Archive - Jan 4, 2010

• Iraqi government pledges new lawsuits on behalf of civilians killed by Blackwater guards
• Human rights and health advocates fight anti-homosexual bill in Uganda
• 2010: the year ahead in Washington, D.C.
• California communities continue to look for solutions to police brutality, one year after killing

• More embassies close and Yemen’s Foreign Minister says no to US military action
• New international security measures at airports in effect today – but not in practice
• HIV/AIDS Travel and Immigration Ban ends
• Houston and Atlanta inaugurate Mayors
• Some 17,000 chemicals unregulated and unreported to EPA

Iraqi government officials say they will continue pursuing legal action against military contractors who open fired on civilians two years ago in Baghdad, killing more than a dozen unarmed civilians, and injuring about 20 others. Last week, a US judge threw out a lawsuit against five Blackwater security guards charged with manslaughter. Iraqi government spokesperson Ali Al-Dabbagh spoke to Al-Jazeera about the ruling.

"We are sorry that the federal judge had that verdict. We keep them and we hold them criminals. As for our investigation here in Baghdad, the Blackwater personnel, those five people, they had used excessive force and they didn’t follow the rule of engagement and they killed innocent Iraqis on the sixteenth of September 2007, and we reserve the right of our victims, Iraqis and all the citizens which have been harmed during this criminal act, we reserve the right to follow and to bring them to the justice, either through the American justice system or through the strategic agreement which we have with the United States which keep the reserve of our citizens for all the military operations, all the victims of military operations."

Blackwater guards killed 17 civilians in Baghdad's busy Nisoor Square in September 2007. The guards say they were attacked, but Iraqi investigators and US military officials have said they used excessive force and acted without provocation. The Iraqi government canceled all Blackwater contracts following the shooting, and yesterday spokesperson al-Dabbagh said former Blackwater employees now working for other companies were also not welcome in the country.

Last Thursday's ruling wasn't a surprise to many involved in and watching the case. The Blackwater guards' provided statements in the hours and weeks following the shooting which government prosecutors used to incriminate them, violating their 5th Amendment rights. In the 90-page ruling throwing out the case, judge Ricardo M. Urbina outlined the prosecution's misconduct and use of tainted evidence. The Justice Department can appeal the ruling or even bring new indictments, but it would need to find untainted evidence to make their case.

In the streets of Baghdad, civilians expressed dismay and frustration. Earlier today, we spoke to Ned Parker, Baghdad bureau chief for the LA Times. He and journalist Raheem Salman have interviewed survivors of the shooting.

Read “Iraqis express dismay over Blackwater ruling,” in the Los Angeles Times.

Uganda's government is considering a bill that would impose harsh penalties for homosexuality, including possibly the death penalty. The effort has received international criticism. Recently, supporters of the bill in Uganda have indicated they may back away from the most severe aspects of the legislation, but human rights groups and HIV-AIDS agencies say that there is still plenty to be worried about. The proposed bill could have wide implications that may extend beyond Uganda's borders.

We're joined by Amanda Lugg. She's the director of advocacy at the African Services Committee, a community-based organization in New York that provides health and social services to the African and Caribbean community. It also has services in Ethiopia.

Last week, FSRN looked back at a busy 2009 in Washington, DC. It was an ambitious first year for President Barack Obama and a Democratic Congress which attempted to reform the health care system, divert a financial catastrophe, and develop a military strategy in Afghanistan and Iraq. Today, FSRN’s DC Editor, Leigh Ann Caldwell, takes a look at what the year ahead could look like.

New Years day marked the one-year anniversary of the police killing of Oscar Grant in Oakland, California.  The murder trial of Johannes Mehserle, the transit police officer who killed Grant, is set to begin later this year in Los Angeles.  The shooting of Grant was one of many incidents of apparent police misconduct in 2009, as a result, the issue of police accountability is receiving increased attention. More than 100 cities and counties have gained some sort of civilian oversight of their police department. Public scrutiny is increasing, in part because of more frequent use of tasers, and because more incidents of police brutality are being recorded on cell phone cameras.  But many communities still say they're unable to find any semblance of justice. FSRN’s Andrew Stelzer has more.