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Human Rights Institute
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Contemporary Issues in Human Rights This bi-weekly electronic newsletter is researched and written by students in Professor Rachel Taylor's Contemporary Issues in Human Rights class. The contributors read widely in their areas of focus and choose the week's most important human rights stories to highlight. Information in the write-ups comes from the sources provided and has not been independently verified.
April 9 , 2008
Human Rights Activities of United Nations Organizations | Migration and Human Rights Women's Human Rights | Children's Rights | Corporations and Human Rights Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide
Human Rights Activities of United Nations Organizations U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to Enter into Force in May Ecuador’s ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, on April 3, 2008, marked the 20th ratification needed to trigger the entry into force of the Convention and its Optional Protocol one month later, on May 3, 2008. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour noted that the Convention “fills an important gap in international human rights legislation affecting millions of people around the world.” Although 10 percent of the people in the world have disabilities, approximately two-thirds of United Nations member States do not have any legal protection for people with disabilities. Another 106 states have signed but not yet ratified the Convention, an impressive number given that the Convention has only been open for signatures for a little over a year. The Convention addresses a wide range of rights that are often not accorded to people with disabilities, including the rights to education, health, work, adequate living conditions, freedom of movement, freedom from exploitation, and equal recognition before the law. The Convention also addresses access to public transportation, buildings, and other facilities and recognizes the capacity of persons with disabilities to make their own decisions. Its Optional Protocol allows people to petition an international expert body if they feel a State is not honoring their rights under the Convention (71 States have signed the Optional Protocol). More than 20 UN departments, agencies, programs, and funds pledged their support in implementing the convention. An Inter-Agency Support Group for the Convention will focus support on six areas: policies to support the purpose and objectives of the Convention; programs including international cooperation; capacity-building of member States, civil society, and the UN system; research and access to knowledge on disabilities; accessibility; and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Human Rights Council Concludes it Seventh Session The Human Rights Council (HRC) concluded its seventh regular session on April 1, 2008. The session, which was originally set to conclude on March 28, was extended by a half-day to finish hearing statements from delegations and adopt its report to the General Assembly on the session. During the session, the HRC adopted 36 resolutions on issues ranging from action against racism and the prevention of genocide to the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism. The HRC also extended the mandates of 13 Special Procedures, established the mandate of an Independent Expert on the issue of human rights obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation and elected the members of its Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee replaces the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and will meet for the first time in August 2008. The Committee will provide the Council with expert advice and conduct research and studies on specific issues at the Council's request.
IPDC Intergovernmental Council Calls for States to Report on Assassinations of Journalists A surge in the number of attacks on media personnel combined with a low conviction rate in cases of journalists’ murders prompted the Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) to call on UN member States to report on investigations into all killings condemned by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). UNESCO created the IPDC in 1980 to promote free expression in developing countries. The IPDC met in Paris from March 26-28, 2008, where its Intergovernmental Council unanimously adopted the decision requesting the Director-General of UNESCO to provide updated information on responses received from Member States in cases of journalist assassinations, and to make this report widely available. The Director-General of UNESCO has publicly condemned the killings of 121 journalists since 2006.
By Lauren Torbett United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Appeals for More Aid for Darfur Relief Efforts Last week, the UNHCR made an appeal for $40.3 million in aid for expanded relief operations in Darfur, Sudan. After more than five years of conflict, the violence in displacement in Darfur continues unabated. In addition, deteriorating security conditions have hampered humanitarian aid efforts and forced relief workers to flee the area. The UN is seeking to help more than 2.5 million displaced Darfurians, as well as 47,500 refugees from Chad and the Central African Republic who fled conflict in their home countries. These expanded protection efforts are also focused on preventing rapes and other acts of sexual violence that have reached frightening levels in the region.
U.S. Announces Review of Immigration Policy that Excluded Dissidents Labeled as Terrorists The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced on March 26 that it is temporarily halting the denial of green cards to immigrants associated with opposition groups that fought repressive governments abroad. The policy change was sparked by a March 22 Washington Post article about an Iraqi translator for the U.S. military who was denied permanent resident status last month because he had once served with a Kurdish rebel group that fought Saddam Hussein’s government. The USCIS will review cases that were denied after the December 26, 2007 enactment of legislation that exempted certain organizations from the broad definition of terrorism used in immigration laws. The previous policy excluded even U.S. allies such as those who fought the Taliban in Afghanistan and the military junta in Burma. Now the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department will identify which groups will be eligible for exemptions from the harsh restrictions in the 2001 USA Patriot Act and the 2005 Real ID Act.
