Posts Tagged ‘land rights’
April 24, 2015
Jeremy Hance – writing in Mongabay on 20 April, under the title “Killings of environmental activists jumped by 20 percent last year“ confirms again the terrible truth that it is in the countryside, away from monitors, and in disputes over land issues that the most gruesome repression takes place and the leader is..Brazil! [for last year’s report see: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/04/16/environment-deadly-for-human-rights-defenders-says-global-witness/]
Soy field in the Brazilian Amazon. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler.
The assassination, murder, and extrajudicial killing of environmental activists rose by 20 percent last year, according to a new grim report by Global Witness. The organization documented 116 killings in 2014 across 17 countries with the highest number in Brazil, which saw 29 environmental and land defenders killed. Still, the report is a major understatement of the problem as data across much of Africa, China, the Middle East, and Central Asia remains scarce to non-existent.
“Across the world environmental defenders are being shot dead in broad daylight, kidnapped, threatened, or tried as terrorists for standing in the way of so-called ‘development’,” said Billy Kyte, a campaigner with Global Witness. “The true authors of these crimes—a powerful nexus of corporate and state interests—are escaping unpunished. Urgent action is needed to protect citizens and bring perpetrators to justice.”
Most of the deaths last year—116 of them—were related to disputes over land. But mining was linked to 25 deaths, and hydroelectric dams and agribusiness to 14 each. Indigenous people also remain among the most targeted.
“In 2014, 47 indigenous people were killed defending their natural resources, 40 percent of the total deaths of environmental and land defenders,” reads Global Witness’s new report, entitled How Many More?. This year’s report follows a landmark document last year that tracked environmental activist killing—all 908 of them—over a dozen years.
Environmental activist killings by sector. Image courtesy of Global Witness.
Human rights defenders are stigmatized (as ‘anti-development’) and criminalized in order to silence their opposition.
While Brazil had the highest number of environmental activist murders in 2014, the most dangerous place to be an environmental activist was actually Honduras, according to Global Witness. During the last five years (2010-2014), Honduras lost 101 activists, giving it the highest rate of environmental activist killings per capita.
“A UN Human Rights Council resolution addressing the heightened risk posed to environmental and land defenders would be a start,” Kyte said. “But, in the end, governments themselves have to take responsibility and ensure impartial, exhaustive investigations into killings of these activists. And they have to bring perpetrators to account. Many targeted assassinations of activists are being passed off as ‘common’ murders and are going unnoticed.”
Environmental activist killings by country. Those in red were indigenous people. Image courtesy of Global Witness.
Read more: http://news.mongabay.com/2015/0420-hance-activist-murder-rise.html#ixzz3XxWqLdTV
Killings of environmental activists jumped by 20 percent last year.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 2 Comments »
Tags: annual report, Billy Kyte, Brazil, environmental activists, extrajudicial killings, Global Witness, Honduras, How Many More?, Human Rights Defenders, impunity, indigenous minorities, indigenous peoples, Jeremy Hance, land rights, Mongabay, statistics, stigmatization
December 11, 2014
On Human Rights Day, FIDH reports that Chan Soveth, a prominent Cambodian human rights defender, has died at the early age of 51. He was a senior investigator at the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC, a member organization of FIDH). “Chan Soveth was a voice for the voiceless. For decades, he selflessly worked for victims of human rights violations and abuses, in particular the poor and those living in remote areas, which ADHOC managed to reach out to”, said Karim Lahidji, FIDH President. “Soveth’s death is a great loss for his family, his colleagues and Cambodia’s human rights community, but the heritage of courage and commitment he left will last for generations”.
On many occasions, Soveth’s human rights work and personal commitment had caused him to be subjected to threats, intimidation and reprisals in the form of judicial harassment. In 2012, he had been forced to stay outside his country for several months. Upon his return, despite receiving another summon to appear before Cambodia’s flawed judicial system, and thus, despite the risk of being arbitrarily detained, he had decided to stay in Cambodia, amongst his fellow countrymen. Soveth relentlessly fought against human rights violations – from land grabbing and violations of people’s and communities’ rights to food, water or housing, to extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, torture, and violations of the rights to free expression and free assembly. He was not only a great investigator, trainer and human rights advocate, but also an inspiration to many. He was always eager to improve his impressive human rights and professional skills and to celebrate successes.
