Archive for the 'human rights' Category
December 17, 2015
On December 10 Turkish publisher, human rights defender Ragip Zarakolu was awarded PL (Paul Lauritzen) Foundation Peace Prize for his extraordinary efforts in the areas of freedom of thought and expression. Zarakolu is an author of a number of works on Armenian Genocide. The prize amounting to 100.000 Danish krone is awarded to organizations and people who struggle for democracy without resorting to violence within the scope of United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. [Ragıp Zarakolu was born in 1948 on Heybeliada, in İstanbul. He started publishing with his wife, Ayşe Nur Zarakolu in 1977. He never abandoned his struggle for “popularizing respect for different ideas and cultures in Turkey” despite pressures, his books being seized or destroyed, heavy fines and being sent to prison. Zarakolu serving as the President of Publishers’ Union of Turkey Committee of Free Publishing has worked on Kurdish question and condition of minorities in Turkey. Zarakolu lastly was arrested together with his son Deniz Zarakolu within the scope of Group of Communities in Kurdistan (KCK) case in 2011. He remained in prison until April 2012. (EA/TK)]
President of the PL Foundation Paul Sogaard noted in his opening remarks that Ragip Zarakolu was chosen as a recipient of the prize for his long struggle for the freedom of thought and human rights, as well as for his efforts targeted at raising awareness about the Armenian Genocide committed at the hands of the Ottoman Empire 100 years ago. Zarakolu said, in turn, he dedicates the award to the memory of Hrant Dink, the slain editor-in-chief of the Turkish Armenian Agos weekly, and Armenian linguist and architect Sevan Nisanyan, who’s currently serving a term in Turkey. He urged to do the utmost to speak out against and condemn the radical intolerance in Turkey and contribute to the release of detained intellectuals.
Sources:
http://bianet.org/english/freedom-of-expression/169901-ragip-zarakolu-receives-pl-foundation-peace-prize
Ragip Zarakolu receives PL Foundation Peace Prize, criticizes radical intolerance in Turkey | Public Radio of Armenia
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: Armenian Genocide, awards, Denmark, freedom of expression, Hrant Dink, human rights award, Kurdish cause, peace, PL (Paul Lauritzen) Foundation Peace Prize, Ragip Zarakolu, Sevan Nisanyan, Turkey
December 16, 2015
Tomorrow 17 December there will be a
Special session of the Human Rights Council on preventing further deterioration [now that is diplomatic language!] of the human rights situation in
Burundi. The International Service for Human Rights
(ISHR) is using the occasion to organize a side event on: “Escalation of Violence in Burundi: Human rights defenders voices from the ground” from 09.00-10.00 am in Room XII, Palais des Nations, Geneva. It will be webcast live on
www.ishr.ch/webcast. Follow on twitter using the hash-tag #BurundiHRDs.
Panelists (moderator Nicolas Agostini of FIDH):
- Mr Pierre Claver Mbonimpa, Association for the Protection of Human Rights and Incarcerated Persons (APRODH), MEA Laureate 2007.
- Ms Margaret Barankitse, Maison Shalom
- Mr Anschaire Nikoyagize, Ligue ITEKA
- Ms Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: African Union, Anschaire Nikoyagize, Burundi, Centre for African Journalists, East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project, Front Line (NGO), Geneva, Human Rights Defenders, ISHR, Journalist, Pierre Claver Mbonimpa, side event, special session, UN Human Rights Council, webcast, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein
December 13, 2015
International human rights day is an occasion for a multitude of local activities, some denouncing violations others quietly remembering, some (trying to) march in the streets, others issuing statements. This anthology of 10 such events is far from complete but gives an idea of the variety, from human rights defenders speaking out to governmental institutions ‘celebrating’ …. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: 10 December, Al Wefaq National Islamic Society, Bahrain, Cambodia, China, Cuba, Gani Fawehinmi, Georgia, Hada, India, international human rights day, Myanmar, national award, National Human Rights Commission, Nigeria, North Korea, Radio Free Asia, Rehana Sultana, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, University of Texas, USA, Zimbabwe
December 12, 2015
On 10 December the 2015 Human Rights Tulip was awarded to IRA-Mauritania, an organisation from Mauritania that is working to abolish slavery. The Nethertlands Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bert Koenders, presented the €100,000 prize and the accompanying bronze tulip sculpture to Abidine Merzough, the European representative of IRA-Mauritania.
