FN-dagen for ofrene for påtvungne forsvindinger må bruges til at intensivere arbejdet for Sombath Somphone i Laos.
Dagen i dag – den 30. august – har FN udpeget til årlig mindedag for ofrene for påtvungne forsvindinger. Selvom der de senere år er sket store fremskridt i Latinamerika, så kan dette fænomen desværre ikke tilskrives historien.
Tværtimod sker det fortsat mange steder i verden, at personer som led i interne konflikter bortføres uden af de efterladte får noget at vide om, hvad der er sket. Mod politiske modstandere, fagligt aktive m.v. bruges ufrivillige forsvindinger som et redskab til at sprede frygt og terror. Det rammer ikke alene den nære familie og venner, men påvirker dermed samfundet som helhed.
I den forløbne uge har jeg været i Laos for at søge nyt i en konkret bortførelsessag vedrørende Sombath Somphone.
Sombath er en kendt og respekteret civilsamfundsleder, ikke bare i Laos men i hele Sydøstasien. I 2005 modtog han bl.a. “Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership”, som kan sammenlignes med en regional Nobel-pris. Så sent som i efteråret 2012 var han en af hovedkræfterne bag det meget vellykkede “Asia Europe People’s Forum” (AEPF), som fandt sted i Laos’ hovedstad Vientiane forud for det officielle euro-asiatiske topmøde, ASEM9. Continue reading “Sandheden om Sombath må frem”
การที่รัฐบาลลาวเพิกเฉยต่อการหายตัวไปของนายสมบัด สมพอน ซึ่งเป็นนักกิจกรรม จะกลายเป็นอุปสรรคต่อความพยายามที่จะสมัครเข้าเป็นสมาชิกคณะมนตรีสิทธิมนุษยชนแห่งสหประชาชาติ (United Nations Human Rights Council) ทั้งนี้ตามความเห็นของสมาชิกรัฐสภาแห่งสหภาพยุโรป European Union – EU) เมื่อวานนี้
The Lao government’s inaction on the disappearance of activist Sombath Sompone would hinder the country’s quest for membership of the United Nations Human Rights Council, a member of the European Union (EU) parliament said yesterday.
Soren Sondergaard, an EU parliamentarian, said Lao authorities told him during his recent visit to the land-locked country they felt sorry about Mr Sombath’s disappearancebut they did not seem to take any action on the matter.
It was a disappointment that the Lao regime remained in a state of denial, said Mr Sondergaard, from Denmark.
Although it was still unknown whether state officials were involved in his disappearance, it was the regime’s responsibility to investigate this case, he said.
Mr Sondergaard’s delegation, which included a Belgian adviser and an Indonesian activist, paid a three-day visit to Laos earlier this week.
The group met Saysomphone Phomvilhane, vice-president of the National Assembly; Sayakane Sisouvang, permanent secretary for foreign affairs; and Sisavath Khamsaly, deputy director-general of the Lao Foreign Ministry’s Department of Europe and America.
Mr Sombath, a well-respected leader in education and sustainable development in Laos and recipient of the 2005 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership, disappeared on the evening of Dec 15 last year in Vientiane. Continue reading “Laos faces rebuff in UN council seat push”
BANGKOK, Aug 28, 2013 (AFP) – A European Union lawmaker pressed Laos Wednesday to intensify an investigation into the disappearance of a prominent activist, after raising the case during a trip to the secretive communist state.
Sombath Somphone, 62, was last seen in December 2012 being led away by police in Vientiane after his car stopped at a checkpoint.
CCTV images later emerged appearing to show him being driven away with two unidentified people.
The US and EU have joined rights groups in calling for Sombath’s safe return, and an official European Parliament delegation is expected to raise his disappearance when it travels to Laos in October.
“The Laos regime is still in a state of denial… what the regime (is doing) to investigate is not sufficient,” Danish MEP Soren Bo Sondergaard told reporters in Bangkok, after returning Tuesday from Laos.
Bangkok (dpa) – Acht Monate nach dem Verschwinden des prominenten Aktivisten Sombath Somphone in Laos verlangen EU-Parlamentarier Aufklärung über den Fall von der kommunistischen Regierung. «Wir werden diesen Fall zur Sprache bringen, bis er gelöst ist», sagte der dänische EU-Abgeordnete Søren Bo Søndergaard am Mittwoch in Bangkok. Er kam gerade mit einer Delegation von einer Erkundungsreise nach Laos zurück. Eine offizielle Delegation des Parlaments werde sich am 28. Oktober in der Hauptstadt Vientiane erneut nach dem Stand der Ermittlungen erkundigen Das Parlament hatte sich im Februar in einer Resolution höchst besorgt über Sombath geäußert.
