Archive for the 'human rights' Category
November 27, 2015
In an earlier post [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2015/11/11/new-tactics-in-human-rights-follows-up-on-the-protection-regime-of-hrds/] I referred to the latest Special Issue in OUP’s International Journal of Human Rights on ‘Critical Perspectives on the Security and Protection of Human Rights Defenders’, in which scholars and practitioners critically appraise the construction and functioning of this protection regime.
In this context there is an evening event in London on 2 December 2015 in collaboration with the Human Rights Researchers Network at Senate House, University of London from 6.00-8.30pm. Special guest at this event is the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders, Michel Forst.
Tickets are limited and available here: http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/critical-perspectives-on-the-security-and-protection-of-human-rights-defenders-tickets-19171391147
For the network see: http://www.sas.ac.uk/hrc/networks-study-groups/human-rights-researchers-network
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Tags: Human Rights Defenders, International Journal of Human Rights, international protection, Michel Forst, OUP, protection mechanisms, research, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, university
November 26, 2015
AWID is an international, feminist, membership organisation committed to achieving gender equality, sustainable development and women’s human rights. AWID honors feminists and Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs) who have died and whose contributions to the advancement of human rights are very much missed. This tribute takes the form of an online photo exhibition featuring photographs and biographies of women’s rights leaders from around the world – was first launched at AWID’s 12th International Forum on Women’s Rights in Development, held in April 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey, and is updated every year as part of the 16 Days Campaign Against Gender Based Violence 
(November 25 – December 10).
for last year: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2015/09/12/call-for-submissions-contribute-to-awids-tribute-to-women-human-rights-defenders-awid/
Source: WHRD Tribute | AWID
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: 16 Days Campaign Against Gender Based Violence, AWID, in memoriam, International Day of Action for Elimination of Violence against Women, Tribute to Women Human Rights Defenders Who Are No Longer With Us, women human rights defenders
November 26, 2015
The answer to yesterday’s post [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2015/11/25/will-the-un-today-adopt-the-strongest-possible-resolution-on-human-rights-defenders-ask-over-100-ngos/] is that the UN did vote in favor but UNFORTUNATELY did have to vote at all. The unanimity by which UN resolutions on this topic were adopted since 1999 is now lost. But at least there is clarity: Russia and China were the main opponents.
“In New York today, China and Russia broke the unanimity of the international community by requesting a vote on the resolution presented by Norway,” commented Florian Irminger, Head of Advocacy at the Human Rights House Network. The vote by 117 in favour of the resolution, against 14, and with 40 abstentions, in fact reflects the situation in which human rights defenders work in the countries that voted against the resolution.
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Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | 3 Comments »
Tags: China, Florian Irminger, Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights House Foundation, international protection, national level, NGOs, Norway, reprisals, Russia, social media, Third Committee of the GA, UN Resolution
November 24, 2015
A leading campaigner for adult education in Indonesia, Darmiyanti [Yanti] Muchtar, passed away on Tuesday 17 November 2015 after a long battle with cancer.
She was a noted feminist who had been part of the country’s women’s movement since the 1980s, she was a cofounder of Solidaritas Perempuan or the Women’s Solidarity for Human Rights group, and later joined Kapal Perempuan or the Women’s Ship Institute, where she once served as a director.
Kapal represented her passion for alternative education targeting adults in disadvantaged and marginalized communities. In her last months, Yanti’s colleagues said she continued working on numerous projects including a women’s education module. Among her other passions was pushing for the passing of a draft law on domestic workers, in her capacity as a member of the Jala PRT advocacy network for domestic workers. The campaigner believed adult education was key to fighting illiteracy and promoting critical thinking.
Yanti, a sociology graduate from the University of Indonesia, completed a PhD at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia, late last year, with a thesis on local Islamic politics in West Nusa Tenggara, under the supervision of sociologist Vedi R. Hadiz. Her thesis also reflected her concern for identity politics based on ethnicity and religion, while she championed equal rights for minorities and the marginalized, including women and low-income people, as well as equal recognition for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and for interfaith couples.
For more see the Jakarta Post of 19 November: Education campaigner Yanti Muchtar dies | The Jakarta Post
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Tags: Anti, Darmiyanti Muchtar, Education, human rights of women, illiteracy, in memoriam, Indonesia, woman human rights defender, Yanti
November 24, 2015
The Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR) calls for an end to the violence directed at SRHR defenders, as well as their recognition and protection as Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs). For those who are not familiar with the term: SRHR stand for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights.The 16-day campaign encourages all to share stories and experiences on social media using the hashtags #SRHRvoices #SRHRheroes, speak out for the recognition of SRHR defenders as Women Human Rights Defenders and demand their protection.
