Sep 18, 2018 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
The ICJ today put the spotlight on serious threats to the rule of law in Hungary, Poland and Turkey, speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.The statement, made during general debate on situations that require the Council’s attention, read as follows:
“The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) would like to bring to the Council’s attention the serious threats to the rule of law in Hungary, Poland and Turkey.
In Poland, the Government has adopted legislation to arbitrarily force into involuntary “retirement” one third of its Supreme Court Justices, delivering a fatal blow to the independence of the judiciary, already strained by past reforms.
In Hungary, multiple legal reforms have weakened judicial independence and effectively criminalized the activities of certain human rights NGOs and curtailed their financing.
Finally, in Turkey, consolidation of emergency measures in ordinary law, regressive constitutional reforms, and the mass dismissal of judges and prosecutors have removed essential protection for the independent functioning of the judiciary.
The ICJ is further concerned by the protest ban against the Saturday Mothers to hold weekly protests in memory of their disappeared family members, in breach of their right to freedom of assembly.
The ICJ is alarmed at the escalation of such threats to the very basic tenets of the rule of law in Europe, without specific action being taken by this Council to address them.
The ICJ urges the Council to give attention to these developments, which indeed form part of a broader global attack on the rule of law,[1] and to keep under observation the human rights situation in these countries.”
[1] See ICJ, “The Rule of Law under Global Threat” (statement in general debate on the oral update of the High Commissioner), 11 September 2018: https://www.icj.org/hrc39-gd2-hc/
Sep 17, 2018 | Events, Multimedia items, News, Video clips
This panel discussion was held today at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
The event addressed barriers for women accessing justice and look at ways to implement a women-centred approach to address these issues, considering ways to ensure that gender issues are robustly integrated into human rights investigations and judicial mechanisms and are properly implemented by the actors operating within these areas.
Discriminatory legislation can prevent women from accessing the justice mechanisms that should be available to them particularly where these same mechanisms may then be used against them, for example a woman afraid to report rape if she may be prosecuted for adultery.
In addition, mechanisms that are not inherently discriminatory may become so in the way they are interpreted and applied. Prejudices of judicial actors can constitute a major obstacle to women’s access to justice and undermine even the most protective of laws.
Moderator:
Saman Zia-Zarifi, Secretary General of the International Commission of Jurists
Panellists:
• Lisa Gormley, Research Officer, Centre for Women, Peace and Security, London School of Economics and Political Science
• H.E. Athaliah Lesiba Molokomme, Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organizations in Geneva, Botswana
• Justice Sanji Monageng, Former Justice and Vice President of the International Criminal Court and ICJ Commissioner
Event organized by the ICJ in co-ordination with the Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN, and UN Women.
Watch the video:
https://www.facebook.com/ridhglobal/videos/565112000574216/
Side event ICJ WHR (flyer in PDF)
Sep 17, 2018 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
Today at the UN Human Rights Council, the ICJ emphasised the importance of effective investigations capable of leading to truth and justice, highlighting recent developments in Manipur, India as an example.
The statement read as follows:
“Justice processes in situations of conflict or transition require fighting impunity and re-establishing public trust.[1] An example is the new prospects for justice in relation to 1528 alleged extrajudicial killings cases in Manipur, India, which would make an important contribution to a transition out of the long-standing conflict.
In July 2016, in response to a petition filed on behalf of the victims, the Indian Supreme Court stated that “there is no concept of absolute immunity from trial…”,[2] opening the door to ending impunity. As of August 2018, the Central Bureau of Investigation has registered 29 complaints against security forces.[3] Recent reports suggest that the Government is also considering amending the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) to remove or restrict existing overbroad authorizations for use of lethal force.[4]
These are welcome developments. However, concerns remain, as the investigation status of the majority of the cases is unknown. Two UN Special Rapporteurs in July 2018 also affirmed that justice must be done in all cases.[5]
The ICJ calls on India to ensure independent, impartial and thorough investigations into all cases in Manipur, amend AFSPA, and to uphold the right to truth of victims and society about acts committed and the identity of perpetrators, in line with its international and national legal obligations, including as a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”
[1] Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, A/HRC/39/53 (25 July, 2018), http://www.undocs.org/A/HRC/39/53.
