Archive for the 'human rights' Category

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OMCT changes Secretary General after more than 25 years

September 2, 2011

Yesterday and today I was in Geneva to prepare the 13 October MEA ceremony with our partner the City of Geneva. I used the occasion to go and greet the new Secretary General of  the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), the principal global coalition of anti-torture organizations. As from 1 September 2011, Gerald Staberock succeeds Eric Sottas who had led the organisation since its inception in 1985 and who is taking his extremely well-deserved retirement.

Eric Sottas is the quintessential international human rights worker, constantly in touch with the human rights defenders at the local level and keeping a steady eye on the ever-changing global scene . He made sure the organisation stayed steadfast in the fight against torture, resistant to pressure and intransigent in the face of what was fashionable, initiated studies that provoked reflection on the subject of torture” said Mr Yves Berthelot, OMCT President.

Gerald Staberock, who joined the OMCT nine months ago, bring his own wide experience in anti-torture and rule of law reforms in transition countries. His special interest in the debate on torture and counter-terrorism over the last ten years  will serve him well. ” Upon starting his job Gerald Staberock stressed that  “The absolute prohibition of torture is challenged today through lack of respect and a pervasive culture of impunity in many parts of the world. At the same time there are opportunities not least through the transitions of the Arab spring to advance the fight against torture. This is the time to double the effort, to assist and support victims of torture, to ensure accountability and prevent torture, and to counter public complacency in the face of torture. 

 Gerald Staberock, born on June 13, 1968 in Tübingen, Germany, led for eight years different global programs at the International Commission of Jurists , including its Centre for Judges and Lawyers and its Global Security and Rule of Law Initiative. In this context he coordinated the most comprehensive global study on counter-terrorism and human rights . Before joining the ICJ he worked at the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on rule of law and anti-torture projects, including on penitentiary and legal reforms in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.

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MEA Laureate 2011, Kasha, in the end given visa for UK

August 24, 2011

As an illustration of how ill-conceived or ill-executed immigration policies can affect Human Rights Defenders, the following:

Last week Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera – who is the Laureate of the 2011 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, – was denied entry to the UK where she was invited to attend as a special guest the Northern Ireland Pride festival in Derry this weekend. The visa denial was apparently based concerns over her financial status. Foyle Pride chairwoman Shay Gillespie said at the time: “I can’t understand why the UK is the only country to deny her entry and deny the opportunity for the people of Derry and Northern Ireland as a whole the chance to hear this inspirational woman speak.”

A petition was set up to challenge the decision while Amnesty UK invited her to give a speech on Thursday. Then on Monday – within minutes of filing a second application- Kasha was granted permission to attend

Patrick Corrigan, Northern Ireland Programme Director of Amnesty International said: “In the face of ongoing threats and attacks for her work, she has continued to speak out on behalf of Uganda’s LGBT community. She constantly has to shift from house to house, never staying too long in the same place, yet her voice for human rights in Uganda has never been dimmed…..Kasha is here to tell people in Northern Ireland the real stories behind our reports and to explain how people here can support gay people in Uganda.”

Other Human Rights Defenders or other travelers with a legitimate purpose to come to Europe may not have the public status or international support needed to overturn such decisions.

Posted in Amnesty international, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, MEA | 4 Comments »
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Amnesty International’s big meeting started Sunday 14 August

August 16, 2011

On Sunday 14 August Amnesty International started its big meeting (ICM) in Noordwijkerhout in the Netherlands. AI is ‘celebrating’ its 50th anniversary and the list of interveners on the first day illustrates the continued importance of this unique, large, membership-based human rights movement. In addition to the new Secretarty-General Salil Shetty, there were messages from Aung San Suu Kyi (by video), Shirin Ebadi, and Kasha Nabagesera, the 2011 Laureate of the Martin Ennals Award. For a short video summary of the first day go to: http://amnestyicm.wordpress.com/2011/08/14/highlights-from-day-one/

Posted in AI, Amnesty international, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
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Sri Lanka: one of the worst in respect of disappearances

August 10, 2011

On Friday 29 July the United High Commissioner for Human Rights came out forcefully about the situation of human rights in Sri Lanka. The immediate reason was that the decomposed body of  Human Rights Defender Pattani Razeek (the managing trustee of the Community Trust Fund, a NGO based in Puttalam) was found 17 months after his abduction.

Ravina Shamdasani, a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) called on the Sri Lankan government to conduct a swift investigation into the abduction and murder. “We hope that investigation and prosecution of this crime will now be expedited, and that there will be similar progress in resolving the many thousands of outstanding cases of disappearance in Sri Lanka,” she said. The UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances currently has 5,653 outstanding cases from Sri Lanka in its records. One of the most notable is the disappearance of Prageeth Eknaligoda, the journalist of the Lanka-e-News website who was known for his antigovernment news and cartoons went missing without a trace just days before the presidential election last year. “We strongly urge the Government of Sri Lanka to expedite investigations and provide information on Mr. Ekneligoda’s whereabouts and fate,” the UN spokesperson added.

Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | 1 Comment »
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UN publishes Commentary on the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders

August 10, 2011

You probably have seen already references to this new publication which came out during my leave. I still refer to it simply because a blog on HRDs is not complete without it.

