Archive for the 'human rights' Category
November 1, 2014
Theo van Boven 2011
On 12 November 2014 the fifth annual Theo van Boven Lecture will be delivered by Mrs. Hina Jilani, in the University of Maastricht (16.00 – 18.30). The lecture is in honour of Prof. Theo van Boven, one of the founders of the Maastricht Centre for Human Rights and the most crucial human right director in the UN in 1977-1982 when the first special procedures were enacted. [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/theo-van-boven/]
Mrs. Jilani is an internationally known human rights defender from Pakistan. She created Pakistan’s first all-women law firm and co-founded Pakistan’s first legal aid centre. She also founded the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and Pakistan’s Women Action Forum, a prominent women’s rights group whose campaigns have been at the heart of the democracy movement in the country. She was the first Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on Human Rights Defenders from 2000 to 2008. Since 2013 she is a member of The Elders. For more information on her work: http://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/web/file?uuid=23a2b13c-1422-4e13-8df8-4209bb39e791&owner=20b720a7-b4e5-478d-a68e-9b2019fc1761. The lecture is open to the public.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: Hina Jilani, Human Rights Defenders, lecture, Maastricht, Maastricht University, Theo van Boven, Theo van Boven lecture, United Nations, woman human rights defender
October 29, 2014
Adilur Rahman Khan addresses IBA annual conference in Tokyo, Japan. Photo: AHRC Press Centre
Bangladesh human rights defender Adilur Rahman Khan, of the human rights organisation Odhikar, has won the 2014 International Bar Association (IBA) Human Rights Award.
Adilur received the award from IBA President Michael Reynolds at the Rule of Law Symposium held at the conclusion of the IBA Annual Conference in Tokyo, which finished on 24 October. In October 1994, he founded the human rights organisation Odhikar, which has undertaken extensive fact-finding and reporting of human rights violations in Bangladesh. During the presentation of the award, Reynolds said, “Let us be reminded that lawyers play a vital role in promoting justice, human rights and upholding the rule of law, both at home and abroad. May Mr Khan’s courage, determination and resilience be an inspiration to lawyers everywhere.”In his acceptance speech, Adilur told the 200 delegates gathered at the Symposium, ‘The Rule of Law is under serious threat in my country. Justice for all the ongoing gross human rights violations is inaccessible for victims and their families. Their right to access to complaint mechanisms is denied, regardless of whatever is written in the laws or the Constitution of the country”. Repressive laws are in force and the independence of the judiciary is under attack in a spree of politicisation of institutions of the state, he added.
via Adilur gets IBA int’l human rights award.
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, MEA | 1 Comment »
Tags: Adilur Rahman Khan, awards, Bangladesh, digest of human rights awards, human rights award, Human Rights Defenders, human rights lawyers, human rights violations, IBA, International Bar Association, JFK human rights award, MEA final nominee 2014, recognition, THF
October 27, 2014
On 23 October former UN Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, gave the Anna Lindh Lecture 2014 under the title: “Providing a safe and enabling environment for Human Rights Defenders: Critical factors to Consider”. This was done in the context of the 30th anniversary of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute in Lund, Sweden.
The full text is available: http://rwi.lu.se/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/AL-Sekaggya-2014.pdf
Posted in books, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 2 Comments »
Tags: Anna Lindh, Human Rights Defenders, lecture, Lund, Margaret Sekaggya, Raoul Wallenberg Institute, Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, reprisals, RWI, UN Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, university
October 22, 2014
If there was any doubt on where civil society stands on the issue of reprisals and repression of NGO activity in Russia, the letter below and the enormous number and variety of organizations having signed it should put the doubt to rest: [see also: https://plus.google.com/+HansThoolen/posts/2nWSsUBuCJw]
“Dear President,
We, the undersigned non-governmental organizations, are writing to urge you to stop the clampdown on the right to freedom of association and end reprisals against independent non- governmental organizations (NGOs) in Russia.
We are deeply concerned that under the legislation on “foreign agents”, hundreds of NGOs have been subjected to unannounced inspections by government officials which have interrupted and obstructed their legitimate work with dozens currently embroiled in lengthy court hearings. Several NGOs and their leaders have had to pay prohibitive fines, and some were forced to close down because they refused to brand themselves as “foreign agents” – an expression akin to spying. Recent legislative changes now give the Ministry of Justice powers to register organizations as “foreign agents” without their consent and without a prior court decision. More than a dozen of leading Russian rights groups have already been branded by the Ministry. These NGOs are not foreign spies or “agents”, and have worked in the interest of the people of Russia. Many more face the same fate.
