Feb 22, 2010 | News
The ICJ today deplored the decision of the US Justice Department to clear the legal architects of the US torture policy from any professional misconduct.
The decision by Associate Deputy Attorney General (ADAG) David Margolis reversed the July 2009 findings of the Office of Professional Conduct (OPR) that Bush administration legal advisers John Yoo and Jay Bybee had engaged in professional misconduct by giving advice which approved as lawful the program of “enhanced interrogation”. This program consisted in clear acts of torture and ill treatment.
The OPR had been poised to refer Yoo and Bybee, who is presently a US federal judge, for disciplinary action by the state regulatory authorities. The ADAG report, while affirming that the legal advisers had exercised ‘poor judgement’, determined that they had not breached rules of misconduct because it could not be established that they had intended to give misleading advise.
USA-torture serious crime-press release-2010 (full text, PDF)
Photo by acameronhuff
Feb 17, 2010
International and local human rights organizations have today urged the Nepali authorities to stop obstructing criminal proceedings over the alleged torture and murder of 15-year-old Maina Sunuwar by four army officers.
Nepal-obstruction of justice-open letter-2010
See also the press release Authorities must provide justice for torture and murder of 15-year-old Maina Sunuwar
Feb 5, 2010 | News
The ICJ today urged action by the Government to ensure respect for civilian jurisdiction in the Maina Sunuwar case.
The Nepal Army has acknowledged that Maina Sunuwar died following prolonged torture at the Nepal Army’s Birendra Peacekeeping Training Centre in Panchakhal on 17 February 2004.
However, it has refused to recognize civilian court jurisdiction as established by the Supreme Court’s September 2007 decision, and to surrender Major Niranjan Basnet to the Kavre District Court pursuant to a 31 January 2008 arrest warrant.
Nepal-civilian jurisdiction-press release-2010 (full text, PDF)
Dec 21, 2009 | News
La CIJ expresa su profunda preocupación ante la detención de la Jueza María Lourdes Afiuni en virtud de una decisión adoptada en el marco del caso del Sr. Eligio Cedeño.
Asimismo, la CIJ resalta la gravedad que implica que dicha detención se haya producido tras las declaraciones efectuadas por el Presidente de la República de Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, quien opinó abiertamente sobre el caso y exigió que se castigue a la jueza con la pena máxima de 30 años, prevista en la ley sólo para los delitos más graves, cometidos con agravantes.
Venezuela-detention judge-press release-2009-spa (full text in Spanish, PDF)
Sep 11, 2009
The ICJ welcomes the opportunity to submit its comments to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Kazakhstan.
