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Human rights campaigners have accused the government of aggressively pursuing “no torture” deals in order to deport people deemed a security threat. Amnesty International said the practice of returning suspected terrorists to certain countries that promised humane treatment was a “failed experiment”. It said such promises were “unreliable” and “unenforceable”. The government said it did not deport people to countries where there was a “significant risk” of torture. The report claims governments are using diplomatic assurances in their “own self-interest to rid themselves of foreigners alleged to be involved in acts of terrorism, instead of prosecuting those persons for any crimes of which they are accused.” Amnesty has called upon the European Union to put a stop to the practice. ‘Serious concerns’ Amnesty also criticised the Foreign Office for negotiating “memorandums of understanding” (MoU) with countries including Jordan, Lebanon, Libya and Ethiopia. The report comes as the Special Immigration Appeals Commission is set to consider the case this week of an Ethiopian threatened with deportation based on an MoU promising the man would not be tortured on return. But Amnesty said it had serious concerns based on Ethiopia’s “exceedingly poor human rights record”. Amnesty International’s expert on counter-terrorism and human rights in Europe, Julia Hall, said: “The best way to prevent torture is to refuse to send people to places where they risk being harmed. “European governments must recommit to the fundamentals of human rights protection. That means safeguarding people from abuse by abiding by their international obligations. “Diplomatic assurances do not provide such a safeguard and the practice of relying on them should be abandoned.” ‘Minimise threat’ A Foreign Office spokesperson said MoUs were used as framework agreements where the government seeks specific assurances before returning a suspected terrorist to their country of origin. The spokesperson added: “The British Government will not deport a person where there are substantial grounds for believing there is a real risk of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, or that the death penalty will apply.” “We have a responsibility to take action to minimise the threat from terrorism to the general public and to consider all options for doing so. “Both our domestic UK courts and the European Court of Human Rights have accepted the principle of seeking diplomatic assurances in order to remove someone.” The Liberal Democrats said they do not support MoUs if they are unenforceable as “they would be thrown out by the courts” so other arrangements would have to reached. Lib Dem home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne said: “People are innocent until they are proved guilty in this country, and deporting suspects to torture-risk countries is against British traditions.” This article is from the BBC News website . © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
April 11, 2010 | Posted in
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&cat=19&pid=8156&cache=true " alt="Darfur rebel alliance makes peace" class="alignleft" />
Sudan has signed a ceasefire with a major Darfur rebel group, the second deal in recent weeks, leaving just one band of rebels in open conflict. The Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) – a newly formed umbrella group of 10 movements – signed the framework deal paving the way for further talks. Last month, a similar deal was closed with the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem), the biggest single rebel group. In the past the existence of many small factions has hampered peace talks. But now, the only major group still holding out against the government is a faction of the Sudan Liberation Army led by Abdul Wahid, who has refused to take part in peace talks. “This is an important step which will give momentum to peace efforts in Darfur,” said Sudanese Vice-President Ali Osman Taha, who was at the talks, according to AFP news agency. “We reiterate the commitment of the government of Sudan to press ahead with talks following this framework agreement.” Since the conflict in Darfur began in 2003, some 2.7 million people have fled their homes during and the UN says about 300,000 more have died. The rebel movements have been fighting government soldiers and Arab militias who many people say are backed by the government. Although preliminary peace deals have now been signed with almost all of the rebel movements, tensions between the rebel groups still remain. Jem has been angered by the other rebels’ refusal to join them at the negotiating table as one bloc and dismissed the LJM’s deal. “The ceasefire is meaningless. It is a ceasefire without any fire,” said Jem official Al-Tahir al-Feki, according to Reuters news agency. But he said his group would not walk out of the talks in Doha in a “reflex reaction”. Earlier this week, a deadline was missed for a final agreement between Jem and the government, a month after they signed their preliminary deal.