Working both in Mauritania and at international level, IRA-Mauritania (Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement in Mauritania) is drawing attention to the issue of slavery and supporting victims in building a new life. ‘IRA-Mauritania stands up for people who are marginalised and excluded, and in this way it makes an important contribution to the battle against slavery,’ said Mr Koenders. ‘That is why I have decided to award the Human Rights Tulip to this organisation this year.’
Thousands of people in Mauritania are living in conditions which could be described as modern slavery. Many are born into and grow up as part of a household in which they receive no pay for their work. Often they are also mistreated. What’s more, they are prevented from owning land, attending school or participating in politics. The most common victims of such abuses are women and children. In August this year slavery was made a crime against humanity under Mauritanian law. Mr Koenders said that the Netherlands welcomes this positive development and pointed out how important it is for the Mauritanian authorities to enforce this law.
Mr Koenders’ added. ‘Of course, it is not enough to reflect on human rights once a year. I will continue every day to emphasise the importance of complying with human rights obligations, especially now, when the focus is understandably on combating terrorism and addressing security challenges. Human rights organisations are our allies, as they work towards peaceful, free societies. We need to prevent them from being impeded by incorrectly applied counterterrorism measures, whether here or elsewhere. They must be able to continue their important work.’
At the request of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Dutch NGO Hivos will also support the organisation’s activities.
Source: 2015 Human Rights Tulip to be awarded to IRA-Mauritania | News item | Human Rights Tulip
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 3 Comments »
Tags: Bert Koenders, human rights award, Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement in Mauritania, Initiative pour la Résurgence du Mouvement Abolitionniste en Mauritanie, IRA (Mauretania), Mauretania, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Netherlands, slavery, Tulip award
December 11, 2015
Last weekend, HURIDOCS office in Geneva and the office of an ally organization were burglarized; two of its desktop computers were stolen. Computers were the only stolen items at both offices, but it’s not possible to say whether the theft was specifically for information stored on the hard drives or just for the computers themselves. Either way, it states confidently in a message that they have not experienced a data breach, because both computers were encrypted and locked with strong passwords. They also didn’t lose any data, because it’s safely stored in Casebox. Here’s how to protect your information and yourself, critical for human rights defenders, in case of physical computer theft:
- Lock your computer with a strong and unique password. All passwords should be strong and unique, but perhaps even most importantly for your computer itself. Simple passwords are more easily hacked by ‘brute force’ (guessing until success), seen by someone glancing as you type, or determined from camera footage (that’s why Snowden typed his passwords under a blanket in Citzenfour). There are some good tips for better passwords.
- Safeguard all passwords. Do not keep your passwords written on paper near your computer. A multitude of secure passwords will be impossible to keep in mind, so we recommend using a password manager like KeePassX instead; KeePassX also rates the strength of your passwords.
- Consistently lock your screen when you step away. Theft can happen very quickly and obviously, unexpectedly. Encrypt your hard drive. If it’s encrypted, no one else can read it. Check your settings in Filevault on Mac and Bitlocker or Veracrypt on Windows.
- Regularly back up your encrypted hard drive to another location. If your computer is stolen, you’ll still have all of your information. If you use a password manager like KeePassX, your backup will include a locked file containing all of your passwords. To further protect yourself against privacy breaches and malicious threats, we also recommend to: Scan your hard drive for viruses at least once a week with updated antivirus software like Sophos or Avast.
- Update your computer’s operating system and all critical software as soon as updates become available. These updates are often to better protect you from breaches. Set up two-factor authentication and two-step verification on all critical accounts like email, social networks, Apple ID, and shared workspaces. Change your passwords often.
