Bukeni Waruzi's Media

Dispatch from South Africa: RAU and WITNESS on campaign for justice for women of Zimbabwe

Bukeni Waruzi — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:30:31 -0700

In August, we asked you to join us in the Hear Us, Stand With Us campaign and support the women of Zimbabwe in their call for justice and accountability (more background below).

Your support has been truly amazing - in just two weeks, thousands of people added their voices to the campaign on Facebook and the Hub, more than 1600 people signed the petition and twitition, and hundreds of tweets and retweets on Twitter reached over 90,000 people across the world.

The message to the Zimbabwean government and to the members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) was loud and clear: stop politically motivated sexual violence against women, end impunity, and provide assistance to the women who have survived this type of violence.

Last week, WITNESS' Bukeni Waruzi traveled to South Africa to meet with Memory - a Zimbabwean woman who shared her testimony in the video Hear Us - and with representatives from WITNESS partner Research and Advocacy Unit (RAU) and the Institute for Democracy in Africa (IDASA).

Together, they delivered the petitions, held press conferences, and met with key members of SADC. In this video, Kuda from RAU gives us an update of the week in South Africa and looks forward to the next steps in the campaign.

Stay tuned for more news as the campaign develops. In the meantime, THANK YOU for standing with us!

BACKGROUND: In 2008, political violence erupted throughout Zimbabwe as a result of highly contested national elections. Between May and July alone, local organizations estimate that state-sanctioned groups abducted, raped, tortured, and beat over 2,000 women and girls due to their political affiliations. Local police have ignored these women's pleas for protection, justice, and accountability, and national leaders have been equally unresponsive. Hear Us - a video co-produced by Zimbabwean RAU and WITNESS - features four of these women who have come forward to demand justice from the Zimbabwean government and the SADC. The 2009 SADC summit was held in Kinshasa, DR Congo, from September 2-8 2009 and your messages of support were delivered to key SADC members in the lead-up to the meeting.

In the meantime, the campaign will go on and we'll conitnue posting new updates here as they become available. You can still show your support for the women of Zimbabwe by helping spread the word about this campaign and leaving a comment in the fields below.

The Trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the International Criminal Court: Swahili Version

Bukeni Waruzi — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:56:13 -0700

This video aims to inform the DRC public, especially in war-affected zones, about the Lubanga trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague. The Lubanga trial is the first ever trial before the ICC, and marks a fundamental step in the fight against impunity. The trial is ongoing, and is yet to reach a verdict.
The film gives a clear overview of what the trial is about, and what the expectations of people in the DRC are.
Thomas Lubanga Dyilo stands accused of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of 15, and using them to participate actively in hostilities in the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo between 2002 and 2003. The ICC has the mandate to protect children - one of the innovations of this new court is not only that the issue of child soldiers is the subject of its first trail, but also that former child soldiers themselves may participate in the proceedings.
This short film highlights both the discussion between the Prosecution and the Lubanga Defence Counsel in the court room, and more widely with the victims (child soldiers) and the Public Counsel for Victims’ views about the proceedings and the expectations of the DRC communities. The video also highlights the issue of fair trial and balances the opening arguments both from the prosecution and the defence in the trial.

Special thanks to OSI's Justice Initiative for funding part of the production and editing of this video and to IWPR for its ongoing, in-depth coverage of the trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the ICC.

The Trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the International Criminal Court: French Version

Bukeni Waruzi — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:35:45 -0700

Cette vidéo a pour objectif d’informer le public en République Démocratique du Congo, RDC, spécialement dans les zones affectées par les conflits, à propos du procès de Lubanga à la Cour Pénale Internationale (CPI) à La Haye. Le procès Lubanga est le tout premier devant la CPI, et marque une à à étape fondamentale dans la lutte contre l’impunité. Le procès continue, et le verdict n’a pas encore été prononcé.

Le film donne un clair apercu sur ce dont le procès est, et ce que les attentes des populations en RDC sont.

Thomas Lubanga Dyilo est accusé d’avoir conscrits et enrolés les enfants de moins de 15 ans, et de les utiliser à participer activement aux hostilités dans la région de l’Ituri en République Démocratique du Congo entre 2002 et 2003. La CPI a le mandat de protéger les enfants.
L’une des nouveautés de cette nouvelle court est que non seulement le cas des enfants soldats constitue le premier procès, mais aussi que certains ex enfants soldats eux-memes participent à la procédure.