Cambodia and the community of human rights defenders lose a (…).
more details in: http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/rights-warrior-passes-age-51
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Adhoc, Cambodia, Chan Soveth, death, detention, FIDH, Human rights defender, human rights violations, in memoriam, intimidation, Karim Lahidji, land rights
December 5, 2014
Radio Free Asia reported on 27 November that Vietnamese human rights defenders and foreign diplomats went ahead with a planned human rights conference in Hanoi on Wednesday, defying efforts by police to harass and intimidate. The conference, titled “U.N. Protection Mechanisms for Human Rights Defenders in Vietnam,” was held at the Thai Ha church in Vietnam’s capital Hanoi, and was attended by over 70 members of civil society groups, together with representatives of the United Nations and embassies of Australia, the U.S., the UK, and the European Union.After being warned by police that the rare gathering was considered “illegal” by authorities, event organizer Nguyen Quang A was repeatedly blocked in his efforts to arrive at the church, he told RFA’s Vietnamese Service on Wednesday. It took him 4 hours to reach the meeting place after having been blocked several times from taking public transport.
Vietnam Rights Conference Goes Ahead Despite Police Harassment.
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Tags: conference, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, Hanoi, harassment, human rights conference, Human Rights Defenders, intimidation, land rights, Nguyen Quang, Radio Free Asia, RFA, Vietnam
December 2, 2014
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (joint programme of OMCT and FIDH) has, since 2013, launched more than 500 urgent interventions on more than 60 countries. Its 2014 Annual Report came out today in the context of the 3rd UN Forum on Business and Human Rights and focuses on “land rights defenders” who are increasingly the target of repressive measures. The pressure on land has become unbearable and mobilisation for the respect of the economic, social and cultural rights of affected communities has become a high risk activity.
Between 2011 and 2014, the Observatory documented 43 assassination cases targeting land rights defenders and the judicial harassment of 123 defenders, sometimes together with their arbitrary detention. These figures only reflect a small fraction of the real picture. All regions in the world are concerned, Asia and Latin America being the most affected. The Observatory found that authors of repression are often the police, the military, private security agents and “henchmen”. Their objective being to silence dissenting voices likely to slow down investment projects.
In addition to violence, numerous States also use judicial harassment and arbitrary detention to intimidate defenders. Thanks to laws that violate fundamental freedoms or in violation of their own laws, they jail any person deemed to be a nuisance. “Terrorism”, “misleading propaganda”, “infringement to State security”, “public unrest”, there are many abusive charges which can result in heavy prison terms.
Land rights defenders are often powerless when they face physical attacks and arbitrary arrests. According to the Observatory, 95% of violations against them remain unpunished today. Judicial bodies in countries where such violations occur are characterised by a lack of independence, resources and expertise. Regarding the possibility of prosecuting business corporations responsible for human rights violations, the legal battle – if any – is often lengthy, perilous, unequal and costly.
At the heart of the problem lies the issue of the participation of individuals and communities affected by the development policies and investment projects. The Observatory calls for meaningful consultations that ensure the direct participation of populations affected by the projects and the recognition of land rights defenders as the legitimate spokespersons in order to prevent conflicts and put an end to serious human rights violations. Furthermore, it is necessary to strengthen the capacity and independence of domestic judicial systems, including in States hosting the headquarters of business corporations, in order to allow defenders to access justice and seek redress in the event of human rights violations.
The Observatory also recommends to strengthen international law in order to trigger effectively the responsibility of business corporations when the latter commit human rights violations and to guarantee the adequate protection of land rights.
