Oct 9, 2020
An opinion piece by Michelle Yesudas, Legal Adviser, ICJ Asia-Pacific Programme and Rachel Chhoa-Howard, Researcher on Malaysia at Amnesty International.
For decades, Malaysia’s treatment of migrant workers and refugees has wavered between tacit acceptance, neglect, and outright hostility. And the current situation is the lowest point in years.
Refugees and migrant workers have emerged as the government’s favoured excuse for the rise in Covid-19 cases. Most recently, the Prime Minister has attributed the spike in Sabah’s rise in cases to undocumented migrant workers, despite reports of high-profile individuals ignoring quarantine restrictions in droves following state elections.
At a National Security Council meeting at the beginning of this month, the prime minister further stated that to combat the virus, more detention centres that house undocumented migrant workers should be built.
In a recent Information Note on Covid-19, the UN stated that governments have a greater duty to protect people who are in detention. This should be done through “avoiding overcrowding and ensuring hygiene and sanitation in prisons and other detention centres,” among other measures.
Despite this, the practice of arresting, detaining and eventually deporting people alleged to have breached immigration law continues, raising the heightened risk of the disease spreading amongst detainees, as well as spilling over into the general community.
A dangerous shift in government policy
This announcement is just the latest attack on refugee and migrant communities, using the pretext of Covid-19 and weaponised laws to cause untold misery. In recent months, operations by police and immigration officials have seen hundreds of people rounded up and placed in squalid and overcrowded immigration detention facilities, where the risk of contracting Covid-19 is far higher.
Indeed, following raids, immigration detention facilities recorded hundreds of new cases and saw clusters of infections within weeks.
Meanwhile, the coastguard and military pushed away boats of desperate Rohingya people risking their lives to reach the country, or otherwise detained and charged them with immigration offences. Ismail Sabri, Malaysia’s Defence Minister, announced publicly, that Rohingyas have “no status” in the country, despite previous governments being continuously vocal on its support and solidarity with Muslim Rohingyas since 2016.
Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin later added that the government does not recognise the documentation provided by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to these refugees, despite prior agreement that bearers of UNHCR cards would be afforded relative protection.
Malaysian authorities are also cracking down on those who publicly voiced concern and exposed the arbitrary, sweeping laws — on immigration and free speech — that make this toxic state of affairs possible.
In July this year, authorities investigated two Al Jazeera journalists from Australia involved in the making of a documentary shedding light on the appalling treatment of migrant workers and refugees amid the Covid-19 lockdown in Malaysia.
The government detained Rayhan Kabir — a Bangladeshi migrant worker featured in the documentary — for weeks. Since then, police have raided Al Jazeera’s offices in Kuala Lumpur and deported Kabir back to his home country. Other critical voices, including the founder of a refugee support organisation, have also faced harassment from the authorities.
The government has used Covid-19 as an opportunity to radically redefine its position on the acceptance of refugees. It’s most recent crackdown highlights the fact that without proper domestic laws protecting the human rights of migrants and refugees, people live in daily fear of exploitation, arbitrary arrest, detention and other human rights abuses.
An inadequate law at the heart of this inhumane policy
The arrest and detention of migrant workers and refugees emphasizes the problematic provisions of Malaysia’s Immigration Act. Under the Act, senior immigration officers have wide powers of search and arrest, which may be used to harass migrants. It also provides for the imprisonment, often indefinitely, of those in breach of local immigration laws in detention centres.
The Immigration Act has been used to sentence migrants to whipping, which is a cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment prohibited under international human rights law. Furthermore, broadly-worded provisions of the Immigration Act provide the Director General of Immigration with arbitrary powers to revoke and alter the immigration status of non-citizens, such as the two Al Jazeera journalists whose work permits were not renewed.
In addition, Malaysian authorities have used the Immigration Act to arrest, detain and criminally charge a group of Rohingya refugees that arrived by boat and sentence them with the cruel punishment of whipping.
In June this year, the Langkawi Magistrates Court handed down a decision under Section 6 of the Immigration Act, to punish 27 Rohingya men with whipping and seven months in jail for entering Malaysia without valid documentation. Fortunately, following an outcry, the Alor Setar High Court overturned this decision.
However, there are no safeguards to ensure other Rohingya refugees will not face the same threat, in the future.
Time for change
Clearly, Malaysia’s law and policies do not fulfill its international obligations on migrants and refugees. In fact, they are driving them to despair. Caught between the risk of arrest and unemployment, several people are reported to have committed suicide.
