Aug 27, 2019 | News
Following the killing of an Afghan boy in the Moria reception center in Greece, the ICJ calls on the Greek authorities to effectively implement measures of protection prescribed to Greece this May by the European Committee on Social Rights.
According to information by the UN High Commissioner for refugees, the 15-year-old Afghan boy was killed and two other boys injured after a fight broke out at the Moria reception centre on the Greek island of Lesvos.
The safe area at the Moria Reception and Identification Centre, RIC, hosts nearly 70 unaccompanied children, but more than 500 other boys and girls are staying in various parts of the overcrowded facility without a guardian and exposed to exploitation and abuse.
“This is not a situation unique to Moria. In other parts of Greek islands and also on mainland Greece human rights of migrant children are being violated,” said Karolína Babická, ICJ Legal Adviser.
Security of children as well as access to basic needs, such as appropriate shelter, food water or medical care, were the focus of a recent case the ICJ brought together with ECRE and Greek Council for Refugees (GCR) to the European Committee on Social Rights (ECSR).
The ECSR acknowledged the urgency of the situation and decided on immediate measures in the case already on 23 May 2019.
“It is unacceptable that the decision on interim measures has not yet been implemented by the Greek government and now we have to witness such tragic events like a death of a child in the camp,” said Karolína Babická.
“It is a sad wake-up call to the Greek administration that the situation cannot remain like this,” she added.
In its decision, the Committee members required the Greek government to immediately provide migrant children with appropriate shelter, food, water, education and medical care; to remove unaccompanied migrant children from detention and from Reception and Identification Centers (RICs) at the borders, place them in suitable accommodation for their age and appoint effective guardians.
“Greece must urgently bring those children to safety and make sure their basic needs are met and human rights are protected, in order to comply with its international legal obligations,” said Róisín Pillay, ICJ Europe and Central Asia Programme Director.
Contact:
Karolína Babická, Legal Adviser, ICJ Europe and Central Asia Programme, m +32 475 46 2067 ; e: Karolina.Babicka(a)icj.org
Aug 22, 2019 | News
The ICJ calls on the Ukrainian authorities to investigate the murder of lawyer Olexandr Ivanov, killed today with an automatic weapon near SIZO (Pre-trial Dentention Centre) №6 in Kropyvnytskyi.
The shooting was carried out from a car by unknown persons. The lawyer died on the spot. Another person injured in the incident was hospitalized in critical condition.
“The killing of lawyer Oleksandr Ivanov must be independently, promptly, and thoroughly investigated and the perpetrators brought to justice,” said Temur Shakirov, ICJ Senior Legal Adviser.
“Such crimes strip any legal reforms of their positive impact if lawyers’ life is always in danger when exercising their functions,” he added.
The police have confirmed the occurrence of the killing and initiated an investigation preliminarily qualified as intentional murder under article 115-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian National Bar Association (UNBA) is planning to convene an emergency meeting of the Committee on Protection of Lawyers Rights and Professional Guarantees. The UNBA has also referred to the leadership of regional prosecution and police authorities to bring the case under personal control.
“During its recent mission to Ukraine the ICJ heard of cases of killings of lawyers and this case demonstrates that little progress has been achieved in addressing the security of lawyers in Ukraine,” said Shakirov.
Additional information:
International human rights law, including the European Convention on Human Rights to which Ukraine is a party, requires that states take steps to protect the life and physical integrity of persons who they know or ought to know are at real risk of violence.
According to the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, governments must ensure that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference (principle 16). The UN Basic Principles specify that “[w]here the security of lawyers is threatened as a result of discharging their functions, they shall be adequately safeguarded by the authorities” (principle 17).
Aug 22, 2019 | Comunicados de prensa, Incidencia, Noticias
La CIJ se une a 10 organizaciones internacionales y nacionales de Venezuela, para solicitar que el Consejo de Derechos Humanos de Naciones Unidas establezca una Comisión de Investigación (COI) para Venezuela.
La CIJ considera que es necesario una COI independiente, ya que las autoridades venezolanas no han podido o no han estado dispuestas a garantizar la rendición de cuentas de los responsables de las violaciones a los derechos humanos, y el sistema judicial carece de independencia e imparcialidad.
La CIJ ha publicado varios informes acerca de la falta de independencia judicial en Venezuela, las dificultades para que los responsables de las graves violaciones a los derechos humanos sean investigados y juzgados, el abuso de la justicia penal militar, y otras afectaciones al funcionamiento del estado de derecho.
Además, la Alta Comisionada para los Derechos Humanos en su informe de julio de 2019 mencionó que diversas violaciones a los derechos humanos han ocurrido en Venezuela, evidenciadas por el uso excesivo de la fuerza por parte de las fuerzas de seguridad, los ataques a la libertad de expresión, las detenciones arbitrarias, las ejecuciones extrajudiciales, el desmantelamiento de las instituciones que proveen pesos y contrapesos en el país, y las privaciones que constituyen violaciones a los derechos a la alimentación y a la salud.
Asimismo, el Secretario General de la Organización de Estados Americanos designó un Panel de Expertos Internacionales Independientes para analizar la situación del país; dicho panel manifestó en su comunicado de prensa de 2018 “que existe fundamento suficiente para considerar que se han cometido crímenes de lesa humanidad en Venezuela”.
