Jan 27, 2023 | News
Judges and prosecutors in the province of Lumbini, where a high number of cases involving extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances from 1996-2006 have been filed, pledged to enhance their efforts to ensure access to justice for victims/survivors, as they concluded a two-day judicial dialogue with several justices of the Supreme Court of Nepal.
The judicial dialogue was organized by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and its partner, Advocacy Forum Nepal (AFN), in collaboration with the Judges Society Nepal (JSN), on 1 – 2 December 2023. More than 50 Judges and prosecutors working at the provincial, district and local levels in Lumbini, identified ongoing challenges faced by victims and survivors of violations and abuses during the 10-year internal armed conflict. They jointly evaluated the progress of Nepal’s transitional justice process, applying national and international law and standards, including Supreme Court directives and international best practices.
Participants highlighted the roles and responsibilities of jurists in the ordinary justice system in delivering justice in conflict-era cases involving allegations of gross human rights violations and abuses and the persistent obstacles. In discussing the role of the courts, the police and prosecuting agencies in dealing with such cases, participants expressed concern about the serious and unwarranted delay in the establishment and operation of Nepal’s transitional justice arrangements, which includes the failure to amend them in accordance with country’s international legal obligations .
All major political parties over the many years have promised to ensure justice for victims/survivors of gross human rights violations and abuses during the conflict, and judgements from the Supreme Court have affirmed Nepal’s legal obligations to establish an effective system for access to justice, in accordance with international and domestic law. Nonetheless, victims/survivors have been waiting for over 17 years for reparation. To make matters worse, they continue to be denied redress through the regular justice system on the pretext that they will be provided access to effective remedies through a separately created transitional justice process.
ICJ Commissioner, and former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nepal, Kalyan Shrestha, emphasized that Nepal’s approach to transitional justice must be guided by the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court, which is grounded in international human rights law and domestic law. He stressed that alleged perpetrators of gross human rights violations and abuses constituting crimes under international law must not be exempted through grants of immunity.
“As justice actors, we should overcome difficulties using our creative judicial mind to address challenges in pursuit of dispersion of justice. Also, we should not be complaining about the ‘State’ but rather making best efforts to accomplish tasks entrusted within us using our creative faculties and knowledge,” stated ICJ Commissioner Shrestha, during his keynote speech.
Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla of the Supreme Court of Nepal underscored the importance of adopting an approach whereby the justice sector not only prioritizes delivering justice in the cases brought before it, but also takes steps to ensure that the system is accessible to all victims seeking legal remedies. Justice Ananda Mohan Bhattarai of the Supreme Court of Nepal emphasized the importance of resolving an estimated 1000 cases brought by victims/survivors and their families, which are currently pending before various courts, the police and government attorney offices throughout country.
Mandira Sharma, ICJ Senior Legal Advisor, provided insights into the global context of transitional justice and discussed the challenges, lessons learned, and best practices. She noted that Nepal’s Parliamentary Sub-Committee, tasked to make necessary changes in the TRC Act Amendment Bill, had not yet addressed the most significant concerns put forward by victims/survivors and civil society, including the provisions that may effectively provide amnesty to perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses.
Participants appreciated the conceptual clarity provided by the judicial dialogue and the encouragement that they received from the Supreme Court justices on how to approach such cases.
This judicial dialogue is one in a series of several judicial dialogues being organized by the ICJ and its partners with judges and public prosecutors across the country.
Contact:
Mandira Sharma, ICJ Senior International Legal Adviser, t: +9779851048475, e: mandira.sharma@icj.org
Kashiram Dhungana, ICJ National Legal Adviser, Nepal, t: +9779851226964, e: kashiram.dhungana@icj.org
Oct 6, 2022 | News
A woman who survived the murder of a renowned Gambian journalist will testify on 6 and 7 October in the German city of Celle at the trial of a man allegedly involved in the killing, human rights groups said today.
Feb 2, 2021 | News
The ICJ today denounced the decision by Pakistani authorities to conduct the trial of Idrees Khattak, a leading human rights defender, in a military court.