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | 2 Comments »
Tags: annual report 2014, Business and human rights, consultation, corporate accountability, defamation, environmental activists, environmental issues, FIDH, Human Rights Defenders, impunity, intimidation, judicial harassment, land rights, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT, United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights
December 2, 2014
(Photo credit: Martin Ennals Foundation)
For the 3rd UN Forum on Business and Human Rights (going on at the moment), ISHR published also an article by Alejandra Ancheita, 2014 Martin Ennals Award Laureate and Executive Director of ProDESC. Women defenders and those working on business and human rights represent two groups facing particular risks yet, in Mexico, the State’s response is falling short, concludes Alejandra Ancheita in her article:
“The challenges and risks that human rights defenders (HRDs) are facing in Mexico and other Latin American countries are diverse and growing daily in the absence of comprehensive State action to address this situation. The inadequate response of the Mexican government to the hundreds of cases of attacks and intimidation has become evident in various spaces. For instance in the recent Universal Periodic Review of the United Nations, the Mexican State received 24 recommendations on the situation of human rights defenders and journalists in the country, whilst the Protection Mechanism for Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, in the Interior Ministry, has received 130 applications for protection. Its response has been insufficient, particularly for those groups of defenders who face particular and heightened risks. As a woman human rights defender who works on issues related to business and the environment, I ought to know.……
Importantly, the fact that women human rights defenders face specific threats has been well established. However, existing protection mechanisms have not yet adjusted to incorporate this reality into their functioning, thus leaving women defenders vulnerable to gender-specific threats and aggressions. This is a global phenomenon and, in over 15 years as a human rights defender in Mexico, I have personally suffered violations of my human rights because of my gender and numerous colleagues have found themselves in the same situation.….
Integral security for women defenders must also seek to transform public opinion to understand and support our work. The first step in this regard is for States to recognize that working to defend certain rights can make women HRDs particularly vulnerable, for example by working on indigenous land rights in Latin America. Public statements made by public officials on the importance of our role and the legitimacy of our work are key. Authorities must investigate and punish those responsible for statements that seek to defame or attack defenders or delegitimize their work, even when such statements are made by non-State actors like community leaders or company representatives. Given the severe impact inflammatory statements have on women defenders’ work and wellbeing, they must be treated as aggressions in and of themselves.…..
In the vast majority of countries there are no specific mechanisms in place to protect human rights defenders. Where mechanisms have been created they are often hindered by operational failings, a lack of financial or human resources, the absence of gender-sensitivity, limited options for collective or community measures, and absent political will…..
As my work is based in Mexico, and due to my incorporation into the Federal Protection Mechanism for human rights defenders and journalists last year, this is the Mechanism I am best-placed to comment on. One very positive aspect of the mechanism is that four of the nine members of the decision-making body come from civil society. However, the Mechanism is also faced with several challenges.
The Mechanism falls short in the preventative aspect. Recently, various actors including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the CEDAW Committee have highlighted impunity for violations against women defenders as the greatest obstacle in improving their safety. In spite of this concern, the law establishing the Mechanism does not guarantee the adequate investigation and prosecution of perpetrators.
The Mechanism also fails to incorporate a gender perspective to better understand the situation facing women HRDs. I believe that the Mexican authorities have the opportunity to set best practices in this regard, by providing gender-sensitive training to staff and by developing gender indicators to guide the granting, planning and implementation of protection measures.
Mexican authorities responsible for the Mechanism must also effectively involve defenders in the design and implementation of protection measures, as well as conducting risk assessments in a more transparent way. This is particularly important in the case of defenders working on issues that impact upon private actors such as business, or those defending land rights in isolated communities. Finally, cooperation and coordination between federal, state and local authorities in the implementation of protection measures need to drastically improve……..”
Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Alejandra Ancheita, Business and human rights, gender issues, Human Rights Defenders, impunity, ISHR, land rights, MEA laureate 2014, Mexico, migrants, organised crime, protection mechanisms, United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, volunteers, woman human rights defender, women human rights defenders
September 16, 2014
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On 22 September 2014 will be shown the film “The Rights of Others” by Chris Kelly [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/chris-kelly/] on work done by human rights defenders in Cambodia, especially those who fight against forced evictions, a common feature of Cambodia’s ‘development model’ as demonstrated also by the work of the monk Luon Sovath who became the Laureate of the Martin Ennals Award 2012. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in films, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | 2 Comments »
Tags: Cambodia, Canton of Geneva, Chris Kelly, film, forced evictions, freedom of demonstration, human rights films, land rights, Loun Sovath, Luon Sovath, MEA laureate 2012, OMCT, resource extraction, The Rights of Others
April 16, 2014
The Wisconsin Gazette of 15 April 2014 carries a good summary of a major report by Global Witness that shows that killings of human rights defenders protecting environmental and land rights increased sharply in the last decade due to the intensification of competition for natural resources. The report “Deadly Environment” highlights a severe shortage of information or monitoring of the problem.
