Nepal’s Minister of Foreign Affairs commits to supporting international justice
Nepal’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sujata Koirala, took an important step towards ending impunity for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes on Sunday, in a meeting with delegates from Amnesty International Nepal.
The Minister gave Amnesty International a commitment to start the process for Nepal to ratify the Rome Statute. By ratifying, Nepal would join 110 other countries in committing to a new system of international justice.
The meeting marked the third anniversary of a resolution adopted by Nepal’s parliament – the Constituent Assembly – calling for Nepal to ratify the Rome Statute. Previous governments failed to take the issue forward.
"Amnesty International urges the Minister to take immediate steps to ensure that Nepal ratifies the Rome Statute as soon as possible," said Madhu Malhotra, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s Asia Pacific Programme. "In particular, we encourage the government to submit the issue of ratification with its full support to the Constituent Assembly."
By ratifying, the government would accept the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate and prosecute future crimes (committed after ratification), if Nepal’s authorities or courts are unable or unwilling to do so.
"Ratification of the Rome Statute is significant for Nepal which has recently emerged from a conflict during which thousands of people were killed, disappeared and tortured," said Madhu Malhotra.
Although ratification of the Rome Statute will not enable the ICC to investigate and prosecute crimes of the past – which must be addressed by other mechanisms – it is an important step to deter such crimes from ever being committed again in Nepal and to ensure that, if they do occur, there will be no impunity.
During the meeting, Amnesty International Nepal presented the Minister with more than 13,000 appeal letters that the organization has collected in recent months from Nepalese citizens and Amnesty International members around the world.
Iran: Free Disabled Reformist
(New York) – A prominent reformist’s poor health has deteriorated further in detention from harsh treatment, including interrogation under the sun in very high temperatures, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch renewed its call on the Iranian government to free the reformist, Saeed Hajjarian, immediately.
Tunisia: End Activist’s Banishment
(New York) – Tunisian authorities should end the arbitrary banishment to a remote village of the political activist and journalist Abdallah Zouari, Human Rights Watch said in a letter sent today to Minister of Justice Béchir Tekkari and Minister of Interior Rafeek Belhaj.
Japan commits to ending impunity for enforced disappearances
Japan took a step towards ending impunity for enforced disappearances on 23 July, when it ratified a UN human rights treaty.
The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (Disappearances Convention) was adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2006. It aims to prevent enforced disappearance, establish the truth when this crime occurs, punish the perpetrators and provide reparations to the victims and their families.
Japan deposited an instrument of ratification of the Disappearances Convention with the office of the United Nations Secretary-General on 23 July. It is the 12th country to do so and the first in Asia.
"Amnesty International welcomes Japan’s ratification of the Disappearances Convention," said Christopher Hall, Senior Legal Adviser for Amnesty International. "In doing so Japan has shown its commitment to ending impunity for one of the worst violations of human rights. This ratification is very important also because it is the first from an Asian country."
Amnesty International has called on Japan to go one step further by recognizing the competence of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances to receive communications from individuals and states regarding cases of enforced disappearance.
The Disappearances Convention was the culmination of a long effort by many families of disappeared persons, NGOs and governments to address the continuing problem of enforced disappearance through international law.
"The Disappearances Convention is one of the strongest human rights treaties ever adopted by the United Nations," said Christopher Hall. "In the past perpetrators of this crime have acted in the knowledge that they were unlikely to be held accountable for their conduct and the families of the victims have been denied their right to see justice done. The Disappearances Convention is an important tool for the international community to halt this trend."
Amnesty International said that Japan must now take the further steps required to fulfil its international obligations to ensure that there is no impunity for enforced disappearances by enacting and amending any necessary legislation to implement the Convention.
"Amnesty International urges Japan to enact effective implementing legislation as soon as possible or to amend existing legislation," said Christopher Hall. "By ensuring that its territory is not a safe haven for perpetrators of enforced disappearances Japan will set an important example for the world – and other Asian countries – to follow."
Syria: No Exceptions for ‘Honor Killings’
(Beirut) – The Syrian government should treat all murders alike and not make exceptions for so-called "honor killings," Human Rights Watch said today.