HURIDOCS conclusion: If you’ve taken the above steps and your computer is stolen, you won’t need to worry about your data being stolen along with it. We strongly recommend all human rights defenders take these precautions.
https://www.huridocs.org/2015/12/steps-to-protect-your-data-computer-theft/
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, HURIDOCS | Leave a Comment »
Tags: data, data protection, digital security, encryption, Geneva, HURIDOCS, Information security
December 10, 2015
International Human Rights Day is an occasion for many organizations to publish statements on human rights. For those who have not enough time to go through all of them, here a selection of four main statements that focus on human rights defenders: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in EU, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, Witness (NGO) | Leave a Comment »
Tags: 10 December, CIVICUS, Civil society, EIDHR, EU, Hina Jilani, Huffington Post, Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights Defenders Mechanism, international human rights day, international protection, Neven Mimica, podcasts, reprisals, The Elders, Witness (human rights group)
December 10, 2015
Many NGOs have welcomed as a good Human Rights Day present the announcement of the freeing of Leyla Yunus in Azerbaijan. Here the views of the Deputy Director, Europe and Central Asia Division of Human Rights Watch, Rachel Denber:
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Posted in awards, HRW, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: Arif Yunus, Azerbaijian, HRW, human rights awards, Human Rights Defenders, international human rights day, Leyla Yunus, Oxi Day, release, Theodor Haecker Prize, woman human rights defender
December 9, 2015
In the series “10 December, 10 Defenders” OMCT published on 4 December 2015 the profile of Emma Bolshia Bravo who helps Bolivian victims recover from torture and its second trauma, silence.
“Considering the magnitude of the psychological effects on the victim, the fear it generates within society, and the traumas transmitted to the following generations, torture causes irreparable damage,” says Emma Bolshia Bravo. “That’s why prevention of torture is crucial.” Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | Leave a Comment »
Tags: 10 December - 10 Defenders, anti-torture campaign, Bolivia, Emma Bolshia Bravo, OMCT, prevention, profiles, rehabilitation, torture, woman human rights defender
December 8, 2015
Anneliese Mcauliffe in Al Jazeera on 6 December 2015 reported that two Chinese human rights defenders recognised as UN refugees were forcibly deported from Thailand to China last month and have appeared on Chinese state-run television and confessed to human-trafficking offenses. CCTV reported that Jiang Yefei was arrested for “assisting others to illegally cross the national border”, and Dong Guangping was charged with using a trafficking network to flee China while awaiting trial on sedition charges. It was the first time the two men were seen since being taken from a detention centre in the Thai capital Bangkok in November and deported to China.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Front Line, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | 1 Comment »
Tags: Al-Jazeera, Canada, China, deportation, Dong Guangping, forced confession, Human Rights Defenders, Jiang Yefei, OHCHR, persecution, refugee status determination, resettlement, Reuters, Sheng Xue, Thailand, UNHCR, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
December 8, 2015
In the series “10 December, 10 Defenders” [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2015/12/01/10-december-10-defenders-profiles-of-human-rights-defenders-against-torture/]the OMCT publishes today the case of “Benin: Meet Norbert: Better protecting children to break Benin’s cycle of violence“. “Violence is the first inheritance of a child born within a violent family,” says Norbert Fanou-Ako. As director of a non-governmental organization called Solidarity for Children in Africa and the World (ESAM) he is trying to break Benin’s vicious cycle of violence. The violence deeply engrained in this country starts at home and in school with commonplace whipping, caning, slapping and other uses of ill-treatment against children and then extends to regular beatings to force confessions out of suspected juvenile delinquents at police stations. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | 1 Comment »
Tags: 10 December - 10 Defenders, anti-torture campaign, Benin, Norbert Fanou-Ako, OMCT, prison visits, profiles, rights of children, Solidarity for Children in Africa and the World, torture, UN Convention against Torture, violence
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 