The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, human rights advocates, and some States are publicly supporting the creation of an expert committee to more fully investigate and address the human rights situation in North Korea. Recent reports by victims have revealed shocking allegations, but relatively little is known about the extent of suspected abuses, given the
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Israel and the Human Rights Council: Challenges to the Universal Periodic Review
The first cycle of the UN Human Rights Council‘s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) ended in March 2012 with participation from all 193 UN Member States. However, at the start of the UPR’s second cycle in May 2012, Israel formally suspended all relations with the Council and the UN Office of the High Commission for Human Rights (OHCHR), which serves as the
Read moreGuatemala Abrogates Attempt to Limit the Inter-American Court of Human Rights’ Jurisdiction
On January 17, 2013, Guatemalan President Otto Pérez Molina announced the derogation of a resolution that would have attempted to limit the Inter-American Court of Human Right’s jurisdiction over alleged human rights violations that took place before 1987. [IACHR; Procuraduría de Derechos Humanos] In December 2012, the Guatemalan Congress passed Resolution 370-2012, the purpose of which was to restrict the Inter-American Court of
Read moreStruggle for Economic and Social Justice in the United States Continues on MLK Day
President Barack Obama highlighted the importance of economic and social equality in his second inaugural address today, the day on which the country also commemorates civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King., Jr. In the United States today, a record number of people are living in poverty. [NCLEJ] Economic and social inequality in the United States remains remarkably high, particularly relative to countries of
Read moreJamaica: Inter-American Commission Reports Human Rights Concerns, Recommends Policy Changes
Last week, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) published a report on the human rights situation in Jamaica. IACHR, Report on the Situation of Human Rights in Jamaica (2012). The report is the first of the IACHR’s country reports to focus on Jamaica, and is a result of monitoring activities carried out in recent years, including a country visit in 2008,
Read moreStates to Negotiate, Adopt Treaty Regulating Mercury Emissions which Advocates Hope Will Address Health and Environmental Concerns
This week, governments are gathered in Geneva to negotiate the final text of an international treaty to regulate the uses and handling of mercury. [WP] In direct response to a 270-page United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report citing a lack of uniform global oversight on mercury emissions, the UNEP Governing Council recognized in 2009 that a legally binding document on
Read moreDevelopments in Sri Lanka, Honduras Cause Concern for Judicial Independence
Recent developments in Honduras and Sri Lanka have caused concern among civil society and human rights monitoring bodies for the judiciary’s independence in those countries. In Honduras, the National Congress removed four of the five justices who sit on the Constitutional Chamber of the nation’s Supreme Court. According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), the Honduran Congress ousted the justices due to their
Read moreUK Exercises Universal Jurisdiction to Prosecute Nepalese Colonel for Torture
On Thursday, January 3, 2013, British Metropolitan Police arrested Colonel Kumar Lama, a former Nepalese army officer, during a visit with his wife and children at their home in East Sussex, England. [BBC] Col. Lama was charged with two counts of torture allegedly committed in 2005 during Nepal’s civil war and faces trial in Britain. Charges and Basis of British
Read moreEuropean Committee of Social Rights Considers Labor Rights, Social Assistance, Access to Abortion and Environmental Contamination Complaints in 261st Session
The European Committee of Social Rights held its 261st Session from December 3 to 7, 2012 to consider seventeen collective complaints and examine States’ reports on their implementation of various articles of the European Social Charter. The European Committee of Social Rights, which typically meets seven times annually, is tasked with monitoring State compliance with the European Social Charter. Adopted in 1961 and revised in
Read moreUN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous People Seeks New Members
The Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous People (Expert Mechanism) is currently accepting nominations for two new expert members, one from Latin America and Caribbean countries, and the other from Eastern European countries. Individual candidates must be nominated by January 15, 2013. In 2007 the UN Human Rights Council created the Expert Mechanism as a subsidiary body, also know
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