This month, The Opportunity Agenda and the Program on Human Rights and the Global Economy (PHRGE) of Northeastern University School of Law issued a comprehensive survey of significant determinations by state courts and attorneys general in the United States that address international human rights law. The report, entitled Human Rights in State Courts 2014, follows up on a 2011 edition
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DR Congo Parliament Approves New Amnesty Law for Insurgency and Other Crimes, as Part of Agreement with M23 Rebel Group
The parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has approved legislation granting amnesty for acts of insurgency, acts of war, and political offenses, while excluding amnesty for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. [UN News Centre] This amnesty proposal originated as part of the December 2013 agreement to end fighting between the DRC army and the M23
Read moreIACtHR to Hear Cases Involving Extrajudicial Killings in Peru, Guatemala, and Venezuela during 102nd Regular Session
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights will hear expert and witness testimony in three pending cases concerning extrajudicial executions, convene two private hearings on States’ compliance with prior decisions, and deliberate on the merits of two cases concerning alleged criminal due process violations during its ongoing 102nd Regular Session, being held from January 27 through February 7 at its headquarters
Read moreUN Human Rights Council Holds 18th Session of the Universal Periodic Review
From January 27 to February 7, the Human Rights Council is holding its 18th Session of the Universal Periodic Review Working Group, to examine the human rights practices of 14 States through an interactive dialogue. [OHCHR] In order of scheduled review, the 14 States are: New Zealand, Afghanistan, Chile, Cambodia, Uruguay, Yemen, Vanuatu, Macedonia, Comoros, Slovakia, Eritrea, Cyprus, the Dominican Republic, and Vietnam.
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Liberians Seek Redress for Environmental, Labor and Human Rights Harms Allegedly Caused by U.S.-Backed Development Project
Liberian farmers, charcoal producers and workers are seeking redress before the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) for the economic, social and environmental harms allegedly caused by a development project in which OPIC invested. OPIC, a United States governmental agency that provides financial assistance to development projects abroad, backed Buchanan Renewables’ plans to build a biomass power plant in Liberia and
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With Đorđević Appeals Judgment, ICTY Concludes Final Case Concerning Kosovo
On January 27, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) confirmed Vlastimir Đorđević’s conviction in relation to crimes committed by Serbian forces against Albanians, during the conflict in Kosovo. [ICTY: Appeal Judgment Summary] It partially granted appeals raised by both the prosecution and defense, reducing Đorđević’s sentence from 27 to 18 years. This judgment
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UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to Begin Receiving Individual Complaints in April
Beginning in April 2014, individuals will have the ability to file complaints with the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) concerning alleged violations of children’s human rights by participating States. The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a Communications Procedure (OPCP), which establishes the new complaints procedure, received its tenth required ratification,
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UN Establishes Commission of Inquiry and Independent Expert on Central African Republic, as Widespread Human Rights Violations Continue
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
Read moreSpecial Tribunal for Lebanon Opens Trial of 4 Accused in Rafiq Hariri Assassination, in Abstentia
Last week, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) opened the trial proceedings against Salim Jamil Ayyash, Mustafa Amine Badreddine, Hussein Hassan Oneissi, and Assad Hassan Sabra for the Beirut bombing that killed 22 individuals, including the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, on February 14, 2005. See STL, Prosecutor v. Ayyash et al. (Case STL-11-01), Indictment (Public Redacted Version), 10
Read moreECtHR Finds Granting Civil Immunity for Torture to Foreign State Officials Does Not Violate European Convention on Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) issued a judgment last week upholding a British court’s grant of immunity to Saudi Arabia and Saudi officials who allegedly tortured British citizens. See ECtHR, Jones and Others v. United Kingdom, nos. 34356/06 and 40528/06, ECHR 2014, Judgment of 14 January 2014. The UK House of Lords had blocked the plaintiffs’ civil suits
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