The 16 Days of Activism Campaign links two international days of action: 25 November, International Day of Action for Elimination of Violence against Women, and 10 December, International Human Rights Day. In between falls 29 November, International Women’s Human Rights Defenders Day.
WHRDs who work on sexual and reproductive rights issues have been recognized at particular risk of grave consequences because of their work, as they are often perceived to be “challenging accepted socio-cultural norms, traditions, perceptions and stereotypes about femininity, […] and the role and status of women in society“. Not only are the advocacy efforts of SRHR activists often shunned, ignored or feared by broader society, but they often find their own lives and well-being at risk.
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Tags: human rights of women, international campaign, International Day of Action for Elimination of Violence against Women, International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, sexual and reproductive health, WHRDs, women human rights defenders, Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights
November 24, 2015
On 2 November the ISHR carries an interview with Alberto Solis Castro, a human rights defender concerned with the indigenous communities in Mexico.
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Tags: Alberto Solis Castro, attacks, Business and human rights, environmental issues, Human Rights Defenders, Indigenous rights, international cooperation, ISHR, Mexico, profiles, resource extraction
November 23, 2015
With International Women Human Rights Defenders Day coming up (29 November) I will pay special attention to questions that concern them. Here a case of police harassment from Front Line concerning Tanzania: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Front Line, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: arbitrary arrest, elections, freedom of association, Front Line (NGO), Human Rights Defenders, Imelda Urio, International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, judicial harassment, Legal and Human Rights Centre, police behavior, Tanzania, Tanzanian Civil Society Election Consortium, woman human rights defender
November 23, 2015
In the series Human Rights Defender Profiles [ISHR] this time: Muhammad Darisman, from West Java, Indonesia:
In the context of breakneck pace of economic development Muhammad Dairyman stands out. He currently partners with U.S.-based Worker Rights Consortium to monitor and improve working conditions in garment factories, but he is also the founder, since 2009, of a local NGO that raises awareness of occupational disease and victim’s rights. He has led campaigns to highlight the ongoing (and legal) use of asbestos in Indonesia and across the Asian region, and to raise awareness about the negative health impacts on workers and communities. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, ISHR | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Business and human rights, corporate accountability, environmental issues, health, Human Rights Defenders, Indonesia, Java, labour rights, land rights, Muhammad Darisman, profiles, Trade union
November 19, 2015
Here two contrasting statements on the theme of business and human rights. One describes the hesitation of the World Bank to apply human rights criteria and even use the word human rights (posted in the Huffington post of 18 November 2015 by Nezir Sinani [www.twitter.com/NezirSinani] and Julia Radomski, and the other is a piece written by Owen Larter and Nicolas Patrick entitled “Microsoft & DLA Piper – Why Human Rights and Human Rights Defenders are Right for our Business” [published in the ISHR Monitor on 27 October 2015]. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Business and human rights, Civil society, corporate accountability, DLA Piper, Environmental issue, Huffington Post, Human Rights Defenders, information technology companies, ISHR, Microsoft, Nezir Sinani, Owen Larter, social accountability, World Bank
November 19, 2015
from Special Issue on Business and Human Rights by the ISHR, October 2015
For human rights defenders interested to find their way in the myriad of procedures and soft law surrounding the issue of business and human rights:
The key mandate of the Working Group is to promote the effective and comprehensive dissemination and implementation of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, using the usual range of tools available to Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council (country visits, thematic reports, and individual communications).In order to discuss the trends and challenges in the implementation of those Guiding Principles and to promote dialogue and cooperation on issues linked to business and human rights, a Forum on Business and Human Rights has been held every year since 2012 and is open to all relevant stakeholders, including in particular human rights defenders. There is an increasing focus on human rights defenders in the agenda of the Forum, with two specific panels dedicated to human rights defenders in 2015 focusing on women human rights defenders and on the role of business in protecting defenders respectively.
The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association have both expressed concern about human rights defenders working on these issues, with the previous Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders devoting a report to the issue of human rights defenders working on major development projects and the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association devoting a report to the issue of freedom of association and the extractive industries.
In June 2014, the Human Rights Council mandated an Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG), tasked with commencing work towards the drafting of an international legally binding treaty on business and human rights. In July 2015 the IGWG had their first session, more information and reports can be found here.
Finally, the UN Global Compact initiative, is intended as a practical framework for the development, implementation, and disclosure of sustainability policies and practices by businesses that are committed to aligning their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, ISHR, UN | 1 Comment »
Tags: business, Business and human rights, environmental issues, Human Rights Defenders, ISHR, protection, United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights, United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 