Sombath hat sich jahrelang vor allem für die Bauern im Land eingesetzt. Seine Organisation fördert junge Freiwillige, die Bauern in entlegenen Regionen helfen, ihre Ernte zu verbessern. Für sein Engagement ist er international ausgezeichnet worden und in Südostasien ein prominenter Fürsprecher der einfachen Leute. Er verschwand im Dezember vergangenen Jahres auf dem Nachhauseweg in Vientiane. Eine Überwachungskamera filmte, wie er an einer Polizeistation gestoppt und in einen Lastwagen gezwungen und fortgefahren wurde. Er ist seitdem spurlos verschwunden. Polizei und Regierung sagen, sie hätten nichts mit dem Verschwinden zu tun.
Photo: Lao authorities previously said that “it may be possible” that missing social activist, Sombath Somphone, has been kidnapped. (Reuters)
Laos has come under renewed pressure over the disappearance late last year of the internationally-recognised development worker and teacher, Sombath Somphone.
The Lao government is investigating the incident but has previously claimed it knows nothing about the social activists’ whereabouts.
Human Rights Watch has previously accused the government of a “cover up”, saying authorities had failed to credibly explain his disappearance.
The delegation, led by Soren Sondergaard, a member of the European parliament, has just completed a visit to Laos to meet with senior government officials there to discuss the matter.
“Our key message was that it is impossible in a country like theirs to accept that a person can disappear a few metres in front of a police control station, taken on camera, everything is taken on camera, and despite of that, eight months have gone without any result in the investigation,” Mr Sondergaard told Asia Pacific. Continue reading “Renewed pressure over case of missing Lao activist”
PRESS BRIEFING: Findings of the 3rd Parliamentary Delegation to the Lao PDR on the enforced disappearance of Sombath Somphone
Sombath Somphone, a widely-respected leader in education and sustainable development in the Lao PDR, and recipient of the 2005 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership, disappeared on the evening of December 15th, 2012 in the Lao capital Vientiane (see https://www.sombath.org ). CCTV footage which became available 2 days later showed Sombath being stopped by traffic police, his car driven away by an unknown person, and then Sombath being taken in a pickup by 2-3 other unidentified persons. The Lao Government has claimed no knowledge about the abduction or his whereabouts and made public assurances that they are investigating the matter. However, more than eight months after his disappearance, no meaningful information has been made available by Lao authorities to Sombath’s family and friends about the progress and results of the investigation.
Since January 2013, Sombath’s family and friends, and regional human rights organisations have organised delegations of parliamentarians and civil society networks to go to Vientiane and meet with senior government officials and members of the Lao National Assembly to express their deep concern about the disappearance of Sombath, and discuss possible actions to find Sombath and return him safely to his family. The third such will be in Vientiane from August 25-27. On August 28, The delegation will present a report of their discussions and conclusions from their visit at a press briefing at the FCCT on from 10.30 am – 12 noon.
Date: 28 August 2013
Venue: Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT), The Penthouse, Maneeya Centre, 518/5 Ploenchit Road (connected to Chitlom Skytrain station: http://fccthai.com/location.html)
Parliamentarians who traveled to Laos in January and March have written to Lao leaders expressing “…dismay at the lack of political will to conduct a serious investigation into the disappearance of Mr. Sombath Somphone.”
The lawmakers from the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Netherlands further wrote:
During our visits, we were given a number of assurances by parliamentarians and government representatives. These included a commitment to a full, comprehensive and transparent investigation into Sombath’s disappearance on 15th December 2012…
Today, 15th June 2013, marks six long months since Sombath disappeared. He has not yet been returned safely to his family. The investigation reports released by the Lao authorities thus far are contradictory and misleading, indicating the partiality and shallowness of the official investigation…
We call on the Lao Government to urgently undertake a new independent investigation into Sombath’s disappearance and ensure that all steps are taken to locate and rescue Sombath from his captors and return him safely to his family as soon as possible, in accordance with Laos’ obligations under international law…
The full letter, sent to the Lao President, Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and President of the National Assembly can be seen here.
It has been more than three months since the activist and sustainable development campaigner Sombath Somphone was last seen on a busy road in Vientiane.
Asian luminaries pose at the backstage of the Cultural Center of the Philippines prior to awarding ceremony for the 2005 Ramon Magsaysay Awards Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005 in Manila, Philippines. The awardees, from left, Senator Jon Ungphakorn of Thailand for Government Service, Teten Masduki of Indonesia for Public Service, Dr. V. Shantha of India for Public Service, Sombath Somphone of Laos for Community Leadership, Matiur Rahman of Bangladesh for Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts and Yoon Hye-Ran of South Korea for Emergent Leadership. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
The now infamous CCTV footage capturing his final moments offer the clearest indication that his disappearance was a carefully planned abduction. His jeep was stopped by police on December 15 before he was driven away in a separate vehicle and never seen again.
The government and police have continued to deny any role in his disappearance and an ongoing investigation has failed to yield any answers as to where Sombath is or why he was snatched in the first place.
