PACIFIC DISASTER MANAGEMENT INFORMATION NETWORK (PDMIN) 1 Jarrett White Road MCPA-DM, Tripler AMC, HI 96859-5000 Telephone: 808.433.7035 · [email protected] · http://www.coe-dmha.org Asia-Pacific Daily Report September 30, 2003 Afghanistan to deploy more troops in southeastern amid escalating attacks by Taliban insurgents; Pakistan seeks US assistance to monitor its border along Afghanistan The Afghan government plans to deploy some 500 more troops in southeastern Paktika province amid a recent surge in violence by Taliban insurgents. The troops would be deployed in , some 9 miles (15 kilometers) across the border from Pakistan’s tribal area of South Waziristan. Taliban fighters reportedly took control of Barmal district last month in an attack that drove Afghan civil and military leaders out. Khan alleged that a number of Chechens, Arabs, and other Taliban fighters were from time to time crossing the border from South Waziristan into Afghan territory to launch attacks. He added that provincial governor Mohammed Ali Jalali will travel to the Afghan capital Kabul to seek support from Defense Minister Mohammed Qasim Fahim. Separately, heavy fighting between the US-led coalition troops and ousted Taliban fighters near the town of in Paktika province yesterday (September 29) left at least one US soldier dead and two others wounded bringing the total US casualties in Afghanistan to five since August this year. Meanwhile, Pakistan has been pressing the United States for assistance to improve surveillance on its side of the border. Pakistan is reportedly seeking helicopters and other aircraft to help it patrol its porous border along Afghanistan in its lawless tribal region where the government has very little control. http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/sep2003-daily/30-09-2003/main/main17.htm http://www.dawn.com/2003/09/30/top9.htm http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20030930_763.html

East Timor East Timorese prosecutors indict 17 for crimes against humanity for violence surrounding East Timor’s vote for independence Prosecutors from East Timor’s serious crimes unit have indicted 17 people for crimes against humanity during the violence surrounding East Timor’s vote for independence in 1999. The unit says that the group included a former deputy militia commander, 13 other militia members and three former Indonesian soldiers. A statement from the serious crimes unit says that one of the indictments involving 10 of the accused says that their crimes against humanity included “murder, attempted murder, inhumane acts and persecution for abduction.” It adds that they attacked civilians “destroying villages, forcing people to West Timor and specifically targeting and killing pro-independence supporters.” The United Nations says that around 1,000 people were killed before and after the vote for independence in August 1999. Although the individuals were indicted, all of those accused are believed to be at large in Indonesia, which has thus far refused to send those accused to East Timor to face charges. East Timor has so far filed 78 indictments against some 350 people and 35 have been convicted. Some 263 of the 350 people remain at large in Indonesia. Indonesian officials say that they do not have an extradition agreement with East Timor and notes that Jakarta has set up courts of its own to deal with rights charges over East Timor. However, rights groups have criticized Jakarta’s tribunals for charging less than 20 people and convicting only a small portion. http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/6686f45896f15dbc852567ae00530132/851940173a7c3da5c1256db1005272a0?OpenDocumen t

India 19 injured in grenade attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir (IcK); 4 killed in separate clashes At least 19 other people were injured in a grenade attack last night on a bustop about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of the summer capital of Srinagar in Indian- controlled Kashmir (IcK). Six of those injured were members of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) that was checking the road for explosives, while the rest were civilians. In another grenade attack by a militant on a police station in Surankote, 1 policeman was killed and 4 others were wounded. The militant was also later reportedly killed by reinforcements. In the latest nighttime attack on Muslim civilians in southern IcK, unidentified assailants entered the home of a Muslim civilian last night and injured his wife, before setting their house on fire. However police said no one was hurt. Finally, 2 militants were reportedly killed in an encounter in Doda district today. Meanwhile, the Hindustan Times today reported that Srinagar city is conducting winter counter-insurgency preparations for the cold season. A decision to relieve the paramilitary Border Security Force (BSF), which has been in charge of counterinsurgency in the city for the past decade, with the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) by November has been on hold due to a recent, month-long surge of militant violence in the region. http://www.hindustantimes.com http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/south/09/30/kashmir.attack/index.html http://www.ptinews.com http://www.hindustantimes.com

