Terror War Allies Criticized

U.S. allies in the war on terrorism, including Pakistan and Uzbekistan, engaged in rights abuses last year, as did Russia and China, according to the State Department's annual human rights report.

Among the countries receiving the harshest judgments in the report, released Monday, were Iraq, Iran and North Korea - all designated by President George W. Bush as "axis of evil" countries.

The report, which reviews the rights performances during 2001 of almost 200 nations and territories, listed Afghanistan and Peru among the success stories because, it said, repressive governments were replaced by more pluralistic governments.

Immediately after Sept. 11, the Bush admistration recruited Pakistan and Uzbekistan into the anti-terror war based on their proximity to Afghanistan. U.S. assistance to both countries skyrocketed even though, as the report notes, rights abuses were prevalent in both.

In Pakistan, the report said there were rights improvements in some areas. But, it added, police committed numerous extrajudicial killings and engaged in the rape and abuse of citizens. Despite this record, "no officer has been convicted and very few have been arrested," the report said.

"Prison conditions remained extremely poor and life threatening, and police arbitrarily arrested and detained citizens," it said.

In Uzbekistan, where about 1,000 U.S. troops were based on Afghanistan-related missions last fall, the report said security forces tortured, beat, and harassed persons. Also, they "arbitrarily arrested and detained persons, on false charges, particularly Muslims suspected of extremist sympathies, frequently planting narcotics, weapons, or banned literature on them," it added.

Weeks after the reporting period for the study ended, the administration tripled assistance to Uzbekistan to $160 million despite a national referendum on presidential term length that was so flawed that the State Department did not bother to send observers.

In Afghanistan, the report said, the installation of a pluralistic government last December ended five years of "cruel and arbitrary rule" by the Taliban, a regime which had relegated women "to a state of non-existence in society."

In Peru, a transitional government and an elected replacement government took significant steps during the year to combat corruption, and investigate human rights abuses that occurred under former President Alberto Fujimori. Bush will praise these developments when he visits Peru later this month.

The report said religious persecution worsened in China last year. Authorities "were quick to suppress any person or group, whether religious, political, or social, that they perceived to be a threat to government power," it said.

"Abuses included instances of extrajudicial killings, torture and mistreatment of prisoners, forced confessions, arbitrary arrest and detention, lengthy incommunicado detention, and denial of due process."

The report said Russia's record was poor regarding the independence and freedom of the media and in Chechnya.

It added that federal security forces in Chechnya "demonstrated little respect for basic human rights and there were credible reports of serious violations, including numerous reports of extrajudicial killings by both the government and Chechen fighters."

In Israel, the report said, some Palestinians were detained without charge. Others were victims of coerced confessions and poor prison conditions. But, the report said Hamas and other Palestinian resistance groups "all committed acts of terrorism in Israel during the year."

Turkey, another anti-terrorism ally, respected the rights of its cisitzens in most areas but "torture, beatings, and other abuses by security forces remained widespread."

The report's assessments of Iran, Iraq and North Korea, as in past years were especially harsh:

Iran - "The Government significantly restricts citizens' right to change their government. Systematic abuses include summary executions, disappearances, widespread use of torture and other degrading treatment."

Iraq - "The Government continued to be responsible for disappearances and to kill and torture persons suspected of--or related to persons suspected of--economic crimes, military desertion, and a variety of other activities. Security forces routinely tortured, beat, raped, and otherwise abused detainees."

North Korea - "There continued to be reports of extrajudicial killings and disappearances. Citizens are detained arbitrarily, and many are held as political prisoners; prison conditions are harsh. The constitutional provisions for an independent judiciary and fair trials are not implemented in practice. The regime subjects its citizens to rigid controls. The leadership perceives most international norms of human rights, especially individual rights, as illegitimate, alien, and subversive to the goals of the State and party. "

In Cuba, the report said, prisoners died in jail due to lack of medical care. "Members of the security forces and prison officials continued to beat and otherwise abuse detainees and prisoners, including human rights activists," it added.