Oct 12, 2023
On 11 October 2023, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) made a submission to the UN Human Rights Council’s Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in advance of its review of Vietnam’s human rights record in April – May next year.
In its submission, the ICJ draws the attention of the Human Rights Council’s Working Group on the UPR to a number of serious human rights concerns in Viet Nam in connection with:
- Freedom of expression;
- The death penalty; and
- The independence of the judiciary and the right to a fair trial.
In addition, in its submission the ICJ calls upon the Working Group and the Human Rights Council to make the following recommendations to the Vietnamese authorities:
On freedom of expression
- The legislature should repeal or substantially amend legal provisions that unduly restrict the right to freedom of expression – including articles 117 and 331 of the Penal Code, Law on Cybersecurity, Decree 53, and Decree 72 – to bring them in line with international human rights law; and the proposed enactment of a new Decree 72 should be shelved;
- The prosecuting authorities and the judiciary should immediately cease ongoing criminal investigations, drop all existing charges and revoke or otherwise rescind criminal penalties imposed against individuals for alleged violations of domestic provisions, particularly with respect to domestic criminal provisions that are inconsistent with general principles of criminal law and Viet Nam’s obligations under international human rights law, including those guaranteeing the rights to freedom of expression and information;
- The government should refrain from restricting or blocking online content unless the blocking decision has been undertaken following a full analysis that applies international standards concerning legality, legitimate purpose, necessity, proportionality and non-discrimination, and has been authorized pursuant to an order by an independent and impartial judicial authority, in accordance with due process with the express guarantee of the right to appeal.
On the death penalty
- Halt all impending executions of individuals and commute their sentences; impose an immediate moratorium on the use of the death penalty with a view to abolishing capital punishment;
- Ensure that there is sufficient transparency with respect to the death penalty, including through making sure that essential information relevant to a specific planned execution be promptly provided to death row prisoners and their families, and making publicly available information regarding death sentences, notifications and executions.
On the independence of the judiciary and fair trial
- Take immediate steps to safeguard, in law and in practice, the full independence and impartiality of the judiciary from any form of political pressure and influence, and ensure transparent and impartial processes for appointments to the judiciary;
- Ensure that the right to a fair trial be fully respected at the investigation and trial stages in compliance with international law and standards, including through guaranteeing the right to legal assistance pending trial, the right to adequate time and facilities for the preparation of a defence, the right to a public hearing, the presumption of innocence, the right to defence, and the right to equality of arms;
- In relation to cases where there have been allegations of ill-treatment, initiate prompt, impartial and effective investigations into all credible allegations of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and, when warranted by the evidence, bring the perpetrators to justice; provide victims with access to an effective remedy and reparation; and
- Cease the use of arbitrary criminal investigations against lawyers aimed at impairing their legitimate work as human rights lawyers and their right to freedom of expression. In addition, consistent with the ICCPR and UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, take all necessary measures to ensure the free exercise of the legal profession, in all circumstances, so that lawyers may exercise their legitimate professional rights and discharge their duties towards their clients and the courts without fear of reprisals and free from all undue restrictions, including harassment through abusive legal proceedings.
The submission can be downloaded here.
Oct 11, 2023 | Advocacy, News
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) called the Human Rights Council’s (HRC) attention to the entrenched pattern of human rights violations in Cambodia, and called on the HRC to adopt a resolution to extend the Special Rapporteur’s mandate and ensure it has adequate resources and support.
Oral statement of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) during the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia
“Madam Vice President,
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) concurs with the Special Rapporteur’s assessment that Cambodia has largely failed to implement the 20 human rights-related benchmarks proposed in his previous report to this Council.
In the lead-up to the national elections, there was a rapid escalation of the human rights and rule of law crisis in Cambodia. Human rights defenders and political opponents were convicted based on non-human rights compliant laws for exercising their right to freedom of expression, both online and offline, with new draconian laws on cybercrime and cybersecurity being drafted and considered.
The authorities have arbitrarily revoked licenses and blocked online access to independent media outlets without due process. The government at the highest level has employed rhetoric, reproduced online, to threaten and incite violence against political opponents with impunity, with credible reports of actual physical violence as an apparent consequence.
This systematic disregard for Cambodia’s international human rights obligations has been further exacerbated by the absence of an independent and impartial judiciary. The convictions of human rights defenders and political opponents were frequently accompanied by massive fair trial violations, including the effective application of a presumption of guilt.
It is imperative that the Council responds decisively to reverse this entrenched pattern of human rights violations in Cambodia by adopting a resolution to extend the Special Rapporteur’s mandate and ensuring it has adequate resources and support.
Thank you.”
Contact
Sandra Epal Ratjen, ICJ UN Representative and Senior Legal Adviser, e: sandra.epal@icj.org
Daron Tan, ICJ Associate International Legal Adviser, e: daron.tan@icj.org
Oct 6, 2023 | Cases, Uncategorized
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), together with the AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe), the Dutch Council for Refugees and the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) submitted today a third party intervention in the Communicated case No. 193/2022, before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
The case concerns immigration detention of an 11-year-old girl from Afghanistan together with her older sister and parents, pending transfer to another EU Member State according to the EU Dublin Regulation.
The interveners focus in their submission on the prohibition of immigration detention of children, including when accompanied by family members, the right to be heard, access to information and legal representation and age assessment in the migration context.
The full intervention can be read here.
Sep 21, 2023
For decades within its own borders, Russian authorities have undermined and attacked independent civil society, persecuted human rights defenders, activists, lawyers, and opposition and dissenting voices, banned independent media, silenced journalists, and have effectively outlawed any form of peaceful protest.
It has never been more dangerous to be a human rights defender in contemporary Russia. This environment, at least in part, enabled the Russian authorities to launch a renewed invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. At the same time as the danger has increased, protections have decreased. The judiciary is not independent and cannot provide effective protection for human rights. Victims of Russian human rights violations no longer have the ability to bring their cases before the European Court of Human Rights, and Russia has even failed to turn up to United Nations Treaty Body reviews, specifically those of the Human Rights Committee, in 2022.
Ahead of the first Interactive Dialogue by the new UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation at the Human Rights Council, this in-person side event at the 54th session allows for an opportunity to discuss critical updates on the human rights situation in Russia, as well as further action to respond to Russia’s human rights crisis and to the legitimate calls for support from domestic civil society.
The panel will focus on the following key questions:
¨ What are the most pressing human rights issues in Russia today?
¨ Why should the Human Rights Council look to renew the mandate of the Special Rapporteur during the 54th session?
Speakers
Mariana Katzarova
UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of
human rights in the Russian Federation
Violetta Fitsner
OVD-Info
Zhargal Budaev
Memorial Human Rights Defence Centre
Dmitry Gurin
European Prison Litigation Network
Closing statements
Oleg Kozlovsky
Amnesty International
Damelya Aitkhozhina
Human Rights Watch
Moderator
Dave Elseroad
Human Rights House Foundation
Sep 15, 2023 | Advocacy, News
The ICJ welcomes the last report of Mr. Fabian Salvioli as he ends his 6-year tenure as the UN Special Rapporteur on truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence. The report, presented to the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on 14 September 2023, compiles and analyses existing international standards under the five pillars of transitional justice: truth, justice, reparation, memorialization and guarantees of non-recurrence.