international human rights – Page 10 – International Justice Resource Center

European Court Holds Secret Surveillance Did Not Violate Employees’ Privacy

October 24, 2019 IJRC European System, international human rights, privacy, regional human rights protection

Overturning a previous chamber decision, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) held that employees’ right to privacy was not violated when a Spanish supermarket used visible and secret cameras to record public areas of the store when it suspected significant theft by employees. See ECtHR, López Ribalda and Others v. Spain [GC], nos. 1874/13 and

UN Transitions from Peacekeeping to Governance, amid Crisis in Haiti

October 17, 2019 IJRC assembly and association, Inter-American System, international human rights, regional human rights protection, thought, expression & association, UN Security Council, Universal system

As oversight bodies call for restraint amid ongoing protests in Haiti, the United Nations is ending its 15-year peacekeeping mission in the country. [IACHR Press Release; UN News: Protests] On October 16, 2019, a special political mission, the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), replaced the United Nations Mission for Justice Support in Haiti (MINUJUSTH), shifting the UN’s focus

Special Rapporteur’s New Report Addresses Abuses in Reproductive Healthcare

October 10, 2019 IJRC international human rights, reproductive and sexual rights, UN Special Procedures, Universal system, women's rights

In her latest report to the United Nations General Assembly, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences outlined a human rights-based approach to the violence and mistreatment that many women suffer in reproductive health services, focusing specifically on childbirth and obstetric care. See Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and

Human Rights Committee Introduces Fixed Eight-Year State Review Schedule

October 2, 2019 IJRC international human rights, UN treaty bodies, Universal system

The United Nations Human Rights Committee has announced changes that will generally reduce the frequency and comprehensiveness of its review of States parties’ implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). With its first Predictable Review Cycle, the Committee will review all 173 States parties to the ICCPR between 2020 and 2027. See OHCHR, The Predictable Review

October 2019: UN Treaty Bodies & Regional Bodies in Session

September 30, 2019 IJRC African System, European System, Inter-American System, international human rights, monthly overview, regional human rights protection, UN Special Procedures, UN treaty bodies, Universal system

In October, universal and regional human rights bodies and experts will review States’ compliance with their human rights obligations through the consideration of State and civil society reports and country visits. Four United Nations treaty bodies and two pre-sessional working groups will hold sessions to assess States’ progress regarding enforced disappearances; economic, social, and cultural rights; women’s rights; children’s rights;

African Commission Finds Violations in Cameroon’s Denial of Broadcasting License

September 26, 2019 IJRC African System, international human rights, regional human rights protection, thought, expression & association

On September 18, 2019, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) published a decision finding Cameroon responsible for violating the rights to freedom of expression, non-discrimination, and property of a media company and its director, when it failed to create an independent licensing authority that could grant the company’s radio station a broadcasting license. See ACommHPR, Open Society

Committee Against Torture Decides First Complaint on Sexual Violence in Conflict

September 5, 2019 IJRC armed conflict, international human rights, torture, UN treaty bodies, women's rights

The United Nations Committee Against Torture (CAT) issued its first decision against the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina, finding that rape and other acts of sexual violence constitute torture under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the Convention), and ordering the State to pay “fair and adequate compensation” and provide free medical and

September 2019: UN Treaty Bodies, Human Rights Council, And Regional Bodies in Session

August 30, 2019 IJRC African System, civil society, European System, Inter-American System, international human rights, monthly overview, regional human rights protection, UN Human Rights Council, UN Special Procedures, UN treaty bodies, Universal system

In September, universal and regional human rights bodies and experts will review States’ compliance with their human rights obligations through the consideration of State and civil society reports and country visits. Three United Nations treaty bodies and one pre-sessional working group will hold sessions to assess States’ progress regarding the rights of persons with disabilities, children, and migrant workers. The

IACHR Publishes Guidelines on Internal Displacement in the Northern Triangle

August 28, 2019 IJRC immigration & asylum, Inter-American System, international human rights, migrants, regional human rights protection

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has launched a report on internally displaced people in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras; it analyzes a years-long increase in internal migration due to violence and the forceful expulsion of Indigenous and farming communities, details the rights of internally displaced people, and provides human rights-based guidelines for essential policy reforms. See IACHR, Internal