On 14 February 2018 the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Regional Court of Justicefound that Jammeh-era media laws violated the right to freedom of expression in The Gambia. The Federation of African Journalists and four Gambian journalists filed a case in the court in December 2015. They argued that their rights, including their rights to freedom of expression, had been violated by Gambia through the enforcement of laws criminalising libel, sedition and false news in the country. Two of the journalists were also subject to torture whilst in the custody of the then notorious National Intelligence Agency following their arrests under these laws.
Arguments were heard by the court in October 2016. The case was supported by the Media Legal Defence Initiative (MLDI). Amnesty International filed an amicus brief in the case along with other freedom of expression organisations. Although press freedom has improved under the new government of President Barrow, who was inaugurated in January 2017, these restrictive laws are still in place.
The ruling will set an important precedent as many countries within West Africa continue to use similar repressive laws to silence freedom of expression, and hinder the vital work of journalists, in violation of international and regional human rights law. The ball is now in the court of the Adama Barrow government to repeal the said laws in order to realign the law to respect media freedoms. Amnesty International’s West Africa researcher has hailed the ruling as a historic day for The Gambian media landscape. “Today is an historic day for Gambia’s journalists and human rights defenders who, for decades, have suffered torture, imprisonment or exile just for exercising their right to freedom of expression,”Sabrina Mahtani said.
The Financial Times (amongst others) reports that changes in Uzbekistan are possibly going in the right direction. [“While Mr Mirziyoyev was part of the old system too, as prime minister for 13 years, his ousting of Mr Inoyatov was the boldest in a series of steps apparently designed to start opening the country up. He has freed 18 high-profile political prisoners — even if thousands more remain in jail — and taken nearly 16,000 people off a 17,500-strong security blacklist of potential extremists that stopped them travelling or getting jobs”.] This echoes what HRW said on 5 September 2017 after delegation had made its first visit to Uzbekistan since the organization was banned there in 2010: “The key is for the Uzbek government to transform the modest steps it has taken thus far into institutional change and sustainable improvements”. Now (13 February 2018) twelve international NGOs have publicly urged Uzbekistan to release journalists and human rights defenders.
Journalist Bobomurod Abdullaev faces up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.
In a joint statement HRW, IPHR, Amnesty International, the Association for Human Rights in Central Asia, Civil Rights Defenders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Freedom House, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, Reporters Without Borders, Freedom Now, ARTICLE 19, and the Uzbek-German Forum for Human Rightshave called on Tashkent to “ensure a thorough, impartial, and independent investigation into the alleged torture and other ill-treatment” of independent journalist Bobomurod Abdullaev.
[Abdullaev was detained in September on charges of “conspiracy to overthrow the constitutional regime” and faces up to 20 years in prison if found guilty. In October, Uzbek authorities arrested well-known economist and blogger Hayot Nasriddinov. They have accused him and others, including Akrom Malikov, an academic who was arrested in 2016, of plotting to overthrow the government.
“At a time when the Uzbek government appears to be taking steps to reform the country’s feared security services, reports of a journalist’s torture in their custody should prompt an immediate investigation and decisive, public condemnation,” HRW Central Asia researcher Steve Swerdlow said in the statement.
“There is a real opportunity for change in Uzbekistan – and yet we hear of journalists and bloggers still being detained and tortured. This case is a test of whether Uzbekistan’s human rights situation is really improving or not,”Brigitte Dufour, director of International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR), said in the rights groups’ statement.
Prominent Pakistani human rights defender and lawyer Asma Jahangirhas died at the age of 66. She reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest and was taken to hospital, where she later died.
