Tuesday, September 17, 2013
writingonblog uncensored: Syria committed war crime, used Sarin Gas to quell...
writingonblog uncensored: Syria committed war crime, used Sarin Gas to quell...: New York: Chemical weapons were used on a relatively large scale in the Ghouta area of Damascus in Syria, according to the report of t...
Syria committed war crime, used Sarin Gas to quell protests
New York:
Chemical
weapons were used on a relatively large scale in the Ghouta area of Damascus in
Syria, according to the report of the United Nations Missions to Investigate
Allegations of the Use of Chemical Weapons.
United
Nations Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon said the Mission has concluded that
chemical weapons were used on a relatively large scale in the Ghouta area of
Damascus in the context of the ongoing conflict in Syria. The attack resulted
in numerous casualties, particularly among civilians.
“It is a war crime and a grave violation of the 1925
Protocol and other rules of customary international law. I trust all can join me in condemning this
despicable crime. The international community has a responsibility to hold the
perpetrators accountable and to ensure that chemical weapons never re-emerge as
an instrument of warfare,” he said.
The accession of Syria to the Chemical Weapons Convention
and Syria’s belated acknowledgement that it possesses chemical weapons are
welcome developments that come with strict obligations, the UN chief said.
He said that this is the most significant confirmed use of
chemical weapons against civilians since Saddam Hussein used them in Halabja in
1988. The international community has
pledged to prevent any such horror from recurring, yet it has happened again.
This is a matter that truly affects international peace and
security. After two-and-a-half years of
tragedy, now is the moment for the Security Council to uphold its political and
moral responsibilities and demonstrate the political will to move forward in a
decisive manner, he said.
The
Mission’s findings are based on the evidence it obtained in the course of its
activities in the Ghouta area. The
Mission adhered to the most stringent protocols available for such an
investigation, including to ensure the chain of custody for all samples.
The
planning for the Mission was complex and highly delicate. Routes of entry into
the relevant areas and other crucial elements remained uncertain until the
final moments. The Mission was also the
victim of a sniper attack. Despite
these difficulties and dangers, the Mission was able to carry out extensive
activities on site in the limited time it had available, he said.
The team interviewed more than 50 survivors, medical
personnel and first responders. It applied a rigorous and objective selection
process designed to identify survivors who may have been exposed to chemical
agents. It assessed these individuals’ symptoms and collected biomedical
samples, including from hair, urine and blood.
The Mission also documented and sampled impact sites and
munitions, and collected 30 soil and environmental samples – far more than any
previous such United Nations investigation, he said.
The statements by survivors offer a vivid account of the
events of 21 August.
Survivors reported that following an attack with shelling,
they quickly experienced a range of symptoms, including shortness of breath,
disorientation, eye irritation, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting and general
weakness. Many eventually lost
consciousness. First responders
described seeing a large number of individuals lying on the ground, many of
them dead or unconscious.
The Mission also interviewed nine nurses and seven treating
physicians, several of whom responded immediately to the incident. They reported seeing a large number of
people lying in the streets without external signs of injury, some with
laboured breathing, most of them unconscious.
The weather conditions that morning were conducive to
maximizing the potential impact of an attack involving heavy gases, which can
stay close to the ground. Weather information showed a falling temperature
between 2:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. The downward movement of air would have allowed
the gas to easily penetrate the basements and lower levels of buildings and
other structures where many people were seeking shelter.
He said the mission sent the samples for analysis to four
laboratories designated by the OPCW. The Mission’s factual findings are as
follows.
(a) The
environmental and biomedical samples demonstrate the widespread nature of the
attacks. Eighty-five per cent of the blood samples tested positive for sarin.
Biomedical samples were taken from 34 of the 36 patients selected by the
Mission who had signs of poisoning. Almost all tested positive for exposure to
sarin.
(b) These
results were corroborated by the clinical assessments, which documented
symptoms and signs consistent with nerve agent exposure. A number of affected
patients were diagnosed with intoxification by an organophosphorous compound,
and clearly showed symptoms associated with sarin, including loss of consciousness,
shortness of breath, blurred vision, eye inflammation, vomiting and seizures.