El Consejo de Derechos Humanos de la ONU ha establecido comisiones de investigación en varios países donde ha sido necesario garantizar la adecuada investigación a las violaciones a los derechos humanos, así como la rendición de cuentas por las violaciones generalizadas o sistemáticas cometidas. Se han establecido COIs para Siria, Corea del Norte, Burundi, Yemen, Libia y Eritrea.
La CIJ, junto con las otras organizaciones que suscriben esta iniciativa, ha dicho que la Comisión de Investigación que podría establecerse para Venezuela debería “investigar denuncias de violaciones del derecho internacional de los derechos humanos en Venezuela, incluidas, entre otras, las violaciones asociadas con torturas y trato inhumano, detención arbitraria, discriminación, violaciones a la libertad de expresión, violaciones del derecho a la vida y desapariciones forzadas, así como violaciones de los derechos a la salud y la alimentación. Debería encargarse de establecer los hechos y las circunstancias en las que se cometieron los abusos desde, al menos, 2014, determinando los patrones de abusos e identificando a los responsables y, cuando sea posible, la cadena de mando. El propósito de esta tarea es contribuir a la plena rendición de cuentas, incluyendo por aquellos abusos que constituyen delitos conforme al derecho internacional. (…)”.
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Para consultar el documento completo de Preguntas y Respuestas elaborado de manera conjunta entre las 11 organizaciones que apoyan esta iniciativa, consulte aquí: Venezuela-COI final-Advocacy-2019-SPA
Aug 22, 2019 | Advocacy, News
Today, the ICJ joined 10 other international and Venezuelan human rights organizations to call the United Nations Human Rights Council to establish a Commission of Inquiry (COI) on human rights in Venezuela in its upcoming session in September.
The ICJ considers that an independent COI is necessary given the Venezuelan authorities have been unable or unwilling to pursue effective domestic accountability and the judicial and prosecutorial mechanisms lack independence and impartiality.
In recent years, the ICJ has documented in several reports the lack of judicial independence, the lack of accountability for those allegedly responsible for gross human rights violations, the abuse and misuse of the military jurisdiction, and wide ranging breakdown in the functioning of the rule of law.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in her 2019 report has similarly stressed that wide ranging human rights violations had occurred in Venezuela evidenced by the excessive use of force by security forces, attacks on freedom of expression, arbitrary detention and extrajudicial killings, dismantling of checks and balances, and deprivations constituting violations of the right to food and health. In addition, a panel of independent international experts mandated by the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), mentioned in 2018 “that reasonable grounds exist to believe that crimes against humanity have been committed in Venezuela”.
Commissions of Inquiry have been effectively established by the UN Human Rights Council to assess serious situations of human rights in several countries where there is a need to ensure proper human rights fact finding and ultimately accountability for widespread or systematic human rights violations. These include COIs for Syria, North Korea, Burundi, Yemen, Libya and Eritrea.
The ICJ and the other organizations have emphasized that the Commission of Inquiry that could be established for Venezuela “should be mandated to investigate reports of violations of international human rights law in Venezuela, including but not limited to violations associated with torture and inhuman treatment, arbitrary detention, discrimination, violations of freedom of expression, violations of the right to life and enforced disappearances, as well as violations of the rights to health and food. It should be tasked with establishing the facts and circumstances of violations committed since at least 2014, mapping out patterns of violations and identifying those responsible and, where possible, the chain of command, with a view to contributing to full accountability for all violations including those that constitute crimes under international law (…)”.
Download:
Venezuela-COI final-Advocacy-2019-ENG (full Q&A document prepared by all 11 organizations in PDF)
Aug 21, 2019 | News
The ICJ in collaboration with the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), today launched a broad base anti-corruption awareness campaign in Harare.
The campaign was introduced by the President of Zimbabwe H.E. Cde Emmerson D. Mnangagwa and is expect to effectively run for 15 months.
It will harness different forms of media to spread awareness on the negative impact corruption has on the rule of law, human rights and development.
The anti-corruption awareness campaign is part of a broader longstanding rule of law initiative by the ICJ in collaboration with with stakeholders in the justice sector, to strengthen the rule of law for the protection and promotion of human rights for all, including women and persons from marginalized or disadvantaged groups.
Corruption undermines the rule of law by impeding access to justice through diversions of public resources for private gain.
As such the ICJ, through the support of the EU, is working towards increased transparency and integrity in the justice delivery system in order to increase access to justice for all.
“Zimbabwe has no option but to fight corruption if it is to be a just, peaceful and successful developmental state,” said Arnold Tsunga, ICJ’s Africa Regional Director.
“The reconstituted ZACC has demonstrated a strong desire to pursue its mandate with renewed commitment from other stakeholders in the justice delivery chain,” he added.
The campaign is not undertaken in isolation. It builds on other initiatives to combat corruption under this programme, which include the establishment of an anti-corruption court, training of personnel for the court and various research initiatives.
The campaign seeks to support the national efforts against corruption, and sensitize the public on the negative effects of corruption in society.
It will promote awareness on how to report corrupt practices, how to avoid corrupt practices and the impact of corruption on the public interest.
The campaign acknowledges that different sections of the population engage with media in varying manners. As such it utilises a wide array of approaches designed to build the optimism of the people of Zimbabwe to take an active role in efforts to combat corruption at every level of society.
The campaign launch was attended by justice sector actors, civil society representatives, business representatives and the diplomatic.
Contact:
Arnold Tsunga, Director of the Africa Regional Programme, International Commission of Jurists C: +263 77 728 3248, E: arnold.tsunga(a)icj.org
