Open Letter on Counter-terrorism laws and civic space
25/05/2021
Paris-Geneva, 25 May 2021
Excellencies,
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), urges UN Member States to
urgently step up their action to ensure global counter-terrorism policies do not negatively impact civil society and human rights defenders.
Although human rights were given a central place in the UN Global Counter-Terrorist Strategy (GCTS), human rights organisations have extensively documented the minimisation and under-funding of human rights aspects of the strategy [1]. In addition, civil society and human rights defenders have remained sidelined in an overwhelming majority of processes within the UN Counter-Terrorist Architecture [2]. This situation has led to
Cambodia: Stop silencing critical commentary on COVID-19 article19.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from article19.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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
Human Rights expert for the Africa region
Posted by
1 June – 31 October 2021
1 - Background
The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its member organisations in Africa are currently carrying out diverse projects in several countries, particularly in the Horn of Africa, Central Africa, and East Africa.
In coordination with different teams at the FIDH International Secretariat and member organisations in these regions, the Africa Desk has been working to document human rights violations, including sexual violence, in several contexts (specifically countries in conflict or crisis, and countries in transition) through research missions conducted in the field, investigative reports, and advocacy with national, regional and international bodies.
How new anti-Nazi legislation in Belarus could be used to target civil society
May 20, 2021
Authorities in Belarus look set to use new “anti-Nazi” legislation to intensify their crackdown on independent media and civil society.
New and amended laws on “combatting extremism” and “preventing the rehabilitation of Nazism” have raised alarm from civil society actors in Belarus, who believe that they could be used to target anti-government opposition in the country.
The warning comes as the leading independent news portal in the country, TUT.by, remains offline following raids by the Belarusian authorities earlier this week.
On May 14, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko signed off on laws passed by the country’s parliament described by state-run media as “a complex set of measures meant to counteract attempts to rehabilitate Nazism”, which is understood as “public actions that justify the ideology and practice of Nazism, approve of or deny the crimes commit