During the current session of the Human Rights Council there will again many side events in Geneva. I will refer to some of them not only in the hope that you may able to attend, but also to illustrate the concerns of the NGO movement:
On Tuesday 9 September from 12.00 to 13.30 (Palais des Nations, Room XXI) there will be a side-event organised jointly by Amnesty International, CIVICUS, Human Rights Watch, FIDH, ISHR and the International Bar Association. Speakers are:
Kenneth Roth, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch
Souhayr Belhassen, Honourary President, International Federation for Human Rights FIDH
Philip Luther, Middle East and North Africa Program, Amnesty International
Phillip Tahmindjis, Director, International Bar Association Human Rights Institute
The City of Geneva and the Martin Ennals Foundation have set the day of the 2014 ceremony for 7 October 2014, 6 pm, at Uni-Dufour, Geneva, during the opening day of the Human Rights Week hosted by the University of Geneva. Save this date in your agenda and register as from now online at: http://www.martinennalsaward.org/.
The laureate will be selected among the three Final Nominees of the 2014 edition:
Ms Cao Shunli (China), who lost her life on March 14th, 2014, had vigorously advocated since 2008 for access to information, freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, encouraging strengthened domestic implementation of international mechanisms.
Mr Adilur Rahman Khan (Bangladesh) has worked since the 1990’s on a wide range of humain rights issues, such as illegal detention, enforced disapearances, extra-judicial killing, and elections monitoring with his non-governmental organization, Odhikar.
Ms Alejandra Ancheita (Mexico) founder and Executive Director of ProDESC, has worked for more than 15 years with migrants, workers, and indigenous communities to protect their land and labour rights vis a vis transnational mining and energy companies.
The Jury of the Martin Ennals Award is made up of ten of the world’s leading human rights organizations: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Human Rights First, International Federation for Human Rights, World Organisation Against Torture, Frontline Defenders, the International Commission of Jurists, EWDE-Germany, the International Service for Human Rights, and HURIDOCS.
The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, organised an expert meeting on The Right to Privacy in the Digital Age‘ (hosted by the Permanent Missions of Austria, Brazil, Germany, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Norway, and Switzerland) in Geneva on 24-25 February 2014. The right to privacy is of great practical importance to human rights defenders who are often in the firing line of (mass) surveillance. The report is short and very readable and makes an excellent long read for the weekend. To help those pressed for time, here is the Summary of conclusions: Read the rest of this entry »
The foundation “Cartooning for Peace” went to Syria-Palestinian Hani Abbas and Egyptian Doaa Eladl for their work. Former Secretary General Kofi Annan handed them the international award for press cartoonists in Geneva, as part of World Press Day. French cartoonist Plantu gave Euronews his views on the significance of using cartoons as a form of expression: “We’re trying to show the level of resistance that exists today, from the perspective of the very people that allow us to understand the word “resistance”, the cartoonists that ultimately become the foot soldiers of democracy. In other words, they’re railing against different powers, not just the power of their editors but also against political and religious power.”
From Lake Geneva, euronews correspondent Wolfgang Spindler said: “Political cartoons can be subversive, provocative and amusing – they make us smile, they give us pause for thought. But we very often forget that the cartoonists behind them sometimes have to risk their lives daily for the sake of their work.” via: http://www.euronews.com/2014/05/05/drawing-for-peace
The cartoon exhibition on the banks of Lake Geneva runs until the beginning of July and then moves to Sarajevo.
On Tuesday 27 May 2014, will take place a Conference on the human rights situation in Belarus, from 14h00 –17h00 in the International Conference Centre in Geneva (room 3)
Speakers include:
Florian Irminger, Human Rights House Foundation
Tatsiana Reviaka, Human Rights Centre “Viasna” and Belarusian Human Rights House
Aleh Hulak, Belarusian Helsinki Committee
Anna Gerasimova, Belarusian Human Rights House
Volodymyr Yavorskyy, Working group on the development of the Guidelines on Definition of Political Prisoner
Andrzej Poczobut, journalist
Nicolas Agostini, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
Andrei Paluda, Human Rights Centre “Viasna”
Pavel Levinau, Belarusian Helsinki Committee
Natallia Pinchuk, wife of Belarus political prisoner Ales Bialaitski
Marina Adamovich, wife of Belarus political prisoner Mikola Statkevich
For more information contact: anna.innocenti[at]humanrightshouse.org
The meeting is cosponsored by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, FIDH, Civicus, Belarusian Human Rights House and the Human Rights House Foundation.
This is a fundraising appeal which this blog normally would not relay but as (1) it is done jointly by two organisations, (2) comes with images, and (3) has such a clear focus on human rights defenders, I make an exception. It was published on 8 May 2014by the International Service for Human Rights and the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project, to ensure that human rights defenders have the skills and resources they need. To donate, go to www.ishr.ch/donate.
It took a lot of wrangling but finally the President of the Human Rights Council has transmitted the list of candidates for mandate holders to be appointed on 8 May 2014 at the organizational meeting of the Human Rights Council. Michel Forst will succeed Margaret Sekaggya as Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders. To see the letter and list of all mandate holders: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6XUJ0SW4C68V0pTN25LdDhDTlk/edit
While not directly about Human Rights Defenders, this workshop organised by the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the UN and others (see below) is of great importance to HRDs as they are the ones who provide most of the information to the Treaty Bodies, and are often the victims of the violations reported, including reprisals against them for having cooperated. Thus, this meeting on “The outcome of the treaty body strengthening process: Lessons learnt, implications and implementation” should be of interest to all. It takes place on 9 May 2014, 9.30am to 1pm in Room XXII, Palais des Nations, Geneva. Read the rest of this entry »
The Sergio Vieira de Mello Foundation, in collaboration with the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, is organising its annual conference on Thursday 15 May 2014 at 18:30. The main speaker is Mr. José Ramos-Horta, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General in Guinea Bissau, and Patron of the MEA on the theme of “Preventing conflicts, ending wars, building desirable peace.” The lecture is free and open to everyone at the Maison de la paix, Auditorium Ivan Pictet, Chemin Eugène-Rigot 2, 1202 Geneva.
Mandeep Tiwana posted on 10 April in the Mail & Guardian a piece that – sadly – needed to be written. On how South Africa and India increasingly find themselves siding with Russia, China in votes concerning human rights in the UN Human Rights Council. Mandeep recalls that “Mandela was acutely aware of the role that international solidarity played in supporting anti-apartheid activists as they mobilised on the streets. As president, he made a compelling speech at the Southern African Development Community’s periodic conference in 1997 in Blantyre, Malawi. He urged that national sovereignty and non-interference in the affairs of other countries could not blunt the common concern for democracy, human rights and good governance in the regional grouping. Mandela called upon his fellow leaders to recognise the right of citizens to “participate unhindered in political activities”. Under title : “India, SA risk forsaking their proud histories on human rights” the piece makes good reading for your weekend: Read the rest of this entry »
