Category: Human Rights

Highlighting more than 210 incidents already this year and one Palestinian fatality, the Special Rapporteurs urged the Israeli authorities to investigate thoroughly, maintaining that the Israeli military were present “in many cases”. Children traumatized In southern Hebron on 13 March, they described how a Palestinian family was attacked by 10 Israeli settlers, some of them armed. Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians in the occupied #WestBank has risen recently within an atmosphere of impunity. UN experts call on Israeli military & police to investigate and prosecute these violent acts…

“We meet at a moment when this crime, which should have been consigned to a closed chapter of history, is once again in the headlines”, said Pramila Patten, Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, affirming that now was the time to “take stock of both the persistent and entrenched, as well as new and emerging, challenges…to eradicate the scourge”. ‘Chasm between resolutions and reality’  The UN envoy highlighted the Tigray region of Ethiopia where women and girls are being subjected to sexual violence “with a level of cruelty beyond comprehension”, including…

Operated by the US State Department, the anti-terrorism programme offers money for information on people outside the country, who the Government has designated as being associated with terrorism, although they have not been charged with any crimes.   It also offers financial incentives to foreigners who claim to have terrorist ties, if they cooperate with US authorities.  USA: “Rewards for Justice” program violates human rights, say UN experts . The program offers money for info about people outside the US designated as being associated with terrorism, but who have not been…

In a statement, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, urged Parliament to heed warnings that the proposed new Overseas Operations Bill risks undermining key human rights obligations that lawmakers have previously agreed to. “As currently drafted, the Bill would make it substantially less likely that UK service members on overseas operations would be held accountable for serious human rights violations amounting to international crimes”, the High Commissioner said. Shielded from probes The Bill could shield military personnel operating abroad “from due accountability for acts of torture or other serious international crimes”, she…

Magdulein Abaida fled Libya in 2012 after being harassed, tortured and forced to close down her women’s rights organisation, Hakki, or “My Right”. “She was targeted and threatened because of her activism for women’s rights. But the Libyan government failed to investigate, prosecute, punish and provide reparations for the torture and harassment inflicted on her,” Nahla Haidar, a member of CEDAW. Interrogated over alleged Israel links The Libyan human rights activist was taking part in a workshop on women’s rights in the city of Benghazi on 9 August 2012 when she was forced to…

Ahead of International Roma Day on Thursday 8 April, Fernand de Varennes called for more work to be done to control the spread of inflammatory comments on social media. “Those forms of online hate speech violate international human rights obligations and can lead to violence against Sinti, Roma and other minorities”, he said. The birth of the World Roma Congress The first World Roma Congress was held in 1971 near London, as a forum to discuss issues relating to Roma people around the world. It was seen as a significant push for unity by the minority and an attempt to build a common…

In a message commemorating the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda, Secretary-General António Guterres underlined that everyone must “take a hard look at today’s world and ensure that we heed the lessons of 27 years ago”.  The genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda remains in our collective conscience as among the most horrific events in recent human history. To prevent history from repeating, we must counter hate-driven movements & push for the full respect of all members of society. #Kwibuka pic.twitter.com/P3h3pYuiHw — António…

“We must end the legacy of this racist lie”, Secretary-General António Guterres said at a commemorative meeting of the General Assembly that honoured the memory of the millions of people of African descent who suffered under the brutal system of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade.  While recalling the resilience of those who endured the “brutal yoke” of slavery, he recognized the trade as creating and sustaining “a global system of exploitation that existed for more than 400 years”.   The UN chief underscored the need to address the “pernicious and…

Ahead of the adoption of the Belarus resolution without a vote by the 47-member Human Rights Council in Geneva, the European Union – the main sponsor of both texts – highlighted reported ongoing violations in the east European State. Speaking on behalf of the EU, Permanent Representative of Portugal to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Rui Macieira, echoed UN condemnation of the use of force against peaceful protesters in mass demonstrations across the country, after the disputed re-election of President Alexander Lukashenko last August. “(At the) last (Human Rights Council) session,…

The document, adopted at the 86th session of the Committee, emphasizes that the rights of every child must be respected, protected and fulfilled in the digital environment, and that children should have access to age-appropriate and empowering digital content, and information from a wide diversity of trusted sources. Hundreds of children consulted The recommendations of the Committee were published on Tuesday in the form of a “general comment”, following two years of consultations with a wide range of groups, involving Member States, inter-governmental organizations, civil society, and national human rights…