Uganda opposition leader Bobi Wine charged, freed on bail
Issued on: 20/11/2020 - 


A Ugandan court on Friday charged opposition leader Bobi Wine over an election rally which allegedly flouted Covid-19 rules, then freed him on bail, after his detention sparked violence that left 37 dead. Wine was charged with "doing an act likely to spread infectious diseases contrary to the penal code and rules of the public health on Covid-19," said judiciary spokesman Solomon Muyita. FRANCE 24's Grainne Harrington tells us more.

   

Violent clashes over arrest of Ugandan opposition leader leave dozens dead

Issued on: 20/11/2020 - 00:57

A supporter of Ugandan musician turned politician Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, carries a poster as they protest on a street against the arrest of Bobi Wine during his presidential rally in Kampala, Uganda, on November 18, 2020. 

Badru Kadumba, AFP

Text by:FRANCE 24Follow


At least 37 people have been killed in two days of violent clashes between Ugandan security forces and supporters of detained opposition leader Bobi Wine, police said Friday, as tensions flared two months before a presidential election.

Ugandan security forces fired teargas and rubber bullets at angry protesters who set fires, barricaded roads and looted stores in the capital Kampala, as calls mounted for calm ahead of the January 14 elections.

The popstar-turned-presidential candidate Bobi Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, was released on bail on Friday after being charged with holding rallies likely to spread the coronavirus.

Wine had been arrested on Wednesday while campaigning in eastern Uganda for allegedly holding mass rallies in violation of restrictions on gatherings imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Police on Friday updated the death toll to 37, up from 16 on Thursday, alongside "45 injuries, some serious injuries,” Kampala police chief Moses Kafeero told AFP on Thursday, without giving details of those killed.

Police spokesman Fred Enanga also told reporters that 577 suspects had been arrested across the country for alleged involvement in violence and other offences.

Protests kicked off on Wednesday, when police said seven were killed, after Wine’s detention ahead of a rally. Wine is considered the main challenger to veteran president Yoweri Museveni who is seeking a sixth term in power.

Pockets of protests continued throughout the day in Kampala and other major towns, with youths barricading roads, starting fires and engaging in running battles with police who lobbed tear gas and fired rubber bullets at protesters, and in some cases, fired live bullets.

Kampala on fire, following the arrest, in Luuka, of presidential candidate Hon Robert Kyagulanyi (BOBI Wine). The protests are spreading quickly to other urban centres.

Many people have, reportedly, been short dead by the Police and Military in various parts of the city. pic.twitter.com/EFSZAdZfx2— Kifefe Kizza-Besigye (@kizzabesigye1) November 18, 2020

Gunshot wounds

The Red Cross said late Wednesday it had treated dozens of injured following “scuffles involving the police and the rioting masses”, including 11 people for gunshot wounds.

While the military and police maintained a heavy presence, by the evening the situation had deteriorated with robberies taking place and shops being looted.

An AFP journalist saw hooded men stopping vehicles in a suburb of Kampala, and robbing passengers before police opened fire on the perpetrators.

“My phone, money and handbag has been taken,” said 42-year-old Flavia Namutebi, a Kampala businesswoman who was in a taxi that was robbed.

“They said they want money to bail out Bobi Wine,” she said.

Another man identified as Ivan Kakawa, 29, a shoe seller, told AFP, “the men beat me and demanded I give them money.”

Uganda’s judiciary issued a statement saying a courthouse in the central town of Wobulenzi, about 40 kilometres (25 miles) north of Kampala had been vandalised by protesters.

The old vs the new

Wine, 38, has long been a thorn in Museveni’s side, attracting a widespread following through catchy pop songs about social justice and corruption.

Many young Ugandans see him as their champion in a country mired in poverty and youth unemployment.

Museveni, a 76-year-old former rebel who seized power in 1986, is one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders.

Wine has been repeatedly arrested—most recently on November 3 after he filed his candidacy for the elections—his concerts are routinely banned and his public rallies broken up with teargas.

In New York, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric on Thursday called for Wine’s release.

“We call for the immediate release of the detained opposition leaders, including Bobi Wine, and it’s important that security forces act in a way that respects human rights principles and the rule of law in dealing with protesters.”

The US embassy published a tweet saying it deplored the violence and extended its sympathy to the victims and their families.

“We urge all parties to renounce violence, undertake good-faith measures to reduce tensions, and respect fundamental freedoms,” it said.



The United States deplores the violence that has claimed multiple lives today, and we extend our sympathy to the victims’ families and loved ones. We urge all parties to renounce violence, undertake good-faith measures to reduce tensions, and respect fundamental freedoms. pic.twitter.com/FewY3RgMNw— U.S. Mission Uganda (@usmissionuganda) November 18, 2020

Patrick Oboi Amuriat, the candidate with the Forum for Democratic Change, was also detained on Wednesday but was subsequently released.

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“I can say am out of police cells but not free as the police can arrest me any time as they have been doing,” he told AFP.

He said his party was reviewing whether to continue their campaign or not.

Two other presidential candidates, Henry Tumukunde and Gregory Mugisha Muntu, have called off their campaigns until Uganda’s electoral body takes action over what they called police brutality against opposition candidates.

Museveni made no immediate comment on the protests, and held a rally in the northeastern town of Karamoja.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)

Armed men in T-shirts enforce the law, raise election violence fears in Uganda

Issued on: 20/11/2020 - 

Supporters of Ugandan opposition presidential candidate Bobi Wine take cover from tear gas during his arrest in Luuka, Uganda, on November 18, 2020. © AFP

Text by:Leela JACINTO

Uganda this week witnessed its worst violence in a decade when demonstrators took to the streets to protest opposition presidential candidate Bobi Wine’s arrest. The ferocity of the violence and the state’s use of armed plainclothesmen raised alarm bells as President Yoweri Museveni, Africa’s longest-serving leader, faces a popular challenger in the January election.

The video clip, recorded from a family car packed with audibly panicking members on the outskirts of the Ugandan capital, Kampala, documents 45 seconds of raw human terror.

“These guys are shooting,” says a female voice inside the car while through the windshield, young men in T-shirts and jeans can be seen wielding automatic rifles on the street.

The panic mounts as the armed men start shooting wantonly into the air thick with teargas. “What?! Jesus!” cries the woman. “Mummy, mummy, I’m very scared,” whimpers the woman as the heavyset gunman shoots into the distance at chest level.

The video clip, posted on Twitter by leading Ugandan human rights lawyer Nicholas Opiyo, was just one of many disturbing images circulating on social media sites on Thursday as plainclothes and uniformed security officers shot demonstrators protesting the arrest of Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine, killing at least 37 people.

