UN High Commissioner for Human Rights – Page 8 – International Justice Resource Center

Happy Human Rights Day 2014!

Today, the international community is celebrating Human Rights Day, commemorating the 66th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. The UDHR enumerates fundamental rights and freedoms that are considered to be the foundation of international human rights law, and has since inspired the creation of over 60 human rights instruments that protect human

New United Nations Report Details Human Rights Abuses by Militias in Libya’s Ongoing Armed Conflict

September 9, 2014 IJRC crime & impunity, due process & judicial protection, extrajudicial executions, immigration & asylum, International Criminal Court, international criminal law, international human rights, international humanitarian law, liberty & security of person, property, security & rule of law, torture, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Security Council

Last week, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) published a joint report providing an overview of human rights abuses committed in Libya from May through August 2014, amid ongoing fighting among militias for control of Benghazi and Tripoli. See UNSMIL & OHCHR, Overview of Violations of International Human Rights

Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, Minister of Human Rights for Iraq during the special session on Iraq of the Human Rights Council. Credit: UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré

UN Human Rights Council Requests Investigation into Islamic State’s Human Rights Abuses in Iraq

September 3, 2014 IJRC discrimination, freedom of religion, international humanitarian law, liberty & security of person, military and humanitarian intervention, right to life, security & rule of law, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Human Rights Council, UN Security Council, UN Special Procedures, UN treaty bodies

The United Nations Human Rights Council held its 22nd special session this week to address human rights violations committed by the Islamic State and associated groups, which have been accused of mass atrocities as they move to take territory and eliminate minority groups in Iraq and neighboring countries. [OHCHR; Amnesty] The UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution requesting the

September 2014 Newsletter: New IJRC Guides and Resources, and Our New Location

September 3, 2014 IJRC children, civil society, discrimination, due process & judicial protection, economic, social & cultural rights, education, enforced disappearance, IJRC Newsletter, IJRC Updates, International Criminal Court, international criminal law, international human rights, LGBTI rights, persons with disabilities, regional human rights protection, reproductive and sexual rights, security & rule of law, thought, expression & association, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Human Rights Council, UN Special Procedures, UN treaty bodies, women's rights

UN Human Rights Council Establishes Commission of Inquiry for the Occupied Palestinian Territory as Civilian Deaths and Displacement Continue

July 29, 2014 IJRC international human rights, international humanitarian law, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Human Rights Council, UN Security Council

In a special session convened last week to address the escalating violence in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, the UN Human Rights Council resolved to establish an independent commission of inquiry to investigate “all violations” of international humanitarian law and human rights law committed in the context of armed conflict in the region since June 13, 2014. See UN

Jordan’s Prince Zeid to Succeed Navi Pillay as New United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in September 2014

June 25, 2014 IJRC civil society, international human rights, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Universal system

The United Nations General Assembly has approved the appointment of Prince Zeid Ra’ad Zeid al-Hussein as Navanethem (Navi) Pillay’s successor to head the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The High Commissioner is the official with the foremost responsibility for human rights activities at the United Nations. See UN General Assembly, Resolution 48/141, High Commissioner for

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Publishes Policy Paper on Sexual and Gender-Based Crimes

June 12, 2014 IJRC International Criminal Court, international criminal law, transitional justice, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, women's rights

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Ms. Fatou Bensouda, has published a Policy Paper on Sexual and Gender-Based Crimes describing the approach her office will take with regard to such crimes going forward. The Policy Paper, released on June 5th of this year, is the latest indicator that the Office of the Prosecutor plans to emphasize sexual and gender-based

International Human Rights Bodies Condemn Violence, Gov’t Responses to Protests in Thailand, Ukraine, and Venezuela

February 25, 2014 IJRC democracy & political rights, European System, extrajudicial executions, Inter-American System, liberty & security of person, thought, expression & association, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Tensions have escalated in Thailand, Ukraine, and Venezuela in recent weeks as political protests have given rise to violent clashes and political upheaval. The United Nations and international human rights bodies have called upon each government to engage in meaningful dialogue to address these conflicts and develop solutions. [OHCHR; COE; UN News Centre] UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon emphasized that “there

UN Establishes Commission of Inquiry and Independent Expert on Central African Republic, as Widespread Human Rights Violations Continue

January 25, 2014 IJRC crime & impunity, international criminal law, international human rights, international humanitarian law, military and humanitarian intervention, right to life, security & rule of law, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Human Rights Council, UN Security Council, UN Special Procedures

Amid ongoing sectarian violence in the Central African Republic, including reported war crimes and crimes against humanity, the United Nations has established two expert mechanisms to monitor the human rights situation, but has so far stopped short of authorizing a UN peacekeeping mission to support the French and African Union troops already in the country. Hundreds have been killed and