She was one of the most recognized and honored human rights defenders with over 17 human rights awards, including the Martin Ennals Award in 1995, whose film on her work shows a much younger Asma, fearless in spite of threats on her life:
I met her for the first time in 1993 at the 2nd World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, where she deeply impressed me by standing up and openly criticizing her fellow NGO representatives for having tried to prevent former President Jimmy Carte from speaking at the NGO forum. This principled stand was a hallmark of her life as Pakistani human rights lawyer and as UN Special Rapporteur. In many instances she was able to give sound advice on cases of other human rights defenders in difficulty. For earlier posts on Asma see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/tag/asma-jahangir/
Asma Jahangir’s career in short:
Trained as a lawyer and worked in Pakistan’s Supreme Court from age 30
A critic of the military establishment
Jailed in 1983 for pro-democracy activities
Put under house arrest in 2007 for opposing military leader’s removal of Supreme Court chief justice
Co-founder of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and of the first free legal aid centre in Pakistan (together with her sister Hina Jilani)
Co-founder of the Women’s Action Forum, set up to oppose law that reduced a woman’s testimony in court to half that of a man’s
The first female leader of Pakistan’s Supreme Court bar association
Winner of 17 human rights awards and the French Legion of Honour
Served twice as UN special rapporteur: on freedom of religion and on later on Human Rights in Iran
Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai called Ms Jahangir a “saviour of democracy and human rights”.
Federica Mogherini and Elmar Mammadyarov in Brussels on 9 February 2018. [Council]
On 9 February the European Union and Azerbaijan held their 15th annual Cooperation Council after a three year gap. {The previous Cooperation Council took place in November 2013, but relations between Baku and Brussels hit a low in 2015, following European Parliament resolutions that were highly critical of the human rights situation and the prosecution of human rights defenders in Azerbaijan. In November 2016 the EU Foreign Ministers 2016 adopted a mandate to negotiate a new agreement with Baku, which would replace the 1996 partnership and cooperation agreement.}
Human Rights Watch and other NGOs demanded that the “Top EU Diplomat Should Deliver Tough Message to Azerbaijan” and place human tights at the top of the agenda with Azerbaijan Foreign Minister:
And yet the EU acts like it’s business as usual. This week the European Investment Bank (EIB) approved a €1.5 billion loan for the construction of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), of which Azerbaijan’s state-owned company SOCAR is a 20 percent partner. TAP is part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which would bring Caspian Sea natural gas to Europe. That decision could pave the way for EIB support to another section of the Southern Gas Corridor that would connect TAP through to Azerbaijan’s shores. The EIB didn’t seem to mind that Azerbaijan’s anti-corruption activists and those monitoring Azerbaijan’s extractive industries have been among those persecuted.
The EIB is the EU’s bank, so the EIB’s decision should have been made in compliance with the EU’s stated foreign policy principles on promoting democracy and human rights. In reality the EU’s concerns about Azerbaijan’s crackdown have no consequences when gas is up for discussion.
Mogherini also has yet to show Azerbaijan that its relentless crackdown against critics and dismissal of the European Court’s ruling on Mammadov could lead to serious political consequences. Brussels continues to negotiate a new political and economic partnership with Baku, without first insisting that Baku take at least some steps to stop the crackdown, for example by freeing Mammadov. The partnership might indeed lead to more engagement and dialogue, but that doesn’t give much hope for activists unjustly behind bars or forced into exile.
Azerbaijan just announced a snap presidential election in April, a surprise move likely to lead to a further clampdown on critics. It’s urgent that Mogherini tell Mammadyarov that Azerbaijan’s failure to release those unjustly imprisoned and end restrictions on civil society jeopardizes any new partnership deal, as well as the EU’s support for a pipeline that is already tainted by repression.
After the meeting Radio Free Europe reported that the European Union is urging Azerbaijan to implement reforms in the fields of elections, freedom of assembly, and the media ahead of the country’s presidential election in April. EU foreign-policy chief Federica Mogherini said that “the European Union has always stressed, as we did it again, that the full implementation of international obligations and commitments by Azerbaijan is vital to us.” Sources in Brussels told RFE/RL that EU officials raised a number of individual human rights cases, including that of opposition politician Ilqar Mammadov, who has been in prison in Azerbaijan since 2014.
On 9 November 2017 ISHR met Yaxue Cao, the founder and editor of ChinaChange.org, an English-language website devoted to news and commentary related to civil society, rule of law, and human rights activities in China. She works to help the rest of the world understand what people are thinking and doing to effect change in China. Reports and translations on China Change have been cited widely in leading global news outlets and in U.S. Congressional reports. Yaxue Cao grew up in northern China during the Cultural Revolution and studied literature in the US. She lives in Washington, DC.