Under the previous legislation, NGOs in Russia were already accountable to the government and the public, having to report on their activities and finances. It is difficult to avoid concluding that the only purpose of the legislation on “foreign agents” is to publicly discredit and stigmatise them.
We believe that NGOs are essential to the healthy functioning of society. They play an important role in providing much needed services to the public. They help keep officials accountable and improve policies in the interests of the people.
We are calling on you as the President of the Russian Federation and the guarantor of its Constitution and of the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined therein, to take all necessary steps to ensure that the “foreign agents” law is repealed and NGOs in Russia are able to do their work without hindrance, harassment, stigmatisation or reprisals.
• Action des chrétiens pour l’abolition de la torture (ACAT) (France)
• Agir ensemble pour les droits de l’homme (AEDH) (France)
• Amnesty International
• ARTICLE 19 (UK)
• Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (Bulgaria)
• Bunge la Mwananchi (Kenya)
• Centre de recherche et d’information pour le développement (CRID) (France) • Centrum Kształcenia Liderów i Wychowawców im. Pedro Arrupe (Pologne)
• CIVICUS
• Comité catholique contre la faim et pour le développement – Terre solidaire (CCFD) (France)
• Committee on the Administration of Justice Ltd (CAJ) (Northern Ireland, UK)
• Cordaid (Pays-Bas)
• Danny Sriskandarajah, our Secretary General
• English PEN (UK)
• European Human Rights Advocacy Centre (EHRAC) (UK)
• Emmaüs International (France)
• Finnish PEN (Finlande)
• Foundation Max van der Stoel (Pays-Bas)
• Free Press Unlimited (Pays-Bas)
• Front Line Defenders (Irlande) • Fundacja Edukacja dla Demokracji (Pologne)
• Fundacja im. Stefana Batorego (Pologne)
• Gevalor (France)
• Greenpeace Spain (Spain) • Helsińska Fundacja Praw Człowieka (Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights) (Pologne)
• Hivos (Pays-Bas)
• Human Rights Commission (Kenya)
• Human Rights House Foundation (Norway)
• Human Rights House Foundation HRHF (Switzerland)
• Human Rights Watch
• Index on Censorship (UK) • INPRIS – Instytut Prawa i Społeczeństwa (Pologne) • Instytut Spraw Publicznych (Pologne)
• International Service for Human Rights
• Kansalaisjärjestöjen ihmisoikeussäätiö KIOS (Finlande)
• Kenya Human Rights Commission (Kenya)
• Koalicja Karat (Pologne)
• La lliga del drets dels pobles (Spain)
• Ligue des droits de l’Homme (France) • Małopolskie Towarzystwo Oświatowe (Pologne)
• MEMORIAL Deutschland e.V. (Germany)
• Milieudefensie (Pays-Bas)
• MONIKA – Naiset liitto ry (Finlande)
• Movies that Matter (Pays-Bas)
• Naisten Linja Suomessa ry (Finlande)
• Netherlands Helsinki Committee (Pays-Bas)
• Nederlands Juristen Comité voor de Mensenrechten (NJCM)
• Nederlandse Vereniging van Journalisten (NVJ) (Pays-Bas)
• NGO Working Group OSCE (Switzerland)
• Observatoire pour la protection des défenseurs des droits de l’Homme (joint program FIDH and OMCT) (France/Switzerland)
• Pakolaisneuvonta ry (Finlande)
• Pat Finucane Centre, (Irlande)
• Queer Youth Norway (Norway)
• REDRESS (UK)
• Reporters sans frontières (RSF) (France)
• Russie-Libertés (France)
• Sadankomitea (Finlande)
• Society for Threatened Peoples (Switzerland)
• Stiftung Haus der Demokratie und Menschenrechte (Germany)
• Stowarzyszenie Wschodnioeuropejskie Centrum Demokratyczne (Pologne)
• The Bellona Foundation (Norvège)
• The Norwegian LGBT Association (Norvège)
• UNITED for Intercultural Action (Pays-Bas)
• XENION Psychsoziale Hilfen für politisch Verfolgte e.V. (Allemagne)
• Автономная некоммерческая правозащитная организация «Молодежный центр консультации и тренинга» (Russie)
• Автономная некоммерческая организация «Правозащитная организация «МАШР» (Russie)
• Благотворительный фонд развития города Тюмени (Russie)
• Общественная правозащитная организация «Солдатские матери Санкт-Петербурга» (Russie)”
Russian Federation: Joint NGO Letter to the President of the Russian Federation: To stop clampdown on freedom of association / October 21, 2014 / Statements / Human rights defenders / OMCT.
