been reported to the police. The then-deputy governor of Istanbul told Lambda Istanbul that the governor's office had found no records of these allegations and complaints in the police districts involved.

"Until an anti-discrimination law is in place to protect the LGBT community and the police take seriously their duty to protect everyone, these murders will continue," said Cano Nieto. "Turkey cannot continue to ignore its obligations when lives are at stake."

The European Court of Human Rights has held that Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects the right to life, requires police forces to take reasonable steps to protect a person when they receive credible information that there is a risk to that person's life.

A May 2008 Human Rights Watch report on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Turkey, "We Need a Law for Liberation," documents the long and continuing history of violence and abuse based on sexual orientation and gender identity there. A subsequent December 2008 report specifically documents police violence in the country and features cases of harassment and abuses against transgender people in Istanbul.

In these reports, Human Rights Watch called on Turkey to pass legislation protecting against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender.

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