Archive for the 'UN' Category
June 17, 2015
For World Refugee Day 2015 (20 June) the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR] has released several films featuring celebrity supporters that tell the human side of the refugee plight. This years’ campaign aims to bring the public closer to the story, showing refugees as ordinary people living in extraordinary circumstances. World Refugee Day 2015 is marked against a backdrop of multiple conflicts, growing numbers of forcibly displaced people and a rising tide of intolerance and xenophobia in many parts of the world.
The films feature UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and best-selling author, Khaled Hosseini, photographer and supermodel Helena Christensen, singer/songwriter Maher Zain and actor Jung Woo-Sung . The films were recorded during recent field visits. Each supporter introduces an individual refugee and their story. These films and other refugee stories can be found on UNHCR’s Campaign website: www.refugeeday.org.
UNHCR offices in some 120 countries are planning various events including the film première of Salam Neighbor in Washington D.C.
The site www.refugeeday.org features stories from refugees who describe in their own words their own passions and interests; cooking, music, poetry, or sports. Through their testimonials UNHCR aims to show that these are ordinary people living through extraordinary times.
via UNHCR – UNHCR launches its 2015 World Refugee Day Campaign.
Posted in films, human rights, UN | 1 Comment »
Tags: celebrities, film portraits, films, Helena Christensen, Jung Woo-Sung, Khaled Hosseini, Maher Zain, public service announcements, refugees, Salam Neighbor, UNHCR, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, world refugee day
June 15, 2015
OMCT and FIDH (within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders) in cooperation with the ISHR organise on 16 June (16:00-17:30, room XXII, Palais des Nations – Geneva) a side event on Attacks and Reprisals against Human Rights Defenders, focusing on the issue of reprisals and accountability. As readers know by now, I believe that this is the topic which the human rights movement HAS TO TAKE more serious lest all progress of the last decades will be lost. My blog contains quite a few posts on reprisals (https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/reprisals/), but the key one is: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/03/13/zero-tolerance-for-states-that-take-reprisals-against-hrds-lets-up-the-ante/.
The objectives of the side event are: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, ISHR, Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, OMCT, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: FIDH, Geneva, Hans Thoolen, Human Rights Defenders, impunity, ISHR, José de Jesús Orozco, Michel Forst, NGOs, Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, OMCT, Reine Alapini-Gansou, reprisals, retaliation, side event
June 15, 2015
Some 325 organisations have signed up to a joint Statement which expresses outrage at the way that they have been excluded from both the negotiation of the political declaration and the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) Methods of Work resolution. [http://www.wave-network.org/content/nothing-about-us-without-us-statement-csw-methods-work-resolutions].
BACKGROUND:
The UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) each year provides a global platform for exchange and networking for women’s organizations working on furthering women’s rights all across the world, but this year’s session (March) was also the occasion to present the ‘Future organization and methods of work of the CSW which provides less space to NGOs to influence the outcomes of the session, through increasingly limited access to official negotiations and space to contribute to outcome documents. It seems that governments are intent limiting the (sometimes) robust participation of non-governmental organizations, restrict recognition of the human rights of women and girls and the norm-setting role of the CSW in this regard and skirt responsibility for implementing the Sustainable Development Goals.
The statement says: “It seems they are intent on discussing everything about us, without us….Let us be clear: we do not come to the CSW to attend side events. We come to the CSW to hold our governments to account to the commitments they have made to guarantee gender equality, eliminate all forms of discrimination and violence against us and achieve the full realization of all of our human rights. We come to the CSW to advance progressive policies that, if implemented, will make a meaningful difference in our lives. If the CSW no longer provides us with a forum for policy change and accountability that fully involves us, we will stay at home.”
Website Link which includes the 325 organizations that signed the Statement:
http://www.dawnnet.org/feminist-resources/sites/default/files/articles/nothing_about_us_without_us_0.pdf
via: http://www.wunrn.com
Posted in Human Rights Defenders, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Commission on the Status of Women, CSW, human rights of women, lobbying, networking, New York, NGO access, NGOs, UN, women human rights defenders
June 15, 2015
Unfortunately, Israel joined the countries that think non-cooperation with the UN pays: last week it refused entry to Makarim Wibisono, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, who is working on a report on rights violations in east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza. “Since taking up his mandate in June 2014… Wibisono has sought Israel’s cooperation with his mandate, including access to the occupied Palestinian territory and meetings with Israeli officials. His requests to access Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory in order to carry out his mandate have not received a formal response from the government of Israel,” said Xabier Celaya, from the media unit of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Right.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry justified its decision by saying that “Israel cooperates with most human rights mechanisms of the UN. Israel does not cooperate with unfair and unbalanced mandates such as the… rapporteur’s mandate, and consequently his entry to Israel is not allowed.”