This is not a war zone. It is an election or what they call so in Uganda. We are fast spiraling into anarchy in here. We must restore calm & avoid bloodshed. Whoever wins in these circumstances may be a lawful but not a legitimate leader #StopTheBloodshed pic.twitter.com/o1dgWs8DDR— Nicholas Opiyo (@nickopiyo) November 19, 2020

“In the last couple of days we have begun to see very unusual things in this country: individuals driving private cars, wielding guns and shooting indiscriminately at anybody they see on the streets. These signs are extremely worrying,” said Opiyo in an interview with FRANCE 24 on Friday. “We believe the government has been hiring paramilitary militia in the guise of maintaining law and order.”

The video, Opiyo noted, was shot on Thursday by a colleague who wished to remain anonymous. “We have seen many like this online yesterday, but I can vouch for this video because I know the person who shot it,” he said.

Election season can be a particularly fraught time in Uganda. But this time, the violence started early and with a ferocity that raised alarm bells, exposing the high political stakes for President Museveni.

‘Let Museveni know that we are not slaves’

Museveni is running for re-election in the January 2021 polls after the country’s election commission on November 2 cleared the incumbent’s bid to extend his 34-year rule.

Since Museveni took power in 1986 after ousting a military government, the 76-year-old rebel soldier-turned-president has never lost a single election in his political career.

But he faces a serious threat next year from Wine, a 38-year-old musician-turned-politician.

Uganda’s “ghetto president”, as he’s popularly known, has captured the imagination of many voters and electrified his primarily young fan base with his fearless calls for Museveni to step down.

Wine – whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu – was arrested earlier this week and charged with flouting Covid-19 restrictions. Following Thursday’s violence – the country’s worst unrest in a decade – he was freed on bail on Friday and is due to appear in court again on December 18.

Speaking to journalists after his release, a weary-looking Wine sounded defiant. “Let Museveni know that we are not slaves and we shall not accept to be slaves,” he said. “We shall be free.”

The Wine arrest-release-defiance routine

Wine’s characteristic displays of defiance following his frequent arrests have turned into a familiar feature on the Ugandan political scene since he was elected to parliament in 2017.

Following a 2018 spell in jail, Wine was allowed to travel to the US for medical treatment for injuries sustained during his incarceration.

But if Uganda’s ruling party members harboured secret hopes that this young, green parliamentarian could be intimidated into staying on in the US, those dreams were soon dashed. Following his treatment, the crowd-gathering thorn in Museveni’s side returned to his homeland, vowing not to be intimidated. “I am a free Ugandan with the right to move freely in my country," he declared upon arrival.

Wine’s latest arrest was the second in barely a month. On November 3, he was detained shortly after filing his presidential candidacy. After being blocked from going to his offices, Wine was taken to his residence, where he addressed his supporters, displaying his torn suit jacket and pointing to injuries sustained by some of his associates during the arrest.

Uganda erupts after another arrest

But while Wine’s detentions are not new, the public reaction to his arrest this week caught experts and human rights defenders by surprise.

“Museveni’s hold on power has been achieved by visiting violence, intimidation, corruption and bribery – this is not new,” said Opiyo. “What’s new is the level of reaction from the public.”

Wine’s arrest on Wednesday triggered immediate protests in Kampala and quickly spread to other towns across the East African nation. By late Wednesday, the Red Cross said it had treated dozens of injured, including 11 people for gunshot wounds. By Thursday night, the situation had deteriorated, with shop windows broken and looted, and youths burning tyres on the streets, demanding Wine’s release.

Ugandan police maintain their forces were containing rioters who were targeting people who did not support Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) party. "What we have seen in the last few days, that is violence, vandalism, looting, intimidation and threats, are crimes that were being committed [against] people who are not pro-NUP," said police spokesman Fred Enanga. "This is not something that we can tolerate."

‘Using Covid to obtain political advantage’

While admitting the situation had turned “very intense”, Opiyo noted that the disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force by security officers had exacerbated the violence.

“There’s no doubt the brutality of the security agencies was met with unruly conduct by people who were outraged and using every means to express their outrage,” said Opiyo.

In a country mired in poverty and youth unemployment, public anger has been mounting against an ageing, governing clique that has arbitrarily deployed security officials to uphold the law as they see fit.

While Wine was arrested for flouting coronavirus restrictions, members of Museveni’s National Resistance Movement party have held packed campaign events in recent weeks that have been peacefully secured by law enforcement officials.

"Coronavirus restrictions are being used as an excuse for violent repression of the opposition and to give added advantage to the ruling party,” said Opiyo. “This is about using Covid to obtain political advantage.”


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The use of armed plainclothes men on Thursday has also terrified the citizenry, adding to insecurity fears in the run-up to the January 15 elections.

“This is not the first time we have seen them on the streets, often times they work alongside uniformed security personnel,” explained Opiyo. “But since they are government employed individuals, it’s often difficult to hold them to account.”

While the mysterious gunmen in T-shirts are allowed to “control the street” with impunity, human rights defenders in Uganda are bracing for a particularly intimidating campaign season.

A day after posting the posting the video clip and other images of armed men in civilian clothes, Opiyo admitted he was concerned for his safety as well as the safety of other human rights defenders and civil society activists in Uganda.

“I slept in my office last night because I got word that I was being trailed. They are very unhappy that I’m posting these updates. Two days ago, civil society activists were stopped in their car, and taken out and beaten, journalists are being beaten, any group that questions the authorities are being brutalised,” said Opiyo. “I don’t feel safe, but this is my home and I’m not going anywhere.”

Yemen in 'imminent danger' of world's worst famine in decades: UN

Issued on: 20/11/2020 - 

A Yemeni boy receives aid donated by the World Food Programme (WFP) in the country's third city of Taez, in October 2020 -- UN chief Antonio Guterres warns Yemen is in imminent danger of the worst famine the world has seen in decades AHMAD AL-BASHA AFP/File

United Nations (United States) (AFP)

War-torn Yemen is in imminent danger of the worst famine the world has seen in decades, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned Friday.

"In the absence of immediate action, millions of lives may be lost," Guterres said of the country that has endured a five year war between Iranian-backed Huthi rebels and government forces.

The government in Yemen is supported by a Saudi-led coalition, assisted by Western powers including the US.

Outgoing President Donald Trump's administration has made isolating its arch foe Tehran a centerpiece of US regional policy.

The warning from Guterres, the latest in a series from the UN on Yemen, comes amid reports that the Trump administration is considering labeling the Huthis a terrorist organization.

That could cripple aid deliveries and make things even worse in Yemen, aid groups say.

In his statement, Guterres made only indirect reference to this possibility.

"I urge all those with influence to act urgently on these issues to stave off catastrophe, and I also request that everyone avoids taking any action that could make the already dire situation even worse," the secretary-general said.

