Schlagwort: human rights

• Amnesty calls for states and companies to suspend exports of aviation fuel to Myanmar 
• Through the supply chain Puma Energy is linked to war crimes carried out by Myanmar’s military  
• Oil and gas companies ExxonMobil, Thai Oil, PetroChina and Rosneft identified 
• Investigation based on leaked company documents, industry sources, interviews with Myanmar air force defectors offer most complete picture of supply chain to date
• Testimonies tell of devastating consequences of air strikes 

The international community must urgently prevent shipments of aviation fuel from reaching the Myanmar military, Amnesty International said today, as it published an investigation into the companies involved in the supply chain, as well as shocking new accounts of deadly air strikes on civilians. 

Deadly Cargo: Exposing the Supply Chain that Fuels War Crimes in Myanmar provides the most detailed look into aviation fuel since the military seized power in the 2021 coup, from the distant port where the fuel originally departed to the unlawful air strikes that killed civilians – and every step in between. 

“These air strikes have devastated families, terrorized civilians, killed and maimed victims. But if the planes can’t fuel up, they can’t fly out and wreak havoc. Today we are calling on suppliers, shipping agents, vessel owners and maritime insurers to withdraw from a supply chain that is benefiting the Myanmar Air Force,” said Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard. 

“There can be no justification for participating in the supply of aviation fuel to a military that has a flagrant contempt for human rights and has been repeatedly accused of committing war crimes, crimes against humanity and other grave human rights violations.” 

These air strikes have devastated families, terrorized civilians, killed and maimed victims. But if the planes can’t fuel up, they can’t fly out and wreak havoc.

Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard

Amnesty International’s research was carried out in collaboration with Justice For Myanmar and with the support of other civil society organizations such as Burma Campaign UK.  

The report draws on a wide range of sources, including leaked company documents, corporate filings, vessel-tracking data, satellite imagery, public records, and exclusive interviews with defectors from the Myanmar Air Force and sources close to Puma Energy. 

It also features testimony from survivors of air strikes, who shared their harrowing experiences to shed light on the human toll of these unlawful attacks. Victims of air strikes are among the more than 2,300 civilians killed by the military since the coup. 

Ka Naw, a 73-year-old man who witnessed an air strike on a populated village in Kayah (Karenni) State, eastern Myanmar, that killed two civilians in February 2022, describes what it was like. 

“The sound was so loud. I saw [the] jets going down, bombing, and then going up again,” he said. “They flew very low… The first [pass], they bombed and then they turned around and shot with machine gun.” 

Supply Chain Exposed 

Businesses have a responsibility to respect human rights wherever they operate. But Amnesty International’s evidence published today demonstrates that the actions of some companies involved in the supply of aviation fuel to Myanmar link them to the Myanmar military’s commission of war crimes. 

Since 2015, the main foreign business involved in the handling, storage and distribution of aviation fuel in Myanmar has been Puma Energy, which is largely owned by global commodity trading giant, Trafigura. It has operated in Myanmar though its subsidiary Puma Energy Asia Sun (PEAS) and joint venture National Energy Puma Aviation Services (NEPAS). According to Puma Energy, since February 2021 and until 5 October 2022, it limited its operations to the provision of aviation fuel for civilian purposes. However, this report shows otherwise. 

Our findings indicate that aviation fuel (Jet A-1) enters Myanmar primarily through a terminal in Thilawa port managed by PEAS. Amnesty International identified eight separate shipments of aviation fuel that were offloaded at the terminal between February 2021 and mid-September 2022.  

The fuel was then stored at the PEAS terminal until transported by tanker truck to NEPAS storage facilities and military air bases across the country. Based on data obtained from December 2021 to August 2022, some NEPAS storage facilities are linked to military air bases, showing that civilian and military use of aviation fuel is inextricably linked. By facilitating the Myanmar military’s access to aviation fuel, Puma Energy contributed to human rights harm caused by the Myanmar military. 

Puma Energy itself acknowledged to Amnesty International that it had “become aware of reports of the military forcibly demanding fuel at selected NEPAS airport facilities. These reported incidents undermined our confidence in NEPAS’s ability to maintain the controls that were put in place” by Puma Energy.  

On 26 September, Amnesty International presented Puma Energy with evidence from this report. Ten days later, the company announced it was leaving the country and selling its business in Myanmar. 

“We acknowledge Puma Energy’s decision to exit from Myanmar, but the announcement of sales to an undisclosed ‘locally-owned private company’ raises entirely new concerns about the need to disengage responsibly, transparently, and to avoid leaving aviation fuel infrastructure in the hands of the Myanmar military,” said Montse Ferrer, Business and Human Rights Researcher at Amnesty International. 