Idrees Khattak is charged with “spying” among other offenses, related to his monitoring of violations by military forces in 2009. He was forcibly disappeared by the Pakistani Military Intelligence in November 2019. His whereabouts remained unknown until June 2020, when military authorities informed the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances that he was being tried under the Official Secrets Act, 1923.
The Peshawar High Court yesterday dismissed a petition challenging the jurisdiction of the military courts in this case. Under international standards, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Pakistan is a party, civilians such as Idrees Khattak must not be subject to the jurisdiction of military tribunals.
“Idrees Khattak was subjected to the serious crime of enforced disappearance and instead of bringing the perpetrators of this violation to account, the Pakistani military has kept him arbitrarily detained and is now violating his rights further by subjecting him to a military court,” said Sam Zarifi, ICJ’s Secretary General.
“The Pakistan government must immediately release Idrees Khattak. If there is real and credible evidence implicating him in a cognizable crime, he should be tried by a civilian court and his right to a fair trial should be fully respected,” said Zarifi
The ICJ has found proceedings before Pakistani military courts fall well short of national and international laws requiring fair trials before independent and impartial courts:
- Judges are part of the executive branch of the State and continue to be subjected to military command;
- The right to appeal to civilian courts is not available;
- The right to a public hearing is not guaranteed;
- A duly reasoned, written judgment, including the essential findings, evidence and legal reasoning, is denied; and
- The death penalty may be implemented after unfair trials.
Idrees Khattak has been charged on multiple counts related to spying and other conduct “prejudicial to the safety or the interests of the State” under Section 3 of the Official Secrets Act as well as section 59 of the Pakistan Army Act, 1952. The Pakistan Army Act gives military courts jurisdiction to try civilians for certain offences under the Official Secrets Act.
The alleged conduct for which Idrees Khattak has been charged dates back to July 2009 – ten years before his enforced disappearance.
A group of 10 independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council have characterized Idreek Khattak’s case as “emblematic of a series of documented enforced disappearances in Pakistan, where many human rights defenders are similarly silenced for their legitimate work of monitoring, documenting and advocating against a range of human rights violations and attacks against minorities.”
The ICJ calls on Pakistani authorities to immediately release Idrees Khattak.
The ICJ also calls on Pakistani authorities to ensure military courts only have jurisdiction to try military personnel for military offences and to bring procedures of military courts in conformity with international standards.
Contact
Sam Zarifi, ICJ’s Secretary General, sam.zarifi(a)icj.org
Reema Omer, ICJ’s Senior International Legal Advisor (South Asia), reema.omer(a)icj.org
Additional information
In July 2017, in its Concluding Observations after Pakistan’s first periodic review under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the UN Human Rights Committee stated that it was concerned by the jurisdiction of military courts over civilians and allegations of fair trial violations in military courts’ proceedings.
The Human Rights Committee recommended that Pakistan “review the legislation relating to the military courts with a view to abrogating their jurisdiction over civilians and their authority to impose the death penalty” and “reform the military courts to bring their proceedings into full conformity with articles 14 and 15 of the Covenant in order to ensure a fair trial.”
Sep 30, 2020 | Events, News
For decades, victims of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Latin America have been demanding justice, truth, and reparations. Despite these efforts, impunity remains rampant. In some cases, victims have been waiting for justice for over four decades.
As a part of its strategy to promote accountability for serious human rights violations around the world, the ICJ, together with partners, is implementing a regional project to address justice for extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances in Colombia, Guatemala, and Peru, supported by the European Union.
One of the results of the project has been to support the production of three case dossiers by the ICJ’s local partners.
In Colombia, to illustrate one of the patterns of extrajudicial killings, the Asociación de Red Defensores y Defensoras de Derechos Humanos (dhColombia) produced a document concerning three cases of extrajudicial killings committed during 2006 and 2008.
The report Una práctica sistemática ejecuciones extrajudiciales en el eje cafetero (2006-2008) presents the challenges the victims and their lawyers have faced when seeking responsibility for those crimes.
In Peru, the Instituto de Defensa Legal (IDL) documented the enforced disappearances of university students and professors between 1989 to 1993, at the height of the internal conflict. In the report Los desaparecidos de la Universidad Nacional del Centro IDL describes the difficult legal path victims have faced in order to bring state agents suspected of committing crimes to justice.
