IACtHR to Hear Cases Involving Extrajudicial Killings in Peru, Guatemala, and Venezuela during 102nd Regular Session

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights will hear expert and witness testimony in three pending cases concerning extrajudicial executions, convene two private hearings on States’ compliance with prior decisions, and deliberate on the merits of two cases concerning alleged criminal due process violations during its ongoing 102nd Regular Session, being held from January 27 through February 7 at its headquarters

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UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to Begin Receiving Individual Complaints in April

Beginning in April 2014, individuals will have the ability to file complaints with the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) concerning alleged violations of children’s human rights by participating States. The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a Communications Procedure (OPCP), which establishes the new complaints procedure, received its tenth required ratification,

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ECtHR Finds Mandatory Transmission of Father’s Surname to Child is Discriminatory

Last week, the European Court of Human Rights released a decision in favor of Italian parents whose attempts to give their child her mother’s surname were frustrated by the State’s adherence to traditional naming practices.  ECtHR, Cusan and Fazzo v. Italy, no. 77/07, Judgment of 7 January 2014 (French only).  The Court found the State’s refusal to allow a mother

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Ongoing Special Session of Inter-American Court of Human Rights Focuses on Rights of Child Migrants

From October 7 to 11, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (Court) will be holding its 48th Special Session in Mexico City. During this session, the Court will hold hearings regarding one contentious case and a forthcoming advisory opinion, both concerning the rights of migrants.

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Committee on the Rights of the Child and Other Treaty Bodies Hold September Sessions in Geneva

This week in Geneva, the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is holding its 64th Session to review States’ implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its optional protocols. Earlier this month two other United Nations human rights treaty bodies, the Committee on Migrant Workers (CMW) and the Committee on the Rights of Persons

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In Nencheva v. Bulgaria, European Court Finds State Responsible for Deaths in Institution for Children with Disabilities

The European Court of Human Rights recently issued its judgment in Nencheva and Others v. Bulgaria, a case involving a State-run facility for children with disabilities, holding that Bulgarian authorities knew or should have known that the lives of children in the facility were at grave risk and failed to take action to protect them. See ECtHR, Nencheva and Others v. Bulgaria,

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Open for Comments: Draft UN Principles on Remedies for Trafficked Persons

The UN Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children, Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, recently released the Draft Basic Principles on the Right to an Effective Remedy for Trafficked Persons.  The Principles address both legal and procedural measures that States should take to support and assist survivors of trafficking, with attention to the particular vulnerability of trafficked children.

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UN Commission on the Status of Women Concludes with Recommendations to Eradicate Violence against Women and Girls

The fifty-seventh session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) concluded last week with its adoption of a historic set of conclusions, agreed to by 131 States, on the prevention and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls. [UN News Centre] The agreed conclusions, which were drafted with the participation of civil society, urge governments and

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