Along with local and international NGOs and other supporters, his wife, Shui-Meng Ng, has built an international campaign that has kept up the pressure on the Lao government.
International delegations and diplomats continue to express concern about Sombath’s whereabouts, most recently an EU delegation, but to date Lao officials have remained staunchly on message and Shui-Meng says she’s heard the same answers time and time again.
“Members of diplomatic corp has met high level government leaders and ministers, but answers are the same: ‘We are also very concerned and doing all we can, the police have been doing an investigation, but we have not found Sombath – we are sad that this happened, etc..’” she says.
Next week will mark 100 days since his disappearance and the EU has vowed to crank up the pressure through “a new phase of international activity,” with Sombath’s case becoming a priority for the European Parliament at the UN Human Rights Council.
Dutch Senator and EU Delegation leader Tuur Elzinga was keen to spell out that the EU’s resolve won’t bend on the missing activist. “If Lao officials think the issue of Sombath’s disappearance will go away, they are wrong,” he said.
But as the 100-day milestone approaches, the long days of campaigning are beginning to take their toll on his wife.
“I am very tired and discouraged of week after week with no news and no leads, but what choice do I have but to keep trying and persevering and try every lead and every means to find Sombath?” she says.
“My life is on hold – waiting, waiting, hoping and hoping and at times feeling helpless and hopeless. I just have to keep faith that Sombath is still alive… as anything otherwise is completely unthinkable.”
Deze week bracht een Europese delegatie onder leiding van SP Eerste-Kamerlid Tuur Elzinga haar grote zorgen over het welbevinden van Sombath Somphone over aan regering en parlement van Laos. Sombath is in Laos bekend geworden door zijn talent mensen uit alle uithoeken van het land te scholen, te organiseren en te betrekken bij de sociale en duurzame ontwikkeling van hun land. De vrees bestaat nu dat hij daarmee niet alleen vrienden heeft gemaakt, aangezien hij op 15 december van het afgelopen jaar bij een routineverkeerscontrole staande werd gehouden en niemand sindsdien meer iets van hem heeft vernomen.
SP-senator Tuur Elzinga Elzinga biedt namens de delegatie de unaniem door het Europees Parlement aanvaarde motie over de zaak Sombath aan
De regering heeft enkele dagen na de vermissing een formeel onderzoek gelast, maar de delegatie is van de gerapporteerde resultaten zover niet erg onder de indruk. Senator Elzinga: ‘De regering en politie moeten hier echt hogere prioriteit aan geven. Ik heb de regering gezegd dat ik er alle vertrouwen in heb dat ze het snel op kunnen lossen, dat ik niet in de details van hun onderzoek geïnteresseerd ben, maar alleen in het resultaat.’
Ook heeft de delegatie de boodschap overgebracht dat in het belang van Laos een snelle oplossing gewenst is. Elzinga: ‘Ik heb de onderminister van Buitenlandse Zaken en een delegatie van het parlement in Laos duidelijk gemaakt dat deze kwestie zich niet vanzelf oplost. Zolang Sombath niet veilig met zijn familie wordt verenigd zal deze verdwijning alle agenda’s van het internationaal overleg over en met Laos domineren, of het nu de VN Mensenrechtenraad is of overleg binnen de Wereldhandelsorganisatie waar Laos net vorig jaar is toegetreden.’
Elzinga zette zijn boodschap kracht bij door namens de delegatie de op 6 februari unaniem door het Europees Parlement aanvaarde motie over deze zaak aan te bieden. Deze motie volgde op een bezorgde brief aan parlement en regering van Laos, ondertekend door vele nationale parlementariërs uit landen uit Zuidoost-Azië en Europa en Europarlementariërs. De betrokkenheid van parlementariërs uit deze regio’s komt voort uit het meest recente project van Sombath, de medeorganisatie van het Asia Europe Peoples Forum dat in oktober in de Laotiaanse hoofdstad Vientiane werd gehouden. Dit internationale forum van maatschappelijke organisaties uit Europa en Azië leverde – samen met een forum voor parlementariërs en een business forum – inbreng voor de ASEM-top van regeringsleiders uit beide regio’s, die kort daarop ook in Vientiane plaatsvond. Kort na de afronding van dit evenement verdween Sombath.
De delegatie heeft uitgebreid gesproken met de vrouw van Sombath en had daarnaast ontmoetingen met de permanente vertegenwoordiger van de EU en verschillende Ambassadeurs van EU-landen in Laos, de Nederlandse Ambassadeur voor de regio in Bangkok en verschillende vertegenwoordigers van maatschappelijke organisaties in Laos.
Voor meer informatie over Sombath, zie de Engelstalige website https://sombath.org/
SP-senator Tuur Elzinga Elzinga biedt namens de delegatie de unaniem door het Europees Parlement aanvaarde motie over de zaak Sombath aan