Germany recently began its first prosecution for alleged war crimes in Syria, joining the several States and private actors seeking accountability for atrocities committed in the ongoing conflict in Syria. [The New Arab] Despite the lack of a final peace agreement, human rights experts are encouraging State governments to take steps to bring to justice those responsible for war crimes
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The East African Court of Justice (EACJ) recently held that the East African Community (EAC) breached its duties to effectively investigate and redress possible violations of the principles in the EAC Treaty that arose from the allegedly illegal expulsion of Rwandan and Burundian immigrants from Tanzania in 2013. See East African Court of Justice, East African Law Society v. Secretary
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On April 26, 2016, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found that a life sentence was de facto irreducible because the applicant was denied medical treatment that could have positively affected his pardon requests and, consequently, held that the Netherlands violated the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment under Article 3 of
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The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) recently found that Australia violated the rights of two deaf people who were called up for jury service but told that they could not participate because sign language or real-time steno-captioning could not be provided. See CRPD, Gemma Beasley v. Australia, Communication No. 11/2013, Views of 25 April
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During the month of May 2016, supranational human rights bodies’ activities will include review of dozens of States’ compliance with their treaty obligations, public hearings on individual complaints, and 11 country visits. The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) will hear a Finnish case concerning the tension between privacy and freedom of expression and a Belgian case
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We are pleased to share with you an overview of the latest human rights developments and a summary of IJRC’s recent activities, in this April 2016 edition of the IJRC newsletter. Click here to open the newsletter in PDF.
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Human rights monitors have criticized Gambian authorities’ detention and alleged torture of political protesters, including the reported death in custody of a political opposition leader, as the international community pays closer attention to a government known to carry out extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and arbitrary arrests. [okayafrica; HRW] The Gambian government has charged protestors associated with the opposition party with
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The United Nations Working Group on Business and Human Rights held its first Asia Regional Forum on Business and Human Rights from April 19 to 20 in Doha, Qatar, bringing together governments, business representatives, trade unions, civil society organizations, affected communities, academics, and others to discuss the region’s implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (“Ruggie Principles”).
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The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has condemned Columbia’s failure to provide a gay man with equal access to public benefits following the death of his partner, as prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. See I/A Court H.R., Duque v. Colombia. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of 26 February 2016. Series C No. 310 (Spanish only).
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The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) has adopted a draft protocol on the rights of persons with disabilities, intended to complement the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and address continued exclusion, harmful practices, and discrimination affecting those with disabilities, especially women, children, and the elderly. The protocol, adopted during the ACHPR’s 19th Extraordinary Session, is
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