The court film souligne les discussions entre le Procureur et le conseil de défense dans la pleinière, et aussi extensivement avec les enfants soldats et le Conseil Public pour les victimes, leurs vues sur la procédure et les attentes des communautés en RDC. La vidéo souligne aussi la problématique du procès equitable et équilibre les arguments préliminaires du Procureur et de la défense dans le procès.

Remerciements speciaux à OSI Justice Initiative pour le financement en partie de la production et du montage de cette vidéo et à IWPR pour ses couvertures continues du procès Lubanga.

Special thanks to OSI's Justice Initiative for funding part of the production and editing of this video and to IWPR for its ongoing, in-depth coverage of the trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the ICC.

The Trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the International Criminal Court

Bukeni Waruzi — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:38:26 -0700

The film gives a clear overview of what the trial is about, and what the expectations of people in the DRC are.
Thomas Lubanga Dyilo stands accused of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of 15, and using them to participate actively in hostilities in the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo between 2002 and 2003. The ICC has the mandate to protect children - one of the innovations of this new court is not only that the issue of child soldiers is the subject of its first trail, but also that former child soldiers themselves may participate in the proceedings.

This short film highlights both the discussion between the Prosecution and the Lubanga Defence Counsel in the court room, and more widely with the victims (child soldiers) and the Public Counsel for Victims’ views about the proceedings and the expectations of the DRC communities. The video also highlights the issue of fair trial and balances the opening arguments both from the prosecution and the defence in the trial.

Special thanks to OSI's Justice Initiative for funding part of the production and editing of this video and to IWPR for its ongoing, in-depth coverage of the trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the ICC.

Lubanga Trial: Press and Meetings on the Day Before the Opening of the Trial

Bukeni Waruzi — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 16:38:01 -0800

Second day in The Hague: Bukeni Waruzi, WITNESS' Program Coordinator for Africa & the Middle
East, in the Netherlands for the opening of the International Criminal Court's first trial
ever - a trial against Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Dyilo for the
crime of enlisting children under the age of 15 to fight in his army
during the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Lubanga Trial: Bukeni Arrives in The Hague for ICC's first trial ever

Bukeni Waruzi — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:08:20 -0800

A vlog by Bukeni Waruzi, WITNESS' Program Coordinator for Africa & the Middle East, on the day he arrives in The Hague, Netherlands. Bukeni will attend the opening of the International Criminal Court's first trial ever - a trial against Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Dyilo for the crime of enlisting children under the age of 15 to fight in his army during the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Interview: Protestor in NY on Israeli attack on Gaza

Bukeni Waruzi — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:35:02 -0800

Ethan Heitner, from Adalah-NY (The Coalition for Justice in the Middle East), calls on Israel to stop bombing the Gaza strip during a protest march in NY.

Demonstrations in NY against Israeli attack on Gaza

Bukeni Waruzi — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:09:09 -0800

Protestors in New York call for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East and demand the end of civilian casualties in Gaza. Other demonstrations are being organized across United States and the world to protest the killings of civilians in Gaza by Israelis army fighting Hamas militants.

Today over 850 civilians have been reported killed, thousands others injured, homes and social infrastructures destroyed, an unprecedented humanitarian crisis.

UDHR 60th Anniversary: Bukeni Waruzi (in English, French, Swahili)

Bukeni Waruzi — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:51:00 -0800

For 16 years, WITNESS has harnessed the power of video to advance human rights. In honor of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10th, we're asking our friends and partners to answer the following question:

What image opened your eyes to human rights?
Was it an image or video that gave you hope, or did it show you how much further we needed to go and inspire you to take action?

In this video, WITNESS' Bukeni Waruzi, Program Coordinator for Africa & the Middle East, responds to the question and talks two images from his work and life in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that made a lasting impression on him.

Insecurity increases in Eastern DRC

Bukeni Waruzi — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 13:45:03 -0700

This video, produced by WITNESS partner Ajedi-Ka, talks about the resurgence of violence in the Eastern provinces of the DRC from January 2008 on. The renewed fighting between rebel groups like CNDP and Interahamwe and the Congolese Army in Eastern DRC has produced a growing humanitarian crisis marked by severe human rights violations. Some of the effects have included: displacement of thousands of families, murders, recruitment of child soldiers, mass rape, and a collapse of public health services which has exacerbated the spread of HIV/AIDS.