It should not take a global health emergency for the Malaysian government to review its policies on the criminalisation of those who fall foul of the Immigration Act, however there is no better time for the government to do so.
Instead of criminalising people, the government should coordinate across ministries and agencies and work with civil society organisations to amend legislation as well as informal guidelines and policies that fall far below international standards.
Malaysia must also ratify international conventions relating to refugees and migrant workers. And instead of silencing critical voices, authorities should address their well-founded concerns. Only when these measures are in place, will migrants and refugees in Malaysia have the proper protection they deserve.
First published in Malay Mail on 9 October: https://www.malaymail.com/news/what-you-think/2020/10/09/unfettered-powers-fatal-gaps-malaysias-inhumane-crackdown-on-migrants-refug/1911091
Oct 8, 2020 | News
Proposed legislation to regulate the operations and functions of the legal profession in Eswatini does not comply with international and regional standards and would severely undermine the right to an independent lawyer, the ICJ said today.
A Bill that the Government of Eswatini is reportedly seeking to introduce in Parliament would establish a Legal Services Regulatory Authority which would be responsible for issuing practising certificates to lawyers, disciplining lawyers in case of unethical conduct, developing and enforcing performance standards for legal practitioners in Eswatini, the ICJ said.
The proposed Legal Services Regulatory Authority would constitute up to 10 members of which only one would be appointed by the legal bar association (Law Society of Eswatini).
If enacted into law, the bill would severely undermine the independence of lawyers in Eswatini and may set a dangerous precedent for other countries in the SADC region, especially at this time when lawyers in other parts of the region are being persecuted by their governments, the ICJ added.
When discharging their functions, legal practitioners must be independent of control and undue influence in order for them to be able to represent their clients more effectively.
“The Legal Services Regulatory Authority proposed under the Eswatini Bill does not qualify as a self-governing professional body or an independent statutory authority because all but one of its members will be appointed by government,” said ICJ Africa Director Kaajal Ramjathan-Keogh.
“The establishment of this regulatory authority is likely to have a chilling effect on the freedom of lawyers to discharge their functions without being afraid of potential retribution through disciplinary proceedings based on frivolous charges,” she added.
The ICJ calls upon the Government of Eswatini to honour its domestic and international legal obligations to respect the independence of lawyers.
In this case, the ICJ urges the government to withdraw this bill and respect the independence of the lawyers to regulate themselves.
Background:
Eswatini has an obligation, in terms of its domestic constitution as well as regional and international law and standards, to respect and protect the independence of lawyers. Section 21 of the Constitution of Eswatini and regional and international human rights treaties and standards guarantee for every person the right to a fair hearing and the right to legal representation. These rights cannot be enjoyed effectively, unless lawyers are guaranteed the freedom to represent their clients and perform all their other duties without harassment, intimidation and undue interference.
The right of everyone to access to a lawyer as an essential element of a fair trial is recognized in, among other sources, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Eswatini has been a party since 2004. International and regional standards on ensuring the independence of lawyers are set out in the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers (UN Basic Principles) and the Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa.
Principle 16 of the United Nations Basic Principles, for instance, enjoins all governments to “ensure that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference”.
Principle 24 affirms that, “Lawyers shall be entitled to form and join self-governing professional associations to represent their interests, promote their continuing education and training and protect their professional integrity. The executive body of the professional associations shall be elected by its members and shall exercise its functions without external interference.”
Principle 28 states that “Disciplinary proceedings against lawyers shall be brought before an impartial disciplinary committee established by the legal profession, before an independent statutory authority, or before a court, and shall be subject to an independent judicial review.”
In a recent unanimous resolution, the UN Human Rights Council recognized that “an independent legal profession” is among the “prerequisites for the protection of human rights and the application of the rule of law and for ensuring fair trials and the administration of justice without any discrimination”.
The Human Rights Council specifically expressed its concern “about situations where the entry into or continued practice within the legal profession is controlled or arbitrarily interfered with by the executive branch, with particular regard to abuse of systems for the licensing of lawyers.” It recommended that any domestic legislation should “provide for independent and self-governing professional associations of lawyers” and should “recognize the vital role played by lawyers in upholding the rule of law and promoting and protecting human rights”.
Contact:
Kaajal Ramjathan-Keogh, Director of ICJ’s Africa Regional Programme, c: +27845148039, e: Kaajal kaajal.keogh(a)icj.org
Oct 8, 2020
In a briefing paper published today, the ICJ called on the Tunisian authorities to comply with their international law obligations and undertake substantial legal and policy reforms, strengthening accountability and delivering justice to victims of gross human rights violations.
