Uganda’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kutesa is set to become President of the UN’s General Assembly on June 11. The election of Kutesa has caused some criticism because the Ugandan government–for which Kutesa forms foreign policy–has been under the 28-year rule of President Yoweri Museveni, and has been accused and found guilty by international courts of international and humanitarian crimes.

Kutesa himself has been accused by the UN, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International of crimes. Kutesa was indicted for corruption several times, and was censured by the Ugandan Parliament in 1999 for corruption–in the form of diverting millions of dollars away from Ugandan Airlines into a private company.

The government for which Kutesa serves has been accused and found guilty of war crimes. The Ugandan government has been accused of wars of aggression against neighbor countries, ethnic cleansing and plunder of resources. These international and humanitarian crimes were committed by the Ugandan government against the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), for example, accoding to a ruling by the International Court of Justice. The World Court ruling, which was handed down in 2005. In 2006, the International Criminal Court also also launched a criminal investigation of the Ugandan government’s actions in the DRC. Uganda has been accused of similar crimes in Rwanda and South Sudan. The leadership of the government–and the man Kutesa answers to– is President Yoweri Museveni.

Museveni took office in 1986, when he restricted the activities of other political parties. Political parties were allowed by Museveni to exist, but were not allowed to campaign in elections or field candidates directly. The ban on political pluralism was ended by a constitutional referendum in 2005. Museveni won the vote in 2006, but the Ugandan Supreme Court ruled that the election was marred by intimidation, voter disenfranchisement, violence and other irregularities, but voted 4-3 in favor of upholding the results of the election. Museveni was again elected in 2011 with 68 percent of a 59 percent turnout. The 2011 election was called “illegitimate” by the opposition parties and the EU election observer team said the vote was “marred by avoidable and logistical failures, which led to an unacceptable number of Ugandan citizens being disenfranchised.” After the 2011 election, opposition leader Kizza Besigye was arrested on charges of attacking authorities, although the event was reported as Besigy’s car being attacked during “Walk to Work” protests, in which several people died and hundreds were wounded, prompting the UN to urge the Ugandan authorities to sop using “excessive force” against peaceful protesters. The next election is set for 2016.

Recently–in 2013–Human Rights Watch accused the Ugandan government of oppressing press freedom, saying, “Between January and June, a media watchdog organization registered 50 attacks on journalists, despite multiple pledges to respect media freedom.” During this time, two large publications were shut down and seized by the government in response to a leaked letter that mentioned a plot to assassinate opposition leaders of Museveni, as well as Museveni’s plans to hand over power to his son upon retirement.

The anti-homosexuality law was signed by Museveni earlier this year, claiming homosexuality was “disgusting” and was a learned trait. Attacks against LGBT have increased 10 times since the law was signed, as reported by the Guardian.

The punishments for homosexuality in Uganda include maximum sentences of life imprisonment for homosexuals and seven years for assisting homosexuals remain undetected.

The election of Kutesa has been objected to by at least two US Senators–Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand– who cited Uganda’s homosexuality laws, and Ugandan newspaper publisher Milton Allimadi–who lives in New York City–filed a petition to US Secretary of State John Kerry, who weeks ago publicly denounced Uganda’a Anti-Homosexuality Act, and UN members, saying that “Mr. Kutesa could become the President of the UN General Assembly in a few weeks unless the international community stops this travesty. This would be a mockery of all the ideals that the UN is supposed to stand for.” Allimadi called on Kerry to deny a visa to Kutesa, citing similar actions taken against Iran’s UN representative designate Hamid Aboutalebi. Allimadi also said that the election “would seriously undermine the United Nations and expose it to more ridicule and humiliation.”

The post of UNGA President is a rotating one-year position, and this year Africa is to provide the official. The UNGA President presides over the General Assembly and other meetings.

Change.org

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The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) needs 50 ratifications to become legally binding international law, and it already has 40 ratifications, with the eight ratifications added June 3. Ten were expected to ratify.

A total of 118 states have signed the treaty. Four of the world’s major arms producers–USA, France, Germany and USA–signed in September. Appeals have been made to the 155 states who voted last year to adopt the ATT at the UN General Assembly in New York last June 3, groups such as Amnesty International have made appeals to stop hesitating. Most of the 43 states who have yet to sign are from Asia, Africa and the Middle east.

The ATT prohibits conventional weapons and munitions sales to states when there is knowledge the weapons would be used to commit or fascilitate serious human rights abuses, such as genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. States will be required to conduct objective assessments to avoid risks.

Amnesty International estimates that 500,000 people are killed each year due to armed violence and conflict. In addition, millions of people are displaced, abused and injured.

Amnesty also called on states not to wait for the treaty to come into effect before observing its human rights provisions. Antigua and Barbuda, Belgium, Costa Rica, Germany, Iceland, Mexico, Norway, Serbia, Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, and the UK have decided to implement the treaty’s human rights provisions sooner than the required date.

Currently, international commerce in weapons accounts for the equivalent of billions or trillions USD each year. The ATT is 20 years in the making–it started out as a group of civil activists expressed concern about unregulated global arms trade and its impact on human security. The idea was a set of ethical standards for arms trade.

China and Russia have abstained from signing so far. Both were expected to sign the treaty soon, but on May 20 Voice of Russia reported that Moscow would not sign the ATT because it was “not completely thought through,” and because it “discriminates against the Russian military industrial complex.”

The ATT will come into force 90 days after the 50th ratification. Ratification means adopting the ATT into a nations laws. The ATT will be the  first legally binding instrument ever negotiated in the United Nations to establish common standards for the international transfer of conventional arms.

DW

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Amnesty International has revealed that Nigerian security forces received multiple advanced warnings about the raids that took place on the Chibok boarding school April 14-15, in which over 240 schoolgirls were kidnapped by Boko Haram forces.

Security forces were warned hours in advance, according to the rights group, who accused the Nigerian authorities of “gross dereliction of duty.”

Amnesty International independently verified information based on multiple interviews with credible sources, and concluded that the Nigerian security forces had over four hours of advance warning about the attack but not take measures appropriate to prevent it. Security and local officials had reported the threat to Damboa military command near Chibok by phone, after local civilian vigilante groups raised the alarm the evening of April 14. Reportedly, a large group of unidentified armed men entered Gagilam village on motorbikes and told residents they were headed toward Chibok.

Security forces were aware of the attack after 7:00 PM, but did not muster troops due to fear of a better-armed force, according to Amnesty International. A force of 17 army and police met the Boko Haram force significantly later, but was insufficient and was forced to retreat.

Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International’s Africa Director, Research and Advocacy, stated, “The fact that Nigerian security forces knew about Boko Haram’s impending raid, but failed to take the immediate action needed to stop it, will only amplify the national and international outcry at this horrific crime.”

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Amnesty International

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In Azerbaijan Tuesday, European Amnesty International members and activists gathered from 2.00 to 3.00 o’clock outside the Council of Europe Chairmanship ceremony to protest human rights abuses in Azerbaijan–the country that will assume the chairmanship of the human rights decision-making institution May 14.

The demonstrators called on the Azerbaijani government to assume a leadership position as Chairman in protecting human rights national and internationally. Activists also called on the Committee of Ministers to pressure Azerbaijan release its detained prisoners of conscience immediately, including NIDA activists.

NIDA–which is the Azerbaijani word for “exclamation”–was founded in 2011 by a small group of young people purposing to enact democratic and social changes in the country. The group currently has 350 members, including several politicians. Eight NIDA activists were sentences recently to jail terms of six to eight years for spurious crimes.

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Amnesty International

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