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 21, 2023
Joint Oral Statement
The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) condemn the widespread and escalating attacks on independent lawyers, including legal harassment, disciplinary actions, disbarments, and arbitrary criminal charges.
We deplore the abusive Foreign Agents Law, with its overbroad definition that covers any persons under “foreign influence”. The Law has been instrumentalized to violate the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly, and public participation. Lawyers are repeatedly labelled as “foreign agents”, for exercising their human rights and performing their legitimate duties, and many had their licenses suspended.
The Ministry of Justice has listed lawyers as “foreign agents” for lawfully representing human rights defenders, including lawyers Pavlov and Vetoshkina.
Russia’s Constitutional Court has abdicated its responsibility to protect rights by summarily dismissing challenges to legislative provisions criminalizing “public actions aimed at discrediting” the Russian Armed Forces.
We are concerned that the Bar Association intends to set up an Integrated Information System of the Bar of Russia, with the legal obligation for every lawyer to be part of this system, increasing risks of digital surveillance, breach of lawyer-client confidentiality and further harassment.
The repressive legislation in Russia leaves few domestic options to seek justice. It is imperative to maintain rigorous monitoring. We therefore urge this Council to renew the mandate of the Special Rapporteur and ensure additional resources necessary to fulfil its role.
This statement was delivered by:
Francesca Restifo, Senior Human Rights Lawyer and UN Representative
International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI)
For further information please contact:
Francesca Restifo, IBAHRI, francesca.restifo@int-bar.org
Sandra Epal Ratjen, ICJ, sandra.epal@icj.org
Aug 14, 2023 | Agendas, Events, News
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), in collaboration with the Nationwide Movement “Yuksalish” and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Regional Office for Central Asia (ROCA), has announced the launch of the first Human Rights Summer School on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ESCR) in Uzbekistan from 14 to 18 August.
Organized within the framework of “Enhancing the Quality of Uzbekistan’s Application of International Law (EQUAL)”, funded by the European Union, this five-day educational course stands to make a real impact in advancing human rights education in Uzbekistan.
Jul 27, 2023 | Attacks on Justice, News
Today, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has condemned the unjust conviction and sentencing of prominent Belarus lawyer, Yuliya Yurgilevich, and journalist, Pavel Mazheika, to six years’ imprisonment on trumped up charges.
Yurgilevich, who has practised law for almost 18 years and has a record of defending human rights activists, was accused of publicizing her disbarment and providing Mazheika with information on political prisoners in Belarus, notably on dissident artist Ales Pushkin, who was recognized as a political prisoner by a number of leading human rights groups, and who died in a Belarusian prison of an unknown cause earlier this month.
Jul 18, 2023 | News
On 11 July 2023, the Chamber of the third section of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) handed down its judgment in the case of Semenya v. Switzerland finding that Caster Semenya’s right to freedom from discrimination, taken together with her rights to respect for private life and to an effective remedy had been violated.