In then clip above Juliet Stevenson (one of many) makes her nomination for A’ UK’s Suffragette Spirit campaign. People who know women human rights defenders today in the UK. can nominate. Visit https://www.amnesty.org.uk/suffragett…
Background: The Suffragette Spirit Map of Britain is a part of Amnesty’s global BRAVE campaign to champion and protect human rights defenders around the world. Every day, ordinary people from all walks of life – from students to farmers, office workers to street sellers – are doing extraordinary things to protect our human rights. But human rights and the people who defend them are coming under increasing attack – the scale and level of which is now at an alarming rate. In 2016, 281 human rights defenders were killed – and last year is set to be the deadliest year yet. Since the UN Declaration of Human Rights Defenders in 1998, at least 3,500 activists have been killed – an average of 180 deaths a year – and the annual death toll shows no sign of diminishing. There were a number of high profile deaths of women human rights defenders last year including Heather Heyer, who was killed in August in Charlottesville while protesting against a white supremacist rally. [see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2017/08/14/human-rights-defender-heather-heyer-murdered-in-protest-against-hate-in-charlottesville/].
HRF and Nelson Mandela Foundation Will Produce OFF in Johannesburg this March
On 26 March, 2018, the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) will bring the Oslo Freedom Forum experience and community together for the first-ever Oslo Freedom Forum in Johannesburg (OFFinJoburg). In 2017, HRF established a collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Foundation to bring the Oslo Freedom Forum to South Africa in 2018, the 100th anniversary of Mandela’s birth. OFFinJoburg will be held in Bryanston, Johannesburg, and live-streamed. You can register for the event here.
Speakers at OFFinJoburg will include Zimbabwean civil rights activist and #ThisFlag movement leader Evan Mawarire, former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed, Moroccan-born French free expression advocate and journalist Zineb El Rhazoui, Arab Spring writer and journalist Iyad el-Baghdadi, Chinese-Canadian actress and human rights activist Anastasia Lin, Angolan investigative journalist Rafael Marques de Morais, and Eritrean information activist and refugee rescuer Meron Estefanos, among others.
On 30 January 2018, FIDH publishes the comic strip version of its Annual Report created by graphic artist Romain Ronzeau and the graphic artists from Cartooning for Peace. Illustrating some of the victories and battles of 2017, the artists eloquently convey the essential: in times of crises, defending human rights is more necessary than ever. [for last year’s see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2017/03/28/fidh-looks-back-at-2016-in-comic-strip/]. Good to see that the tradition is being kept up!
On the occasion of the comic strip Annual Report’s release, FIDH reaffirms its support for all graphic artists and caricaturists who are subjected to threats and attacks on a daily basis.
Following a decision by a court in Istanbul to conditionally release the Chair of Amnesty International Turkey, Taner Kılıç, after nearly eight months in detention, Gauri van Gulik, AI’s Europe Director said: “It is an enormous relief that Taner will soon be back with his wife and daughters, sleeping in his own bed for the first time in almost eight months. But we cannot forget that many other innocent people remain behind bars without a shred of evidence in Turkey.” “Today we take a brief moment to celebrate, but tomorrow we will continue our struggle to have all charges dropped against Taner, the Istanbul 10, and all other innocent victims wrongfully caught up in this vicious crackdown.”
NOTE: 1 February update in http://gkmen.com/2018/02/01/turkey-court-reverses-release-of-amnesty-head-taner-kilic/: “Andrew Gardner, a senior Amnesty researcher on Turkey, tweeted that Kılıç was transferred from prison custody to gendarmerie custody late Wednesday. While the Istanbul court rejected the appeal, it nonetheless sent the application to another court for a decision on Kilik’s detention. “This is devastating for Taner’s family and a disgrace to justice”,he added. The group said the next hearing in his trial has been set for June 21.