Reforms are particularly needed to enhance the effectiveness of the Specialized Criminal Chambers (SCC).
They are also required to ensure that Tunisia fulfills its obligations under international law to criminalize, investigate and prosecute gross human rights violations, and to ultimately guarantee the rights of victims to an effective remedy and reparation.
Organic Law No. 53 of 2013 established the SCC to adjudicate past gross human rights violations; they have been operating since May 2018 but are currently facing a number of hurdles. Urgent amendments to the Criminal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and other relevant domestic law, as well as institutional, judicial and policy reforms are required to overcome these obstacles.
“The conduct of SCC trials in the absence of these reforms risks to seriously impede their effective operation in the short term, and to hamper Tunisia’s accountability efforts in the long term,” said Said Benarbia, the ICJ’s MENA Programme Director.
“The success of the transitional justice process and the fight against impunity rests largely on the political will of the Tunisian authorities to introduce these reforms, and to ensure that the SCC are able to carry out their work without hindrance.”
Tunisia’s domestic law fails to adequately criminalize crimes under international law over which the SCC have jurisdiction. Further, the application of a special procedure under the transitional justice framework for the investigation and prosecution of gross human rights violations has resulted in the Office of Public Prosecutor and other investigative authorities playing little to no role in the prosecution of SCC cases. In addition, this special regime gives rise to concerns about the collection, admission, exclusion and assessment of evidence during the trial stages.
All these obstacles have the potential to adversely impact the fair trial rights of the accused, the victims’ right to an effective remedy and reparation, as well as the participation and protection of victims and witnesses at trial.
Additionally, Tunisia’s domestic law does not sufficiently guarantee the rights of the accused, nor does it fully ensure the rights of the victims and their families or adequate protective measures for victims and witnesses.
The briefing paper addresses these issues and makes key recommendations on three areas of outstanding concern, namely:
- Adequate criminalization of crimes under international law and applicability of the principle of legality and non-retroactivity;
- Investigation and prosecution of gross human rights violations; and
- Collection, admissibility and assessment of evidence in the investigation, prosecution and adjudication of gross human rights violations.
In addition, in light of the recent annual judicial rotation, which has resulted in many of the SCC not having quorums and on trials been delayed, the ICJ calls on the High Judicial Council to ensure that the SCC judges have security of tenure, and that annual rotations do not undermine the SCC’s ability to conduct their work and dispense justice and ensure accountability for decades of gross human rights violations in Tunisia.
“The High Judicial Council should rapidly fill the posts that are currently vacant in the SCC and ensure that newly appointed judges receive timely and adequate training in transitional justice, as required by Organic Law No. 53 of 2013,” said Kate Vigneswaran, the ICJ’s MENA Programme Senior Legal Adviser.
“Moreover, safeguards should be put in place to ensure that changes in the composition of the bench mid-way through trials do not prejudice the fairness of the proceedings, and to ensure that those judges who continue hearing cases have the appropriate understanding of the evidence and arguments.”
Contact:
Said Benarbia, Director, ICJ Middle East and North Africa Programme, t: +41-22-979-3817; e: said.benarbia(a)icj.org
Kate Vigneswaran, Senior Legal Adviser, ICJ Middle East and North Africa Programme, t: +31-62-489-4664; e: kate.vigneswaran(a)icj.org
Tunisia-Strengthening Accountability SCC-Advocacy-Analysis brief-2020-ENG (full paper in English, pdf)
Tunisia-Strengthen Accountability-News-2020-ARA (full story in Arabic, pdf)
Tunisia-Strengthening Accountability SCC-Advocacy-Analysis brief-2020-ARA (full paper in Arabic, pdf)
Oct 8, 2020 | Новости, Пресс-релизы
Сегодня Международная комиссия юристов (МКЮ), Региональное отделение Верховного комиссара ООН по правам человека (УВКПЧ) для Центральной Азии и Высшая школа судей Республики Узбекистан (ВШС) организуют национальный тренинг на тему «Международные стандарты в области экономических, социальных и культурных прав (ЭСК)». Этот двухдневный онлайн-тренинг является вторым из серии тренингов по ЭСК правам, включающие право на здравоохранение, образование, жилье, защиту прав детей и право на труд.
Целью данного онлайн-тренинга является укрепление потенциала судей, адвокатов, прокуроров, ученых-юристов и других представителей гражданского общества в области международных стандартов по ЭСК правам. Тренеры поделятся передовым опытом в области соблюдения государствами своих международных обязательств, в том числе посредством судебной практики, связанной с обеспечением доступа к правосудию в защите ЭСК прав. Онлайн-тренинги создают возможность конструктивного взаимодействия сотрудников судебных органов и других практикующих юристов, и представителей гражданского общества.