He said the reasons for the heightened threat of famine include a sharp drop in funding for the UN-coordinated relief program, the instability of the Yemeni currency and the warring parties imposing "impediments" for relief organizations.

The Huthi rebels control the Yemeni capital Sanaa and much of the north after a grinding war that has created the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

The US labeling the rebels a terrorist group would mean many countries would have trouble interacting with the Huthis.

The impact on the Huthis, who are already under US sanctions, may be limited but ordinary Yemenis could pay the price, with further damage to aid programs already cut back due to record-low funding during the coronavirus pandemic.

Everything from dealing with Huthi officials, handling taxes, using the banking system, paying health workers, buying food and fuel and arranging internet services could be affected, humanitarian groups say.

© 2020 AFP

Palestinians with disabilities battling PA for vital healthcare
Covid-19 has exposed a deeply flawed health insurance system that lets disabled Palestinians down badly

Disability rights activists including Abdelrahman Awwad (C) and Shatha Abu Srour (R) have staged a sit-in for nearly three weeks in Ramallah. The banner reads: "We die of coronavirus and we die of medical negligence" (MEE/Shatha Hammad)

By Shatha Hammad in Ramallah, occupied West Bank
Published date: 20 November 2020 17:07 UTC | Last update: 11 hours 3 mins ago

Palestinians with disabilities are in the third week of a sit-in protest inside the offices of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, demanding the right to comprehensive health insurance as guaranteed under law.

Under the slogan, "A movement for a decent life for people with disabilities", activists are stressing the need for a just health insurance system, particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic revealed large gaps in the healthcare provided to individuals with disabilities.

Protesters are also calling on the Palestinian Authority to abide by the international treaties it has ratified, most notably the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

'As long as we are still trying we have not failed, and today we are becoming more persistent and we won’t back down'

- Abdelrahman Awwad, 46, protester

Protest coordinator Shatha Abu Srour told Middle East Eye that the imposition of the state of emergency amid the spread of coronavirus and the precautionary measures taken by the Palestinian government have disrupted the lives of many individuals with disabilities and their dependents, without providing sufficient support to counter these effects.

"People with disabilities were not included in the emergency plan drawn up by the government; they were disregarded,” the 35-year-old, who is vision impaired, said. "We went to the presidential office and asked them to formulate a plan and support it with a budget, but they refused."

The PA is widely seen as having cracked down on local political and social movements in recent years through arrests and the use of physical force, including during the teachers’ strike of 2016 and against the movement calling for the lifting of PA sanctions on the besieged Gaza Strip in 2018.

As such, the renewed push by the disability rights movement is significant and not without risk - but activists are determined to keep pushing.
A longstanding fight

According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, there were some 93,000 people with disabilities in the occupied Palestinian territories in 2019, and the unemployment rate for individuals with disabilities stood at 37 percent in 2017.

The Palestinian Basic Law, the equivalent to a constitution, stipulates that any person with a disability has the right to obtain comprehensive health insurance. But Abu Srour, who is the Palestine representative at the Arab Forum for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, explained that the PA health insurance system does not match up with the Basic Law.

'The demands of people with disabilities are consistent with the Basic Law and international conventions that the Palestinian Authority has signed on to'

- Khadija Zahran, Independent Commission for Human Rights

"Only 14,000 people with disabilities have health insurance. Insurance is granted to only those with a disability rate of more than 60 percent,” she said, adding that the PA’s current health system excludes a set of health and rehabilitation services and devices needed by people with disabilities.

Khadija Zahran, director of the legislation and policy review department at the statutory watchdog, the Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR), said that while Palestinian law requires the state to provide a just health insurance regardless of an individual’s type of disability, the existing insurance system is flawed.

She explained that the current system does not cover some auxiliary services, including wheelchairs for people with mobility impairments, as well as hearing aids, certain lab exams, and certain restoration operations that are considered "cosmetic operations".

"The defects are evident in the health insurance system,” said Zahran. “The demands of people with disabilities are consistent with the Basic Law and international conventions that the Palestinian Authority has signed on to.”

While the movement pushing for better health coverage for people with disabilities in the occupied West Bank was initially launched in 2018, it faded out after none of its demands were met or fulfilled by the PA.

That year, the PA Council of Ministers, the minister of development, the Ministry of Health and Development and the Union of People with Disabilities met to formulate new and just legislation, yet nothing changed.
‘We won’t back down’

But the pandemic has prompted the renewal of the movement after it revealed the disparities in healthcare provided to people with disabilities at the levels of diagnosis, medical treatment and rehabilitation.

Abu Srour said that they decided to “fight directly for our issues, the most important of which is obtaining comprehensive health insurance".


In addition to the sit-in, scores of protesters both with and without disabilities have been standing at the doors of the PLC building in solidarity. PA forces have shut down the area in the vicinity and threatened to disperse and arrest the protesters.

Activists, including Awwad, have displayed signs reading 'We demand government health care that is full and fair for people with disabilities' (MEE/Shatha Hammad)

Hamza Nasser, 32, a demonstrator, told MEE that he and others tried to protest at the Council of Ministers office - also located in Ramallah - but were prevented from doing so by security forces, who sent a security official for Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh to listen to the protesters’ demands.

"The sit-in succeeded in generating some initiatives by human rights organisations and activists, but what we need is a cabinet response to the movement's demands,” Nasser said.


'We are not holding a sit-in for a group, but for the sake of the whole community. Each one of us is liable to become a person with a disability at any moment'

- Abdelrahman Awwad, protester

Abdelrahman Awwad, 46, has not left the PLC offices since the beginning of the sit-in on 3 November. He told MEE of the long journey fighting for people with disabilities’ basic rights.

“In 2017, we carried out a sit-in and we were accused of having foreign agendas. We started back up again in 2018, but we did not achieve anything,” he said. “But as long as we are still trying we have not failed, and today we are becoming more persistent and we won’t back down."

Despite the cold temperatures and their health conditions, the protesters are adamant about remaining at the sit-in.

"Many people with disabilities are currently uncomfortable in their homes and are deprived of many necessary medications and aids,” Awwad said.

“There is no time limit to this protest; it will only end when our demands are met.

"Today we are not holding a sit-in for a group, but for the sake of the whole community. Each one of us is liable to become a person with a disability at any moment.”