The Commentary to the Declaration on human rights defenders is a 100-page document which maps out the rights provided for in the Declaration, based mostly on information received and reports produced by the two Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human rights defenders, Hina Jilani (2000-2008) and Margaret Sekaggya (since 2008), during the past eleven years. The ‘Commentary’ analyses what these rights entail and what is needed to ensure their implementation. It also addressesthe most common restrictions and violations faced by defenders, and provides recommendations to facilitate States’ implementation of each right. As should be expected from a UN publication it is fairly dry and does not break new ground but it certainly is well-organised guide to the work done in the last decade. It is arranged in 10 sections, each addressing a right in the Declaration, namely: the right to right to be protected, the right to freedom of assembly, the right to freedom of association, the right to access and communicate with international bodies, the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the right to protest, the right to develop and discuss new human rights ideas, the right to an effective remedy and the right to access funding. A final section addresses permissible derogations to these rights.

To access the resource in PDF, please control/click here

Posted in books, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
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Front Line marks 10th anniversary with Platform for Human Rights Defenders

August 10, 2011

Front Line – the International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders based in Ireland – exists 10 years and one of the main celebrations will be the holding of its 6th Dublin Platform for Human Rights Defenders from September 14th– 16th, 2011.

The aim of the Dublin Platform is to provide an opportunity for Human Rights Defenders from all parts of the world to come together to share experiences, learn from each other, acquire new skills, develop new strategies and further their understandings of the mechanisms that are available to them at the international level. Ms. Margaret Sekaggya, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders, has confirmed her participation. The themes of the Sixth Dublin Platform will include issues such as patterns of attacks against HRDs and practical measures to ensure their protection; electronic communication and security; specific challenges facing women HRDs and regional mechanisms for the protection of HRDs. The  recommendations from the conference will serve to inform the work of Front Line going forward in its support strategies for human rights defenders.

The event is by invitation only but if you can make a good case why you should be invited please contact Front Line’s International Conference Assistant, Sinéad Nic Aodh, by email at sinead@frontlinedefenders.org.

 

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Iran ‘continues’ its good cooperation with the UN………

August 8, 2011

According to the official iranian students news agency (ISNA) on 6 August, Iran continues to work with the UN Human Rights Council and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights as it used to do. “We have good relations with the UN Human Rights Council and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. We are sorry that some countries use the issue of human rights as an instrument and this time the US and some western states have employed human rights as an instrument to press Iran, but these pressures will go nowhere,” said Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi in a press conference referring to reports that a special United Nations human rights reporter has called for travel to Iran.

see: ISNA – 08-06-2011 – 90/5/15 – Service: / Foreign Policy / News ID: 1821676.

On 20 July I reported already in this blog that Mohammad Javad Larijani, Iran’s secretary general of the high council for human rights, had rejected the appointment of a rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran and that  Iran “will not accept the decision”; so the Minister of Foreign Affairs is not totally aware of the position taken by the SG of the High Council for Human Rights.

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Groups support West Papuan rights appeals

August 8, 2011

 

 

 

further to my blog 20 June re a Papuan HRD, I am happy to report that over 50 international and local NGOs are supporting a call for justice: please see the statement in full: Groups support West Papuan rights appeals.

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LGBT community in Ghana decides to speak out more forcefully against homophobic attacks

August 8, 2011

 

 

This long quote from a statement by the Coalition Against Homophobia in Ghana (CAHG) is worth reading in full as it cogently puts the case for tolerance and respect, not just in Ghana but in all countries. The MEA Laureate 2011 Kasha from Uganda would be pleased with the language:

“CAHG vehemently denounces these types of sensationalist, unfounded, and bigoted attacks against LGBT Ghanaians, who are brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, daughters and sons of Ghanaian families just like any other Ghanaians. LGBT people are in every conceivable walk of life and have existed throughout history. Contrary to unsubstantiated and speculative remarks that homosexuals are “evil”, “filthy”, and “ungodly”, LGBT people are our family members, co-workers, worshippers, taxpayers, voters, media people, pastors and lovers who deserve the same rights and protection under the Ghanaian Constitution as anyone else.”

 “Unfortunately, a few people with religious, political, and institutional power continue to use their privilege to perpetuate hate and violence against homosexuals with the support of the criminal code 1960, Act 29, which criminalizes “unnatural carnal knowledge”–ironically a “western” concept imported to Ghana during British colonization of the country. If these anti-homosexual forces care about the future of Ghana, then the coalition calls on them to do something about issues that actually pose a threat to Ghana’s future such as poverty, women’s rights, class inequalities, environmental destruction, educational rights, and job opportunities. Addressing such issues would be more productive for the country than utilizing fear- mongering tactics to divide Ghanaian people from their LGBT family members and colleagues.”

“Although the international community has not said much on the issue to date, HIV prevention experts and human rights activist from different parts of the world have come out to allay the attacks against LGBT people. The Coalition urges Ghanaians harbouring hostility against LGBT people to “judge not lest ye be judged” and set aside their animosities for the good of the country and its diverse citizenry.”

source: In Ghana, LGBT community forges an alliance of allies to fight homophobic attacks | San Diego Gay and Lesbian News.

Posted in human rights, MEA | 1 Comment »
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‪Situation of Human Rights Defenders in China Worsens: EP Hearing‬‏ – YouTube

July 21, 2011

interesting video of (part of the) session of the European Parliament 

 

 

 

Conditions for Chinas Rights Defenders Worsens: Hearing‬‏ – YouTube.

New Tang Dynasty Television

NTDTV’s Channel

Posted in EU, films, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 4 Comments »
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