Myanmar UN envoy begins 11th mission to Myanmar in an effort to break deadlock UN envoy Razali Ismail today began his 11th mission to Myanmar in an effort to break the current deadlock over the detention of democratic opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. Razali is expected to meet with Myanmar’s top 3 generals and be able to see Suu Kyi during his three-day trip. Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for the past four months, was put under house arrest last Friday (September 26) after undergoing major surgery on September 19. Razali helped to broker landmark national reconciliation talks between Suu Kyi and the military junta in October 2000 and, which stalled earlier this year. He now faces the task of reviving the reconciliation process and pushing ahead for a seven-point, democratic roadmap, which was announced by the military regime in August, and Suu Kyi’s release. In addition, ethnic political parties, who are also politically influential in the country and include the Shan National League for Democracy (SNLD), say they are due to meet Razali tomorrow. The military junta is expected to come under intense pressure to release Suu Kyi before the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Bali, Indonesia next month. Observers say ASEAN may face continued embarrassment especially since it came under heavy criticism for admitting Myanmar in 1997. Indonesia, which is the current chair of ASEAN, had sent former foreign minister Ali Alatas to Yangon last week in order to ask for Suu Kyi’s release as well. Observers say that there is little expectation that Razali’s visit will produce concrete results, as the military seems intent on preserving the status quo, however, there is hope that it may have some positive effect on the stagnant peace process. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/asia-pacific/3150582.stm

Philippines Regional NGOs meeting on UN Action Plan in southern Philippines; World Bank, USIP (US Institute for Peace) create “peace dividend” for MILF talks According to MindaNews today, Asian NGOs are meeting in Davao city in Mindanao to discuss the creation of a UN Action Plan or Protocol on Conflict Prevention by 2005. The meeting is one of six regional conferences among NGOs engaged in conflict prevention in preparation for an international conference at the UN headquarters in 2005. Some 15 NGOs from East Timor, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Myanmar, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines are expected to attend. Paul van Tongeren, executive director of the Netherlands-based European Center for Conflict Prevention (ECCP), said that the regional conference aim to collect NGOs insights from recent conflicts. “We see fewer inter-state wars and more civil wars,” he said, referring to conflicts such as self-determination movements in Indonesia and the Philippines. The Davao-based NGO, Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID), which has 15 years of experience in grassroots internationalism, will be hosting the conference. In addition to assisting in conferences in other Asian regions, the IID has assisted the formation of the Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC), which builds links between the Christian, Moro and tribal groups of Mindanao. Last week, Philippine President Gloria Arroyo said during the UN General Assembly meeting in New York that the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has offered to help mediate peace in Mindanao, which the MILF welcomed yesterday. Arroyo also announced last week during a meeting with officials of the United States Institute for Peace (USIP) that an all- grant, multi-donor trust fund put together by the USIP and the World Bank for Mindanao will serve as a “peace dividend” should a peace agreement be signed. Arroyo said that the US$3.75 billion is currently being utilized by Manila for “infrastructure, socio-economic and good governance projects" in Mindanao. http://www.philstar.com/philstar/News200309270404.htm http://www.mindanews.com/2003/09/29nws-un.html http://www.mindanews.com/2003/09/29/nws-asian.html

Social Welfare Department says life back to normal in war-torn Pikit town in southern Philippines According to MindaNews today, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) reported that 90 percent of those displaced by the recent Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) conflict in Pikit, North Cotabato province earlier this year have been “fully rehabilitated.” Violence broke out in the south- central Mindanao province in February after the Philippine military launched an operation against an MILF stronghold in the area, termed the Buliok Complex, resulting in the displacement of up to 44,000 people from Pikit and 200,000 people from surrounding areas. At least 300 civilians were officially killed in subsequent crossfire, bombings and rebel raids on towns. Rudy Jimena, a DSWD official, said that the remaining 10 percent are staying with relatives. The rest have gone back to farming in the largely agricultural, Muslim region. In addition, he said that Central Mindanao, where the MILF still has a sizeable presence, has been largely peaceful since a truce was signed in July. Peace talks between government and MILF representatives are expected to resume next month in Malaysia. The talks have stalled due to some sticking points such as the MILF’s demand that the Philippine military withdraw completely from the Buliok Complex. Pikit residents have been displaced four times in the past six years – in 1997, in 2000, November 2001 and this year. http://www.mindanews.com/2003/09/29-nws-bakwits.html

