International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, celebrated annually on May 17, serves as an opportunity to call attention to the challenges, stigma, and rights violations experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) individuals around the world. Today, many of the major human rights monitoring bodies released statements calling on governments to initiate or increase efforts to put an end
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Nominations for 2013 UN Human Rights Prize Due by July 5
The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR) has opened nominations for the 2013 United Nations Prize for those who have made “outstanding contributions to the promotion and protection of human rights.” The award has been presented every five years since 1968, pursuant to General Assembly Resolution that also established the international year for human rights.
Read moreU.S. State Department Releases 2012 Country Reports on Human Rights
The U.S. Department of State recently released its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012. The annual reports cover nearly every country besides the United States and address various human rights topics, such as freedom of speech and press, arbitrary arrest or detention, and workers’ rights. Drawing on a variety of resources, including U.S. consular staff and civil society
Read moreAs Hunger Strike Continues, International Human Rights Experts Urge U.S. to Close Guantanamo Detention Center
In response to the hunger strike carried out by detainees held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan Mendez, UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while
Read moreCommittee on Enforced Disappearances Issues its First Concluding Observations, on State Reports from Uruguay and France
The United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) held its fourth session from April 8 to 19, 2013 and reviewed State reports for the first time. Uruguay and France were the first States to be reviewed by the CED, which has now issued its “concluding observations” on those governments’ compliance with the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from
Read moreNew OHCHR Portal for Resources on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recently launched an online portal for tools and information available for economic, social and cultural rights activists. While civil and political rights – like the rights to free speech and a fair trial – are often the center of international attention, the equally critical human rights related to economic, social,
Read moreUniversal Periodic Review: Ongoing 16th Session Includes Colombia, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, Russia, Cuba & Others
On April 22, the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group commenced its sixteenth session in Geneva. During this two-week session, the Council will review and confirm reports on the human rights situation in Turkmenistan, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Tuvalu, Germany, Djibouti, Canada, Bangladesh, the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan, Cameroon, and Cuba. [UN HRC] The fourteen
Read moreExpanded U.S. Program Includes Rewards for Information Leading to Arrest of ICC Suspects
Earlier this month, the United States announced an expansion of its program offering monetary incentives for information leading to the arrest or conviction of designated non-U.S. nationals wanted on suspicion of committing crimes against humanity, genocide or war crimes. The program had previously been limited to individuals indicted by three international or internalized criminal tribunal tribunals: the Special Court for Sierra
Read moreOpen Letter from Venezuelan Human Rights Advocates on the Election
The below letter, directed at Latin American human rights organizations, was published on April 18, 2013 by Venezuelan human rights coalition Foro Por la Vida and signed by a group of well-known Venezuelan advocates. It should be noted, the National Electoral Council has since granted a full recount over the next 30 days, although the scheduled swearing-in of President Nicolas Maduro nonetheless
Read moreG8 Nations Pledge to Fight Sexual Violence during Conflict by Increasing Awareness, Victim Support and Law Enforcement Capacity
During a meeting of foreign ministers in London on April 11, 2013, the Group of Eight (G8) nations endorsed the Declaration on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, a new initiative to fight rape and sexual violence. Reiterating that rape and sexual violence are war crimes and violations of international humanitarian law under the Geneva Conventions, G8 foreign ministers pledged $35.5
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