Posts Tagged ‘Human Rights and Liberties’
February 23, 2013
The InQuirer from Monrovia reports on 21 February 2013 that Search For Common Ground (SFCG) has launched a new project in Liberia. According to Oscar Bloh, Country Director of SFCG, the project is being launched in Lofa and Bong Counties, two of Liberia’s most populated counties, with the aim of encouraging the authorities to protect and promote human rights in the country. According to Bloh, now that the 14-year war has ended with a democratically elected government, the protection of human rights and access to justice should be key factors in promoting good governance in the country. The organization is working in partnership with the Independent National Human Rights Commission of Liberia, the United Nations Mission In Liberia UNMIL, the Government of Liberia (through the Ministry of Justice) and the European Union in implementing the project which targets about 80,000 citizens. He said the SFCG will work with county authorities, including the police, to engage society and stakeholders by explaining the rule of law. Giving an overview of the project, Mr. James Yarsiah, Executive Director of the partner NGO ‘Rights and Rice’ said the protection of human rights is cardinal to the national transformation in Liberia explained that the activities under the project include the training of local rights activists, providing skills for selected civil society organizations and empowerment of the citizens. The Executive Secretary of the Coalition of Human Rights Defenders, Daniel H. Allison, said over the past fifteen years Liberia has become a violator of human rights despite the election of a democratically elected government. He called on the Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf led administration to exert every effort to stop human rights violation in the country. This may not be earth-shaking news but is a nice example of the myriad of local projects that are going on.
via allAfrica.com: Liberia: SFCG Launches Human Rights Project in Lofa, Bong.
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Tags: Africa, Civil society, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, European Union, Human right, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human Rights Defenders, Liberia, Monrovia, NGOs, projects, Search For Common Ground
February 22, 2013
On 18 February 2013, a number of human rights defenders and civil society organisations were publicly accused of carrying out a “well orchestrated campaign of disinformation” and of publishing defamatory and false material on a military task force in the Aguán region, “damaging the image of the nation”. The allegations were made during a press conference convened by the Commander of the Joint Task Force “Xatruch III” German Antonio Alfaro Escalante.
During the press conference, the Plataforma Agraria Regional del Aguán (Regional Agricultural Platform of Aguán) and human rights defenders Messrs Wilfredo Paz, Vitalino Alvarez, Yoni Rivas and Marvín Palacios were accused of publishing false accusations regarding Xatruch III through online networks and international human rights organisations. The websites Defensoresenlinea.com, Voselsoberano.com and Hondurastierralibre.com were each accused of publishing material accusing the Task Force of intimidating, threatening and killing people Colón. Commander Alfaro Escalante also referred to the human rights organisation Comité para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos en Honduras Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Advocacy Organizations, Civil society, Front Line, German Antonio Alfaro Escalante, Honduras, Human right, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, Latin America, military, threats
February 19, 2013
Human rights defenders Messrs
He Jun Ling, Gao Yue Qiang, Liu Xiangying, and
Wang Xian Jie will go on a joint trial from 4 to 8 March 2013, reports Front Line Defenders.He Jun Ling, Gao Yue Qiang Liu Xiangying, and Wang Xian Jie are human rights defenders who were employed by the state controlled public transport operator SMRT Ltd. More than 100 mainland Chinese bus drivers refused to report for duty on the 26
th of November 2012. It took some time for authorities to label the stoppage an ‘illegal strike’. Once that happened, things moved quickly. 29 drivers accused of participating in the action were swiftly rounded up and deported. Five men were also arrested. One has already been tried, jailed and sent back home. The others – He Jun Ling, Gao Yue Qiang, Liu Xiang Ying and Wang Xian Jie – are waiting for their cases to be heard. They are currently facing charges of inciting an illegal strike among bus drivers, and could be sentenced to a fine of 2,000 Singapore dollars (approx €1,250), a 12-month prison sentence or both.
He Jun Ling and
Liu Xiangying revealed last week that were assaulted by police officials while they were held in custody in December 2012. According to the information received, He Jun Ling was interrogated from 5am to 1pm, during which time he was locked in a small room, handcuffed, and beaten in the stomach. Liu Xiangying reported that an official threatened him, stating that “they can dig a hole and bury him. No one will be able to find him.” He was also handcuffed to a chair and beaten in his neck and the left side of his body.
Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Chinese, detention, Front Line, Human Rights and Liberties, Human Rights Defenders, ill treatment, industrial action, police beatings, right to strike, Singapore, strike, torture, Trade union, transport, transportation, Vimeo
February 16, 2013
More than two months after his arrest, the whereabouts of human rights defender and religious leader Imam Baba Leigh continues to remain unknown. Imam Baba Leigh was taken from his home on 3 December 2012 by two men believed to be part of the Gambia‘s National Intelligence Agency. Imam Baba Leigh is a religious leader and an active human rights defender. He serves as a religious advisor for The Gambia Committee on Traditional Practices (GAMCOTRAP), an organisation working in the area of sexual and reproductive health and the rights of women and children. He is known as an outspoken campaigner who has aptly used his religious status to advocate for human rights and social reform. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Baba Leigh, detention, disappearances, Forced disappearance, Front Line (NGO), Gambia, Human right, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, imam, Imam Baba Leigh, NGO, sexual and reproductive health
February 7, 2013
A draft law to criminalise “homosexual propaganda”, currently being considered by the Russian parliament, flagrantly violates international human rights laws and standards, says the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR). The ISHR is particularly concerned that the law will be used to target, intimidate or harass human rights defenders and those who speak out on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people. “States have an obligation not only to respect and protect human rights, but also to respect and protect those who stand up and speak out for human rights. Russia’s draft law is manifestly incompatible with this obligation,” said Ms Collister of the ISHR.
ISHR’s statement comes as three United Nations Independent human rights experts have also called on Russian parliament to scrap the draft Bill. In a joint statement issued by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on the right to health, the experts state, “The draft legislation could further contribute to the already difficult environment in which these defenders operate, stigmatizing their work and making them the target of acts of intimidation and violence, as has recently happened in Moscow.”
For further comment, contact Heather Collister, International Service for Human Rights, on + 41 79 920 3805 or h.collister@ishr.ch.
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Tags: draft law, freedom of expression, Freedom of speech, health, homoph, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, International Service for Human Rights, legislation, LGBT rights, Moscow, Russia, Special Rapporteur, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, UN Rapporteurs, United Nations
February 5, 2013
Having just today reported on the new human rights defenders network created in the Arab world, I would be amiss not to draw attention to the developments of an already existing network in Africa. On 4 February 2013 the Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network (PAHRD-Net) officially launched from Kampala, Uganda, a 3-year programme totalling 1.8 million Euros to promote a safe legal and working environment for human rights defenders (HRDs) across Africa.
“The tireless and innovative work done at the sub-regional level to protect human rights defenders will now have a dedicated venue at the Pan-African level for mutual support and reinforcement,” said Hassan Shire Sheikh, Chairperson of PAHRD-Net and Executive Director of the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (EHAHRDP). Today’s launch is the result of a process started in 1998 in Johannesburg (All-Africa Human Rights Defenders Conference) and renewed in 2009 at the follow-up meeting in Kampala.
PAHRD-Net brings together the five sub-regional human rights defenders networks in Africa (the Central African HRD Network, the East and Horn of Africa HRD Network, the North Africa HRD Network represented through the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, the Southern Africa HRD Network hosted by the International Commission for Jurists, and the West African HRD Network) to meet the protection needs of human rights defenders and especially to address the needs of the five groups of most-at-risk: journalists fighting to end impunity and corruption, women human rights defenders, defenders working on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, HRDs working under oppressive regimes or in armed/post-conflict areas, and HRDs engaging with the resource extraction industries.
Human rights defenders are individuals working alone or through organizations under the goal of promoting respect for universal human rights norms. Frequently HRDs come into conflict with the entrenched local power structures of state and non-state actors through their activism. This conflict can put in jeopardy the security of the HRD and their work and family networks. HRDs are often the victims of harassment, threats, assault, injury, and death across Africa, and many are forced into exile, a move which may effectively end their advocacy for human rights. The consolidation and growth of protection mechanisms within the sub-regions will improve the responses available to mitigate these threats and develop HRDs’ ability to manage their own security effectively.