1,000 flee clashes in Mindanao province of South Cotabato in southern Philippines According to the Sun Star news today, more than 1,000 civilians have reportedly fled their homes in the Mindanao province of South Cotabato after the Philippine military intensified operations against the communist New People’s Army (NPA), a provincial officer said yesterday. The clashes reportedly occurred last Saturday (September 27). Bella Lechonsito, a South Cotabato social welfare action officer, said affected residents came from two tribal communities in a remote mountain area on the outskirts of the towns of T’boli, Banga and Polomolok. She said that 74 families had relocated to Datal Bob barangay (village district), 31 to Lambuling, and 85 to Lambangan, where most of them were staying with relatives or in shelters. Municipal officers yesterday already reported a shortage of food for the displaced since yesterday. The military claims that it is safe to return and that villages have been secured against the NPA. Tribal communities in the Philippines are often marginalized due to the lack of proper government representation resulting in the lack of social services such as health, education and relief services. Some communities displaced by Christian and Moro settlers but do not have much legitimate leverage to regain their lands in ongoing disputes. More than 40,000 people are believed to have been killed in NPA’s nearly three-decade long insurgency, mostly in rural areas across the country. http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/net/2003/10/01/1t.residents.flee.from.army.npa.clash.site.html

Solomon Islands Food aid being distributed to violence-wracked Weather Coast in Solomon Islands Radio New Zealand International reports that the National Disaster Management Office in the Solomon Islands says that “Stage One” of providing food aid and gardens to some 8,000 people from some 88 villages on the Weather Coast is nearly complete. The Office’s Deputy Director, Martin Karani, says that the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) is providing food aid through the Australian Agency for International Development (AUSAID). Some 100 tons of basic food, which includes rice, flour, sugar and salt is being distributed to the community and vegetable seeds are being provided for gardens. The Weather Coast had been terrorized by rebel leader Harold Keke, which forced many to flee the area for the capital Honiara and left many struggling to feed themselves, before his arrest by RAMSI forces last month. Karani says that recent good weather has allowed people to begin replanting their gardens. “What we are hoping to do is with this food, the people will be able to eat and at the same time re-establish their gardens. During the past two-three years when people are fearful of going to the bush to make gardens, and because of that there were no gardens up until the time when peace (was) restored.” Australia is currently leading the 2,300-strong multi-national military and police force in the Solomon Islands in what has been hailed so far as a successful mission to restore law and order in the country. Since its arrival in July, the intervention force has made the turning in of illegal weapons its main priority. Some 3,000 guns, including around 500 modern automatic weapons, have been turned in along with some 300,000 rounds of ammunition since the force announced a gun amnesty on July 31. http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2003/September/09-30-05.htm http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/6686f45896f15dbc852567ae00530132/afb4f69f76f97a23c1256db1002f96bb?OpenDocument

Sri Lanka UNICEF to open up "transit house" for former child soldiers in northern Sri Lanka The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said in a statement today that it will open its first “transit home” in Sri Lanka to help demobilize the hundreds of underage soldiers allegedly recruited by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). UNICEF says that it will be run by local and foreign non-governmental agencies. The home is expected to open this Friday (October 3) in the northern rebel-held town of Kilinochchi. “The transit centre project is one component of the action plan for war-affected children in the northeast of Sri Lanka…(and) covers child soldiers specifically and allows for an initial assessment of the children in a non-military environment before reunification with families,” the UNICEF statement said. The LTTE has long faced international criticism for their recruitment of child soldiers. In May, Amnesty International said that the recruitment of children remained a problem despite a truce between the LTTE and the government. Agence France-Presse reports that the LTTE has returned at least 350 child soldiers to their parents since November 2001, but UNICEF still has a list of over 700 children who have reportedly been conscripted by the Tigers. UNICEF has reportedly sponsored programs since April in rebel-held areas to provide education on children’s rights and to provide former child soldiers with psychological care and job training. http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/6686f45896f15dbc852567ae00530132/0ac8754e29c8f334c1256db00054dd7b?OpenDocument