Tag: human rights

“Serious threats, including death threats, are commonplace in Colombia for defenders who raise concerns about corporate activity, in particular in land-intensive industries,” said Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, in a statement issued on Thursday.  The experts drew attention to the situation of Pedro Jose Velasco Tumiña, an indigenous Misak defender who has been… Read More

The powerful blast, caused by a stockpile of ammonium nitrate in a port warehouse, occurred on 4 August 2020 and killed more than 200 people while decimating a vast swath of the Lebanese capital. The explosion destroyed 77,000 apartments, wounded 7,000 people, displaced over 300,000 more, at least 80,000 of which were children, the experts noted, in a press release issued… Read More

“Tragically, it is also a problem that is growing worse – especially for women and girls, who represent the majority of detected trafficked persons globally”.  Separated and vulnerable Conflicts, forced displacement, climate change, inequality and poverty, have left tens of millions of people around the world destitute, isolated and vulnerable. And the COVID-19 pandemic has separated children and young people… Read More

The findings highlighted positive aspects of each country’s implementation of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, as well as concerns and recommendations.  Botswana and the Death Penalty  The committee raised serious concerns over excessive and inhuman force concerning the use of the death penalty in Botswana.  One aspect of Botswanan policy deemed to… Read More

In a letter to the Nicaraguan Government last Monday, the group of 16 UN experts upheld that the action “represents a clear pattern of repressing civic space”. The UN experts echoed a statement earlier this year by the High Commissioner for Human Rights regarding the crackdown. They expressed shock over the extent of the shutdowns by the National Assembly at the request… Read More

The warning from UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, Reem Alsalem, follows President Recep Erdogan’s announcement in March last year that Türkiye was pulling out of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, effective 1 July. The accord is better known as the Istanbul Convention, after the Turkish city where it… Read More

The violence is having a devastating impact, particularly on women and children, indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants, community leaders and human rights defenders.  Colombia’s new government takes office next month, and the report outlines a series of recommendations that should be implemented urgently to protect lives and uphold the rights of those affected.  Prevent further violence  The report, which is in Spanish, also… Read More

Yusuf Zahab, 17, had been taken to Syria when he was 11 by older relatives who had become radicalized, according to various media reports.   He is believed to have died from injuries sustained during and after the ISIL siege on Al Hasakah camp in January, compounded by lack of adequate medical treatment.  Never should have happened  The extremist group… Read More

Costa Rica, the Maldives, Morocco, Slovenia and Switzerland presented the draft text to the 193-member Assembly, the UN’s most representative body, last June, following the landmark resolution adoption of a similar text adopted in October 2021 by the UN Human Rights Council. The resolution recognizes the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment as a human right essential for… Read More

“Polarization has been deepening over recent months and there are troubling indications that an anti-rights movement is gaining ground. With local and regional elections due in October, I am concerned that hate speech, discrimination and violence could further increase,” she said.  Ms. Bachelet recalled that although Peru already has “important tools” in place to counter any regression in upholding human… Read More