Posts Tagged ‘human rights’
April 18, 2013
The Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition (WHRD IC) strongly condemns the attempted assassination of the Honduran journalist Fidelina Sandoval, who was shot at outside the television and radio station Globo TV where she works on the morning of 8 April, 2013. Fidelina Sandoval was crossing Boulevar Morazán on her way to work when a grey van with two men sitting in the front caught her attention. She turned her face so as not to be looking directly at them, but seconds later heard a shot fired from a gun. The WHRD IC is disturbed by this attack and expresses its concern for the well-being of Fidelina Sandoval, her family and her colleagues, who have also been targeted. Globo TV alone has experienced multiple attacks including raids and the destruction of equipment, as well as threats, persecution, intimidation and other forms of rights violations and violence against the numerous staff members.
The WHRD IC is further disturbed by the escalating violence against WHRDs and widespread impunity in Honduras since the coup d’état in June 2009. As highlighted in a case study on Honduras in the WHRD IC’s Global Report <http://www.defendingwomen-defendingrights.org/pdf/WHRD_IC_Global%20Report_2012.pdf> , repression and denial of rights are not isolated cases but rather demonstrate a general policy of terror and abuse enacted with impunity – particularly towards women.
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Tags: Fidelina Sandoval, freedom of expression, Globo, globo tv, Honduras, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human Rights Defenders, Journalist, journalists, Rede Globo, threats, WHRD IC, woman human rights defender, Women Human Rights, Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition
April 17, 2013
According to the ‘24.kg news agency‘ [only] 394 brides have been kidnapped in Kyrgyzstan in 2012. Ombudsman Tursunbek Akun said this at a meeting of the parliament Committee for Human Rights. He said that the number used to be much larger: “But the Ombudsman’s Institute, human rights defenders, journalists, and us – we all are working on it. We can see positive changes. Rate of brides kidnapping for forced marriage has decreased. A man who kidnapped a bride has been sentenced to 6 years with our assistance”.
However in the related article mentioned below from June 2012 number estimates are much higher: ” Since it often goes unreported, the actual number of bride kidnappings is unknown although Kyrgyzstan Ombudsman Tursunbek Akun estimates that more than 8,000 young women are kidnapped each year.”
http://eng.24.kg/community/2013/04/16/26656.html
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Tags: Bishkek, bride kidnappings, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, human rights of women, kidnapping, Kyrgyzstan, Ombudsman, Ombudsman Tursunbek Akun, research, traditional practices, wedding
April 16, 2013
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about charges brought against a community educator in Burma for teaching political science. Min Min, a human rights defender based in the country’s lowland, is being prosecuted because he refused to heed warnings that he not teaches a course on political science at his community-based education centre. He is currently on bail with the trial underway. The details of the story are below: Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: AHRC, Asian Human Rights Commission, Burma, Education, freedom of information, human rights, Human rights defender, Min, Min Min, Myanmar, Ne Win, Political science, political science course, Pyay, Pyi, right to education
April 15, 2013
Interfax-Ukraine on 15 April reports that Ukrainian human rights activists have called for a quick adoption of a law regulating the freedom of demonstration after the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the case of Verentsov versus Ukraine. The Executive Director of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union (UHHRU) Arkadiy Buschenko said at a press conference today that human rights defenders had earlier called for the settlement of the legislation on freedom of peaceful assembly and now that the ECHRs judgment recommends that Ukraine liberalize the law in this area, the adoption of such a law becomes even more relevant. In the case of “Verentsov versus Ukraine” the court recognized the violation of Verentsov’s rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and obliged Ukraine to pay EUR 6,000 in compensation to Ukraine. The ECHR also proposed that Ukraine urgently reform the laws and administrative practices in order to determine the requirements for the organization and holding of peaceful assemblies, in particular, in the context of determining the grounds for restricting rallies. Human rights defenders have already prepared a draft law and submitted it for consideration by a number of MPs.
via Human rights activists call for speedy adoption of liberal law on freedom of assembly.
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Tags: Arkadiy Buschenko, European Court of Human Rights, freedom of assembly, freedom of demonstration, Human right, human rights, Human rights defender, Interfax-Ukraine, Law, Ukraine, Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union
April 15, 2013
Having just reported on his trial, it is fair to add that today we were informed by
that human rights defender Abdullah Fairouz was released on bail on 15 April 2013 upon payment of 200 Kuwait Dinars (approximately €536). A court date has yet to be set. During his detention period, Abdullah Fairouz was not permitted access to his lawyer including during interrogation. The human rights defender reported that police officers insulted him whilst in detention.
For more information on this case see the urgent appeal <http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/22298> concerning his arrest on 11 April 2013.
Posted in human rights | 1 Comment »
Tags: Abdullah Fairouz, detention, Front Line, Frontline Defenders, Human right, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, illegal detention, Kuwait, Middle East, release on bail
April 15, 2013
Front Line Defenders hosted human rights defender Galym Ageleuov from Kazakhstan on its Fellowship Programme in Dublin between January and March 2013. Galym is the founder and head of human rights NGO Liberty – based in Almaty and established in 2011 to monitor and document human rights abuses and promote freedom of the internet in Kazakhstan, including through the You Tube project “Open Your Eyes” which broadcasts videos highlighting socio-political life in the country.
Liberty was one of the few organisations that succeeded in reporting from Zhanaozen and disseminating video footage following the massacre in 2011 when a demonstration by striking oil workers was violently suppressed by police, resulting in at least 14 deaths. Efforts to spread the awful truth of what happened there led to a serious defamation campaign against the organisation which included accusations of inciting violence and attempting to overthrow the government.
Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Almaty, Dublin, fellowship, Frontline Defenders, Galym Ageleuov, Human right, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, internet, Kazakhstan, Non-governmental organization, You Tube, Zhanaozen
April 15, 2013
The Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders in Africa has announced with satisfaction the release of Mr Ibrahim Abdias Abdinur, a journalist and human rights defender in Somalia who was arrested and detained by the Somali police on 10 January 2013.
via Communique on the release of Mr Ibrahim Abdias Abdinur, journalist and human rights defender in Somalia / Press Releases / ACHPR.
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Tags: Africa, African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Human right, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, Ibrahim Abdias Abdinur, Journalist, Somalia, Special Rapporteur
April 15, 2013
The Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECWR) condemns the serious violations that occurred during the demonstrations on the evening of Friday, 29 March 2013. These Friday demonstrations were dubbed “Nobody Threaten Us” by the protesters. Officials cracked down on these protests and both male and female lawyers were assaulted inside the detention rooms, where thirteen lawyers and activists were detained in the El-Raml police station in Alexandria. Some of the female lawyers were sexually abused. It is worth mentioning that – according to statements by the detainees lawyers – the security forces and some Muslim Brotherhood personnel attacked them and beat them severely. They were tortured and dragged to the detention rooms. Two of the female lawyers were sexually abused
[As the 2010 Egyptian Legal practitioners’ law states as follows: Article 51: You cannot interrogate a lawyer or search his office without a permit from the public prosecutor. The public prosecutor should inform the lawyers syndicate and should give them enough notice before starting the interrogation. If a lawyer is accused of something related to his work, the head of the syndicate should attend the interrogation himself, or send a lawyer. The syndicate has the right to request a copy of the interrogation without paying any fees. Article 54: Anyone who has assaulted a lawyer verbally or non-verbally, or threatens him during his work, will receive the same punishment given to anyone who commits the same offense against a judge. ]
ECWR condemns these unprecedented violations, which it considers a continuation of the systematic crimes supported or tolerated by the current regime. Therefore, ECWR demands an immediate investigation and calls for accountability from the officials responsible
via ECWR Condemns the attack on Lawyers, Human Rights’ Defenders and Activists and Demands Accountability / Library / Home – AWID.
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Tags: Alexandria, ECWR, Egypt, female lawyers, freedom to demonstrate, Friday, human rights, Independence of Lawyers, lawyer, Middle East, Muslim Brotherhood, sexual abuse, Violence against women, Women's rights
April 15, 2013
On 9 April 2013, the Criminal Investigation Department in Kuwait detained human rights defender Mr 
Abdullah Fairouz on charges of insulting the judiciary using social media. The Prosecution Office has ordered ten days of detention pending interrogation on the charges. Abdullah Fairouz is a prominent Kuwaiti human rights defender and writer who has worked for several years on the rights of the Bedoun (citizens without identity cards or any prove of their citizenship). The human rights defender is also a member of the Bedoun Committee at the Kuwait Society for Human Rights. Hours after the disappearance of the human rights defender, it was confirmed that he had been detained at the Criminal Investigation Department after a judge ordered his arrest on accusations of insulting the judiciary by publishing tweets and blog posts. The human rights defender had been criticising the issue of a default judgement against Dr Obaid Al Wasmi and Saud Asfour. The defendants had not been notified of their hearing date and the judgement was issued without their knowledge. A request to visit the human rights defender by Mr Khalid Al-Hamidi, director of the Kuwait Society for Human Rights, was rejected by the Criminal Investigation Department without motive.
Front Line Defenders believes that the detention of Abdullah Fairouz is solely motivated by his peaceful and legitimate human rights work, and views this act as part of an ongoing campaign of judicial harassment against human rights defenders in Kuwait.
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Tags: Abdullah Fairouz, al hamidi, Bedoun, blog, Criminal Investigation Department, Front Line Defenders, Human right, human rights, Human Rights and Liberties, Human rights defender, human rights lawyer, Kuwait, Middle East, social media, twitter
April 15, 2013
Having two days ago referred to the scathing attack on human rights defenders in Zimbabwe by two academics, it is perhaps fitting to give some attention to the a NGO forum recently held in Banjul where over 50 of Africa’s top human rights advocates discussed the current shrinking space for civil society in Zimbabwe. The event, held on the sidelines of the NGO Forum in advance of this week’s session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights ACHPR, convened a expert panel that included Dzimbabwe Chimbga (ZLHR), Susan Mutambasere (NGO Forum), Mabassa Fall (International Federation for Human Rights), FIDH, Hassan Shire (Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network), and Wade McMullen (RFK Center). “Zimbabwe’s troubles from 2008-9 have returned,” noted Chimbga, “Over 400 human rights defenders have been targeted by the government in various ways in recent months.” The panel found systemic repression of civil society in violation of Zimbabwe’s international obligations. Several key issues were brought to the fore in the ensuing discussion, including the need for solidarity across the African continent and international community in advance of the impending elections in Zimbabwe. In response, pledges of solidarity, information sharing, and technical support came from across the region, including from human rights advocates in Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, South Africa, Swaziland, and Uganda. In particular, the discussion highlighted the need of SADC to both monitor and ensure that Zimbabwe’s electoral environment is free and fair in the months leading up to the vote. As a result of the side event, a resolution was passed by the entire NGO Forum, requesting that the African Commission more effectively engage on the issue of Zimbabwe.
via RFK Center, ZLHR and NGO Forum Highlight Recent Pattern of Suppression in Zim | The Zimbabwean.
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Tags: Africa, African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Banjul, Dzimbabwe Chimbga, elections in Zimbabwe, Hassan Shire, Human right, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, International Federation for Human Rights, NGO Forum, Non-governmental organization, Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network, RFK, Zimbabwe, ZLHR
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 