While Kılıç has now been released, the trial against him, director of Amnesty International Turkey İdil Eser, and the other nine human rights defenders on trumped-up terrorism related charges continues. [Kılıç was detained on June 6, 2017 and sent to jail three days later, where he has been ever since. Ten other activists “the Istanbul 10”, including Eser, were detained a month later. Eight of them were held for almost four months before being released on bail at their first hearing in October. The Istanbul 10 were accused of “membership of a terrorist organization,” a baseless allegation for which the prosecution has yet to provide any concrete evidence that would stand up to scrutiny. – https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2017/11/22/celebrities-come-out-to-support-taner-kilic-amnesty-turkeys-chair-on-trial-today/ ]
Turkish police wrestle a lawyer to the ground outside of a courthouse in Turkey. (Photo: Social Media)
Ari Khalidi (Kurdistan24.net) reported on 30 January 2018 that an opposition lawmaker in Turkey revealed on Tuesday that authorities had arrested 572 lawyers during the one and a half year-long state of emergency in place since a failed military coup to topple the administration of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker Senal Sarihan told a press conference at the Turkish Parliament that of the lawyers arrested, 488 faced maltreatment in police custody, as 79 of them were given prison sentences.
..Last week, the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) urged the Turkish government to stop persecuting lawyers.
“This situation demonstrates a flagrant disregard for the rule of law and is a deliberate attack on human rights defenders and legal professionals. We call on the Turkish government to bring an end to this deplorable situation and to adhere to international instruments,” IBAHRI’s Co-Chair Hans Corell said. According to IBAHRI, 1,488 lawyers were prosecuted, and 34 bar associations were shut down in Turkey.
Human Rights Watch in its World Report stated that Turkey “increased restrictions on the media, political opposition, and human rights defenders during 2017, on the back of a very narrow referendum“. Turkey also introduced a presidential system with insufficient democratic checks and balances against the president’s abuse of power. “Everywhere you look, checks and balances that protect human rights and rule of law in Turkey are being eroded” said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The move to a presidential system, the ongoing state of emergency, and charges against opposition lawmakers have all weakened parliament, the courts are under ever tighter government control, and the crackdown on media and civil society deepens.”..
In January 2018 the EU Fundamental Rights Agcncy (FRA) published a Report “Challenges facing civil society organisations working on human rights in the EU“. Its conclusion is that the situation is getting more difficult. Also, on 26 January 2018, the Thomson Reuters Foundation published an interview with Michel Forst, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders said that the EU are setting a bad example by allowing some of its members to stifle human rights groups, which is encouraging crackdowns elsewhere in the world.
In the interview done by Umberto Bacchi, Michel Forst said that the EU has historically done a good job supporting and protecting rights advocates worldwide but the bloc’s authority is now being undermined from within. Officials in Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Israel and other countries pointed at recent laws in Hungary and Poland to justify their own regulations which may curb the independence of non-governmental organisations.
“There is a need for European countries to be more coherent … not to teach human rights outside of Europe and then not respecting human rights inside Europe,” said Forst, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders. Charities in dozens of countries, from Angola to India and Tajikistan have faced restrictions targeting their funding and operations over the past two years, according to an EU report. The trend is part of a global backlash on civil society that has seen rights activists in some parts of the world criminalised or branded as troublemakers, Forst stated.
Besides Europe, Forst also singled out Australia for its treatment of asylum seekers held in offshore camps, adding it was “not a safe place” for human rights defenders due to pressure from the government. A December report by Pro Bono Australia and the Human Rights Law Centre, two rights groups, found Australian NGOs were often pressured into “self-silencing” their advocacy work fearing funding cuts and political retribution.
“(Global civil society) space is shrinking because it is shrinking in Europe, because it is shrinking in the Americas, in Australia,” said Forst.
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The FRA’s report finds that civil society organisations in the European Union play a crucial role in promoting fundamental rights, but it has become harder for them to do so – due to both legal and practical restrictions. This report looks at the different types and patterns of challenges faced by civil society organisations working on human rights in the EU. While challenges exist in all EU Member States, their exact nature and extent vary. Data and research on this issue – including comparative research – are generally lacking. The report also highlights promising practices that can counteract these worrying patterns.
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 