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Civil society, civil society organisations, Eastern Europe, foreign agents, foreign funding, freedom of association, governmental organizations, Human Rights Defenders, intimidation, legal restrictions, NGOs, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, Russia, Russian Federation
October 22, 2014
The 2014 Sakharov Prize goes to the Congolese physician Denis Mukwege for his treatment of the victims of gang rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Congolese physician Denis Mukwege, will be awarded this year’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, European Parliament President Martin Schulz announced in Strasbourg on Tuesday.
Mukwege has been treating rape victims at a clinic in Bukavu on the Rwandan border for decades. He has performed thousands of surgeries on women to heal their injuries sustained in violent attacks, often by local militias. The 59-year-old founded a gynaecology unit and maternity ward in Bukavu in 1996, the first of its kind in the area. He has since expanded the station to an entire hospital, which he runs. The Second Congo War began in August 1998, ravaging the region. Mukwege is said to have performed over 10,000 operations on rape victims ever since.
The other finalists were Ukraine’s pro-Western Euromaidan movement and Azerbaijani rights defender Leyla Yunus.[https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/10/16/more-on-the-sakharov-prize-and-the-arab-nominees/]
For more information on the award see: http://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/award/sakharov-prize-freedom-thought
The 2014 prize will be awarded at a ceremony in Strasbourg on 26 November.
Congolese gynecologist wins Sakharov Prize | News | DW.DE | 21.10.2014.
for our french speakers: http://www.lemonde.fr/europe/article/2014/10/21/le-docteur-mukwege-recoit-le-prix-sakharov-pour-son-soutien-aux-femmes-violees-en-rdc_4510098_3214.html
Posted in awards, EU, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: awards, Congolese physician, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denis Mukwege, DRC, eastern congo, European Parliament, European Parliament President Martin Schulz, gang rapes, human rights award, human rights of women, rape, rape victims, Sakharov Prize, Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, Strasbourg
October 21, 2014
The glimmer of hope for Nasrin Sotoudeh and Iran which I saw in my post of 6 September [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/09/06/glimmer-of-hope-in-iran-nasrin-sotoudehs-ban-to-practice-overruled/] seems to have been crushed already. Yesterday, 20 october, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, the joint programme of FIDH and OMCT, has received new information that on 18 October 2014, a three-member disciplinary investigation panel of Tehran’s Bar Association has now suspended Nasrin Sotoudeh’s law license for three years, based on a complaint filed by the Islamic Revolution Court’s Prosecution Office (unlike the first disciplinary panel of the Tehran Bar Association which rejected a similar request). Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, MEA, Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | Leave a Comment »
Tags: bar association, Bar Associations, FIDH, Final Nominee MEA 2012, Human Rights Defenders, human rights lawyer, Independence of Lawyers, independence of the judiciary, Iran, MEA, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT, revoking, UN Working Group, woman human rights defender
October 20, 2014
On 16 October 2014 the Inter-Parliamentary Union [IPU] announced that a former “prisoner of conscience”, the Bangladeshi Saber Hossain Chowdhury, was elected as new IPU president.
A former businessman with an education in law, politics and economics in the UK, President Chowdhury first became an MP in 1996 at the age of 35. He was also the youngest member of the government when he held two deputy ministerial posts in succession between 1999 and 2001. A political prisoner in the early 2000’s, he is described as a firm believer in the rule of law and human rights. He was involved in ground-breaking legislation to criminalize custodial torture in Bangladesh and to address domestic violence.
via Press Release 16 October 2014.