Thousands take action around the world in solidarity with people of Iran
Thousands of activists worldwide participated in a Global Day of Action on Saturday in solidarity with those whose human rights are being abused in Iran.
Amnesty International joined with a coalition of organizations to put pressure on the Iranian authorities to stop all violence against demonstrators, to release the hundreds of people currently detained for peacefully protesting against the disputed outcome of Iran’s presidential election in June, to clarify the fate of disappeared persons and to respect the rights to freedom of assembly and expression, including freedom of the press.
The organizations were also calling on the UN to initiate an investigation into the grave human rights violations which have taken place in recent weeks in Iran.
Public demonstrations and solidarity events were held in more than 105 cities, including Amsterdam, Barcelona, Beirut, Berlin, Caracas, Chicago, Dhaka, Istanbul, London, Ougadougou, and Tunis.
In Istanbul, activists from Amnesty International’s section in Turkey held a street demonstration in the city’s busiest square. Activists gathered in the square holding white balloons with "Torture, Censorship, Repression" written in black. The balloons were then burst by a needle one after another. After the last balloon was burst, the activists moved aside and a banner saying "Human Rights in Iran! Now!" was revealed.
More than 40 Amnesty International activists and volunteers demonstrated in front of Dhaka University in Bangladesh.
A large group of activists in Venezuela attempted to deliver a letter to the Iranian embassy in Caracas on Thursday. When no-one was willing to receive it, they pushed it through a gap at the bottom of the door. They also prepared posters for the occasion, with the following messages written in Spanish and Persian: “No More Bloodshed”, “Release Prisoners Of Conscience “, “Peaceful Protest is a Right” and “Investigate Human Rights Violations in Iran”. At the end of the action, Amnesty International volunteers released 50 black helium-filled balloons into the sky.
In Tunisia, Amnesty International members along with representatives of other human rights organizations held a symbolic solidarity event. A petition for the Iranian authorities to respect human rights was circulated and signed by Amnesty International activists. Following the event, Amnesty International’s section in Tunisia launched a campaign to collect signatures for the petition.
In the UK, up to 2,000 protesters gathered in front of the Embassy of Iran in London, including dozens of Amnesty International activists, who chanted “Human rights for Iran”, “UN – Act now for Iran”, “No more bloodshed”, and “Peaceful protest is a right”.
Iranian authorities have acknowledged up to 21 deaths during demonstrations in Tehran, but the true number across the country is likely to be much higher. Scores have been wounded. Many are reported to have been injured by the paramilitary Basij.
The date for the Global Day of Action was chosen as initial reports suggested that President Ahmadinejad could be inaugurated on 26 July or shortly afterwards. However, more recent reports suggest that the inauguration will be on 5 August.
In addition to Amnesty International, the event was sponsored by Shirin Ebadi, the 2003 Nobel Peace Laureate, and a number of non-governmental organizations, including Front Line, Human Rights Watch, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, the International Federation for Human Rights, the Iranian League for Defense of Human Rights, the Nobel Women’s Initiative, PeaceJam, Physicians for Human Rights and Reporters without Borders, as well as 42 Arab human rights organizations.
The event was also supported by many other groups, including the Baha’i International Community, whose members in Iran suffer severe harassment and persecution.
Cambodia: ‘AIDS Colony’ Violates Rights
The Cambodian government should urgently address dangerous conditions in a de facto AIDS colony it has created and immediately stop sending HIV-affected families there, more than 100 international HIV/AIDS and social justice organizations and experts said in a joint letter delivered on July 27, 2009 to Cambodia’s prime minister and health minister.
Shocking abortion ban denies life-saving treatment to girls and women in Nicaragua
Nicaragua’s total ban on abortions is endangering the lives of girls and women, denying them life-saving treatment, preventing health professionals from practicing effective medicine and contributing to an increase in maternal deaths across the country, concludes Amnesty International in a new report issues on Monday.
According to official figures, 33 girls and women have died in pregnancy this year as compared to 20 in the same period last year. Amnesty International believes these figures are only a minimum as the government itself has acknowledged that the number of maternal deaths is under-recorded.
The report "The total abortion ban in Nicaragua: Women’s lives and health endangered, medical professionals criminalized" is the first Amnesty International study examining the human rights implications of the denial of abortion when the life or health of a woman or girl is at risk, including when she is a victim of rape or incest.
