At a glance
High rates of gender-based violence against women are alarming and the country remains one the most dangerous places in the world for women. Abortion under all circumstances is prohibited and women and girls are often detained and convicted for homicide after illegally aborting, even when their lives depended on the abortion. El Salvador also has one of the highest homicide rates worldwide, due in particular to corruption and impunity. To combat this high levels of crime, law enforcement and prison staff often use torture, including against vulnerable people such as street children and those from broken families. The trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation and other purposes is another challenge that El Salvador faces when it comes to implementing its international commitments. Widespread impunity is one of the main reasons why torture has not been eradicated. The OMCT and its SOS-Torture Network are very active in the region. They report on death
bad mother,
hussy… Manuela is one of 181 cases identified in El Salvador[1]
of women who suffered obstetric emergencies and were prosecuted with harsh prison sentences. In Manuela s case, the court found -without any evidence- that she had thrown her child into a latrine to cover up an alleged infidelity and thereby avoid public criticism. She was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment for first-degree murder.
A significant number[2]
of countries in the world, including in Central and South America, are moving towards the -in most cases partial- decriminalisation of abortion, as seen recently in Chile, Argentina and Haiti. However, on the short but shameful list of countries that continue to criminalise abortion in all circumstances, in flagrant contravention of international human rights law, remain El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic (although this situation could soon be reversed in the Dominican Republic where the Criminal Code (
At a glance
The country has slipped into violence in 2015, following the contested presidential candidacy of Pierre Nkurunziza. The authorities have cracked down on human rights defenders and civil society organisations who conducted peaceful demonstrations. The UN Commission of Inquiry on Burundi documented numerous cases of torture, ill-treatment, extrajudicial executions and sexual violence that were widely used against civilians. The government has used members of the ruling party’s youth wing, as well as the National Intelligence Service (SNR) and police to perpetrate most of the gross human rights violations. This led the International Criminal Court to open an investigation, while many civilians and leading members of the civil society sought asylum in neighbouring countries, including Rwanda. Many others have been subjected to prosecution, arbitrary detentions, lengthy prison terms, and removal from the Bar association.
trial is violated
21/05/2021
We, the undersigned organisations, express our dismay that the Burundian Appeals Court of Ntahangwa has not yet announced a verdict in the case of human rights defender Mr. Germain Rukuki. According to legal statutes, this verdict was due within 30 days of the appeal hearing, by 24 April 2021. This undue delay adds to the litany of irregularities that have characterised the legal proceedings in this case since the arrest of Mr. Rukuki in 2017, and further compounds the violation of Mr. Rukuki’s right to a fair trial and due process.
On 30 June 2020, the Supreme Court of Burundi set aside the ruling by the Appeals Court to uphold the 32-year sentence in Mr. Rukuki’s case and ordered a second appeal hearing, citing violations to his right to a fair trial. This second appeal hearing took place 8 months later on 24 March 2021 in Ngozi prison, where Mr. Rukuki is currently detained. According to the Burundian Code of Criminal Procedure, following the he
Khet Thi and
Sein Win, two poets who have been critical of the military junta and publicly supported the ongoing pro-democracy protests, as well as the sentencing and arbitrary detention of
Min Nyo, a journalist with the
Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB)[1]
media outlet, who had been reporting on the pro-democracy protests.
On March 3, 2021, journalist Min Nyo was arrested and severely beaten by police while he was covering a pro-democracy protest in Pyay, Bago Region. During his detention, Mr. Nyo has had access to a lawyer but not to his relatives. On May 12, 2021, a military court in Pyay Prison found Min Nyo guilty of attempting to hinder, disturb, damage the motivation, discipline, health and conduct of soldiers and civil servants and “cause their hatred, disobedience or disloyalty toward the military and the government”, under Article 505-a of the Penal Code and sentenced him to three years in prison. He is currently detained at Pyay Prison, where he is at risks of