“Puma Energy must responsibly withdraw and contribute to the remediation of any harm. This should begin with consultations with representatives of the Myanmar communities that have been affected by unlawful air strikes to find appropriate measures of reparation,” Ferrer said. 

Shipments Revealed 

But Puma is not alone. Other companies play significant roles in the supply chain of aviation fuel in Myanmar, linking them to the same human rights violations. 

Between February 2021 and 17 September 2022, at least seven oil tankers offloaded eight shipments of aviation fuel at the port terminal managed by Puma Energy’s subsidiary PEAS at Thilawa in the commercial capital Yangon. 

Amnesty International confirmed the supplier and date of four of the shipments: PetroChina’s wholly-owned Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC) (December 2021), Russia’s Rosneft (December 2021), Chevron Singapore (February 2022)  and Thai Oil (June 2022). Also, ExxonMobil is linked to a shipment in June 2022. 

Documents obtained by Amnesty International show the shipments from Thai Oil and PetroChina’s SPC were intended for use by the Myanmar Air Force. 

Representatives of Rosneft, Chevron and Thai Oil told Amnesty International they had received assurances that the shipments would be for civilian purposes only. PetroChina’s SPC did not respond to requests for comment. In response to Amnesty International’s letters, Thai Oil stated it will pause sales of Jet A-1 aviation fuel to Myanmar “until no such concerned issue” exists. 

“Any company conducting human rights due diligence should realize that selling aviation fuel to a customer located in a country ruled by a military with an atrocious human rights record at the very least poses high risks,” said Ferrer. 

Any company conducting human rights due diligence should realize that selling aviation fuel to a customer located in a country ruled by a military with an atrocious human rights record at the very least poses high risks.

Montse Ferrer, Senior Business and Human Rights Researcher at Amnesty International

Korean vessel owner Pan Ocean and Norwegian shipping company Wilhelmsen were also found to be involved in a number of aviation fuel shipments. Pan Ocean did not respond to Amnesty. Wilhelmsen said they believed the shipments were for civilian purposes, but also said they will “immediately cease to provide agency services of any kind for vessel or cargo owners discharging Jet A-1 aviation fuel at ports in Myanmar”. 

Air strike documentation 

In the course of this research, Amnesty International documented 16 unlawful air attacks that took place between March 2021 and August 2022 in Kayah, Kayin and Chin States as well as in Sagaing Region. 

In a concerning new development, in two such strikes Amnesty International documented the Myanmar military’s use of cluster munitions, which are internationally banned as they are inherently indiscriminate. 

Amnesty International has been able to directly link four air bases – Hmawbi, Magway, Tada-U and Taungoo – to attacks that amount to war crimes. 

The documented air attacks collectively killed at least 15 civilians, injured at least 36 other civilians, and destroyed homes, religious buildings, schools, medical facilities and a camp for displaced persons.  

The death toll from air strikes is based on what Amnesty International was able to verify through direct evidence, including consistent witness testimony and the names of victims, often corroborated by photographic and video material of attacks. 

Based on media reports and separate human rights documentation, there has been a much wider pattern of unlawful air strikes that have killed and injured civilians across Myanmar, meaning the actual death toll is much higher. 

In the vast majority of these documented cases, only civilians appear to have been present at the location of the strike at the time of the attack.  

Teenage sisters Maria and Caroline, who were around 15 and 12 years old, were killed in a late-night air strike on 17 January 2022 at the Ree Khee Bu IDP in Kayah State, which borders Thailand. Nu Nu, a man in his 50s, was also killed. Kaw Reh, the 50-year-old father of the girls who had been staying in another village that night, arrived the next morning to find their bodies covered in cloth. 

“They placed the bodies of my daughters and the man in the church. I just wanted to see the bodies and sit there,” he said, adding that the family’s belongings at the bombing site were either destroyed by shrapnel or burned by other residents because there were “organs and blood everywhere”. His surviving daughter, once outgoing and active, no longer plays with other children. 

In July 2022, two Amnesty International researchers visited the site of the attack and surveyed the craters from the bombs and any remaining damage. Given the lack of fighters or other military objectives in the vicinity at the time of the strike, this appears to be a direct attack on civilians and would constitute a war crime. 

“The aviation fuel supplied, imported, stored and distributed by a number of companies has been essential to the Myanmar military in carrying out these types of horrifying air strikes. It’s time to break the back of the supply chain of aviation fuel to Myanmar’s Air Force once and for all,” said Ferrer. 

