Asia-Pacific Daily Report September 18, 2003

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1 PACIFIC DISASTER MANAGEMENT INFORMATION NETWORK (PDMIN) 1 Jarrett White Road MCPA-DM, Tripler AMC, HI Telephone: PDMIN@coe-dmha.org Afghanistan Asia-Pacific Daily Report September 18, 2003 Car bomb kills four people in eastern Afghanistan Four people, including three bodyguards, were killed when a car bomb exploded in front of the home of a senior police officer in the eastern Afghan province of Ghazni, some 75 miles (120 kilometers) southwest of the capital Kabul. According to local officials, three bodyguards of local police commander Ismael, and a bystander were killed in the blast, believed to have been caused by Taliban guerrillas. Local authorities reportedly arrested four Taliban suspects earlier this week who were carrying grenades to be used against a road construction project in the area. Ghazni province borders Afghanistan s eastern Paktika and Paktia provinces that lie along the porous border with Pakistan and have been the focus of increased attacks by Taliban fighters and their supporters. Security chief sacked in Afghan capital Kabul amid a "land grab" scandal According to Afghanistan s state-run radio, the head of security in the Afghan capital Kabul has been sacked. The security chief, Basir Salangi--had ordered the bulldozing of more than a dozen private homes to clear the way for the construction of luxurious homes for the ruling class--has been replaced with a fellow Tajik, General Baba Jan. Salangi s dismissal comes amid a housing scandal in which almost all of Afghanistan s ministers and those in political affiliation with the ruling elite have become embroiled. Earlier this week, the United Nations and Afghanistan s Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) condemned the evictions of poor people from their homes in Shirpur village in Kabul s Wazir Akbar Khan district last month for excessive use of force. United Nations special envoy for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, has also called the forced evictions as wrong and unacceptable. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has already set up an independent commission to investigate the scandal. The land grab scandal drew international attention after Miloon Kothari, a Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, publicly named key Afghan ministers, including the powerful Afghan Defense Minister, Mohammed Qasim Fahim, and Education Minister, Yunis Qanooni, in the scandal. Afghan ministers have since denied any wrongdoing. The scandal is likely to have little effect on Fahim s considerable powerbase. Experts have warned that until land rights and property issues were explicitly recognized in the new constitution and a comprehensive National Housing and Land Policy was adopted by the government, insecurity would

continue to persist across the war-ravaged nation. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/south_asia/3117628.

2 continue to persist across the war-ravaged nation. Bangladesh Flash floods hit new districts in central, northern Bangladesh as river expected to rise further; Famine situation feared in north According to the News from Bangladesh today, flash floods have hit 6 additional districts in the country, displacing thousands of people as the main Jamuna (Brahmaputra) and Padma (Ganges) River systems continued to overflow, fed by high rains in their upper catchment areas in neighboring India. The newly affected districts include central Pabna, Rajbari, Manikganj, Munshiganj, Madaripur and northern Moulbibazar. Nearly 300 people are reportedly stranded in Pabna. In addition, road and ferry transport links in the western districts of Khustia have been suspended by the floods, stranding thousands of people. Nearly 20,000 people in the district have been reportedly displaced or stranded, most of whom have not received any flood relief. In northwest Rajshahi district, about 150,000 people are now reportedly stranded. Heavy floodwaters from a dam that released water in India s neighboring West Bengal state have inundated low-lying areas of Rajshahi city. In Nilphamari district, 5,000 people have been displaced. Relief operations are currently ongoing in the district. However, the local news reports that most flood-affected areas have not received any rescue or relief operations. The Flood Forecasting and Warning Center (FFWC) in Dhaka said today that both rivers are expected to rise at all points, and that the flood situation is likely to worsen in northwest and central Bangladesh. Meanwhile, a shortage of food caused concerns in the northern region, as an annual famine-like season begins there. Flooding has also caused food prices to rise as well. The number of unemployed people is reportedly at 2 million. The Bangladesh government has sanctioned an average of 3 metric tons of wheat for each affected upazila (village district), which is reportedly insufficient. In other northern areas, there has also been a paradoxical drought situation, which has caused agricultural production to decrease.

3 India Flood situation in India s northeast Bihar state remains serious; Flood victims hold 4-hour rally According to the Press Trust of India today, the overall flood situation in the northeastern state of Bihar remains critical today as the Ganges and other major rivers continued to flow above danger levels. The Ganges has reportedly reached its highest level since The death toll in the state has risen from 164 yesterday to 168 today as 4 more deaths were reported in Muzaffarapur district. About 23 of the state s 38 districts remain affected. The military continued to conduct airdrops and relief operations in the state as 288 relief centers and 408 health centers remain in operation. The NGO Catholic Relief has donated US$13,587 to flood victims in Bihar, and the Indian Red Cross has released shelter and medicine items for approximately 2,000 people. Meanwhile, the Times of India reported yesterday that thousands of flood victims from stranded villages in Munger district held a protest rally for 4 hours against the alleged lack of relief from the district administration. The crowd was reportedly pacified when district officials began to distribute relief items among them. The meteorological office has forecast medium to heavy rains in the upper catchment areas of Kosi, Mahananda, Bagmati, Kamla and Adhwara rivers in Bihar in the next 24 hours India rejects call from UN Observer Group for ceasefire in Indian-controlled Kashmir (IcK); Violence kills 3 civilians, 16 militants and 3 security personnel According to the Press Trust of India today, India disregarded a call over the weekend by the UN Military Observer Group (UNMOGIP) for a ceasefire in Indian-controlled Kashmir (IcK), the first time that the group had made a formal call for peace in the region that it patrols in. We don t see any role for them, said an unnamed Indian official. India has always rejected the participation of any third party in the Kashmir dispute, which it considers an internal issue. The UNMOGIP was first deployed to the region in 1949 to ensure the ceasefire between India and Pakistan. Since 1971, when hostilities broke anew, the UNMOGIP has been monitoring the ceasefire called by the UN Security Council. Meanwhile, violence continued in the region as an elderly civilian and his son were shot dead by suspected militants in Kupwara district yesterday, the latest in an unusually high number of deliberate civilian killings. In addition, the father of a police officer was reportedly shot dead in Udhampur district last night, while another civilian was killed in an explosion in the same district. At least 4 schoolteachers, 2 village vigilantes and 1 student were among civilian deaths this week alone. Meanwhile, 16 militants and 3 soldiers died in separate clashes in Baramulla, Pulwama, Doda, Kupwara and Rajouri districts in the past 24 hours. Indian officials say rebels often try to enter IcK before the winter, when snow would block the high Himalayan mountain passes. Indian army officials also claimed that 60 militants have been killed on the disputed Line of Control (LoC)

