On January 24, 2013, the UN Special Rapporteur on counterterrorism and human rights, Ben Emmerson, launched an investigation of States’ use of armed drones and other forms of targeted killing. The investigation will focus on the legal framework applicable to the use of drones and the technology’s impact on civilians by examining 25 case studies of strikes carried out by the
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Regional NHRI Networks and Forums
In connection with the International Coordinating Committee for NHRIs, four primary regional networks covering NHRIs located in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia, as well as separate cross-regional NHRI forums. Coordinating Committee Regional Networks The European Group of National Human Rights Institutions has 40 NRHI members and is chaired by a rotation of NHRI members, with the Scottish Human Rights
Read moreThe Status of Guantánamo and Extraordinary Rendition Litigation before Regional Tribunals
On September 8, Adnan Latif became the ninth Guantánamo Bay detainee to die in U.S. custody. [NY Times] The military publicly announced Latif’s identity today, the eleventh anniversary of the tragic attacks of September 11, 2001. Those terrorist attacks gave rise to a more public, aggressive and extensive “war on terror” whose features have included the use of “black sites”
Read moreNews Clips – October 25, 2010
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights begins holding hearings today in its 140th Period of Sessions. Issues to be discussed today include the Situation of Environmentalists in Mesoamerica, and Discrimination against the Transsexual, Transgender, and Transvestite Population in Brazil. See the week’s schedule of hearings here. Webcast of some hearings is available here. The role of humanitarian aid in contributing
Read moreNews Clips – through Sept. 14, 2010
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Syria welcomes its first visit from a UN special rapporteur, the Special Rapporteur on the right to food, in a showing of increased participation with the UN Human Rights Council’s monitoring mechanisms, including its upcoming Universal Periodic Review. [The National; OHCHR] The Special Rapporteur estimates that 2 to 3 million people face food insecurity in
Read moreU.S. Supreme Court Upholds Law Criminalizing “Material Support” of Designated Terrorist Organizations, Including Provision of Legal Advice
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project, affirming in part and reversing in part the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision, issued in 2007. [Washington Post; CCR] In a 6-3 decision authored by Chief Justice Roberts, the Court upheld 18 U.S.C. § 2339B(a)(1)—which makes it a federal crime to “knowingly provid[e] material support
Read moreNews Clips – May 23, 2010
Protests continue in Thailand as Asian Centre for Human Rights decries international community’s silence and the EU Parliament and Human Rights Watch express concern over violence, emergency provisions, and censorship. The BBC has provided a detailed overview of the situation. Human Rights Watch urges new British government to reform counterterrorism strategies and investigate British agents’ complicity in torture and rendition. [HRW] Related cases decided by the
Read moreThematic Research Guides
The following guides focus on each of the separate human rights protected under international law. These guides explain the scope of each right, summarize significant case law interpreting the right, and identify useful sources for further research. Civil and Political Rights Assembly & Association Citizenship & Nationality Conflict & International Humanitarian Law Due Process & Judicial Protection Equal Protection &
Read moreThe Week's News
Human Rights Conditions * President Bachelet declares state of catastrophe following powerful earthquake in Chile. [Washington Post] * Interim government organized following Niger coup. [BBC] * Ceasefire signed in Sudan. [Guardian] * Waterboarding defended by former speechwriter for President George W. Bush. [New York Times] * Russia pushed for details on investigation of Chechen human rights defender’s murder in July
Read moreSpecial Procedures of the UN Human Rights Council
THE HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL’S SPECIAL PROCEDURES The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council serves several functions, one of which is to promote and monitor human rights worldwide through the establishment of special procedures. Special procedures are independent human rights experts who work individually or in groups to report and advise on human rights issues. They are referred to by many
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