International Justice Resource Center

OHCHR Reports Unprecedented Violence Against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar

February 15, 2017 IJRC Asia, children, crime & impunity, discrimination, due process & judicial protection, economic, social & cultural rights, education, enforced disappearance, equal protection, extrajudicial executions, family, freedom of religion, health, immigration & asylum, international criminal law, liberty & security of person, migrants, reproductive and sexual rights, right to life, torture, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Universal system, women's rights

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recently published its findings from over 200 interviews with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh that described severe human rights violations against Rohingya in Myanmar since an October 9, 2016 attack on the police in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. See OHCHR, Report of the OHCHR mission to Bangladesh: Interviews with Rohingyas fleeing from

News Clips- February 10, 2017

February 10, 2017 IJRC armed conflict, assembly and association, civil litigation, civil society, democracy & political rights, economic, social & cultural rights, environmental rights, human rights defenders, immigration & asylum, indigenous communities, international human rights, migrants, News Clips, right to life, thought, expression & association

Civil Society On Wednesday, four protesters were arrested in the United States while protesting the Dakota Access pipeline at a bank in Chicago. [Chicago Tribune] On Wednesday, human rights groups in Israel petitioned a high court to block a law that enables the seizure of private Palestinian land for Jewish settlements. [Washington Post] Following recent mass protests in Romania, the

Refugee Crisis Reaches New Peak amid Ongoing Conflicts, Islamophobic Policies

February 7, 2017 IJRC discrimination, freedom of religion, immigration & asylum, Inter-American System, international human rights, liberty & security of person, migrants, regional human rights protection, UN treaty bodies, Universal system

In 2016, more than 65 million people were estimated to be refugees or internally displaced persons – the highest number in history. [World Economic Forum] Many of the migrants who are fleeing their countries are unable to permanently resettle for a number of reasons, including the global underfunding of refugee support programs and national policies motivated by Islamophobia or isolationism.

Following Three Decades of Isolation, Morocco Rejoins African Union

February 6, 2017 IJRC African System, assembly and association, civil society, democracy & political rights, discrimination, international human rights, LGBTI rights, privacy, regional human rights protection, right to life, thought, expression & association, torture, women's rights

After more than 30 years of separation, Morocco has officially been admitted back in to the African Union (AU), the continent’s largest intergovernmental organization. [New York Times; Reuters] Morocco quit the African Union’s predecessor, the Organization of African Unity, in 1984 after the regional bloc officially recognized Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Western Sahara) as a member. [BBC: Morocco] After a

News Clips – February 3, 2017

February 3, 2017 IJRC armed conflict, Asia, assembly and association, children, civil litigation, civil society, discrimination, domestic courts, economic, social & cultural rights, freedom of religion, human rights defenders, immigration & asylum, international human rights, migrants, News Clips, thought, expression & association

Civil Society This week hundreds of thousands of protesters demonstrated across Romania in response to an emergency ordinance that decriminalizes certain cases of misconduct of allegedly corrupt officials. [Guardian] Two human rights activists who were arrested last month and charged with terrorism for organizing peaceful protests to support Anglophone rights in Cameroon continue to be imprisoned, and may face the

February 2017: United Nations and Regional Human Rights Bodies in Session

February 1, 2017 IJRC children, corporate accountability, democracy & political rights, discrimination, due process & judicial protection, economic, social & cultural rights, European System, immigration & asylum, Inter-American System, international human rights, labor rights, migrants, monthly overview, persons with disabilities, right to life, UN Human Rights Council, UN Special Procedures, UN treaty bodies, Universal Periodic Review, women's rights

In the month of February 2017, various universal and regional bodies will assess States’ compliance with their human rights obligations through interactive dialogues, the consideration of State and civil society reports, country visits, and the review of individual complaints. Four United Nations treaty bodies will meet this month to engage with States regarding their treaty obligations related to economic, social,

Rights Protests Continue Across the U.S. as Immigration Ban Implemented

January 30, 2017 IJRC assembly and association, civil society, democracy & political rights, discrimination, domestic courts, environmental rights, equal protection, human rights defenders, immigration & asylum, international human rights, LGBTI rights, migrants, reproductive and sexual rights, U.S. courts, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Special Procedures, women's rights

Protesters in the United States and around the world demonstrated last week and over the weekend, calling for the protection of the rights of migrants and refugees, women, and other vulnerable groups, as a new administration assumed power in the United States following a bitterly divisive campaign in which now-President Trump denied sexual assault allegations and promised to enact a

News Clips – January 27, 2017

January 27, 2017 IJRC armed conflict, Asia, civil litigation, civil society, corporate accountability, democracy & political rights, economic, social & cultural rights, health, immigration & asylum, international human rights, labor rights, migrants, News Clips, reproductive and sexual rights, Universal system, women's rights

Civil Society Academics and activists warn that the “global gag rule,” which prohibits funding for organizations that provide abortion services and was implemented by United States President Trump on Monday, will have a chilling effect on civil society programs in Latin America offering family planning, contraception, HIV/Aids, and abortion services. [Guardian] This week, United Nations experts called for the release

UNODC Publishes First Handbook on Management of Violent Extremist Prisoners

January 25, 2017 IJRC conditions of detention, international human rights, liberty & security of person, security & rule of law, Universal system

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched a Handbook on the Management of Violent Extremist Prisoners and the Prevention of Radicalization to Violence in Prisons on January 16 aimed at strengthening prison management of violent extremist prisoners while upholding prisoners’ human rights. [UN News Centre] The handbook, one in a series of UNODC resources meant to help