[Israel remains the only country for which a special investigator is permanently assigned. The position of special investigator to the Palestinian territories was first created in 1993 and that Wibisono of Indonesia is the sixth person since then to hold that post.]
Earlier in the month, Wibisono spoke out against Israeli plans to relocate Palestinian Beduin communities in the West Bank “I am alarmed at indications that the rollout of plans, which in their full effect are believed to entail the forced eviction and forcible transfer of thousands of people, contrary to international human rights law and international humanitarian law, now appears imminent,” Wibisono said
https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/06/23/non-cooperation-from-some-states-with-the-un-human-rights-council-is-persistent/
via Israel refuses entry to UN special investigator Wibisono – Arab-Israeli Conflict – Jerusalem Post.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, OHCHR, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Beduin, entree refusal, Israel, Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Makarim Wibisono, non-cooperation, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Palestine, UN Special Rapporteur, Xabier Celaya
June 13, 2015
In the context of the 29th session of the UN Human Rights Council a side event – organized by the Human Rights House Network and several other NGOs – will shine light on the severe restrictions on fundamental freedoms and the imprisonment of human rights defenders in Azerbaijan, which risk turning these European Olympics into a sad symbol of repression. Live webcast on: www.peopleinneed.cz and www.azadiq.org
Speakers:
- Dinara Yunus
Daughter of detained human rights defenders Leyla and Arif Yunus
- Idrak Abbasov
Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (IRFS)
- Gulnara Akhundova
International Media Support
Moderation by Florian Irminger Human Rights House Foundation
Remarks:
- Michel Forst
Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Maina Kiai (TBC)
Special Rapporteur on rights to freedom of assembly and association
- David Kaye (TBC)
Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression
It will taken place on Tuesday, 16 June 2015, 11:00 – 13:00 in Geneva (Switzerland), Palais des Nations, room XVII.
For access and more information contact: Anna Innocenti, International Advocacy Officer, Human Rights House Foundation ( +41 22 332 25 56 )
via: Azerbaijan: the repressive side of the European Olympic Games – Human Rights House Network.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Council | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Azerbaijan, Baku Games, David Kaye, Dinara Yunus, European Games, Geneva, Gulnara Akhundova, Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights House Foundation, Idrak Abbasov, Maina Kiai, Michel Forst, side event, UN Human Rights Council, UN Special Rapporteurs, webcast
June 12, 2015
The UN Human Rights Council will hold its 29th regular session at the United Nations in Geneva from 15 June to 3 July. Courtesy of the International Service for Human Rights, here is my selection of what is directly relevant to Human Rights Defenders: 
– During the session, Norway, along with other States, will deliver a statement calling on all States to ensure that human rights defenders are able to carry out their vital work free from arbitrary detention and other restrictions. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, ISHR, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Belarus, Business and human rights, CIVICUS, freedom of association, Human Rights Defenders, Iraq, ISHR, Ivory Coast, LGBTI Human Rights Defenders, Norway, Resolution, side event, Spain, Syria, UN Human Rights Council, UPR, women human rights defenders
June 6, 2015
typical NGO coalition?
My earlier posts on the Baku Games [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/azerbaijan/] would not be complete without a reference to what is being done by Government (here called “The Civil Society Coalition Support for the Baku 2015 first European Games”) which held a round table on “Double-standard approach of international organizations toward human rights” on June 2015.
Sometimes the best reply is to say nothing and show how the poor response is by voting the piece in full. Note that not a word was uttered about the content of the disputed article. Not even the beginning of a discussion on whether the human rights defenders in question should be in detention. One can only conclude that the facts as put forward by the 3 authors and international human rights organizations are correct:
“Delivering an opening speech at the event, Rufiz Gonagov, the coordinator of the Civil Society Coalition, chairman of the International Relations Research Center, said certain circles, which have an unfriendly attitude toward the relations with Azerbaijan, have already begun to express their concerns over the country as first European Games – the grandeur event of a global scale – is approaching.