4 since the beginning of September Nepal Maoist-called general strike shuts down Nepal Reports from Nepal say that a general strike called by Maoists rebels in Nepal have nearly paralyzed the country. Streets in the capital Kathmandu were reported to be deserted, while schools and businesses were closed and transport was basically shut down. Although international flights were reportedly unaffected, domestic flights had stopped running because there were no passengers. The three-day general strike called by the rebels appears to have been obeyed across the country as reports from areas outside the capital, such as the eastern town of Biratnagar and the tourist trekkers hub of Pokhara have also come to a halt. Previous strikes called by the rebels were usually obeyed mostly out of a fear of retaliation. In the past, Maoists have attacked vehicles and businesses that have not heeded their call. The government had beefed up security across the capital, Kathmandu and elsewhere across the country. Meanwhile, a bomb attack in southern Nepal killed at least 3 people and two soldiers were killed in an ambush on a patrol in the town of Bishaltar 70km (40 miles) west of Kathmandu. Yesterday, security troops attacked a Maoist stronghold at Kwinkot in Rolpa district and claimed to have killed at least 38 rebels and wounded another 100. Four Nepali soldiers were also reported killed in the clash. It was reportedly the largest military assault on the rebels since the rebels ended a 7-month ceasefire on August 27. Nearly 8,000 people have been killed since the Maoists began their insurgency in Yesterday, the Kantipur Online reported that at least 227 people have been killed since the rebels pulled out of the ceasefire North Korea North Korea to allow South Korean aid officials to monitor some aid shipments South Korea s Unification Minister, Jeong Se-hyun, announced today that North Korea has agreed to allow South Korean officials to visit three cities in the north to confirm that rice aid shipments are being distributed to people in need of aid. Many have accused the North of giving food aid for needy people to the military or to Pyongyang s elite as distribution in the country could not always be verified. North Korea has in the past been generally reluctant to allow aid agencies to travel freely to monitor distribution. Reuters reports that some aid agencies, such as UK-based Oxfam, pulled out of North Korea because they suspected that some of the aid went to the North s military or to officials and because they were not able to monitor where the aid was distributed. In May, South Korea promised to send some 400,000 tons of rice to the North and Jeong says that some 183,000 tons have already been sent. Reuters says that the North is estimated to

have received more than US$1 billion in foreign aid between 1995 and 2001. http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/6686f45896f15dbc852567ae00530132/f3e909ffd222b9d2c1256da50049caf8?

5 have received more than US$1 billion in foreign aid between 1995 and Papua New Guinea Australia to send 200 police to Papua New Guinea to help deteriorating law and order situation As part of a new policy of intervention by Australia in the affairs of its Pacific island neighbors, Canberra will send a police force of some 200 personnel to Papua New Guinea (PNG) in an effort to help the deteriorating law and order situation there. The Australian police will reportedly be used primarily to train PNG s existing police force. The deployment of the Australian police force is part of a new aid deal agreed upon today by Australia and PNG which covers public administration, finance and law and order. Australian officials will take over key positions in PNG s government in an effort to streamline administration and curb corruption. The deal was signed in PNG s capital, Port Moresby, by Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and his counterpart, Rabbie Namaliu, and PNG Prime Minister Michael Somare. Downer says that the police would most likely be deployed by January of next year. The deal follows a few weeks of political bickering between the two countries after Australian Prime Minister John Howard said that Australia should have a larger say in how aid money was being spent in PNG. Somare initially had rejected Australia s proposals, but has apparently given in to the demands. At a news conference today, Downer said: When you help people, you re not interfering. It does not represent an era where Australia is becoming more aggressive or post-colonialist, it represents an era of heightened Australian engagement. Howard had previously warned that failed states in the region could become havens for terrorists. PNG receives around US$220 million each year from Australia, and is Canberra s largest aid recipient. Australia is currently leading a 2,300-strong multi-national military and police force in the Solomon Islands in what has been hailed so far as a successful mission to restore law and order in the country.

Asia-Pacific Daily Report August 7, 2003

Asia-Pacific Daily Report August 7, 2003 PACIFIC DISASTER MANAGEMENT INFORMATION NETWORK (PDMIN) 1 Jarrett White Road MCPA-DM, Tripler AMC, HI 96859-5000 Telephone: 808.433.7035 PDMIN@coe-dmha.org http://www.coe-dmha.org Afghanistan Asia-Pacific