“It has never been more important to protect the environment, and it has never been more deadly,” said Oliver Courtney of Global Witness. “There can be few starker or more obvious symptoms of the global environmental crisis than a dramatic upturn in killings of ordinary people defending rights to their land or environment. Yet this rapidly worsening problem is going largely unnoticed, and those responsible almost always get away with it. We hope our findings will act as the wake-up call that national governments and the international community clearly need.”
Key findings in “Deadly Environment”:
• At least 908 people were killed in 35 countries protecting rights to land and the environment between 2002 and 2013, with the death rate rising in the last four years to an average of two activists a week. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 2 Comments »
Tags: Brazil, corporate accountability, environmental issues, Global Witness, harassment, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, indigenous groups, killings, land rights, Mining, Philippines, threats, Wisconsin Gazette
January 19, 2014
The most recent report by the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, has been made public and will be officially presented to the Human Rights Council in March 2014. It is the last report by this Rapporteur whose mandate will terminate. The report finds that human rights defenders – especially journalists, lawyers, trade unionists and those who work to promote women’s rights and the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons – face ‘extraordinary risks’. It highlights cases of defamation, attacks, detention, torture and even killings. The report also documents an increased incidence of violations against people and communities opposed to mining, construction and development projects, with protesters attacked both by State and private security forces. ‘Human rights defenders play a crucial role in exposing and seeking accountability for violations by both governments and corporations. Their work is crucial to transparency, good governance and justice for victims,’ commented Phil Lynch of the International Service for Human Rights in Geneva.
The report also documents the worsening ‘use of legislation in a number of countries to refrain the activities of human rights defenders and to criminalise them’, with cited examples including laws to ‘curb the promotion of homosexuality’ and to restrict NGO access to foreign funds. ‘In the last four weeks alone, Nigeria, Russia, Uganda, Malaysia and the Ukraine have enacted or applied laws to criminalise human rights defenders and to silence their critical voice,’ Mr Lynch added.
In addition to documenting violations, the report makes a wide range of recommendations to ensure that human rights defenders are protected and can operate in a ‘safe and enabling environment’.
For those too busy to read the whole new UN report [PDF] here are the
V. Conclusions and recommendations: Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Civil society, corporate accountability, criminalization, development projects, enabling environment, environmental issues, foreign funding, freedom of association, freedom of expression, funding restrictions, Human Rights Council, Human Rights Defenders, International Service for Human Rights, ISHR, journalists, land rights, lawyers, LGBTI, local communities, Malaysia, Margaret Sekaggya, Nigeria, Phil Lynch, Russia, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, trade unionists, Uganda, Ukraine, UN Special Rapporteur, women human rights defenders
August 9, 2013
Front Line reports the continuous presence of armed security guards in the community of La Nueva Esperanza, in the department of Atlántida, threatening and intimidating the local population, resulted in the temporary kidnapping of two human rights defenders, Mr Daniel Langmeier and Ms Orlane Vidal. Both are working for the Proyecto de Acompañamiento Honduras – PROAH (Honduras Accompaniment Project), an organisation which aims to prevent or alleviate situations of risk against human rights defenders in Honduras. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: accompaniement, AI, armed security guards, environmental issues, Front Line (NGO), Honduras, Human right, Human rights defender, Human Rights Defenders, Inter-American Human Rights Commission, La Nueva Esperanza, land rights, Lenir Pérez, Mining, Orlane Vidal, peaceful resistance, woman human rights defender
June 5, 2013
On 1 June 2013 at dawn, Kenyan human rights defender Ms Lydia Mukami was abandoned in a bush after being abducted by unidentified men who had spent several hours subjecting her to physical assault. Lydia Mukami is the chairperson of Mwea Foundation, a grassroots organisation of rice farmers in the Mwea constituency that has been at the forefront of an ongoing campaign to challenge the constitutionality of Kenya’s 1966 Irrigation Act. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: assault, death threats, environmental issues, Frontline Defenders, human rights, Human rights defender, ill treatment, intimidation, Kenya, land rights, Lydia Mukami, Mwea, Mwea Foundation, Nairobi, National Irrigation Board, protection, woman human rights defender
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 