Saudi Arabia's G20 challenge: Investing in human rights

In the face of international pressure, the Saudi government may have no choice but to address human rights

James Suzano
, Salma Houerbi
20 November 2020


Saudi Arabia will chair the annual G20 summit on 21 November (AFP)


As Saudi Arabia prepares to chair the annual G20 summit on 21 November, the kingdom finds itself at an interesting - and potentially dire - crossroads. Oil prices have plummeted this year, largely as a consequence of Covid-19, with Saudi Aramco reporting a 50 percent fall in net income in the first half of its fiscal year.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman maintains an ambitious economic diversification plan, Vision 2030, which hopes to boost the economy using one main instrument: foreign-investment-led mega projects. There’s just one problem. In a post-Khashoggi Saudi Arabia, foreign investment appears to be necessarily linked to human rights reforms, a subject historically anathema to the kingdom.
Disappearing investors

The immediate aftermath of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi left Saudi Arabia in economic peril. An economy worth $790bn brought in less than $5bn in foreign direct investment last year - less than half the government’s target, and a number likely to shrink further in 2020. Many foreign investors who had, just months prior, been scrambling to secure economic deals in line with Vision 2030, disappeared overnight.

International businesses are slowly shying away from mega project investments. Let’s take the case of Neom, a mega project envisioned as the city of the future. The $500bn Neom scheme is planned to span three countries, covering 26,500 square kilometres, with unprecedented features: flying taxis to take residents to work, artificial sand and robot maids.


If the kingdom is serious about transitioning to a sustainable, diverse and world-leading economy, it will have no choice but to improve its human rights record

Back in 2018, the chief executive of German multinational Siemens, which had been identified as a potential partner in the development of Neom, risked billions of dollars’ worth of business by pulling out of a major investment forum in Saudi Arabia, citing human rights concerns. More recently, the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights reported that Japan’s SoftBank, which had been previously identified as a potential investment partner, had not yet committed to supporting Neom.

When e-sports league Riot Games announced a partnership with the Neom project earlier this year, it met a huge outcry from fans and supporters. Twitter exploded with reports of Saudi Arabia’s abysmal human rights record. The pressure mounted so rapidly and furiously that Riot Games announced the termination of the Neom partnership less than 24 hours after it had been revealed.

The message from the international community could not be clearer: if the kingdom is serious about transitioning to a sustainable, diverse and world-leading economy, it will have no choice but to improve its human rights record.
Glacial pace of reforms

There are nascent signs that Saudi Arabia may be picking up on at least some of these priorities. Its government made headlines in 2018 by allowing women to drive. It also recently announced that it would end child executions, and made shy commitments to end the exploitative kafala system. Yet, implementation of reforms has been glacial, with mixed responses from civil society groups.

Meanwhile, abuses associated with the Neom project continue unabated, as construction involves the bulldozing of local indigenous communities. A spate of human rights abuses associated with Neom reached a climax in April, when activist Abdul Rahim al-Hwaiti was killed by Saudi security forces after his tribe protested against the implementation of the mega project. Saudi authorities said the activist had attacked security forces.

A drone taxi, part of an exhibition on Neom, is pictured in Riyadh in 2017 (Reuters)

In October, tribal leaders petitioned the United Nations to intervene in the project, citing substantial human rights concerns. Looking ahead, human rights watchdogs are already sounding the alarm over the rapidly developing Saudi surveillance state, raising issues that would be compounded in a high-tech mega-city.

The international community has a vital opportunity to alter the path forward. Lessons can be learned from the Riot Games experience. With increasing, bottom-up pressure stemming from workers and worldwide consumers, alongside the activism of a vibrant dissident Saudi diaspora, international businesses will likely pay increased attention to the reputational costs of involvement with the wrong partners, and further scrutinise the human rights implications of their operations in Saudi Arabia.

Social dialogue

Beyond priceless PR campaigns, Saudi Arabia will need to change its relationship with human rights if it hopes to shift its economy and change its relationship with the international community. This starts at the fundamental level, by applying human rights-focused due diligence everywhere, including at the conceptual stage of projects such as Neom, while guaranteeing buy-in from local communities and obtaining a social licence to operate.

A vision for a democratic Saudi Arabia free from the house of Saud Read More »

Social dialogue, a key driver of business growth and economic performance, should also form the basis of the kingdom’s new social contract under Vision 2030. The Saudi government could then continue by respecting and protecting political and social rights, ending crackdowns on local indigenous populations, and rooting out systemic discrimination against women and migrant workers - perhaps all pipe dreams several years ago, but attainable in the new Saudi context.

With the world’s largest economic powers arriving in the country for the G20 summit, this is a golden opportunity for the international community, governments and businesses to demand fundamental changes from the Saudi government.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.

James Suzano
James Suzano is the Director of Legal Affairs for the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR), and coordinates ESOHR's legal and English-language advocacy towards the betterment of the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia. He is a qualified attorney registered in New York, USA and received his Juris Doctorate from UCLA School of Law in 2013.

Salma Houerbi
Salma Houerbi is a researcher interested in Business and Human Rights, equality and social inclusion. She is currently the MENA regional representative for UK founded NGO, Business and Human Rights Resource Centre

Families of jailed Saudis appeal to world ahead of G20

Issued on: 20/11/2020 - 

Amnesty International projects images of jailed Saudi activists including Loujain al-Athloul on the Louvre Museum in Paris THOMAS COEX AFP

Washington (AFP)

Families of imprisoned Saudis appealed Friday for the world to speak up as the kingdom hosts the Group of 20 summit, saying that challenging the kingdom's international reputation was crucial to winning their freedom.

As leaders of the world's largest economies prepared for talks Saturday that have gone virtual due to the Covid-19 pandemic, activists staged a "counter-summit" in hopes of throwing a spotlight on the ultra-conservative kingdom's human rights record.

PEN America, the literary group that defends free expression, called the online forum amid continued outrage over the 2018 murder of Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi, who was strangled and dismembered inside Saudi Arabia's Istanbul consulate.

"All of our relatives are in danger. They are facing the threat of what Jamal Khashoggi has seen on a daily basis," said Areej al-Sadhan, who says her brother, Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, was picked by up Saudi secret police in March 2018.

"Your voices are going to help keep them safe," she said.

Abdulrahman al-Sadhan was seized in the Riyadh office of the Red Crescent humanitarian group, where he worked, after he voiced opinions on human rights and social justice on an anonymous Twitter account, according to the family.

Areej al-Sadhan, who lives in California, says she has faced shadowy threats since speaking about her brother, including a warning she was going to be "thrown into the sewer system."

One of the most prominent Saudis in custody is 31-year-old Loujain al-Hathloul, a key figure in the campaign to allow Saudi women to drive who was arrested in May 2018 weeks before the kingdom lifted its ban on female drivers.

She has been on a hunger strike since October 26 when her parents visited her and found her to be "very weak and hopeless," said her sister, Lina al-Hathoul.

"We should not underestimate the power we have with our voices," Lina, who has lived in Europe for several years, told the counter-summit.

"Even one word asking about political prisoners and prisoners of conscience -- saying their names, making sure they're not forgotten -- really is something that could save them."