Nicaragua’s revised Penal Code stipulates prison sentences for girls and women who seek an abortion and for health professionals who provide health services associated with abortion. Only 3% of the world’s countries have such absolute bans in place.
The new Code introduces criminal sanctions for doctors and nurses who treat a pregnant woman or girl for illnesses such as cancer, malaria, HIV/AIDS or cardiac emergencies where such treatment is contraindicated in pregnancy and may cause injury to or death of the embryo or foetus.
It even goes as far as punishing girls and women who have suffered a miscarriage, as in many cases it is impossible to distinguish spontaneous from induced abortions.
This new law is in conflict with the Nicaraguan Obstetric Rules and Protocols issued by the Ministry of Health which mandate therapeutic abortions as clinical responses to specific cases. However, no assurances have been given by the authorities that doctors will not be prosecuted if they respect these Rules.
"Nicaragua’s ban of therapeutic abortion is a disgrace. It is a human rights scandal that ridicules medical science and distorts the law into a weapon against the provision of essential medical care to pregnant girls and women," said Kate Gilmore, Amnesty International’s Executive Deputy Secretary General at a press conference in Mexico City as she returned from a visit to Nicaragua.
"Nicaragua’s Penal Code is a callous and cynical artefact of the political wheeling and dealing that took place in the country’s 2006 elections. Today, however, it punishes women and girl children for seeking life saving medical treatment and doctors for providing it."
In Nicaragua, the Amnesty International delegation met with human rights organizations, medical professionals, members of the national assembly and the Minister of Health. Despite repeated requests, the National Assembly’s Commission on Women and both President Ortega and his government’s Institute for Women refused to meet the organization to discuss the law’s impact on girl children, women and victims of rape and incest.
Amnesty International delegates met with young girls who, having been subjected to sexual violence at the hands of close family members or friends, were compelled to carry the resulting pregnancies to term –giving birth in many instances to their own brothers or sisters –because they were denied access to alternatives. It is deeply troubling that there was a recorded rise in pregnant teenagers committing suicide by consuming poison in 2008.
Obstetricians, gynaecologists and family doctors in Nicaragua told Amnesty International that under this Penal Code they can no longer legally provide effective medical treatment for life threatening diseases in pregnant women and girls because of the potential risk to the foetus.
One doctor told Amnesty International that she prays she will not receive a patient with an anencephalic pregnancy (a condition which means the foetus cannot survive) because of the prospect of telling the woman she will be compelled to carry the pregnancy to full term, despite its devastating physiological and psychological impact on the woman.
"There’s only one way to describe what we have seen in Nicaragua: sheer horror," said Kate Gilmore. "Children are being compelled to bear children. Pregnant women are being denied essential including life saving medical care."
"What alternatives is this government offering a 10-year-old pregnant as a result of rape? And to a cancer sufferer who is denied life saving treatment just because she is pregnant, while she has other children waiting at home?" said Kate Gilmore.
"Girls pregnant as a result of incest had the courage to meet with us to speak out against the situation but President Ortega did not. It appears the Nicaraguan authorities could not stand up for the law, would not be accountable for the law nor commit themselves to its urgent repeal."
Amnesty International is urging the Nicaraguan authorities to:
- Immediately repeal the law that bans all forms of abortion.
- Guarantee safe and accessible abortion services for rape victims and women whose lives or health would be at risk from the continuation of pregnancy.
- Protect the freedom of speech of those who speak out against the law and offer comprehensive support to the women and girls affected by the law.
Amnesty International is also calling on Nicaragua’s Supreme Court to issue a decision on the legality and constitutionality of the law as a matter of the utmost urgency.
Greece: Halt Crackdown, Arrests of Migrants
Greek authorities are arresting large numbers of migrants and asylum seekers in the country’s cities and islands and moving many of them to the north, raising fears of illegal expulsions to Turkey, Human Rights Watch said today.
Iran: Stop Arresting, Intimidating Rights Lawyers
(New York, July 26, 2009) – Iranian authorities continue to arrest prominent human rights lawyers in an attempt to prevent them from representing reform supporters detained following Iran’s disputed presidential election, Human Rights Watch said today. Other lawyers have been threatened.