International Justice Resource Center

In July Sessions, UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies Review 14 States and Develop 3 General Comments

August 6, 2014 IJRC civil society, liberty & security of person, UN treaty bodies, women's rights

Last month, both the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee and the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Committee) held regular sessions in Geneva, Switzerland. During these sessions, the committees reviewed States parties’ implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against

European Court of Human Rights: Poland Responsible for Secret Detention, Torture, and Rendition of Two Guantánamo Detainees

July 30, 2014 IJRC death penalty, due process & judicial protection, European System, international human rights, liberty & security of person, regional human rights protection, security & rule of law, torture, Uncategorized

In its first judgment concerning the human rights of current Guantánamo detainees, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found that Poland failed to uphold its international obligations by allowing the secret detention, torture, and extraordinary rendition of a Saudi Arabian national and a stateless Palestinian, both suspected of terrorist acts. See ECtHR, Al Nashiri v. Poland, no. 28761/11, Judgment of 24

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

Three New Judges Elected to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights

July 22, 2014 IJRC African System, international human rights

The Assembly of the African Union appointed four judges to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) during its 25th Session in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. Three of the judges, Mrs. Solomy Balungi Bossa (Uganda), Mr. Rafaa Ben Achour (Tunisia), and Mr. Angelo Vasco Matusse (Mozambique), are new to the AfCHPR and the fourth, Justice Sylvain Oré (Côte d’Ivoire), was re-elected to serve

European Court of Human Rights Upholds Finnish Marital Restriction on Trans Gender Identity Recognition

July 21, 2014 IJRC discrimination, economic, social & cultural rights, European System, family, LGBTI rights, reproductive and sexual rights, women's rights

In a high profile new ruling, the European Court of Human Rights has held that requiring a transsexual woman to convert her marriage into a civil partnership in order to gain full legal recognition of her gender identity does not violate the European Convention on Human Rights (Convention). ECtHR, Hämäläinen v. Finland [GC], no. 37359/09, ECHR 2014, Judgment of 16 July

Civil Society Advocates a More Robust Regional Mechanism as ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights Reviews its Terms of Reference

July 16, 2014 IJRC Asia, civil society, regional human rights protection

Earlier this year, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) began a series of regional consultations with governments and civil society on the revision of its Terms of Reference (TOR), one of the commission’s principal governing documents. The AICHR, which began operating in 2009, has been criticized as insufficiently committed to human rights accountability

In Controversial Landmark Resolution, Human Rights Council Takes First Step toward Treaty on Transnational Corporations’ Human Rights Obligations

July 15, 2014 IJRC civil society, corporate accountability, UN Human Rights Council, UN Special Procedures, Uncategorized

In a new attempt to hold transnational corporations accountable for human rights violations, the United Nations Human Rights Council has decided to establish a working group to prepare a treaty imposing international human rights legal obligations on transnational corporations. [OHCHR Press Release] The mandate of the working group will be to “elaborate an international legally binding instrument to regulate, in

S.A.S. v. France: The European Court’s Decision in Light of Human Rights Doctrine on Restricting Religious Dress

July 11, 2014 IJRC cultural rights, discrimination, European System, freedom of religion, women's rights

Earlier this month, the European Court of Human Rights published its Grand Chamber decision in the case of S.A.S. v. France, which challenged the French “burqa ban” on wearing face coverings in public spaces. See ECtHR, S.A.S. v. France [GC], no. 43835/11, Judgment of 1 July 2014. The Grand Chamber held that prohibiting the concealment of a person’s face in public did

IACHR Special Rapporteur Releases Comprehensive Report on Freedom of Expression and the Internet

July 9, 2014 IJRC human rights defenders, Inter-American System, international human rights, thought, expression & association

In a new report, the regional human rights expert on freedom of expression in the Americas identifies principles and standards to guide States in their regulation of online communication. On June 27, 2014, the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) released the report, Freedom of Expression and the Internet, specifically addressing the

African Union Approves Immunity for Government Officials in Amendment to African Court of Justice and Human Rights’ Statute

July 2, 2014 IJRC African System, crime & impunity, ICTR, ICTY, International Criminal Court, international criminal law

In a controversial decision, the African Union has decided to specifically exempt senior government officials from prosecution by a proposed regional human rights court, which will otherwise be authorized to try individuals accused of crimes against humanity and other serious international crimes. At its 23rd Ordinary Session in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea last week, the Assembly of the African Union (AU) adopted an amendment to