Before the United Nations Human Rights Council on March 15, 2016, the UN Special Rapporteur on the protection and promotion of human rights while countering terrorism, Ben Emmerson, presented his report focused on violent extremism and the human rights implications of measures taken to eradicate it. See Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights
Read more
On March 9, 2016 the East African Legislative Assembly, the legislative arm of the East African Community (EAC), congratulated South Sudan on its admission into the economic community after passing a resolution to admit the State into the EAC. [EAC Press Release] In order to be accepted as the sixth Member State, South Sudan had to demonstrate its conformity to
Read more
The United Nations is struggling to appear responsive to allegations of serious sexual misconduct by UN peacekeepers, who have been accused in recent years of raping or abusing women and children in a number of countries, where they were deployed to foster security and provide assistance to communities affected by conflict and natural disasters. On March 10, 2016 UN Secretary
Read more
On March 8, 2016 the appeals panel of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) reversed the contempt conviction of Karma Khayat, the deputy head of news of the television news station Al Jadeed, and upheld the acquittal of the station itself, in connection with the broadcast of information concerning the identity of confidential witnesses. See Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Al
Read more
The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) recently issued a General Comment explaining States’ duties to ensure the right to sexual and reproductive health, as an integral part of the right to health protected by Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). See Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, General Comment
Read more
The government of Rwanda has announced it will no longer allow individuals and non-governmental organizations to directly file complaints against it with the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR). [Ministry of Justice Press Release] The decision comes as the African Court is set to decide a claim against Rwanda by a leading opposition politician, Victoire Ingabire, who alleges
Read more
The European Court of Justice recently held that European Union (EU) law does not preclude Germany from imposing geographic restrictions on residence permits for certain non-EU migrants receiving public benefits, provided that those migrants are less integrated into society than other migrants. See European Court of Justice (Grand Chamber), Kreis Warendorf v. Alo and Osso v. Region Hannover, Cases C-443/14 and C-444/14, Request
Read more
In a recent decision regarding family reunification for a same-sex couple, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found Croatia to have violated a non-citizen’s human rights by denying her application for a residence permit to join her partner in Croatia. See ECtHR, Pajić v. Croatia, no. 68453/13, Judgment of 23 February 2016. The ECtHR unanimously held that Croatia’s Aliens Act,
Read more
In a report released March 2, 2016, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (Inter-American Commission) has exposed the severity of Mexico’s ongoing human rights crisis. See IACHR, Situation of Human Rights in Mexico (2015). The report relies on information gathered during onsite visits conducted by the IACHR and its rapporteurships, as well as from IACHR hearings, precautionary measures, and petitions
Read more
The independent body of the International Labour Organization (ILO) that supervises States’ compliance with ILO conventions has recently issued a report summarizing the status of labor rights and associated freedoms in 2015. See International Labour Office, Application of International Labour Standards 2016 (I) (2016), at 2. The Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (Committee of Experts)
Read more