The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) held a symposium in Mexico City last week entitled Delivering on the Promise of the Right to Rehabilitation that brought together over 300 people, including clinical professionals, lawyers, researchers, and policymakers, from around the world to discuss rehabilitation of torture survivors. [IRCT Press Release] The IRCT is a membership-based organization consisting of
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The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) issued new guidelines relating to individuals who are fleeing their countries due to armed conflict and violence, seeking to ensure that States consistently apply international law when conducting refugee determinations and generally view these individuals as possible refugees. [UN News Centre] The guidelines are intended to resolve discrepancies in States’ application of
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The trial against Dominic Ongwen, a child soldier turned top commander of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), began at the International Criminal Court (ICC) on December 6, 2016. See ICC, Prosecutor v. Dominic Ongwen. Ongwen was indicted in 2005 on 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, which include gender-based crimes and crimes of conscription of children allegedly
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Civil Society This week, seven Tibetans in China were given prison sentences that ranged from five to 14 years. [HKFP] Egyptian authorities arrested a prominent human rights activist, Azza Soliman. [AI] Harsh winter weather forced demonstrators to temporarily evacuate the protest site at Standing Rock where they have been protesting the construction of a pipeline. [Washington Post] A Human Rights
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On November 14, the International Criminal Court (ICC) released its 2016 annual report on its pending preliminary investigations into alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide. [ICC Press Release] The report details the Court’s progress on the 10 situations being evaluated for possible investigation, including two examinations initiated during the reporting period of November 1, 2015 to October 31, 2016
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Civil Society Following protests over the weekend and statements from the United Nations, Turkey withdrew a bill that would have granted amnesty to some perpetrators of child sexual assault. [Guardian] Thousands of protesters in Malaysia demonstrated against the prime minister, resulting in 15 arrests. [Washington Post] Authorities have started using tear gas and water cannons against refugee protesters in Bulgaria.
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Activities of Human Rights Bodies and Experts The Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context has asked the Nigerian government for an explanation for the recent mass evictions that have resulted in four deaths and many displaced. [UN News Centre] The Subcommittee
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The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea has again called on the UN Security Council to refer the situation in Eritrea to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for adjudication of possible crimes against humanity committed by State officials since 1991. Speaking on behalf of the former three-member commission, whose mandate ended in June 2016, Sheila Keetharuth
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Civil Society After recent protests in Argentina over the murder and rape of a teenage girl, two women who participated in the protest were murdered this week, causing civil society to argue that femicides and gender-based violence are on the rise. [Guardian] The police in South Africa this week used water canons, tear gas, and stun grenades against students protesting
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Both Burundi and South Africa announced in the last two weeks that they intend to withdraw from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). On October 12, 2016, 94 of 110 parliamentary members in Burundi voted in support of retracting Burundi’s membership as a State party to the ICC’s treaty, the Rome Statute. [ICC Press Release] On October 18,
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