- Change expected under Biden -

Outgoing US President Donald Trump has aligned himself closely with Saudi Arabia, hailing its purchases of US weapons and hostility toward US adversary Iran.

Trump said of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that he "saved his ass" after a US Senate resolution, which followed a CIA briefing, found the powerful young royal responsible for Khashoggi's killing.

Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat, told the counter-summit that he expected President-elect Joe Biden to address human rights in Saudi Arabia and the kingdom's support for a brand of Islam that "forms the building blocks of global extremist movements."

"It is past time for us to recognize that Saudi Arabia is a deeply imperfect ally and that our priorities in this relationship have been long skewed in a way that, I argue, is not to the advantage of the United States in the long run," Murphy said.

Dozens of Democratic lawmakers had urged the Trump administration to boycott the G20, seeing it as part of efforts for Saudi Arabia to rebrand itself without meaningful reforms.

Instead, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit in person hours after the virtual summit.

Safa al-Ahmad, acting director of the Saudi rights group ALQST, said the kingdom's outreach efforts, such as inviting Western musicians, have been geared entirely at improving its public image abroad without reform at home.

"There is a limit to the hypocrisy and the gaslighting of the Saudi government. The reality is very, very different from what the government continues to claim."

© 2020 AFP

Campaigns to boycott Saudi Arabia G20 summit gain momentum
From hashtags to petitions, damning statements and full-page newspaper ads, human rights groups demand kingdom be held accountable

G20 logo is projected at historical al-Tarif in Diriyah district on outskirts of Saudi capital, Riyadh, on 20 November (AFP)

By Sheren Khalel
Published date: 20 November 2020 

Human rights groups and activists have intensified calls to boycott the Group of 20 (G20) summit hosted by Saudi Arabia this weekend, demanding the kingdom release jailed activists.

The summit, held virtually this year amid the Covid-19 pandemic, is an annual meeting of the world's 20 largest economies.

Although a different G20 country hosts the meeting each year, to the dismay of human rights defenders around the globe, Saudi Arabia is leading the 2020 global gathering on Saturday and Sunday.

Pointing to issues from a lack of accountability for 2018 murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to the country's continued imprisonment of activists, rights groups have launched powerful campaigns calling on the international community to hold the kingdom accountable.

'Hypocrisy of the highest order'

On Friday, the UK-based Arab Organisation for Human Rights (AOHR), along with the families of three womens' rights activists imprisoned in the kingdom, took out full-page advertisements in some of the world's leading newspapers, including the Washington Post, LA Times, the Guardian, Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung and Canada's Star.

"While Saudi Arabia hosts the summit, it continues to detain scholars and activists - men and women - and deprive them of their basic human rights in blatant hypocrisy," the group said in a statement highlighting the ad campaign.

"The summit is being attended by the leaders of the G20 nations around the world, including the United States, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada and Italy - nations that pride themselves on upholding human rights," AOHR said, calling for Saudi Arabia to release all political prisoners.

"This is hypocrisy of the highest order and is not compatible with the laws and ethos."

اليوم في الصحف الكبرى بأوروبا وأمريكا مثل الجارديان والواشنطن بوست وال إل ايه تايمز وغيرها.. هذا الإعلان لمقاطعة قمة العشرين في السعودية في ظل اعتقال أصحاب الرأي والضمير في السعودية#G20SaudiArabia #G20RiyadhSummit #PENCounterSummit#G20 #قمه_العشرين pic.twitter.com/57VudVgKQV— د. عبدالله العودة (@aalodah) November 20, 2020

Many of the ads featured images of US President Donald Trump meeting with de facto Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), and highlighted the kingdom's ban on independent human rights organisations.

"Boycott G20! End the opression!" the ads read. "Crown Prince MBS uses G20 to whitewash his crimes".

They also stressed Saudi Arabia's track record of extrajudicial killings, the detention of women's rights advocates and journalists, and the country's government-sanctioned executions, which in 2019 amounted to 178 deaths.
Hashtag 'hijack'

The Washington Post Press Freedom Partnership, along with Reporters Without Borders (known by its French acronym, RSF), also took out a full-page newspaper advert in the Washington Post this month calling for the release of journalists and other activists jailed in Saudi Arabia.

Ahead of #G20SaudiArabia, the @wppressfreedom published a full page ad from @RSF_en calling for the release of 34 jailed journalists in Saudi Arabia and other activists, who were only trying to make a difference in the Kingdom. pic.twitter.com/hvWbAvBEu5— Colossus Diplomacy (@ColossusDiplo) November 16, 2020

"G20 members must act without delay to obtain concrete press freedom improvements in Saudi Arabia," the ad read.

RSF has also launched a social media campaign seeking to "hijack" the hashtag #G20SaudiArabia with critical messages aimed at the kingdom.

"RSF is calling for international public support to hijack the official #G20SaudiArabia hashtag with messages and images in support of the country’s 34 unjustly jailed journalists," the group said on the campaign's webpage, which includes a pre-written Twitter post users can customise for their own posts.

Saudi Arabia ranks 170 out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2020 World Press Freedom Index.

"Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s most prolific jailers of journalists," RSF says, going on to denounce the "continued impunity" of officials involved in the murder and dismemberment of Khashoggi in Saudi Arabia's Istanbul consulate two years ago.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has also called on the international community to pressure Saudi Arabia to release political prisoners and "provide accountability for past abuses" ahead of the G20 summit, and has encouraged social media users to post such demands with the #G20SaudiArabia hashtag.

The hashtag has now been used by scores of human rights groups and activists, detracting from the public relations tweets aimed at rejuvenating the country's international image.

"The G20 presidency has conferred an undeserved mark of international prestige on the government of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman,” said Michael Page, deputy Middle East director at HRW, in a statement announcing the hashtag campaign earlier this month.

"Instead of signalling its concern for Saudi Arabia’s serious abuses, the G20 is bolstering the Saudi government’s well-funded publicity efforts to portray the country as 'reforming', despite a significant increase in repression since 2017," he said.

On Thursday, Kenneth Roth, executive director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), reiterated the call for accountability.

Governments joining the virtual G20 summit hosted by Saudi Arabia shouldn't let the crown prince whitewash his horrible rights record. Speak out about the Khashoggi cover-up, the jailing of women's rights activists, and the bombing of Yemeni civilians. https://t.co/atBeLPXXgb pic.twitter.com/Dvusvwi7WR— Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) November 19, 2020

"Governments joining the virtual G20 summit hosted by Saudi Arabia shouldn't let the crown prince whitewash his horrible rights record," Roth said on Twitter.

"Speak out about the Khashoggi cover-up, the jailing of women's rights activists, and the bombing of Yemeni civilians."

'Are you going to ask about her?'

