Feb 7, 2019 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
The ICJ has submitted a written statement on Sri Lanka to the Human Rights Council ahead of its 40th Session in Geneva.
Almost ten years after Sri Lanka emerged from a period of conflict and massive human rights violations, the Government of Sri Lanka still has largely failed to implement its human rights obligations and commitments as reflected in Resolution 30/1.
The ICJ statement focuses on two of four transitional justice mechanisms which the Government committed to establish under the Resolution: (a) the judicial mechanism with special counsel to investigate violations of human rights and international humanitarian law; and (b) the office of missing persons. It highlights how female victims of war are uniquely impacted by the Government’s failure to implement the commitments made before the UNHRC and underscores the importance of holistically including women when such measures are implemented.
Recommendations:
The ICJ considers that the gravity and character of the crimes under international law committed in Sri Lanka, and the failure of the Government of Sri Lanka to meet its obligations and commitments to ensure justice for such crimes including as provided for in resolution 30/1, means that referral to the International Criminal Court or the creation of another international mechanism to facilitate criminal accountability would be fully warranted. If however the Council does not choose to pursue these options at this stage, the ICJ urges the Council at minimum to:
- Continue the monitoring of Sri Lanka through the adoption of a new resolution to ensure that the Government complies with all its obligations and commitments as reflected in resolution 30/1.
- Provide for OHCHR to develop, with the Sri Lankan Government, an implementation strategy with definitive timelines to ensure that the time afforded under the new resolution is utilised to expedite the implementation of measures assured under Resolution 30/1.
- Encourage Member States to exercise universal jurisdiction in order to bring perpetrators to justice.
The ICJ urges the Government of Sri Lanka to:
- Take immediate measures to establish the judicial mechanism with international involvement as contemplated under operative paragraph 6 of Resolution 30/1. The mechanism should ensure gender parity, be accessible for women in civil society, and allow female victims to fully participate in the process.
- Spread awareness regarding the importance of certificates of absence and confirm to the community that issuance of a certificate will not result in the end of efforts to find the person.
- Ensure an overall gender strategy is integrated in all other transitional justice mechanisms that are yet to be established so that structural injustices against women, especially in terms of discrimination and lack of participation, are addressed.
(full text of submission, in PDF: UN-HRC40-SriLanka-WrittenStatement-2019-EN)
Dec 15, 2018 | Agendas, Events
Today begins in Ankara (Turkey) a one-day workshop for lawyers and CSO practitioners on the use and strategies of UPR mechanisms.
This event is organized by ICJ, in cooperation with its partners Kapasite Geliştirme Derneği and Human Rights Joint Platform, as part a/the EU co-financed project Rebuilding and Ensuring Access to justice with civil society in Turkey.
20 lawyers and civil society practitioners are taking part in the workshop on 15 December in Ankara.
The workshop aims at discussing the functioning of the Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights Council in which all States undergo periodically a peer-review of their human rights situation by other States. Turkey is set for its third cycle of examination in 2019
The main thematic areas to be discussed will be access to justice in Turkey, the situation of the judiciary and the rule of law, and the protection of womens’ rights.
The project is funded by the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR) of the European Union.
Turkey-Training-Agenda-UPR-Ankara-2018-tur (download the agenda in Turkish)
Turkey-Training-Agenda-UPR-Ankara-2018-eng (download the agenda in English)
Sep 27, 2018 | Nouvelles
La décision prise aujourd’hui par le Conseil des droits de l’Homme des Nations unies de créer un “mécanisme indépendant” pour recueillir des preuves de crimes au Myanmar constitue un pas important vers la responsabilité pour les violations flagrantes des droits de l’Homme, a déclaré la CIJ.
«La création de ce mécanisme de collecte de preuves est une étape concrète bienvenue vers la justice», a déclaré Matt Pollard, conseiller juridique principal de la CIJ.
«Mais il s’agit d’une mesure bouche-trou visant à créer un procureur sans tribunal, ce qui ne fait que souligner la nécessité urgente pour le Conseil de sécurité de référer l’ensemble de la situation devant la Cour pénale internationale, qui a été créée précisément pour de telles circonstances», at-il ajouté.