Каждый тренинг состоит из четырех модулей: (1) введение в международное право об ЭСК правах; (2) международные обязательства, касающиеся доступа к правосудию и средствам защиты ЭСК прав в национальных судах; сравнительные примеры положительной практики; (3) ЭСК права детей и (4) ЭСК права женщин. В тренинге примут участие офис Специального докладчика ООН по вопросам независимости судей и адвокатов и представители Комитета ООН по ликвидации дискриминации в отношении женщин и Комитета ООН по правам ребенка.
«Никто не мог представить себе, с какими проблемами мир столкнется всего через несколько месяцев после моего визита в Узбекистан. Мы являемся свидетелями и живем с этой беспрецедентной проблемой для отдельных людей, обществ и государств в ответ на кризис на глобальном и национальном уровне, чтобы защитить право на жизнь и здоровье, а также защитить людей от воздействия запретов и ограничений. В основе этих вызовов лежат экономические, социальные и культурные права», – сказал Диего Гарсиа-Саян, Специальный докладчик ООН по вопросам независимости судей и адвокатов, в своем видеообращении к участникам тренинга.
Франсуа Бежо, глава отдела сотрудничества Представительства Европейского Союза в Республике Узбекистан, отметил: «Пандемия коронавируса COVID-19 показала актуальность и важность экономических, социальных и культурных прав, которые должны быть обеспечены государствами, даже в чрезвычайных ситуациях. Принимая на себя международные обязательства, Узбекистан обязан уважать, защищать и соблюдать права человека, включая во время чрезвычайного положения, и обеспечивать доступ к правосудию и средствам правовой защиты».
Контакты:
Дилфуза Куролова, Консультант Международной комиссии юристов по правовым вопросам (МКЮ), dilfuza.kurolova@icj.org
Гульжахон Аманова, Координатор национальных программ Региональное отделение УВКПЧ ООН для ЦА, gamanova@ohchr.org
Уткир Халиков, Глава международного отдела Высшая школа судей при Высшем судейском совете Республики Узбекистан, inter.dep.ssj@mail.ru
Пресс-релиз.
Oct 8, 2020 | News
Today, the ICJ, the Regional office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for Central Asia and the Supreme School of Judges of the Republic of Uzbekistan (SSJ) are beginning a national training on “International law on economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights.”
This two-day online-training is the second of a series of trainings on ESC rights, including, the right to health, education, housing, child protection and rights in the workplace.
The online-training aims to build the capacity of judges, lawyers, prosecutors, legal academics and other representatives of civil society to apply international law and standards on ESC rights. Trainers will share best practices on implementation by States of their international obligations, including through judicial practice, and in ensuring access to justice for ESC rights. The online-training will also allow for exchanges between members of the judiciary, other legal practitioners, and members of civil society.
The training will be based on four modules: (1) introduction to international law on ESC rights; (2) international obligations concerning access to justice and effective remedies for ESC rights in national courts and comparative examples of good practices; (3) children`s ESC rights and (4) women`s ESC rights. The office of the UN Special Rapporteur on independence of judges and lawyers and representatives of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women will participate in the training.
“Nobody could imagine the challenges the world will face only in few months after my visit to Uzbekistan. We are witnessing and living this unprecedently challenge for individuals, societies and states to response to crisis at global and national level to protect right to life and health, and to protect individuals from impact of lockdowns and restrictions. Economic, social and cultural rights are the heart of these challenges,” said Diego Garcia-Sayan, the UN Special Rapporteur on independence of judges and lawyers in his video-address to the participants of the training.
Francois Begeot, Head of Cooperation of the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Uzbekistan pointed out, “COVID-19 pandemic showed the urgency and importance of economic, social and cultural rights that have to be ensured by the states, even in the emergency situations. Taking international obligations, Uzbekistan has to respect, protect and fulfil human rights including during the state of emergency and ensure access to justice and legal remedies.”
Read full press release here.
Watch Diego García-Sayán speech for the event:
Contact:
Ms. Dilfuza Kurolova, Legal Consultant, ICJ Europe and Central Asia Programme, e: dilfuza.kurolova@icj.org
Ms. Guljakhon Amanova, National Program Officer, Uzbekistan, Regional Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), e:gamanova@ohchr.org
Mr. Utkir Khalikov, Head of the international department The Supreme School of Judges under the Supreme Judicial council of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Central Asia, e: inter.dep.ssj@mail.ru