The sister of Loujain Hathloul, one of the women's rights activists who has been on hunger strike at Al-Hayer high security prison since 26 October, has been using the #G20SaudiArabia hashtag in her own posts and retweets, calling for her sister's release.

Dear #G20 leaders, my activist sister @LoujainHathloul is in prison since May 2018 and on her 23rd day of hunger strike. Saudi Arabia refuses to give us any access to her. Are you going to ask about her? Are you going to call on her release? #G20RiyadhSummit #G20SaudiArabia https://t.co/P35fLbfOXG pic.twitter.com/4nqMDcpVwD— Lina Alhathloul لينا الهذلول (@LinaAlhathloul) November 19, 2020

Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the UK allegedly said last month that the government was considering the release of some of its imprisoned female activists ahead of the summit due to mass criticism, but the embassy later denied the report.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has launched its own campaign, asking people around the globe to sign its petition urging world leaders to use the G20 gathering to pressure Saudi authorities to release all the women's rights activists imprisoned in the kingdom.

As of early Friday morning in the US, the petition had garnered 200,000 signatures.

"The government of Saudi Arabia is trying to improve its image, investing millions of dollars in a public relations campaign so that countries and businesses in the EU and the USA will help it realise its 2030 economic vision," Amnesty said, referring to Saudi Arabia's 10-year plan to diversify its economy away from fossil fuels amid market changes caused by climate concerns.

"This public relations campaign is masking a government campaign of repression, intolerance and human rights violations in Saudi Arabia, and many of these violations are legitimised through the deeply instrumentalised ‘Specialised Criminal Court’," the group said on its petition webpage.

Israel plans to expand settlement cutting off Jerusalem from West Bank towns
Sulaiman Lkaderi
19 November 2020 
Israel has pushed on with plans to build a new settlement neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem, a watchdog group said on Sunday, warning that such efforts were being stepped up before US President Donald Trump leaves office in January.

'We are not afraid of you, Mike': Activists react to Pompeo's move against pro-BDS groups

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo designated any group that supports Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement as antisemitic

Palestinians demonstrate near Israeli settlement of Psagot against visit by Mike Pompeo on 18 November (AFP/File photo)

By Sheren Khalel Published date: 19 November 2020 

Pro-Palestine and human rights advocates condemned US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's policy announcement targeting groups affiliated with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign.

Pompeo said on Thursday that the US officially regards the BDS movement as antisemitic and plans to cut any government funding to groups that have voiced support for the campaign - which urges individuals, companies and countries to hold Israel accountable for its human rights violations.

According to J Street's November National Jewish Survey, 22 percent of all Jewish Americans under 40 support the BDS movement, as do several members of Congress.

Under Pompeo's new order, essentially all groups that advocate for Palestinian rights in the US, such as Students for Justice in Palestine; Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP); Code Pink; US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN); US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR); the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and many more will be labelled antisemitic.

'I was deported by Israel in 2018, following that country's ban on BDS activists, and am ashamed to see my own country today following in Israel's footsteps of repressing free speech'

- Ariel Gold, national co-director at CodePink

"This is the last gasp of a dying regime," Hatem Abudayyeh, the national chair at USPCN told Middle East Eye.

While USPCN does not receive any government funding, it still objects to the idea that it will be officially designated as antisemitic because of its critical stance towards Israeli human rights violations.

"I believe the main issue for us is the criminalisation and delegitimisation of our movement," Abudayyeh said, warning that the new policy is likely to severely affect the ability of young activists on college campuses to freely express their support for Palestinian rights.

With the Trump administration using the controversial definition of antisemitism laid out by International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), any group that singles out Israel for criticism without at the same time criticising other countries that violate rights, will fall under the category of antisemitic.

The IHRA definition has been condemned by dozens of Jewish groups worldwide and by hundreds of leading Jewish and Israeli scholars.
'A last-ditch effort'

In addition to targeting groups that are supportive of BDS, Pompeo also announced that products made in Israeli settlements, considered illegal by most world bodies, will now be labelled as "Made in Israel" instead of the decades-old US norm of "Made in West Bank" labels, making it more difficult for consumers to boycott Israeli settlement goods.

While the Trump administration only has two months left before President-elect Joe Biden takes over, Abudayyeh said he was sceptical that the new Democratic administration would overturn either measure, given Biden's outspoken pro-Israel stance.

"Pompeo and Trump are trying to establish 'facts on the ground' for the next administration," he said.

"Yes, [Biden] has talked about reversing the decision of cutting funding to UNRWA," he continued, referring to the Trump administration's 2018 decision to cut aid to the UN Palestinian refugee agency. "But he has not talked about reversing the decision about the US embassy being moved to Jerusalem. He and Harris both are clearly huge fans of Israel."

Ahmad Abuznaid, executive director at USCPR, told MEE that the announcement was the latest push by the Trump administration to establish blanket US support for Israel.

Senators urge Trump to axe 'Made in West Bank' settlement labels before end of term

Read More »

"It's a last-ditch effort by Pompeo and Trump to destroy what they can from the Palestinian perspective and support what they can from the Israeli perspective. Their days are numbered, and I think these are desperate moves of [the] assumed to be ending administration," Abuznaid said.

"The State Department and Israel are moving forward with plans of annexation, of blurring the lines between settlements and non-settlements," he added, warning that the move may still backfire.

"They are really doing the work of clarifying for people that there is in fact a settler-colonial apartheid system at play here that seeks to occupy maximum Palestinian land with minimal Palestinians and rights for Palestinians," he said.

Jamil Dakwar, director of the ACLU's Human Rights Program, warned that it is "dangerous to weaponize the fight against anti-Semitism for political ends" and "personal political ambitions".

"By equating criticism of Israel or Zionism with anti-Semitism, Pompeo aims to suppress and chill legitimate advocacy in support of Palestinian human rights," Dakwar tweeted.

It’s very dangerous to weaponize the fight against anti-Semitism for political ends (and personal political ambitions).

By equating criticism of Israel or Zionism with anti-Semitism, Pompeo aims to suppress and chill legitimate advocacy in support of Palestinian human rights. https://t.co/OtXiSRdYQ4— Jamil Dakwar (@jdakwar) November 19, 2020

Pompeo's anti-BDS announcement follows a 2018 law passed by Israel that blocks entry into the country of anyone affiliated with the movement.

Ariel Gold, the national co-director at CodePink, a US-based anti-war group, was deported from Israel following the law's passing that year.

In an emailed statement she slammed the Trump administration for taking a similar stance.

"It is particularly appalling to me as an American Jew and as someone who is committed to ending Israel's violations of Palestinian rights," Gold said. "I was deported by Israel in 2018, following that country's ban on BDS activists, and am ashamed to see my own country today following in Israel's footsteps of repressing free speech."