Posted in AI, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: AI, Bangladesh, Inter-Parliamentary Union, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), IPU, political prisoner, President Chowdhury, prisoner of conscience, Saber Hossain Chowdhury, torture
October 20, 2014
As from tomorrow, 21 October, you can follow the 2014 Oslo Freedom Forum [OFF] in real time at www.oslofreedomforum.com. This year’s theme—“Defeating Dictators”—will explore nonviolent ways to challenge these regimes and stop other countries from falling under the rule of a strongman. Panel discussions are on “Tyrants and Technology” and “Dangerous Words”
OFF speakers include Egyptian comedian and TV host Bassem Youssef; Cuban blogger Yoani Sánchez; Ukrainian pro-democracy activist Yulia Marushevska; North Korean refugee and rights activist Hyeonseo Lee; Mexican journalist Marcela Turati Muñoz; and Jordanian comic book artist Suleiman Bakhit. The forum will conclude on Wednesday, October 22, with the presentation of the Václav Havel International Prize for Creative Dissent to Turkish performance artist and “Standing Man” Erdem Gunduz, Tibetan filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen (represented by his wife Lhamo Tso), and Nadezdha Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, members of the Russian feminist punk rock collective Pussy Riot [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/vaclav-havel-prize-for-creative-dissent/]
Interesting novelty (to get more people to follow the forum on-line) is a s
ocial media contest on how the speakers inspire the audience. One winner will join the 2015 Oslo Freedom Forum in person.
The full program can be viewed here: 2014 Oslo Freedom Forum | Events | Oslo Freedom Forum.
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights Foundation | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Bassem Youssef, bloggers, cartoons, Dhondup Wangchen, Erdem Gunduz, human rights award, Human Rights Foundation, Hyeonseo Lee, Marcela Turati Muñoz, meeting, Oslo Freedom Forum, Pussy Riot, social media, streaming, Suleiman Bakhit, Vaclav Havel International Prize for Creative Dissent, Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent, Yoani Sánchez, Yulia Marushevska
October 19, 2014
(Ravina Shamsadani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Photo: UN Multimedia)
On 17 October 2014 the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights felt duty bound to express deep concern about a criminal case initiated by the Supreme Court of the Maldives against members of the country’s own official Human Rights Commission!
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), noted that five members of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives were now facing “serious criminal charges” following the submission of their written contribution to their country’s second Universal Periodic Review (UPR), presented to the UN Human Rights Council (the actual UPR of the Maldives is scheduled to be held between April and May 2015). “The Government has a responsibility to ensure a safe operating space for the Commission and for civil society actors in the country, so that they are able to coöperate with UN human rights mechanisms without fear of reprisals.” the spokesperson stated.
[It is not the first time the Supreme Court of the Maldives has come under rebuke from OHCHR. In 2013, former High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay called for reforms to the judiciary to safeguard the rule of law following the Supreme Court’s repeated interventions in the presidential election process in the Maldives which, she said, were undermining the country’s democracy. In that specific case, the Court had nullified the first round of the election on the basis of irregularities in the process, despite conclusions by national and international observers that the election was free and fair.]
United Nations News Centre – Maldives: UN ‘deeply concerned’ as Supreme Court prosecutes rights advocates.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, OHCHR, UN | 1 Comment »
Tags: Human rights commission, independence of the judiciary, Maldives, National Human Rights Commission, Ravina Shamsadani, retaliation, Supreme Court, the Maldives, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN, UN Human Rights Council, Universal Periodic Review, UPR, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein
October 18, 2014
On 10 November 2014 will take place the 2nd Werner Lottje Lecture. This annual event – organised by Bread for the World and the German Institute for Human Rights – honors one of Germany’s most influential and visionary human rights defenders, who died in 2004 [see: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/werner-lottje/]. As Werner Lottje was one of the founders of the Martin Ennals Award, the organisers have in mind to invite every year one of the Final Nominees of the MEA as main speaker. The theme this year is again directly linked to Human Rights Defenders (“Current challenges in the Protection of HRDs”) . The main elements in the programme are: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, MEA | 1 Comment »
Tags: Alejandra Ancheita, Berlin, Bread for the World, business, corporate accountability, Frank Schwabe, German Institute for Human Rights, German parliament, Germany, Human Rights Defenders, indigenous groups, Julia Duchrow, Martin Ennals Award, MEA laureate 2014, meeting, Michael Windfuhr, Michel Forst, social economic and cultural rights, Werner Lottje, Werner Lottje lecture
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 