Aydin Aliyev, the coordinator of the Civil Society Coalition, editor-in-chief of “Baku-xeber” newspaper, said in his speech that the European Parliament is due to hold hearings on the upcoming European Games and human rights situation on June 10.
“The article, co-written by UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders Michel Forst, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović and Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks, claims that representatives of international organizations and foreign human rights defenders undergo pressure in Azerbaijan as well. It is a groundless article which indicates double-standard approach of certain circles toward Azerbaijan as it is doing its utmost to hold the major sports event successfully,” Aliyev added.
Rauf Zeyni, the head of National NGOs Forum, said actions of anti-Azerbaijani circles pose a threat to the country’s independence, noting that as the Azerbaijani president stated, Azerbaijan will never give up its independence.
Alimammad Nuriyev, the chairman of the Center for Constitutional Studies, said the circles directed from a single center have already begun to take insidious actions as their attempts fail.
“I don’t remember such a statement was issued when people were shot during the Armenian parliamentary elections on February 19, two were shot dead on the eve of the elections in Georgia in 2011 and even after two Azerbaijanis were taken hostage by Armenians. However, these circles, including these three authors began to issue such a statement on the eve of the European Games,” he noted.
Vugar Rahimzade, the chief editor of “Iki sahil” newspaper, said these circles continue to demonstrate double-standard approach toward the negotiations on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azerbaijan’s most painful problem.
“Some countries try to secure their own interests in Azerbaijan by putting pressure on the country through the UN, OSCE and the Council of Europe. Behind the veil of democracy, people are being killed in the Middle East. We need to adopt a statement against such international organizations to put an end to double standards toward Azerbaijan,” he added.
Politician Elman Nasirov said these circles changed the direction of pressure when they saw that Azerbaijan is fully ready to host the first European Games.
“The article co-written by the UN, OSCE and Council of Europe representatives is aimed against Azerbaijan’s policy. This pressure will continue after European Games,” he noted.
Hikmat Babaoglu, the editor chief of “Yeni Azerbaijan” newspaper, regarded the joint statement of the representatives of the three international organizations as an attempt to unite their pressure due to the increasing power of Azerbaijan.
At the end of the event, a statement was adopted on the behalf of civil society institutions and media outlets.”
APA – Round table ‘Double-standard approach of int’l organizations toward human rights’ held in Baku – PHOTO.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Azerbaijan, Baku Games, Civil society, double standards, European Games, Human Rights Defenders, Muiz, NGOs, Nils Muižnieks, OSCE, Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders
June 5, 2015
On 25 May 2015 the inaugural PEN Canada/Honduras Award for investigative journalism, ‘Escribir sin Miedo’, was presented in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, to the journalist and documentary filmmaker Fred Alvarado for his essay “HONDURAS: the Process of American Remilitarization and the Failure of the War on Drugs”.
Escribir sin Miedo was organized and launched by the newly established PEN Honduras centre, in partnership with PEN Canada, with funding from the British embassy in Guatemala. “Investigative journalism has never been more important in this country,” said Dina Meza, president of PEN Honduras, “and awards like this recognize the importance of creating a culture in which writers and human rights defenders can address sensitive issues without fearing for their lives.”
And the problems are grave:
– At least 30 journalists have been killed since the country’s 2010 Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations, and at least 48 since 2003. Several were killed even after receiving protection measures, including “precautionary measures” granted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). To date the government has obtained convictions in just four of these cases, with the remaining 44 unresolved – an impunity rate of over 90 per cent.
– Frontline reports that Honduran human rights defender, Ms Gladys Lanza Ochoa, continues to face intimidation and harassment following her sentencing to 18-months imprisonment on 26 March 2015. An appeal against the sentencing has been lodged before the Supreme Court of Honduras. [Gladys Lanza Ochoa is Coordinator of the Movimiento de Mujeres por la Paz Visitación Padilla (Honduran Women’s Committee for Peace “Visitación Padilla”), a collective of women human rights defenders from across Honduras who work on issues such as gender violence and women’s participation in public life, in addition to advocating for democracy and human rights in Honduras. Over the last years, Gladys Lanza Ochoa, as well as other members of Visitación Padilla have been regularly victims of threats, intimidation and surveillance in connection with their human rights work (https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/19743) Most recently, on 14 May 2015, the human rights defender was followed by unidentified persons riding motorcycles and driving a car that did not bear registration plates. This intimidation occurs right after Gladys Lanza Ochoa’s lawyer launched her appeal before the Supreme Court against her sentence to 18 months in prison https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/28385.