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Responding to the news that Qatar’s Minister of Labour has called Amnesty International’s campaign to compensate migrant workers for the abuses they suffered “a publicity stunt”, Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Head of Economic and Social Justice, said:  

“It is hugely disappointing to hear calls for greater compensation be dismissed. The vast majority of migrant workers who have now returned home to countries like Nepal or Bangladesh are unable to access Qatar’s current scheme. There will be no compensation for them to reclaim stolen wages or illegal recruitment fees, let alone provide much needed financial support for those families who have lost a loved one.  

“While the money paid out this year is undoubtedly important, Qatar’s Minister saying that their door is open to workers who have suffered abuses is insufficient and a much more proactive approach is needed to ensure that justice is within reach for everyone. Qatar must expand its existing compensation funds or establish a new one – no one is saying it is easy, but if the will is there, a solution could be found that would transform the lives of so many workers.”  

Background 

On 2 November, in an interview with AFP, Qatar’s Ministry of Labour Ali bin Samikh al-Marri called Amnesty International’s campaign to compensate migrant workers for the abuses they suffered “a publicity stunt”. He added that the Ministry’s “door is open”, saying that “if there is a person entitled to compensation who has not received it, they should come forward and we will help them”. 

In May 2022 – Amnesty and a coalition of organisations launched a campaign calling on Qatar and FIFA to establish a comprehensive remediation programme to compensate migrant workers who suffered abuses in the preparation and delivery of Qatar 2022. Since then, the call has garnered the support of many FAs and World Cup sponsors and FIFA’s senior leadership have acknowledged the importance of compensation, though the footballing body is yet to publicly commit to doing so. 

Since 2018, Qatari authorities have put in place measures to protect workers from wage theft and enhance access to justice, but these do not cover all workers or address abuses in the years before the systems were established. Crucially, significant implementation and enforcement gaps remain. For example, workers who have already left Qatar cannot access the labour committees or a fund established to pay them when their employers fail to do so.  

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The authorities in Palestine must ensure that six men arrested in the West Bank in June, including three who have been on hunger strike for almost two months whilst in detention, receive a fair trial, Amnesty International said today ahead of the first hearing of their court case. They must also ensure prompt, impartial investigations into the men’s allegations of torture and other ill-treatment.

The men were arrested without a warrant by security forces and charged with criminal offences related to an explosion at a carpentry shop. All six were tortured during interrogation at Jericho detention centre, and afterwards in Beitounia prison, both run by the Palestinian Authority, according to their lawyer and family members who visited them in detention. One of the detainees also stated before the court that he was subjected to torture, according to court documents reviewed by Amnesty International.

Torture is never justified, and the authorities should immediately launch a thorough, effective, impartial and independent investigation into these detainees’ allegations of torture and other ill-treatment.

Heba Morayef, Amnesty International

“Torture is never justified, and the authorities should immediately launch a thorough, effective, impartial and independent investigation into these detainees’ allegations of torture and other ill-treatment. Those suspected of harming them should be suspended from their positions, pending completion of an investigation, so that they cannot commit further violations. They must also receive a fair trial in line with international standards,” said Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

Since their indictment in early September, court sessions have been repeatedly postponed due to the failure of witnesses from the Palestinian security forces to attend and testify. The next hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, 3 November 2022.

Ahmad Hreish, 28, Munther Rheib, 54, Jihad Wahdan, 44, and Ahmad Khasib, 27 were detained on 6 June 2022. Khaled Nawabit, 44, was detained on 23 June and Qassam Hamayel, 23, was detained on 26 June. Ahmad Khasib and Khaled Nawabit – who requires heart surgery – were both released on bail in October. According to their lawyer and family members who were able to visit them in detention, the men were subjected to torture and other ill-treatment while locked up.

Since 25 September, Ahmad Hreish, Jihad Wahdan, and Qassam Hamayel have been on hunger strike in protest at their treatment and are kept shackled to their hospital beds in the Palestine Medical Complex hospital, where they were transferred to due to their deteriorating health. Despite their poor health, their families and their lawyer say they have not received adequate medical care.

The men have also been held in solitary confinement, denied family visits and phone calls and held under constant surveillance in punishment for their decision to go on hunger strike.

The family and lawyer of Ahmad Hreish, whose wife gave birth to their firstborn just as he began his hunger strike, told Amnesty International how security forces whipped him on his feet and repeatedly beat him with clubs and batons. They described how his arms were hoisted behind his back for long hours – a common torture method used in Palestinian detention centres.

Ahmad Hreish detailed his torture before a judge at a hearing on 13 June at Jericho’s Magistrate Court. Amnesty International has reviewed court documents of his account, in which he told the court: “I’ve been here for a week in these dungeons in Jericho where my wrists were tied with a rope and my face was covered and I could not see anything. I was suspended from a window and I would get beaten with sticks and whips. I was beaten on the soles of my feet, and after all of that they would tell me to ‘get up and dance…’ and they tied my hands behind my back.”