The European Commission supports the new programme under its global fund for Democracy and Human Rights, which is to underpin the implementation of the European Union Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders
For further information please contact:
Hassan Shire Sheikh – Chairperson, Pan African Human Rights Defenders Network executive@defenddefenders.org
Joseph Bikanda – Coordinator, Pan African Human Rights Defenders Network: Tel +256-312-202133, +256-312-265825, or panafrica@defenddefenders.org
Rachel Nicholson – Advocacy Officer, East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project: Tel +256-312-265-824, +256-778-921274, or advocacy@defenddefenders.org
Posted in human rights | 2 Comments »
Tags: Africa, EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders, European Commission, Hassan Shire Sheikh, Human right, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, impunity, Johannesburg, journalists, Kampala, PAHRD-Net, Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network, protection, resource extraction, women human rights defenders
February 5, 2013
The goal of the
International Centre for supporting Rights and Freedoms (ICSRF) is “
the provision of legal assistance to human rights activists in all countries of the world and its commitment to establish a new generation of cadres working in the field of defense of human rights“, although strangely its website
http://www.icsrf.org/ is at the moment only in Arabic and the scope of its activities seems to be restricted to the Arab-speaking world.
The creation of the new network was announced at the conclusion of a regional training course entitled “supporting skills of the defenders of human rights in the Arab countries”, held from 24 to 25 January 2013 in Kuwait with the participation of 32 participants from Kuwait, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman including human rights organizations, human rights defenders and activists monitoring and documenting human rights violations.
The ‘Freedom – Network of Human Rights Defenders’ is established under the management of the International Centre for supporting Rights and Freedoms (ICSRF) and the members of the network will be selected from the participants who attended one of the training courses of the ICSRF or from those who work closely with the ICSRF. They will be trained on how to use international law and communication skills with media – both at the theoretical and practical level – in addition to the role of each member in monitoring and documenting violations. The ICSRF aims to create “a new generation of human rights defenders who are able to practice human rights work in a professional manner in line with the international law and the latest international developments as well as to establish a network of human rights defenders.”
Although everything points more to a regional than an international network, one can only wish them success as the Middle East is a region where Human Rights Defenders require support and freedom.
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Tags: Advocacy Organizations, Bahrain, freedom, human rights, human rights activists, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, human rights organizations, human rights violations, information technology, International Centre for supporting Rights and Freedoms, Kuwait, legal assistance, media, Middle East, network, Oman, protection, Saudi Arabia
February 5, 2013
The Jakarta Post of 4 February reports that a group of scholars and rights activists have raised concerns about the radical and worrying change of the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) head’s tenure from the previous 2.5 years to only a year. In the picture on the right you see the Head of Komnas HAM Otto Nur Abdullah (second right) in talks with former Komnas HAM executive director Miriam Nainggolan (right), Setara Institute chief executive Hendardi (second left) and former Komnas HAM commissioner MM Billah (left) at Komnas HAM headquarters on Monday .(JP/Jerry Adiguna)
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Tags: human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights commission, independence, Indonesia, Jakarta Post, Komnas HAM, National Human Rights Commission, Otto Nur Abdullah, politics
February 2, 2013
Radhia Nasraoui, human rights defender and lawyer, is awarded the 2012 Olof Palme Prize, for her untiring work against torture and impunity for more than three decades. As a concerned and patriotic citizen, she has under severe pressure defended human rights in Tunisia and challenged authorities under the motto “We must use our voices. Not saying anything makes us accomplices of the oppression”.
Waleed Sami Abu al-Khair receives the 2012 Olof Palme Prize for his strong, self-sacrificing and sustained struggle to promote respect for human and civil rights for both men and women in Saudi Arabia. Together with like-minded citizens and colleagues, Waleed Sam Abu AlKhair does so with the noble goal of contributing to a just and modern society in his country and region.
THE OLOF PALME PRIZE, the Swedish labor movement’s most prestigious award since 1987 when the Olof Palme Fund’s Board decided to establish an annual prize for a particularly significant achievement in the spirit of Olof Palme. The prize consists of USD 75 000.
