Apr 26, 2014 | News
The ICJ recently organized a Legal Seminar for Thai Lawyers and Women Human Rights Defenders on the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women.
On 25 April 2014 Thai lawyers and human rights defenders participated in a legal seminar on using international complaints mechanisms to advance women’s access to justice and human rights protection.
The ICJ seminar enabled global experts to provide local actors with practical guidance and strategic advice on using the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
The Protocol, which was ratified by Thailand in 2004, allows women who believe their rights under CEDAW have been violated, to submit a complaint to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and seek the Committee’s deliberation and views on the matter.
The legal seminar was part of ongoing ICJ work to empower women lawyers and human rights defenders and advance women’s access to justice in Thailand.
Apr 25, 2014 | News
The ICJ today called on the government of Viet Nam to immediately return human rights defender Pham Chi Dung’s passport so he can travel to the United States to testify before Congress later this month.
Apr 17, 2014 | News
Karpal Singh, a prominent Malaysian lawyer, human rights defender and parliamentarian who fought courageously for equality, justice and democracy in the country, was killed in a road accident.
Apr 11, 2014 | News
The ICJ expressed concern at today’s decision by the Kuala Lumpur High Court to dismiss the challenge by Lena Hendry, programme coordinator of the human rights advocacy organization Pusat Komas, to the constitutionality of elements of the Film Censorship Act 2002.
Apr 2, 2014 | News
The ICJ mourns the loss of Irene Fernandez, a Malaysian human rights defender who was at the frontline of promoting and protecting human rights, especially the rights of women and migrant workers.
Mar 20, 2014 | News
Thailand’s caretaker government must remove emergency measures throughout the country following the lifting of the Emergency Decree in the capital Bangkok and its surrounding provinces this week, the ICJ said today.
On 18 March, the caretaker government voted to lift the Emergency Decree (effective 19 March) that had been in place in Bangkok and surrounding provinces since 21 January 2014 in response to protests led by the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC).
At least 20 people have died in protest-related violence and hundreds have been injured.
The Emergency Decree was replaced by the Internal Security Act (ISA), which also does not fully comply with international standards, but provides better remedies for victims of human rights violations than the Decree.
“The imposition of the Emergency Decree creates an environment conducive to abuse of power and human rights violations such as arbitrary arrest and detention, torture and enforced disappearance,” said Sam Zarifi, ICJ’s Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific. “Lifting the Emergency Decree in Bangkok is a positive step, but it is crucial that the authorities remove the Emergency Decree and other measures of emergency rule, including martial law, that are in force in all or parts of at least 30 of Thailand’s 77 provinces.”
These measures should be replaced by law and action that are consistent with international human rights standards, Zarifi said, adding that martial law should not be used as a political tool.
The caretaker government must respond to demonstrations, unrest and emergencies in a manner which complies with its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and other international standards, including the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1979, and the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, adopted by the UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders in 1990.
These standards set out the circumstances in which resort to necessary and proportional force may be lawfully exercised. Article 8 of the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms states that “exceptional circumstances such as internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked to justify any departure from these basic principles.”
In order to safeguard the rule of law and enhance the protection of human rights in Thailand, the ICJ calls on the caretaker government to repeal the Emergency Decree and other emergency measures including martial law, and to ensure accountability for violent acts through the thorough and effective investigation of criminal acts and prosecution of those reasonably suspected of committing them, in the course of fair, human rights-compliant criminal proceedings.
CONTACT: Sam Zarifi, ICJ Asia-Pacific Regional Director, (Bangkok), t:+66 807819002, e-mail: sam.zarifi(a)icj.org
Craig Knowles, ICJ Media & Communications, (Bangkok), t:+66 819077653, e-mail: craig.knowles(a)icj.org
For further reading on ICJ’s work on emergency laws in Thailand see: Thailand’s Internal Security Act, Risking the Rule of Law? (2010) https://www.icj.org/thailands-internal-security-act-risking-the-rule-of-law/ Implementation of Thailand’s Emergency Decree (2007) https://www.icj.org/thailand-implementation-of-thailand%C2%B4s-emergency-decree/ More Power, Less Accountability: Thailand’s New Emergency Decree (2005) https://www.icj.org/more-power-less-accountability/