Sari Bashi, a human rights lawyer and co-founder of Gisha, an Israeli human rights NGO, called Pompeo's move an "insult to the legacy of the brave women and men throughout history who gave their lives to fight anti-Semitism".

"BDS supporters oppose the Israeli government because it oppresses Palestinians. Not because it's run by Jews," she said in a post to Twitter.

Pompeo, how dare you insult the legacy of the brave women and men throughout history who gave their lives to fight anti-Semitism and other forms of racism? BDS supporters oppose the Israeli government because it oppresses Palestinians. Not because it's run by Jews. https://t.co/PFnvz7cCwZ— Sari Bashi (@saribashi) November 19, 2020

"People who endorse bigotry against Palestinians should not be trusted to determine what constitutes bigotry against Jews," said Peter Beinart, a Jewish activist and political commentator.

Meanwhile, other activists expressed concerns that larger and more established human rights groups including Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International, Oxfam and others that have been critical of Israel's rights violations may be targeted with the antisemitic label.
Groups vow to continue human rights work

HRW, which has already been targeted in Israel, Venezuela and Iran, spoke out against the move, which it said went against US freedom of speech norms.

"Americans have a long history of supporting peaceful boycotts to promote social justice and human rights, like the civil rights boycott in Mississippi, or those against apartheid in South Africa," Eric Goldstein, director of HRW's Middle East and North Africa division, said in a statement on Thursday.

"The Trump administration has no business trying to tar groups because they back boycotts," he said.

Last year, Israel deported HRW's Israel and Palestine director, Omar Shakir, for his work, and in October stopped granting any visas to employees at the United Nations' human rights agency, effectively forcing the body’s top staff to leave.

US @SecPompeo today falsely equated peaceful support for boycotts of Israel with antisemitism. @hrw responds: pic.twitter.com/gi8fbxzODB— Omar Shakir (@OmarSShakir) November 19, 2020

Amnesty International USA, in a lengthy statement on its website, also condemned Pompeo's announcement as a threat to freedom of expression and human rights work.

"The US administration is following the Israeli government's approach in using false and politically motivated accusations of antisemitism to harm peaceful activists, including human rights defenders, and shield from accountability those responsible for illegal actions that harm people in Israel, in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and here at home," Bob Goodfellow, the interim executive director of Amnesty International USA, said in a statement on Thursday.

"The process comes across as particularly hypocritical and deceitful coming from an administration that has emboldened neo-Nazis, white supremacists and other groups who advocate violence and discrimination, shown a callous disregard for international law, and favored Israeli policies that result in institutionalized discrimination and systematic human rights violations against millions of Palestinians," Goodfellow said. 

Groups critical of Israel to be branded 'antisemitic' under Pompeo plan: Report Read More »

He also warned that the policy "hurts Jewish people by equating Israel with Judaism and likening criticism of Israeli government policies and practices to antisemitism".

Still, Amnesty vowed not to allow the new policy to affect its ongoing human rights work, saying the group will "continue to support our Israeli and Palestinian colleagues, including BDS activists, who like human rights defenders around the world, speak up when justice, freedom, truth, and dignity are denied".

Jewish Voice for Peace has also committed to continuing its pro-BDS work, despite this new threat.

"We are proudly Jewish, proudly anti-Zionist, and proudly pro-BDS," the group said on Twitter. "We are part of the movement for Palestinian rights because ALL people should live in freedom and with justice. BDS is a powerful tool in the work for Palestinian rights. We are not afraid of you, Mike."

For its part, the BDS National Committee accused the US government of "fraudulent revision of the definition of antisemitism".

"The fanatic Trump-Netanyahu alliance is intentionally conflating opposition to Israel’s regime of occupation, colonization and apartheid against Palestinians and calls for nonviolent pressure to end this regime on the one hand with anti-Jewish racism on the other, in order to suppress advocacy of Palestinian rights under international law," the group said.

"BDS has consistently and categorically rejected all forms of racism, including anti-Jewish racism, as a matter of principle."

Pompeo says Israel boycott a 'cancer,' visits West Bank settlements

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu depart after a joint news conference in Jerusalem, Israel, on Thursday. Photo by Maya Alleruzzo/UPI/Pool | License Photo

Nov. 19 (UPI) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday became the first top American official to visit settlements in the Israeli-controlled West Bank -- and vowed that the United States will cut funding over a boycott linked to what he said is an anti-Semitic movement.

Pompeo made the funding threat during a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called the promise "simply wonderful.

The Boycott, Disinvestment and Sanctions movement was started in 2005 and aims to use economic pressure to compel Israel to end its control in the West Bank and other disputed territories.

In his remarks Thursday, Pompeo labeled the BDS movement "hateful" and said groups or businesses associated with it will see an economic backlash.

"We want to stand with all other nations that recognize the BDS movement for the cancer that it is, and we're committed to combating it," Pompeo said. "Our record speaks for itself.

"During the Trump administration, America stands with Israel like never before. Indeed, the commitment we've made, the ironclad commitment we've made to the Jewish state, will continue."

Also Thursday, Pompeo also became the first U.S. secretary of state to visit an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. He traveled to to Judea and Samaria and made a stop at the Psagot Winery and Shaar Binyamin Industrial Park.

"Today the United States Department of State stands strongly to the recognition that settlements can be done in a way that are lawful and appropriate and proper," he said.

Israel's building settlements in Palestinian areas of the West Bank has been condemned by most of the international community. A year ago, Pompeo said the settlements don't violate international laws -- a reversal of a long-held U.S. position.

Thursday, Netanyahu thanked Pompeo and the Trump administration for various decisions over the last four years that benefited Israel -- including moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, helping to normalize relations with the United Arab Emirates and supporting Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights.

"Thanks to President Trump, the United States proposed the first truly realistic plan for peace between Israelis and Palestinians," Netanyahu said. "And thanks to President Trump, Israel was able to forge peace with three Arab countries: the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan."

Both Netanyahu and Israeli President Reuven Rivlin have congratulated President-elect Joe Biden on his victory and invited him to meet in Jerusalem early next year.

Pompeo's visit in Israel is part of a 10-day, seven-nation tour in Europe and the Middle East. He will next visit the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia before returning to the United State

BDS: US to label Israel boycott movement as 'antisemitic'

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also announces that settlement products will be labelled 'made in Israel'

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife Susan are seen past American and Israeli flags as they step off a plane at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv (AFP)

MEE and agencies
Published date: 19 November 2020 

The United States will label the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign, which seeks to isolate Israel over its treatment of the Palestinians, as antisemitic, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday.

Calling the movement "a cancer", Pompeo said the US "will regard the global anti-Israel BDS campaign as antisemitic... We want to stand with all other nations that recognise the BDS movement for the cancer that it is."