Posted in Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: Advocacy Organizations, Human right, human rights advocates, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, labour movement, Middle East, Olof Palme, Radhia Nasraoui, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Tunisia, Waleed Sami Abu al-Khair
February 2, 2013
Under the title “Urgent Appeals, theory and practice“, the NGO ‘Asian Human Rights Commission‘ reflects on the need and increasing practicality (especially thanks to IT) of conducting urgent appeals. The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations and it now concludes that “Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies. The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region”.
for the full text of the reflection go to: http://www.humanrights.asia/news/urgent-appeals
To illustrate the point the AHRC comes at the same time with a call for action against what it calls a “witch hunt” by the Indian authorities against human rights defender Madhuri Krishnaswami of the Jagrat Dalit Adivasi Sangthan. In the most recent attack, the District Magistrate has written a letter to the Divisional Commissioner that found its way to Chief Secretary accusing the organisation to have links with Maoists and have demanded an inquiry into the issue. The attack is not a stray one but comes high on heels of an externment notice served on her by the same district administration in May, 2012 and subsequent attack on a JADS rally by the local goon with the administration looking away. Interestingly, the charge has been refuted by the police with the Inspector General of Police, categorically denying the presence of any Maoists activities in the reason.[The administration, evidently, is working on the behest of deeply entrenched vested interests whose corruption Madhuri and the organisation have continuously been exposing. The current attack, too, is an attempt to divert attention from the massive scam in the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act in the area tipped to be worth more than 150 crore INR.]
At the same time the AHCR expresses great concern over the abduction of 4 human rights defenders in Pakistan by (probably) members of an outlawed religious organization. The unknown armed persons abducted six workers of a NGO including, two lady workers. However, after some time they threw the two women out of the vehicle. It is feared that the abducted workers would be assassinated as has happened in the past. Many health workers and human rights defenders have been killed after their abduction by such ‘religious groups’. The NGO, ‘HAND’, works under the UN programme. The abducted persons and female workers who were working in the Noor Mohammad Village Goth, Mauripur, Karachi, where they have been distributing medicines and rations to the residents for some time. The male abductees were Engineer Amjad Ali Siyal, Mohammad Ashfaq, dispenser, Khurram Ahmad Abbas, dispenser and driver Humayun Ahmad, driver. The released women, Miss. Shakila and Miss. Rashida told police that the kidnappers had taken the four abducted workers in a car towards Balochistan. The police claim that they were abducted by one of the banned Muslim extremist groups who are opposed to the polio vaccination programme and this incident due to the campaign against NGO volunteers. It is believed that the abductors are convinced that they are working for the interests of America or the West.
Posted in AHRC, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: AHRC, Asian Human Rights Commission, dalits, HAND, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human Rights Defenders, India, Madhuri Krishnaswami, NGO, Non-governmental organization, Pakistan, United Nations, urgent action, urgent appeals
The InQuirer from Monrovia reports on 21 February 2013 that Search For Common Ground (SFCG) has launched a new project in Liberia. According to Oscar Bloh, Country Director of SFCG, the project is being launched in Lofa and Bong Counties, two of Liberia’s most populated counties, with the aim of encouraging the authorities to protect and promote human rights in the country. According to Bloh, now that the 14-year war has ended with a democratically elected government, the protection of human rights and access to justice should be key factors in promoting good governance in the country. The organization is working in partnership with the Independent National Human Rights Commission of Liberia, the United Nations Mission In Liberia UNMIL, the Government of Liberia (through the Ministry of Justice) and the European Union in implementing the project which targets about 80,000 citizens. He said the SFCG will work with county authorities, including the police, to engage society and stakeholders by explaining the rule of law. Giving an overview of the project, Mr. James Yarsiah, Executive Director of the partner NGO ‘Rights and Rice’ said the protection of human rights is cardinal to the national transformation in Liberia explained that the activities under the project include the training of local rights activists, providing skills for selected civil society organizations and empowerment of the citizens. The Executive Secretary of the Coalition of Human Rights Defenders, Daniel H. Allison, said over the past fifteen years Liberia has become a violator of human rights despite the election of a democratically elected government. He called on the Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf led administration to exert every effort to stop human rights violation in the country. This may not be earth-shaking news but is a nice example of the myriad of local projects that are going on.
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 