security & rule of law – Page 9 – International Justice Resource Center

News Clips – May 23, 2010

May 23, 2010 IJRC civil litigation, discrimination, domestic courts, environmental rights, immigration & asylum, Inter-American System, internationalized criminal tribunals, security & rule of law, torture, U.S. courts, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Protests continue in Thailand as Asian Centre for Human Rights decries international community’s silence and the EU Parliament and Human Rights Watch express concern over violence, emergency provisions, and censorship. The BBC has provided a detailed overview of the situation. Human Rights Watch urges new British government to reform counterterrorism strategies and investigate British agents’ complicity in torture and rendition. [HRW] Related cases decided by the

News Clips

May 1, 2010 IJRC discrimination, domestic courts, economic, social & cultural rights, environmental rights, international criminal law, regional human rights protection, security & rule of law

Protests and celebrations commemorate International Workers’ Day around the world. [NPR, AP] For information on international labor standards and agreements, visit the International Labour Organization’s website. Omar Khadr boycotted the second day of his Military Commission evidentiary hearings yesterday when he was required to wear sensory deprivation equipment while being transported to the courthouse [Impunity Watch] the Extraordinary Chambers in the

DOD Publishes New Manual for Military Commissions

April 28, 2010 IJRC security & rule of law

As reported by Human Rights First, the U.S. Department of Defense has released a new version of the handbook which establishes the procedural rules and applicable punishments in the prosecution of “alien unprivileged enemy belligerents for violations of the law of war and other offenses” before Military Commissions in Guantanamo Bay, under the Military Commissions Act. The new Manual for Military Commissions

UN Announces Legal Aid Fund for Iraqi Detainees

April 28, 2010 IJRC domestic courts, security & rule of law, torture, Universal system

The United Nations announced today that, since late last year, 20 legal defense centers have been providing free legal assistance to Iraqi detainees to help them defend themselves in criminal proceedings. The Programme for the Protection of Detainees and Torture Victims, funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), is operating in

IACHR Admits Cases Involving Ancestral Land Rights and ‘Environmental Racism’

April 28, 2010 IJRC economic, social & cultural rights, environmental rights, indigenous communities, Inter-American System, property, right to life, security & rule of law, torture

In its first five admissibility decisions of 2010, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights admitted three petitions against Peru, one against Honduras, and one against the United States. The petition against Honduras concerns the rights of a Garifuna community, while the petition against the United States concerns the rights of a predominantly African American community in Mossville, Louisiana. In the

Judge Orders Release of Guantanamo Detainee Mohamedou Slahi

April 9, 2010 IJRC liberty & security of person, security & rule of law, U.S. courts

Today, the ACLU made available on its website D.C. District Court Judge James Robertson’s order granting Guantanamo Bay detainee Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s petition for writ of habeas corpus (here). The decision, handed down on March 22, was under seal pending release of an unclassified version. Judge Robertson’s decision comes over eight years after Slahi’s initial detention in Senegal in November

1983 Beirut Bombing Victims Awarded $1 Billion in Punitive Damages

April 4, 2010 IJRC civil litigation, security & rule of law, U.S. courts

On March 31, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colombia issued its final judgment in Valore v. Islamic Republic of Iran, awarding the survivors and victims’ estates over $1 billion in damages. The plaintiffs alleged tort liability under the amended the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and District of Colombia law for the deaths, injuries, and pain and suffering caused

D.C. District Court Dismisses as Moot 105 Habeas Petitions of Transferred Guantanamo Detainees

April 3, 2010 IJRC liberty & security of person, security & rule of law, U.S. courts

On April 1st, in its consideration of 105 habeas petitions presented by non-U.S. citizens formerly held at Guantanamo, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colombia held that such petitions become moot when the individuals have been transferred to foreign countries. The petitioners had filed their habeas petitions while still detained at Guantanamo and, following their release or transfer

The Week's News

February 28, 2010 IJRC democracy & political rights, European System, ICTY, Inter-American System, international criminal law, liberty & security of person, right to life, security & rule of law, thought, expression & association, torture, UN Special Procedures

Human Rights Conditions * President Bachelet declares state of catastrophe following powerful earthquake in Chile. [Washington Post] * Interim government organized following Niger coup. [BBC] * Ceasefire signed in Sudan. [Guardian] * Waterboarding defended by former speechwriter for President George W. Bush. [New York Times] * Russia pushed for details on investigation of Chechen human rights defender’s murder in July