The outgoing secretary of state also revealed that the United States will begin labelling Israeli products from illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank as "made in Israel".


'We want to stand with all other nations that recognise the BDS movement for the cancer that it is'

- Mike Pompeo

"Proud to support American policy and stand with our great ally Israel. New guidelines outlined today protect Israeli producers and put the United States, and the world, on track towards recognizing reality," he tweeted.

Pompeo's statements came as he visited Israel in a trip that upended decades of US and international protocol, and stoked Palestinian animosity at a time when Palestinian and Israeli officials looked to begin thawing relations in the wake of US President Donald Trump's 3 November election loss.

Pompeo's itinerary included trips to the Psagot settlement in the West Bank, where he was presented with an eponymous wine at a vineyard, and the Golan Heights, Syrian territory occupied by Israel since 1967. He is the first secretary of state to do so.
'Fanatic alliance'

In response to the antisemitism label, the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) issued a statement saying Trump's administration and Israel had enabled white supremacy and antisemitism in the US and worldwide, "while simultaneously smearing BDS... as antisemitic".

"BDS has consistently and categorically rejected all forms of racism, including anti-Jewish racism, as a matter of principle," the statement said.

BDS said that the Trump-Netanyahu "fanatic alliance" had fused criticism of "Israel's regime of occupation, colonisation and apartheid against Palestinians" with "anti-Jewish racism... in order to suppress advocacy of Palestinian rights under international law".

Meanwhile, Palestine Liberation Organisation official Nabil Abu Rudeineh said Pompeo's visit to the Israeli settlement is "a severe challenge" to United Nations decisions and that the US administration is "insisting to actively participate in occupied Palestinian lands".

Yousef Jabareen, an Israeli MP representing Palestinian citizens of Israel, said Pompeo's tour of occupied territories and Israeli settlements "undermines international law".

Israel boycott: What is the BDS movement?

Read More »

"The settlements represent an ongoing crime against the Palestinian people; they perpetuate the occupation and are the primary barrier to establishing a Palestinian state," he said, calling on President-elect Joe Biden to backtrack "dangerous steps" taken during Trump's term.

Hundreds of Palestinian protesters rallied on Wednesday against the first visit of a US diplomat to an illegal settlement, while Israel’s military were quick to respond with tear gas and sound bombs.

Psagot winery is one of several in which US evangelical Christians volunteer to help Jewish farmers harvest their vineyards. It is also one of a number of Israeli companies that, following a ruling by the European Union's top court, has to label the products it sells in EU countries as being made in settlements.

With Trump on his way out after losing the presidential election to Joe Biden, it is believed Pompeo is plotting a run for the presidency in 2024, and Israel is considered a major issue for the Christian Evangelical base of the Republican party.

He and his wife notably stopped by Qasr Al-Yahud, the site of Jesus's baptism on the Jordan River near Jericho.

Established in 2005, the BDS movement seeks to apply financial pressure on Israel to address its violation of Palestinians' rights, a tactic the Israeli government has actively sought to discredit. The movement is inspired by the international pressure placed on South Africa's apartheid regime.

Over the years, Israeli authorities have increased efforts to fight BDS, passing a number of laws seeking to criminalise calls for a boycott of Israel or Israeli companies.

Settlement-building is seen by many as the greatest obstacle to Israeli-Palestinian peace. Many more settlement units have been built since Trump, a staunch supporter of Israel, took office in 2016.

#BLM

Black models increasingly visible on Brazil's catwalks

Issued on: 20/11/2020 - 

At 21, the portfolio of Brazilian model Shirley Pitta already includes work for Vogue, Elle and Marie Claire 

NELSON ALMEIDA AFP/File

Sao Paulo (AFP)

Afro-Brazilian models Shirley Pitta and Gloria Maria Fonseca Siqueira had dreamed of the catwalk since they were girls, but in a Brazilian fashion world much whiter than the country itself, it remained a far-away fantasy until recently.

In a sign of changing times in Brazil and elsewhere, the pair saw their dreams come true at this year's Sao Paulo Fashion Week.

SPFW, one of the industry's premier events, this year implemented a requirement for at least half of every label's models to be people of color, in a move hailed by black and indigenous rights activists.

"It took me a long time to see myself as a beautiful person, a person who exists. Because on television, I always saw things I wasn't," says Pitta, 21, whose portfolio already includes work for leading fashion magazines Vogue, Elle and Marie Claire.

She calls herself a "black favela girl from the Northeast," referring to the slums of Brazil's most impoverished region.

Her modern-day Cinderella story has captured as much attention as her striking appearance.

Before she was discovered in 2018, she spent her days selling grilled kebabs outside the zoo in her hometown, Salvador.

"We were there every day, including Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. We got there in the morning and we worked into the night," she told AFP in between gigs at SPFW, as Brazil prepared to celebrate Black Consciousness Day on Friday.

With her short hair, high cheekbones and piercing gaze, Pitta exudes a confidence she says does not come as easily at it might appear.

"When I was little I used to wrap towels around my head," ashamed of the way her hair looked, she says.

"It's important to talk about these things, because our children won't have long, straight hair when they grow up, and they need to know that's not a problem. It's something beautiful."

In Brazil, the last country in the Americas to abolish slavery -- in 1888 -- around 55 percent of the population identifies as black or mixed-race.

But although whites earn 74 percent more than people of color on average, a national debate on racial inequality has only begun relatively recently.

The conversation was perhaps delayed by a long-held idea among the Brazilian elite that the country was a "racial democracy" protected from racism by the fact that most people have some black or indigenous ancestry.

So it was a sign of radical change when SPFW, which was held remotely this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, required more inclusive casting.

That opened the doors to Pitta and 17-year-old Siqueira.

- 'I'll never make it' -

Tall and thin, with an exuberant afro, Siqueira says it took her a long time to realize she could have a future in the fashion world, despite people telling her she had potential as a model.

"I'll never make it," she remembers thinking when she saw the model catalogue at Ford Models, one of the industry's top agencies, as a 15-year-old.

Now, she gives interviews from the agency's headquarters in Sao Paulo.

"I wasn't confident. I thought I wasn't beautiful enough," she says.

"But now I know I can travel the world through this."

The youngest of seven children from a lower-middle-class family, Siqueira grew up admiring models like Naomi Campbell and Adut Akech.

She sees Brazil, home to supermodel Gisele Bundchen, as a country of diversity, something she would like to see it embrace for its positive aspects.

"Sometimes people feel like they're less because they're different, and they try to fit a standard that isn't them. They don't realize that being different is unique," she says.

Pitta sees the industry at a turning point.

"We're breaking through. I'm not going to sit there thinking about the past. We're moving forward," she says.

© 2020 AFP