– On 25 May 2015 Telesur published a lengthy “Analysis From Reagan to Obama: Forced Disappearances in Honduras” which provides many details on 30 years of horror: “Hondurans today suffer not just from the terror of death squads but from the ravages of three decades of the implementation of neoliberal policy made possible by death squads, which makes them that much more vulnerable.”
– Bertha Oliva, director of COFADEH and winner of the Tulip award, lost her husband Tomas Nativi to forced disappearance by Battalion 316. Nativi was taken from their home by masked agents in 1981 and has never been seen again. Over the years after Nativi’s disappearance, Oliva came to realize that she was not alone, and others had similar experiences of family members being disappeared. In 1982, 12 of these families came together to form COFADEH with the objective of bringing back alive family members who had been disappeared. In the majority of cases throughout the 1980s while Battalion 316 was operating, COFADEH did not succeed in their goal. After the 1980s, COFADEH broadened its scope as an organization not only committed to seeking justice for the families of the disappeared and truth for Honduran society, but also representing and defending victims of human rights abuses, documenting cases, and providing training to raise awareness about human rights. The creation of COFADEH was, in its own words, a “concrete action” in the face of the inactivity of the state to ensure “the right of victims to live and to have due process, among other rights that have been violated.” COFADEH has continued to play a key role in documenting and denouncing human rights abuses and demanding justice, particularly once again in the years since the coup.
for more on Honduras: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/honduras/
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/analysis/From-Reagan-to-Obama-Forced-Disappearances-in-Honduras-20150522-0027.html
Posted in awards, Front Line, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | 2 Comments »
Tags: award, Bertha Oliva, Canada, COFADEH, death threats, disappearances, Fred Alvarado, Front Line (NGO), Honduras, Human Rights Defenders, journalists, Lanza Ochoa, PEN, Telesur, UPR, USA
June 4, 2015
Having just posted about the call by UN and others to free human rights defenders before the start of the Baku Games [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2015/06/04/un-council-of-europe-and-osce-ask-azerbaijan-to-free-human-rights-defenders-ahead-of-2015-baku-games/] , I feel I should also share what was written in response by Sara Rajabova on the site of the government’s news agency AzerNews:
“Azerbaijan‘s Foreign Ministry has accused some officials of international organizations of abusing their status to discredit Azerbaijan. Hikmet Hajiyev, Azerbaijani foreign ministry spokesperson, said on June 4 that officials of some international organizations abuse their status and act as the elements of a sponsored campaign to discredit Azerbaijan on the eve of the First European Games.”
Who is ‘sponsoring’ and with what inducements remains unstated except that they serve “the interests of certain political circles”.
He noted that the first European Games in Baku will serve to the development of intercultural and inter-religious dialogue, friendship, partnership and peace, which is topical in the European continent nowadays. All true, but human rights are not topical? Yes, but only when it comes to the “infringed rights of over a million Azerbaijani refugees and internally displaced persons as a result of Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan.”
via Some foreign diplomats run sponsored campaign to discredit Azerbaijan – AzerNews.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Azerbaijan, AzerNews, Baku Games, Council of Europe, Dunja Mijatović, European Games, Human Rights Defenders, Michel Forst, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nils Muižnieks, OSCE, selectivity, Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders
June 4, 2015
Every time I now see one of the many flashy television announcements for the Baku Games starting next week, I have to think of the human rights defenders in detention there. So the effortd by many NGOs and experts to link the holding of these Games to Azerbaijan’s terrible human rights record seem to bear fruit. I have written myself several times along these lines [recently: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2015/04/21/azerbaijan-a-formula-for-combining-sports-and-repression/], so I will not repeat all the arguments. Just to note that several heavyweights have added their voices: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, UN | 1 Comment »
Tags: Azerbaijan, Baku Games, Council of Europe, detention, Dunja Mijatović, European Games, Human Rights Defenders, Khadija Ismayilova, Leyla Yunus, Michel Forst, Nils Muižnieks, OSCE, Rasul Jafarov, sports and politics, UN Special Rapporteurs
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 