[2] Para 163, Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families Association (EEVFAM) & Anr. v. Union of India & Anr. Writ Petition (Criminal) No. 129/2012.
[3] TNN, “Army Major named in FIR for killing 12-yr-old in fake Manipur encounter”, Times of India, August 3, 2018, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/imphal/army-major-named-in-fir-for-killing-12-yr-old-in-fake-manipur-encounter/articleshow/65252258.cms.
[4] “In AFSPA, Government Considering Crucial Changes”, NDTV, September 13, 2018, available at https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/in-afspa-government-considering-crucial-change-sources-1915706.
[5] Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, “India: UN experts call for urgent progress in investigation of hundreds of ‘fake encounter’ killings” (4 July 2018), https://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23323&LangID=E .
Sep 14, 2018 | Noticias
El 14 de septiembre 2018, la CIJ junto a 67 otras organizaciones internacionales y guatemaltecas de la sociedad civil enviaron una carta a la Alta Comisionada de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos, Michelle Bachelet, para expresar sus graves preocupaciones en relación a los acontecimientos recientes restringiendo los esfuerzos para combatir la impunidad en el país.
Estos incluyen la decisión del Presidente Jimmy Morales el 31 agosto de 2018 de no renovar el mandato de la Comisión Internacional contra la Impunidad en Guatemala (CICIG); y la decisión subsecuente de parte de las autoridades guatemaltecas el 4 septiembre de 2018 de prohibir el regreso al país del comisionado de la CICIG Iván Velásquez; y las reformas judiciales aprobadas por el Congreso el 6 septiembre de 2018 que amenazan a socavar la independencia judicial y la función de los y las jueces de la Corte de Constitucionalidad y la oficina del Procurador de los Derechos Humanos.
Los signatarios expresaron su beneplácito por la referencia crítica sobre estos acontecimientos de parte de la Alta Comisionada en sus observaciones en la apertura del 39º periodo de sesiones del Consejo de Derechos Humanos.
En su carta, las organizaciones pidieron a la Alta Comisionada de continuar apoyando la luche contra la corrupción y la impunidad en Guatemala y de seguir presionando a las autoridades guatemaltecas para que adopten las medidas necesarias para facilitar el cumplimiento del mandato de la CICIG según los términos del Acuerdo firmado entre Guatemala y las Naciones Unidas.
La carta en español está disponible aquí. Guatemala-Letter to Michelle Bachelet-News-2018-SPA
Sep 14, 2018 | News
On 14 September 2018, the ICJ joined 67 other international and Guatemalan civil society organizations in a letter to the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, to express grave concern about recent developments to curtail anti-impunity efforts in the country.
These include President Jimmy Morales’ decision on 31 August 2018 not to extend the mandate of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG); the Guatemalan authorities’ subsequent decision on 4 September 2018 to prohibit the re-entry into the country of the CICIG’s Commissioner Iván Velásquez; and judicial reforms adopted by Congress on 6 September 2018 that threaten to undermine the independence of the judiciary and the function of the Constitutional Court judges and the office of the Human Rights Ombudsman.
The signatories welcomed the High Commissioner’s critical reference of these developments in her opening remarks to the 39th session of the Human Rights Council.
They asked that the High Commissioner give continued support in the fight against corruption and impunity in Guatemala and called on her to press the Guatemalan authorities to adopt necessary measures to facilitate compliance with the mandate of the CICIG under the terms of the Agreement signed between Guatemala and the United Nations.
The letter is available here (in Spanish): Guatemala-Letter to Michelle Bachelet-News-2018-SPA
