Today marks the tenth year anniversary of the United States government’s use of the prison camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba to hold individuals suspected of supporting or being associated with al Qaeda or other groups – some, but not all, of which were designated terrorist groups by the U.S. government. See Mark Denbeaux et al., Report on the Guantanamo Detainees:
Read moreCategory: due process & judicial protection
Bahrain Update: Protests Continue, UN Team Finds Ongoing Rights Violations, Prominent Activist Beaten
Last Friday, prominent human rights defender Nabeel Rajab, head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, was hospitalized after being beaten by security forces in the capital city of Manama following a large demonstration. [BCHR; Washington Post] Mr. Rajab believed the security forces to be nationals of Bahrain and of other Middle Eastern and South Asian nations. [For more on
Read moreECHR Tomorrow: Hearing in Fernández Martínez v. Spain, Decisions on Medical Care in Georgia Prisons, Malta Land Rights, Turkish Army, UK Custody Death
On Tuesday, November 22, the European Court of Human Rights will hold a Chamber hearing in the case Fernández Martínez v. Spain (Application no. 56030/07) and release a number of decisions in applications against Georgia, Malta, Turkey, Azerbaijan, the United Kingdom, Spain, Montenegro and Estonia. The Fernández Martínez v. Spain case concerns the decision not to renew a Spanish priest’s
Read moreEuropean Commission Proposes Directive on Right to Counsel in Criminal Proceedings
The European Commission has issued the third in a series of proposals for European Parliament and Council directives to set “common minimum standards on the rights of suspects and accused persons in criminal proceedings throughout the European Union”, pursuant to a European Council resolution adopted in November 2009, and part of the Stockholm Programme. Council Resolution 15434/09, Roadmap for Strengthening Procedural Rights
Read moreECHR Rejects Soros' Complaint of Unfair Prosecution for Insider Trading
The European Court of Human Rights has dismissed philanthropist George Soros’ application challenging his 2002 conviction in France for insider trading. [FT] Last September, the court declared his complaint partially admissible, admitting Soros’ allegation that the crime with which he was charged was not clearly established in French law (in violation of the nulla poena sine lege, or no ex
Read moreNews Clips – October 11, 2011
In the wake of the killing of Al-Qaida militant and U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki in late September by a U.S. drone strike in Yemen, many have questioned the Obama Administration’s legal justification for killing U.S. citizens and others outside combat zones, as discussed by IJRC Board member Jamil Dakwar in “State Sanctioned Killings”, published in the ezine Jadaliyya last Friday.
Read moreReleased Egyptian Political Prisoner Urges African Commission to Ensure Accountability for and Non-Repetition of Mubarak Era Abuses
The Open Society Justice Initiative and Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights have announced a development in their complaint on behalf of Egyptian political prisoner Mohammed Abderrahim El-Sharkawi. [OSJI] The two organizations recently filed written arguments on admissibility before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which received the complaint in late 2010. [OSJI] El-Sharkawi reportedly spent nearly 16 years in
Read moreUN Rapporteur on Housing Concerned by World Cup and Olympics Preparations in Brazil
Raquel Rolnik, the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, expressed concern about Brazil’s ongoing and planned displacement of many thousands of families and individual residents to make way for beautification and development projects for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games. [UN News Centre] In particular, she signaled that the hasty evictions and “very limited compensation
Read moreJudge Garzón Challenges Prosecution for Investigation of Franco-Era Abuses
London-based human rights organization The International Centre for the Legal Protection of Human Rights (INTERIGHTS) has filed an application with the European Court of Human Rights on behalf of Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón against the Spanish government, challenging Judge Garzón’s criminal prosecution for malfeasance, initiated by private groups in response to his judicial investigation of crimes committed under the Franco dictatorship. [INTERIGHTS;
Read moreIACHR to Begin Hearings Today – Rights of Women, Indigenous Communities, Sexual Minorities and Human Rights Defenders on Today's Agenda
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights begins holding hearings today in its 141st Period of Sessions. The forty-four scheduled hearings will be held on March 25 (today), 28 and 29 at the OAS General Secretariat Building at 1889 F Street, N.W. in Washington, D.C. and are open to the public (with the exception of two closed hearings on Venezuela). No
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