La décision du Conseil fait suite aux conclusions et recommandations de la Mission d’enquête internationale indépendante sur le Myanmar (FFM).
Le rapport complet de 444 pages de la Mission d’enquête a décrit de graves violations de l’Homme perpétrées à grande échelle des droits contre des groupes minoritaires dans le pays, en particulier dans les États de Rakhine, Kachin et Shan.
Il a également souligné la nécessité d’enquêtes et poursuites pénales pour des crimes sous le droit international, ce à quoi la Mission d’enquête a conclu que les tribunaux nationaux et les commissions du Myanmar ne pouvaient pas y répondre.
«Les institutions judiciaires nationales du Myanmar manquent d’indépendance, de capacités et souvent aussi de volonté de demander des comptes aux auteurs d’atteintes aux droits de l’Homme, en particulier lorsque des membres des forces de sécurité sont impliquées. La dernière enquête établie par le gouvernement dans l’État de Rakhine semble également conçue pour dissuader et retarder la justice », a déclaré Pollard.
La résolution du Conseil des droits de l’Homme n’a pas créé de nouvelle cour ou tribunal international.
Les preuves détenues par le mécanisme indépendant pourraient être communiquées à des procédures internationales ou nationales, que ce soit devant la Cour pénale internationale (CPI) ou un autre tribunal international ad hoc, ou aux procureurs nationaux faisant valoir leur compétence pour les crimes relevant de la compétence universelle ou pour d’autres motifs.
Bien qu’il n’y ait aucune perspective réaliste de poursuites nationales efficaces au Myanmar dans un proche avenir, le mécanisme pourrait également fournir des preuves à l’avenir si les institutions nationales devenaient finalement suffisamment impartiales, indépendantes, compétentes et capables de le faire.
Un examen préliminaire de la situation des Rohingyas, mené par la CPI, peut également donner lieu à des poursuites pénales mais sera probablement limité aux crimes qui se sont déroulés en partie au Bangladesh, tels que le crime contre l’humanité en matière d’expulsion.
Le Bangladesh est un État partie au Statut de Rome de la CPI, contrairement au Myanmar.
Le Conseil de sécurité est également habilité à référer la totalité de la situation devant la Cour pénale internationale.
«Le gouvernement du Myanmar devrait cesser de nier la vérité et collaborer avec la communauté internationale, en particulier les Nations unies, afin d’améliorer les conditions de vie dans lesquelles se trouvent les Rohingya et les autres minorités ethniques, dont les droits ont été violés de manière aussi brutale par les forces de sécurité, comme documenté par la Mission d’enquête », a déclaré Pollard.
«Les partenaires internationaux du Myanmar, y compris des voisins tels que l’Inde et la Chine, et des membres de l’Association des nations de l’Asie du Sud-Est (ASEAN), devraient exercer leur influence pour faire en sorte que le Myanmar s’attaque à cette grave menace à la stabilité du pays et de la région en veillant au respect, la protection et la mise en oeuvre de l’ensemble des droits civils, culturels, économiques, politiques et sociaux des minorités concernées », a-t-il ajouté.
La résolution du Conseil contient plusieurs autres recommandations de fond, notamment un appel au gouvernement du Myanmar à réviser la loi de 1982 sur la citoyenneté et une recommandation aux Nations unies d’ouvrir une enquête sur son implication au Myanmar depuis 2011.
Contact:
Matt Pollard, conseiller juridique principal à la CIJ (Genève), e: matt.pollard@icj.org, +41 79 246 54 75.
Frederick Rawski, directeur régional Asie-Pacifique de la CIJ (Bangkok), e: frederick.rawski@icj.org
Sep 26, 2018 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
The ICJ today highlighted the steep decline for human rights and the rule of law in Cambodia, at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The statement, made during an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, read as follows:
“Mr President,
The findings reported by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia (A/HRC/39/73; A/HRC/39/73/Add.1), detailing the steep decline for human rights and rule of law in Cambodia prior to and during the 2018 national elections, demonstrate the utter inadequacy of the Human Rights Council’s current focus on technical assistance and capacity-building in Cambodia.