In Guatemala, to highlight the manner in which enforced disappearances were committed against rural communities during the internal armed conflict, the Asociación de Familiares de Detenidos-Desaparecidos de Guatemala (Famdegua) wrote about the enforced disappearance of more than 500 people in the region of the Veparaces. In the report Las desapariciones forzadas en la región de las Verapaces the story of five cases is presented.
These three reports contribute towards understanding the prevalence of these violations in Latin America, and the available options to tackle impunity.
On 30 September 2020, the ICJ will host a regional webinar to discuss the protection and guarantee of the rights of victims of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial executions in Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Guatemala and Peru.
The webinar will be broadcast live on the ICJ’s Facebook page, at 14 hours (Guatemala time)/15 hours (Colombia and Peru time)/ 17 hours (Chile and Argentina time).
Contact
Kingsley Abbott, Coordinator of the Global Accountability Initiative, e: kingsley.abbott@icj.org
Carolina Villadiego Burbano, Legal and Policy Adviser, Latin America and Regional Coordinator of the Project, e: carolina.villadiego@icj.org
Rocío Quintero M, Legal Adviser, Latin America, e: rocio.quintero@icj.org
Aug 30, 2020 | News, Publications, Reports, Thematic reports
The ICJ marked the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances today by releasing a baseline study (in Spanish) which identifies key obstacles to accountability for serious human right violations in Colombia.
“The report finds that although Colombia has a comprehensive legal framework aimed at providing accountability for serious human rights violations, victims still face many challenges in obtaining access to justice,” said Kingsley Abbott, Coordinator of the ICJ’s Global Accountability Initiative.
“A robust domestic legal framework is important, but without effective Government implementation at every level full accountability for these violations will remain out of reach,” added Abbott.
Among other challenges, some victims still encounter difficulties in participating in criminal proceedings or obtaining information about investigations and prosecutions of those alleged to be responsible for violations.
The study recommends steps Colombia should take to improve the implementation of the domestic legal framework, including:
- raising the awareness of civil servants, including judicial employees, of victims’ rights and the appropriate legal mechanisms employed to search for “disappeared” persons;
- improving coordination between the State’s institutions, including the Search Unit for Persons Presumed Disappeared in the context and by Reason of the Armed conflict, the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, and the Office of the Attorney General; and
- ensuring that the investigation and prosecution of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings take place within the civilian rather than the military justice system.
The study also stresses the importance of Colombia recognizing the competence of the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) to receive and consider individual communications. Considering the high levels of impunity, the recognition has been requested by Colombian civil society organizations and victims to improve the protection and guarantee of rights of victims of enforced disappearances.
The baseline study has been produced as part of the ICJ’s regional project addressing justice for extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances in Colombia, Guatemala and Peru, sponsored by the European Union.
The baseline study is available in Spanish.
Background
The ICJ has long been monitoring laws, policies and practices concerning the investigation and prosecution of serious human rights violations and abuses in Colombia, including enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, as part of its efforts to promote accountability, justice and the rule of law around the world.
Enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings are among the most prevalent human rights violations committed in Colombia, particularly in the context of the ongoing internal armed conflict. In Latin America, Colombia has one of the highest figures of people who have been subject to enforced disappearance or unlawfully killed.
The project is implemented under the ICJ’s Global Accountability Initiative which has also produced baseline studies for Eswatini, Nepal, Myanmar, Venezuela, Cambodia, Tajikistan and Tunisia.
Contacts
Kingsley Abbott, Coordinator of the Global Accountability Initiative, e: kingsley.abbott(a)icj.org
Carolina Villadiego, Legal and Policy Adviser, Latin America, and Regional Coordinator of the Project, e: carolina.villadiego(a)icj.org
Rocío Quintero M, Legal Adviser, Latin America, e: rocio.quintero(a)icj.org
Download
Colombia-GRA-Baseline-Study-Publications-Reports-Thematic-reports-2020-SPA (full report, in Spanish, PDF)