Amnesty International is not aware of any criminal investigation into Ahmad Hreish’s torture allegations. According to court documents, a judge referred him for medical examination, and although he was informed of these allegations, he sent him back to the place where he said he had been tortured. According to Ahmad Hreish’s sister, he was subjected to more torture for speaking up in court. In later court appearances, he did not mention it again.

All the accused have spent time in both Israeli and Palestinian prisons. According to their lawyer, they were interrogated by Palestinian security forces about their political opinions, affiliations and periods of detention in Israeli prisons.

Despite ratifying the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Ill-treatment and its Optional Protocol, the State of Palestine has routinely used torture in in detention centres.

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Ahead of the two-year anniversary of northern Ethiopia’s ongoing armed conflict, which broke out on 3 November 2020 and has since led to appalling violations by parties on all sides, Flavia Mwangovya, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for campaigns East Africa, Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes regions, said:

All parties have been responsible for serious violations, encompassing war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extrajudicial executions and summary killings of thousands of people and sexual violence against women and girls.

Flavia Mwangovya, Amnesty International's Deputy Director for campaigns, Horn of Africa

“Since the start of the conflict in northern Ethiopia, millions of civilians have been displaced and thousands killed. All parties have been responsible for serious violations, encompassing war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extrajudicial executions and summary killings of thousands of people and sexual violence against women and girls.

“The international community must show solidarity with the victims and survivors of atrocity crimes in Ethiopia’s two-year conflict. Despite restrictions on access and communication shutdowns, Amnesty has repeatedly documented unspeakable abuses by all parties to the conflict, yet the response from the international community, including the African Union, has been dismal.”

The international community must show solidarity with the victims and survivors of atrocity crimes in Ethiopia’s two-year conflict.

Flavia Mwangovya

“On the second anniversary of the start of the conflict, Amnesty International will launch a global campaign to underscore the gravity on the human rights crisis in Ethiopia, while also detailing how the African Union and the international community have offered a completely inadequate response to one of the deadliest conflicts in the world.”

Background

All parties to the armed conflict in Ethiopia, which pits forces aligned with Ethiopia’s federal government, including the Eritrean army, against those affiliated with Tigray’s regional government led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), have committed serious human rights violations and abuses, including extrajudicial executions, summary killings and sexual violence against women and girls. The abuses we documented in this conflict include war crimes and crimes against humanity, which are among the most serious crimes of concern to the international community. Ethnic violence has claimed thousands of lives.

Due to the ongoing conflict, the region has been largely cut off from the outside world. Millions of people have been internally displaced, while humanitarian aid has also been denied to millions of people in Tigray.

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Brazil’s presidential election ended on the night of Sunday, 30 October. According to the official information published by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), the candidate Luiz Inácio da Silva was elected with 50.90% of the votes, against 49.10% for reelection of the candidate Jair Messias Bolsonaro. Blank and invalid votes represented 4.59% of the total.

Amnesty International warns that human rights must be a priority in the government transition period.  

The election was marked by threats to the civil rights of the Brazilian people. There were serious complaints that the Federal Highway Police did not comply with TSE decisions and carried out at least 560 inspection operations against vehicles carrying out public transportation of voters on Sunday.

In addition to impediments to the free transit of citizens, the elections were marked by the dissemination of false news, statements by President Jair Bolsonaro and the actions of other public authorities that generated fears over the integrity of state institutions and respect for the outcome of the elections. Episodes of political violence were recurrent.

People denounced electoral harassment in their workplaces, members of religious communities denounced situations of coercion for demonstrating in defense of human rights, candidates and ordinary citizens suffered physical aggression or were killed for exercising their right to freedom of expression. Journalists were also assaulted and intimidated, and indigenous communities were deprived of their right to political participation.

This scenario points to challenges that go beyond the electoral period and pose risks to the human rights of citizens in Brazil. Amnesty International monitored and denounced episodes of intimidation and political violence throughout the country during the electoral period and will continue to monitor the transition process of the federal government. This process must take place in accordance with the Federal Constitution, rule of law institutions and international human rights standards.

During this period, two documents were published that reveal the political violence to which the Brazilian population was subjected. On the eve of the first round of the 2022 elections, Amnesty International presented the document “Political violence: human rights violations in the 2022 electoral period.” The organization collected 42 human rights violations that occurred in the 90 days leading up to the first day of voting.

In the campaign period preceding the second round of the elections, Amnesty International identified two cases of political violence per day. The cases are collected in the document “Intimidation as a method: violence and threats against male and female voters in 2022“.

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