Thousands of Internally Displaced Kenyans Remain Homeless as Rainy Season Begins The end of March brought the arrival of the rainy season in Kenya, threatening thousands of people who remain displaced from their homes since the post-election violence earlier this year. Flooding in the southern coastal district of Taveta has affected at least 6,000 internally displaced people, with tents, latrines, and primary schools submerged in chest-deep water in some areas. Rains and cold weather throughout the country have placed thousands of IDPs at risk of diseases such as malaria, cholera, and pneumonia. The Kenyan Red Cross Society has appealed to the government to facilitate the return or resettlement of the IDPs as quickly as possible, but persistent ethnic tensions and land-grabbing present obstacles to their return. More than 300,000 Kenyan IDPs remain in limbo more than a month after the signing of a peace deal, while national politicians have struggled to form a coalition government.
By Jennifer Toussaint The Threat of Rape and Sexual Assault Continues in Darfur Human Rights Watch has issued a 44-page report highlighting the prevalence of sexual assault during the Darfur conflict. The Darfur conflict has spanned five years, with women and girls still being targeted for rape and sexual assault by government forces and armed groups. Women are targeted not only during large-scale attacks, but also during periods of calm. Survivors of the violence remain without the ability to seek redress in judicial courts leaving them with no clear route by which to obtain justice. The cases described in the Human Rights Watch report are only the beginning, as most cases of sexual assault continue to go unreported due to the victims’ fear of what may happen if they speak out. The government of Sudan has failed to protect women and girls and international peacekeepers have been unable to protect women because they are under-resourced. The crimes continue to go unpunished even as the Sudanese government has appointed additional police and prosecutors and has formed committees to combat violence against women.
Sierra Leone Receives UN Support After Passage of Gender Laws The UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) and the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) have partnered with the local Sierra Leonean NGO Grassroots Empowerment for Self Reliance (GEMS) to raise awareness of three new gender laws passed by the Sierra Leonean Parliament in 2007. The new laws prohibit domestic violence, establish rights of women in issues of inheritance, and provide increased protection for women in customary marriages. The awareness-building has taken the form of workshops for 150 men and women from three Sierra Leonean communities, which have focused on the gender act, peace building, and conflict prevention and resolution. The program coordinator of GEMS stated that the workshops are designed to educate the participants about the three gender laws, so as to reduce the level of violence and abuse perpetrated against women. Colombia’s Displaced Continue To Be Victims of Violence Colombia has the world’s second-highest rate of internal displacement due to the four decade-long civil war that continues to occur within its borders. About 6 percent of the Colombian population has been displaced and about 80 percent of them live in extreme poverty. Of the displaced, women and girls are at high risk of sexual assault and unwanted pregnancies. National reports show that one in five internally displaced women have been the victims of rape. Displaced women are pulled into prostitution, sexual exploitation and abuse and many become mothers at a very young age. Forty-one percent of all Colombian women experience violence compared to 52 percent of displaced Colombian women. One in five of all Colombian women experience domestic violence; among the displaced, the number of women affected is over 50 percent. Few Colombian women have access to any kind of sexual health services and are often unaware of their rights, leaving them disadvantaged and at risk.
By Daniel Werly Human Rights Officials Meet to Discuss Caning of Child in Malaysian Schools Malaysia’s Deputy Director-General of Education, Datuk Noor Rezan Bapoo Hashim, advocated taking the “soft” approach to discipline in schools at the country’s “Rights of the Child: Meeting of the Minds” symposium Monday. She said that the “hard” approach, or caning, must only be used as a last resort. The Deputy Director also stated that teachers should use the schools’ counseling services, student warnings, and parent meetings as other methods of discipline before resorting to caning. Malaysia’s new discipline plan calls for a three-step process where a child will be reprimanded and warned of his actions first. If this does not work, the child will be called into a meeting with the school disciplinary committee, with his parents present, and will be given the opportunity to present his side of the story. If this still does not solve the problem, caning is the last resort. Malaysia’s Human Rights Commission Chairman, Tan Sri Abu Talib Othman, who was also present at the press conference, said that educating children of their rights is the key to creating a safer environment for children in schools. He also emphasized that local culture and traditions must not be abandoned while encouraging children’s rights. Child Laborers in Nepal Across Nepal, there are an estimated three million children aged between five and 14 years old who are employed in industries such as stone quarries, brick kilns, factories, and laundries. Employing these children is a direct violation of the 18 international covenants the Nepalese government is a party to, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Similar violations are taking place in many other countries as well, including China and India. Nearly 70 percent of these children work 10 hour days or more and earn roughly one-quarter of the adult wage. Some children do not get paid at all, and instead work in order to pay off their family’s debt. For the children who work in stone quarries, the health problems can be devastating, with related medical problems including serious respiratory complaints, backache, visual defects and joint and muscle pain. Children have been swept away quarrying beside rivers while others have died falling from cliffs. Of 600 children interviewed for one recent news article, 94 percent have witnessed workplace accidents and over 50 percent have injured themselves with hammers. Not a single child interviewed had received care from a doctor.