March 18, 2010 | Posted in
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&cat=19&pid=6018&cache=true " alt="More schools likely to be failed" class="alignleft" />
More schools are being judged inadequate under a new inspection regime, figures from England’s schools watchdog are expected to show. Ofsted introduced a new framework in September 2009 which requires schools to achieve higher results to be rated as good or outstanding. The watchdog has insisted its new-style inspections would “raise the bar” on its expectations of schools. Data on schools’ performance under the system will be released on Wednesday. Last week the Times Educational Supplement said the new regime had seen a near doubling in the proportion of schools judged “inadequate”, while the proportion rated “outstanding” was less than half of what it used to be. But inspectors said they now had “higher expectations on behalf of pupils and parents”. ” It is no surprise if there is a rise in inadequate schools – it just reflects the fact that the bar has been raised ” Department for Children, Schools and Families A spokesman for Ofsted said: “We have made it clear that every time an inspection framework is revised, expectations are raised too.” Ofsted said the reaction from schools had been “overwhelmingly positive”, with nine out of 10 who had responded to feedback surveys saying they were satisfied with the way inspection was carried out. A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: “We made clear in the schools White Paper last June that inspection from September would be more challenging. “It is no surprise if there is a rise in inadequate schools – it just reflects the fact that the bar has been raised and weaker schools are being inspected earlier in the cycle.” New regime Under the new arrangements, outstanding and good schools are only inspected once within a five-year period – previously it was every three years. Satisfactory schools are inspected every three years and inadequate schools are visited regularly until they make the improvements necessary. The new regime sees inspectors assess twice as many lessons and more emphasis is put on questionnaires filled out by parents and pupils. Inspectors put more emphasis on pupil attainment – a point which has caused controversy, particularly for schools in challenging areas – rather than on improvement. Schools are given two days’ warning of an inspection and the inspections lasts for two days. Ofsted said the new format was introduced in response to teachers’ concerns inspections focused too much on schools data and inspectors did not assess enough lessons. The watchdog said more than 2,000 inspections had been carried out under the new system between September and December last year. Chris Richardson, head teacher at the Kings of Wessex School in Somerset, said the new inspection framework brought “significant improvements”, particularly a sharper focus on student achievement. “A new self-evaluation form meant we felt well prepared for inspection and it gave the inspectors a good overview of the school. “Our students valued the opportunities to engage with the inspectors and give their perspective on the school.” But John Fairhurst, head of Shenfield High School in Essex, said the new inspection framework had downgraded his school from good with outstanding features to satisfactory, simply because the school’s GCSE results in 2008 were weak. “It’s become a rather skimpy inspection with an altered agenda – heavily data driven,” he said. “The framework proved, in our case, superficial and underestimated the good work of the school.” The Association for School and College Leaders and the National Association of Head Teachers are also critical of the regime, saying it puts too much emphasis on raw attainment.
March 10, 2010 | Posted in
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&cat=19&pid=6022&cache=true " alt="UK seeks Afghan political drive" class="alignleft" />
Foreign Secretary David Miliband is to call on the Afghan government to work harder to find a political solution to the conflict with the Taliban. At a lecture in the US, he is expected to urge President Hamid Karzai to work harder to match international military and development effort in his country. He is set to say a political settlement involving dialogue with the Taliban is as important as the military effort. President Karzai is to hold a council of Afghan leaders next month. In a lecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Mr Miliband is expected to say: “Now is the time for the Afghans to pursue a political settlement with as much vigour and energy as we are pursuing the military and civilian effort. “The political settlement needs to be external as well as internal, involving all of Afghanistan’s neighbours as well as those parts of the insurgency willing permanently to sever ties with al-Qaeda, give up their armed struggle and live within the Afghan constitutional framework.” ‘Political engagement’ The foreign secretary will tell his audience that while some insurgents are committed to al-Qaeda’s violent extremist agenda and will never be reconciled, the majority are not. He is expected to say: “They share conservative Islamic beliefs and, linked to that, strong views about what is a just social order. “Their rallying cry is the expulsion of international forces. But they are also motivated by their intense dissatisfaction with the Afghan government and Afghan politics – which they see as corrupt and incompetent. “The Afghans must own, lead and drive such political engagement. It will be a slow, gradual process. But the insurgents will want to see international support.” Military deaths The BBC’s James Robbins said officials worry that President Karzai is “dragging his feet over drawing as many Afghan leaders as possible into the peace jirga, or grand council, which he is convening next month. Our correspondent went on: “The success of that meeting is crucial to the far wider strategy, which includes the current military surge, designed to offer Taliban fighters a clear choice between future involvement in peaceful politics or the increased risk of being killed. “In short, London and Washington worry that President Karzai’s political push may not match their military push, which would make it harder to make the case for the sacrifice of soldiers’ lives.” Mr Miliband’s speech comes amidst a backdrop of mounting casualties among British troops. Six UK soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan’s Sangin area since 1 March, and 272 UK service personnel have died in the country since operations began in 2001.
March 10, 2010 | Posted in
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