Government must stop unlawful returns of boats carrying migrants and potential asylum seekers

Government must stop unlawful returns of boats carrying migrants and potential asylum seekers

The ICJ drew the attention of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants to the fact that between 6 and 10 May 2009 the Italian authorities intercepted some 500 migrants in international waters.

These people were trying to reach Italy in small boats. Italian authorities escorted them back to Libya, without taking due account of Italy’s obligations in relation to potential asylum-seekers or others who may not be transferred to Libya for reasons of non-refoulement, as stipulated in Article 33 of the 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Italy-intervention SR Migrants-non-legal submission-2009

7th session of the UN Human Rights Council: ICJ intervention on the report of the special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar

7th session of the UN Human Rights Council: ICJ intervention on the report of the special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar

The ICJ in its intervention of 13 March 2008 deplored the Myanmar’s Government continuous gross violations of human rights, in manifest disregard of the Council’s repeated calls for reform and of the UN Special Rapporteur’s recommendations.

There are currently 1,850 political prisoners detained in Myanmar. The ICJ urged the Myanmar’s Government to receive the Special Rapporteur, who has not been allowed to return to the country, and to provide for an adequate investigation of the crackdown on peaceful protesters in September 2007.

Myanmar-HRCouncil Special Rapporteur-non-judicial submission-2008 (full text, PDF)

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