Central African Republic Votes to Create New Hybrid Tribunal

On April 22, 2015, the Central African Republic’s transitional parliament voted to adopt a law to create a Special Criminal Court to investigate and prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity that have been committed in the Central African Republic since 2003. In order for the Special Criminal Court to now be established, its acting president, Catherine Samba-Panza, must enact

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ECtHR: Property Confiscation Legal When Serving Public Interest in Combating Corruption

Last week, on May 12, 2015, in Gogitidze and Others v. Georgia, the European Court of Human Rights held that the confiscation of property from a former public official did not violate the European Convention on Human Rights. The applicants claimed that Georgia had violated their right to property under the First Protocol to the European Convention, and their right

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UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Adopts Key Guidelines

During its 72nd regular session in Geneva, which was held from April 20th through 29th, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention [hereinafter Working Group] adopted the final text of its draft “Basic Principles and Guidelines on Remedies and Procedures on the Right of Anyone Deprived of Their Liberty to Bring Proceedings Before a Court.” [OHCHR: Working Group] See

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Committee against Torture Reviews 8 States’ Records

The Committee against Torture (CAT) is currently holding its 54th session in Geneva which began on April 20 and will continue through May 15. According to the agenda, CAT is considering the State reports of Colombia, the Republic of Congo, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Romania, Serbia, Spain, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on their implementation of the Convention against

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Inter-American Court Holds 108th Ordinary Session and 52nd Extraordinary Session

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) is currently holding its 108th Ordinary Session, which began on April 13 and will conclude on April 17, 2015 in San Jose, Costa Rica, and will be holding its 52nd Special Session from April 20 to April 24, 2015 in Cartagena, Colombia.

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Tatum A. Pritchard

Tatum A. Pritchard is Director of Litigation at the Disability Law Center, in Massachusetts. She first joined IJRC in 2013 as Strategic Litigation Consultant, a position she held for numerous years, and became a member of the Board of Directors in 2023. Tatum was previously an attorney at Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts where she represented prisoners and former prisoners

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African Commission Addresses Torture of Human Rights Defenders in Sudan

On March 10, 2015, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights published a decision condemning Sudan’s mistreatment of human rights defenders, which remains a pressing concern in the country.  In the case of Monim Elgak, Osman Hummeida and Amir Suliman v. Sudan, the African Commission held that the government of Sudan violated several articles of the African Charter on

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