(c) A majority
of the environmental samples confirmed the use of sarin. The samples were taken
from impact sites and surrounding areas – locations where survivors were also
found to have been affected by sarin.
(d) The team
was also able to examine impacted and exploded surface-to-surface rockets that
are capable of carrying a chemical payload. These were carefully measured,
photographed and sampled. A majority of the rockets or rocket fragments
recovered were found to be carrying sarin.
On the basis of its analysis, the Mission concluded that “collected
clear and convincing evidence that surface-to-surface rockets containing the
nerve agent sarin were used in the Ein Tarma, Moadamiyah and Zalmalka in the
Ghouta area of Damascus.”
Due to the security situation and other limitations, the
Mission was unable to document the full extent of the use of chemical weapons
on 21 August or to verify the total number of causalities.
Q&A:
Question:
Mr. Secretary-General, Based on the munitions and the delivery systems, some of
which has signatures, have you made an assessment of who is to blame and, if
so, how do you propose to hold them accountable? Thank you.
Secretary-General: The
mission of Dr. Sellström’s team has been able to determine objectively that
sarin was used on a relatively large scale, as I have said. It was the team’s
job to determine whether and to what extent chemical weapons were used, not who
used them. It is for others to decide whether to pursue this matter further to
determine responsibility. We may all have our own thoughts on this, but I would
simply say that this was a grave crime and those responsible must be brought to
justice as soon as possible. Thank you.
Question: Mr.
Secretary-General, the Russia-U.S. plan gave President [Bashar al-] Assad one
week to declare all his sites, so will you be sending back inspectors very soon
to Syria?
Secretary-General:
Yes, as soon as we have an agreement with the Syrian Government, I have asked
Dr. Sellström and his team to return to Syria to continue their investigation
in Khan al-Assal and other areas for a final report. I have discussed this
matter with the Director-General of OPCW and the Director-General of WHO. They
have all confirmed their readiness to support this.
Question: What date did you
say?
Secretary-General: As
soon as possible.
Question: Thank you;
Secretary-General, you have spoken repeatedly of the need for accountability
and ending impunity. Now, how exactly are you proposing this is to be done for
war crimes, as you mentioned? If not the Security Council, is it the ICC
[International Criminal Court]? And are you personally ready to use tools
available to you as Secretary-General for guaranteeing that there is such
accountability?
Secretary-General:
As I have repeatedly said, that those perpetrators who haves used chemical
weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in the future will have to be
brought to justice. This is a firm principle of the United Nations and
international law and international humanitarian law. How to do [this] and how
to promote this and when to do this will the subject of ongoing discussions in
the Security Council and I will be ready to discuss this matter. But at this
time, I do not have a clear answer at this time. Thank you, thank you very
much. Monday, September 16, 2013
writingonblog uncensored: TVS forays into men's scooter with Jupiter
writingonblog uncensored: TVS forays into men's scooter with Jupiter: Chennai: In a bid to bolster its presence in the rapidly growing scooter segment, TVS Motor Company launched its new scooter TVS Jup...
TVS forays into men's scooter with Jupiter
Chennai:
In a bid to bolster its presence in the rapidly growing scooter segment, TVS Motor Company launched its new scooter TVS Jupiter here on Monday.
Speaking after the launch of TVS Jupiter, Venu Srinivasan, chairman and managing director of TVS Motor Company, said the new scooter will be targeting the male segment.
He said the company plans to sell 30,000
scooters, including Jupiter and its earlier launched scooter Wego, every month
by the end of this financial year.
Priced at Rs 44,200 ex-showroom New
Delhi, Srinivasan said the model is competitively priced. The vehicle is styled
to enthuse the male customer.
Srinivasan said that the company has
used 110cc in Jupiter (Wego also has 110cc engine) as it gives the necessary
power and fuel economy.
With the launch of Jupiter, the
company has target of selling 50,000 scooters and scooty a month by the end of
financial year.