Darfur Girls Still Face Rape Risk More than 200,000 people have died in the Darfur region of Sudan since fighting began there in 2003. During this time, rape and sexual assault have run rampant. Recently, the pattern for these abuses has changed. According to Human Rights Watch, women and girls are now more likely to be assaulted during periods of calm instead of during attacks on villages. Government soldiers, militiamen, and rebel fighters are all also targeting women on the fringes of the camps for displaced people that are spread around the region. The Sudanese government has claimed to be committed to stopping these sorts of attacks but nothing much has been done. Most of the women are too afraid to report the attacks. Even if attacks are reported, Sudanese police are either unable or unwilling to do anything. These soldiers are also essentially immune from civil prosecution.
By Amber Mills
Concerns have been raised over the apparent immunity some foreign investors have with respect to important human rights laws. An important source of capital for many developing countries is Foreign Direct Investment, or “FDI,” which allows a foreign investor to invest directly in the market of another country in the form of debt or equity, in contrast to foreign aid provided by a governmental agency. While many economists and market observers note the greater efficacy of FDIs for development, a point of contention with many human rights organizations is the “stabilization clause” often found in FDI contracts. In the interest of risk allocation, the stabilization clause seeks to protect contracts from being subject to legislative or administrative measures that come into effect after the conclusion of the contract. What follows is essentially a “shield” for investors. Primarily, there are three forms of clauses: • provisions stating that the investor's rights will remain unaffected by subsequent enactments; To address concerns, the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group has produced a study aimed at raising awareness of the relationship between the protection of investors’ rights and the host state’s human rights obligations under international agreements.
Texas Smelter Set to Reopen Lower-income Texans and Mexicans living near an old smelter plant are concerned about the reopening of a 111 year-old plant that has recently been granted a five-year air quality permit. The permit has been issued despite a public outcry to have the plant permanently shut down. The old American Smelting and Refining Company (Asarco) smelter in El Paso, Texas (currently owned by the Mexican Company “Grupo Mexico”), has been blamed for severe air, soil and groundwater contamination during its previous years of operation. Residents and activists allege that the contamination attributed to many of the health problems of the surrounding residents. Lead contamination near the plant was so acute in 1972 that Texas health authorities closed it down. A class action lawsuit followed in 1981 that eventually settled out of court. One of the plaintiffs in that case included a family whose child’s death was blamed on toxic poisoning from the smelter. While Asarco stopped smelting lead in 1985, it continued smelting copper until 1999. However, by 1993, the company had invested about $100 million in improved pollution control equipment and claimed a 90 percent reduction in emissions. Despite their efforts for modernization, residents are still concerned over the lingering effects of past pollution and fear that plant regulation by governmental agencies will not be effective.
Allegations of Worker-Abuse by Chinese GE Supplier According to a new report, a Chinese factory that makes light bulbs for General Electric Co. (GE) subjects many of its employees to 64-hour work weeks and exposes them to toxic mercury used in the production process without the workers’ knowledge. The report, produced by Cleveland-based Policy Matters Ohio, accuses Xiamen Topstar Lighting Co. Ltd., a joint venture of Topstar in China and GE, of violating China's labor laws and GE's corporate policies. The report indicates that, in addition to the long hours and health risks, workers allegedly did not receive overtime and were denied pay stubs which prevented them from knowing if their pay was accurate. Workers were also required to forfeit a month's pay if they quit without permission.
Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide By Cassandre Theano Acquittal of Kosovo Guerilla Leader Angers Serbs A former guerilla leader and prime minister in Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj, returned home to a hero’s welcome after being acquitted of some 80 counts of rape, murder and torture of Serbs by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia on April 3. The 39 year old was a commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army during the 1998-1999 war which resulted in the death of thousands and displacement of millions of people. During the Kosovo War, the Serbs were accused of using paramilitary and military forces in an ethnic cleansing campaign against the Kosovar Albanians. Haradinaj was the most senior ethnic Albanian tried. The tribunal’s decision came just three days after Serbia reiterated its claim that it would soon arrest and deliver indicted war crimes suspects to the Hague tribunal. Amongst those most wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity is Ratko Mladic, responsible for the slaughter of 8,000 men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995. But many fear that the tribunal’s decision in the Haradinaj case will further inflame Serbian opinion against the EU and the US, which both recognized Kosovo as an independent state, and will further stall efforts to bring Mladic and others before the tribunal. In delivering its decision, the court noted that the civilian deaths were not committed on a scale to be judged as a broad attack on the civilian population. Further, the judges said much of the evidence was "vague, inconclusive or nonexistent," although they acknowledged that many witnesses were too afraid to testify, even when the court indicted them for contempt. The prosecution has not yet decided whether to appeal. Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said that “with this ruling, the tribunal mocks justice and the innocent victims who suffered at Haradinaj's hands.”
Latest Fighting in Sri Lanka Claims Life of MP After the April 6 suicide bombing in Sri Lanka that injured at least 83 people and killed 13, including the country’s Highways and Road Development Minister, Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, 55, Sri Lankan warplanes bombed a Tamil Tiger rebel base, killing 49 people. Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle was a member of the negotiating team for the failed peace talks two years ago. The Tamil Tigers, who are fighting for an independent state in the north and east of the island have been engaged in a 25-year civil war with the Sri Lankan state that has killed an estimated 70,000 people. They have not issued any statements since the latest fighting. The EU and Canada condemned the suicide attack and called for a halt to all forms of terrorism and violence against civilians. The EU said it continues to believe there can be no military solution to the conflict in Sri Lanka, only a negotiated one. Meanwhile the US embassy in Colombo stated that the United States “denounces this vicious and reprehensible terrorist attack on civilians in the strongest possible terms. Its perpetrators have achieved nothing other than to cause further suffering among the people of Sri Lanka. Only a political solution, not continued violence, offers the way forward to end the country's conflict.” Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle is the second minister to die in a suicide blast since January.
Elections in Zimbabwe: What Does the Future Hold? Zimbabwe has experienced an economic collapse and a refugee crisis under the rule of President Mugabe, yet despite strong condemnation of his administration’s human rights abuses, Mugabe’s reign has lasted 28 years and may continue. The country’s latest elections have come to a stalemate with Mugabe refusing to relinquish power and the opposition claiming victory. Unofficial tallies by independent monitors show opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai won more votes than Mugabe — but fewer than the 50 percent plus one vote required to avoid a runoff election. President Mugabe, age 84, has been in power for the last 28 years, over which time he has been accused of winning past elections through violence and intimidation. Scores of opponents were killed during the 2002 and 2005 campaigns. On April 6, Mugabe urged Zimbabweans to defend land seized from white farmers, according to the state-controlled newspaper. This is not the first time Mugabe used this idea to strengthen his hold on Zimbabwe. He started these seizures back in 2000, after he suffered his first defeat at the polls over a referendum to entrench his presidential powers. His promise that the farms would go to poor blacks was never realized as many of the 5,000 seized farms went to his friends and cronies. That exacerbated the economic collapse of a country reliant on exports of food, minerals, and tobacco. Zimbabwe’s economic meltdown and repressive political climate has led to a flood of refugees into neighboring countries. An estimated 3.4 million Zimbabweans, a quarter of the population, had fled abroad by mid 2007. Some 3 million of these people have gone to South Africa. In addition, an estimated 570,000 people are displaced within the borders of the country, many of whom remain in transit camps and have limited access to assistance. Most of the displaced were victims of Operation Murambatsvina, in which slum areas were forcibly cleared in 2005, as well as of continuing evictions and violent farm seizures. Their plight is virtually impossible to assess, as there has been no national survey of people displaced since 2005. Foreign journalists have also carried a burden during these elections. The government banned most foreign journalists from covering the elections and barred Western election observers. Several foreign journalists, including Barry Bearak of the New York Times, remained in custody Sunday after being charged with "illegally observing an election without official accreditation," according to their lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa. A March 2008 Human Rights Watch report entitled “All Over Again: Human Rights Abuses and Flawed Electoral Conditions in Zimbabwe’s Coming General Elections,” documents serious electoral flaws and human rights abuses, primarily by the government and President Robert Mugabe’s ruling Zimbabwe African National Union –Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), which have undermined a free and fair vote.
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