The elections, neither free nor fair, resulted in the ruling party winning all seats in the National Assembly. Post-election, the Government continues to misuse laws to violate rights and harass journalists, human rights defenders, political opposition members and ordinary individuals, as evidenced by the following updates to cases highlighted by the Special Rapporteur.
Unjustified espionage charges hang over two journalists, who spent eight months in detention before being released pending trial.[1] A filmmaker, sentenced to imprisonment for alleged espionage after flying a drone over an opposition rally, was only released by royal pardon after more than a year in jail.
Days after release from two years in jail for conducting a peaceful protest, a land rights activist was handed a six-month suspended sentence for a politically-motivated charge from 2012.[2] Following his release after 18 months in prison for alleged defamation and incitement offences, a political commentator fled Cambodia when fresh politically-motivated charges were mounted against him.[3]
Treason charges remain active against Kem Sokha, leader of the now-dissolved main opposition party, now under house arrest.[4]
A barber and a school principal remain imprisoned for allegedly sharing information online in breach of a lese-majeste law.[5] A woman remains imprisoned for alleged insult and incitement offences for throwing a shoe at a ruling party billboard.[6]
Today, four senior staff from a prominent civil society organization and a National Election Committee official were convicted under politically-motivated charges and handed five-year suspended imprisonment sentences.[7]
Madam Special Rapporteur, what approach should the Council, governments and civil society take to ensure human rights and the rule of law in Cambodia, given that technical assistance and capacity-building alone seem clearly not to be having the necessary effect?
Thank you.”
[1] A/HRC/39/73/Add.1, para 42.
[2] A/HRC/39/73, para 13.
[3] A/HRC/39/73/Add.1, para 35.
[4] A/HRC/39/73/Add.1, paras 18 and 19.
[5] A/HRC/39/73/Add.1, para 46.
[6] A/HRC/39/73/Add.1, para 30.
[7] A/HRC/39/73, para 13; A/HRC/73/Add.1, para 35
Sep 26, 2018 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
The ICJ today emphasised the continuing failure of domestic accountability mechanisms to ensure proper accountability for crimes under international law in Libya, speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The statement, made during an Interactive Dialogue with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on her oral update on the situation in Libya, at the Human Rights Council in Geneva, read as follows:
“Mr President,
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) remains concerned by the scale and magnitude of the human rights violations that continue in Libya, and the failure of domestic accountability mechanisms to address them.
Impunity prevails for crimes under international law committed during and after the 2011 uprising, including extrajudicial killings, torture and other ill-treatment, and enforced disappearances. Broad amnesty laws allow those responsible to avoid prosecution.
Even in the rare cases where former officials of the Gadhafi regime have faced trial,[1] the integrity of the justice process has been compromised by failures to respect international fair trial standards, including the right to legal counsel and the right to call and examine witnesses.
On August 15, 2018, following an unfair mass trial, 99 defendants were convicted for the killing of 146 anti-Gaddafi protesters in Tripoli during the 2011 uprising.[2] 45 were sentenced to death, violating the right to life.
Such unfair trials and unlawful sentences not only violate the human rights of the accused: they deprive the victims of the crimes of the right to know the truth about the legacy of past violations and the legitimate and untainted justice to which they are entitled. New, fair trials are required.
Political and security instability in Libya undermines the ability of the judiciary to administer justice independently and impartially, including with a view to combating impunity. Judges and prosecutors are threatened, intimidated, abducted and in some instances killed, particularly when attempting to address crimes by members of armed groups.
The ICJ would like to ask the High Commissioner, how can other States and civil society help ensure that Libya, while fully cooperating with the International Criminal Court, implements an effective legal and practical framework to address crimes under international law and eradicate impunity?
Thank you.”
[1] Case 630/2012.
[2] https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/08/22/libya-45-sentenced-death-2011-killings.