Srinivasan also said the company is
looking at exporting Jupiter to other
markets.
He also disclosed that the company
is planning to launch Scooty Zest by the first week of January 2014.
TVS Motor’s market share in the
scooter segment is around 13 per cent and is expected to go to around 16 per cent
with Jupiter, K N Radhakrishnan, president and ceo said.
Bose is new Tuticorin Port chairman
Chennai:
S Anantha Chandra Bose is the new Chairman of V O Chidambaranar Port Trust.
He took office on Monday as per the orders of the Ministry of Shipping. Hailing from Kanyakumari District, Bose is an expert in port operations.
writingonblog uncensored: Sixth Asian and Pacific Population Conference to s...
writingonblog uncensored: Sixth Asian and Pacific Population Conference to s...: BANGKOK (UNESCAP): More than 400 delegates, including one Head of State, Ministers, policy makers and civil society representatives f...
Sixth Asian and Pacific Population Conference to set Population Agenda for Building Better Lives
BANGKOK (UNESCAP): More than 400 delegates, including one
Head of State, Ministers, policy makers and civil society representatives from
47 countries are in Bangkok this week to attend the Sixth Asian and Pacific
Population Conference (APPC).
They will review population and development challenges
facing the Asia-Pacific region, including the unprecedented pace of population
ageing, migration, and urbanization and changing household and family
structures.
The Conference will also tackle a range of issues critical
to human rights and development, including sexual and reproductive health and
rights, gender equality and women’s empowerment, HIV and AIDS, gender-based
violence, and the rights of young people.
In the Asia-Pacific region, too many women still die as a
result of childbirth. Lack of information on sexual and reproductive health,
and limited access to related services, is contributing to unintended
pregnancies and unsafe abortions. These gaps also expose millions to the risk
of HIV and other sexually transmitted disease.
The five-day Conference is expected to arrive at fresh
solutions to address these population and development challenges. Organized by
the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
(ESCAP) in cooperation with UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, the
Conference will be instrumental in shaping the regional population agenda for
the next decade.
The Conference is expected to adopt a Ministerial
Declaration that will also serve as the Asia-Pacific regional input to the
global 20-year review of the International Conference on Population and
Development (ICPD). The United Nations General Assembly will convene a special
session next year to recommit and advance the ICPD Programme of Action - the
first United Nations framework to recognize reproductive rights and gender
equality as essential to sustainable development and poverty eradication.
The Minister of Public Health of the Royal Thai Government, Pradit
Sintavanarong, opened the Conference today stating: "At present, Thailand
is facing major challenges from the consequences of its rapid demographic
transition which includes rapid population ageing with a rising tendency ratio
and declining working age population. This will dramatically impact the
country’s development which requires greater attention and action to adapt to
these consequences and sustain the momentum of development progress."
Speaking at the opening, UNFPA Executive Director Dr
Babatunde Osotimehin cited a regional survey on progress since the ICPD
conducted by ESCAP in cooperation with UNFPA. He said it shows that
Asia-Pacific countries have made important gains but need to do more to reduce
economic inequality, ensure access to contraception, prevent maternal deaths
and HIV infections, respond to the rights and needs of young people and end
violence against women and girls.
“Successfully addressing this unfinished agenda is not only
the right thing to do but also smart economics,” he declared.
Shun-ichi Murata, Deputy Executive Secretary of ESCAP, noted
that the Golden Jubilee anniversary of the Asian and Pacific Population
Conference provides a unique opportunity to forge consensus on a new regional
pathway to address the persistent and emerging challenges of population and
development at a time when the region is undergoing dramatic transformation. At
the same time, it is also an opportunity to provide a strong Asia-Pacific
regional input for the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on the
International Conference on Population and Development beyond 2014, as well as
the post-2015 development agenda.
An inclusive preparatory process--including a Civil Society
Organization Forum and a Youth Forum held in Bangkok last week -- has ensured
that voices from all sectors of society - Government, civil society and
parliamentarians will shape the Conference’s vision for the future.
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