News

UN Rights Experts Advise Russian Duma to Scrap Bill on ‘Homosexuality Propaganda’

Press Release
United Nations Human Rights

GENEVA (1 February 2013) – A group of United Nations independent human rights experts today called on the lower house of the Russian parliament to discard a draft bill to establish administrative penalties for “propaganda of homosexuality among minors,” which has already been approved by the State Duma.

The experts on freedom of expression, human rights defenders, cultural rights and the right to health warned the bill may undermine the enjoyment and promotion of human rights in Russia, unjustifiably singling out lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people, who have increasingly become the target of sanctions and violence in the country.

“Any restriction on freedom of opinion and expression should be based on reasonable and objective criteria, which is not fulfilled by the draft bill approved during the first reading by the Duma,” said the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, Frank La Rue. “The law could potentially be interpreted very broadly and thereby violate not only the right to freedom of expression but also the prohibition of discrimination.”

The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, warned that this legislation could be used to unduly restrict the activities of those advocating for the rights of LGBT individuals. “The draft legislation could further contribute to the already difficult environment in which these defenders operate, stigmatizing their work and making them the target of acts of intimidation and violence, as has recently happened in Moscow,” she stressed.

“We fear that such laws, in practice, will exacerbate an already difficult situation for LGBT individuals wishing to express their identity, and will hamper the organization of cultural events or dissemination of artistic creations addressing LGBT issues,” highlighted the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, Farida Shaheed. She further underlined that LGBT youth would be particularly affected.

Stressing the bill’s ambiguous wording, the Special Rapporteur on the right to health, Anand Grover, warned that “banning ‘propaganda of homosexuality’ may not only penalize those who promote sexual and reproductive health among LGBT people, but will also undermine the right of children to access health-related information in order to safeguard their physical and mental health.” Far from protecting children, the proposed law would potentially harm them by re-enforcing stigma and contributing to a discriminatory environment, which would put them at increased risk.

Pointing out that the “window of opportunity is still open” to reverse the decision during the next two readings at the Duma, the UN experts urged parliamentarians to “exercise leadership by scrapping the bill to ensure the full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Russia.”

ENDS

UN Human Rights, country page – Russian Federation: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Countries/ENACARegion/Pages/RUIndex.aspx

UN Human Rights, thematic issue page- Discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity: 
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Discrimination/Pages/LGBT.aspx

For more information log on to:
Freedom of expression:http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/OpinionIndex.aspx
Human rights defenders: 
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/SRHRDefenders/Pages/SRHRDefendersIndex.aspx
Cultural rights:http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/CulturalRights/Pages/SRCulturalRightsIndex.aspx
Right to health: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Health/Pages/SRRightHealthIndex.aspx

For media inquiries related to UN independent experts:
Cécile Pouilly, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917 93 10 / cpouilly@ohchr.org)

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U.N. Inquiry: “Israeli Settlements Violate Fourth Geneva Convention”

By Ali Al-Bassam
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

JERUSALEM, Israel — A three-member panel comprised of U.N. Human Rights Council members urged private companies involved with constructing settlements in the West Bank to cease activities. The panel said that the practices are subject to prosecution as possible war crimes.

Christine Chanet, who led an investigative panel over Israeli settlements in the West Bank, said that the settlements contravened the Fourth Geneva Convention. (Photo Courtesy of Reuters)

A report issued by the U.N. Human Rights Council last Thursday said that the expansion of settlements into Palestinian territory violates the Fourth Geneva Convention, which forbids the transfer of civilian populations into occupied territory. Violators are subject to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

“Israel must cease settlement activities and provide adequate, prompt and effective remedy to the victims of violations of human rights,” said Christine Chanet, a French judge who headed the U.N. inquiry. “To transfer its own population into an occupied territory is prohibited because it is an obstacle to the exercise of the right to self-determination.” Chanet said that because Israel is a U.N. member state, it must comply with international law over the settlements.

U.N. Secretary Ban Ki-Moon reiterated the report’s findings, saying that “all settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, is illegal under international law.”

Last December, Palestinians wrote a letter to the U.N. after Palestine was granted de facto U.N. recognition of statehood. In the letter, Palestinians accused Israel of planning to commit further war crimes by expanding settlements, and said that Israel had to be held accountable. With its statehood recognized, Palestine has threatened to take Israel to the ICC.

The U.N. Human Rights Council’s started its investigation of the settlement expansion last March. Independent U.N. investigators interviewed around 50 Palestinians in Jordan, which found that the settlements prevented Palestinians from reaching farming and water resources. The report states that the settlements are comprised of an estimated 520,000 settlers now living throughout the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Israel did not cooperate with the council, and barred investigators from entering the West Bank, claiming that the council was biased. It defended its settlement policy by citing historic and biblical links to the West Bank.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry called the Human Rights Council’s recent report “counterproductive and unfortunate.” “The Human Rights Council has sadly distinguished itself by its systematical, one-sided and biased approach towards Israel. This latest report is yet another unfortunate reminder of such approach,” the ministry said. “The only way to resolve all pending issues between Israel and the Palestinians, including the settlement issues, is through direct negotiations…” Israel’s Yigal Palmor said.

Palestinians welcomed the report, saying that it “vindicated their struggle against Israel.” “This is incredible. We are extremely heartened by this principled and candid assessment of Israeli violations,” said Hanan Ashrawi, a senior official for the Palestinian Liberation Organization.

For further information, please see:

Jewish Press — Head of UN Rights Panel: Report is ‘Weapon’ Against Israel” — 3 February 2013

JTA — U.N.: Israel Must Withdraw From Settlements Immediately — 31 January 2013

Reuters — U.N. Rights Inquiry Says Israel Must Remove Settlers — 31 January 2013

The Telegraph — UN Report Says Israel Could be Prosecuted for War Crimes Over Settlements — 31 January 2013

Men Accused of Rape and Murder Plead Not Guilty

 By Karen Diep
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NEW DELHI, India – Today, five men pleaded not guilty to the rape and murder of a trainee physiotherapist in Delhi last December.

Angry protesters demand harsher sex crime laws. (Photo Courtesy of Aljazeera)

With a sixth suspect tried in juvenile court, the of age men, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Pawan Kumar, Ram, and Mukesh Singh, signed statements proclaiming their innocence after being formally charged in a fast-track court.

The accused men allegedly attacked the 23-year-old woman after boarding a bus with a male friend. According to AlJazeera, the men beat both of them, raped the woman, and tried to run her over with the vehicle after the attack.

As a result of the attack, the woman suffered excessive internal injuries and died two weeks later in a Singapore hospital. Prior to being transported to Singapore, the woman underwent three intensive surgeries and cardiac arrest.

The defense’s lawyers, in response to these allegations, claimed that the New Delhi police tortured the men into erroneous confessions.

Nonetheless, the violent attack sparked a national debate over India’s sex crime laws and the treatment of women in India.

Because there is substantial evidence, including DNA and phone records, prosecutors anticipate seeking the death penalty for the accused men.  Moreover, they expect calling three witnesses at the beginning of trial.

On Wednesday, hundreds of protesters marched in New Delhi demanding more rights and security for women.  According to AlJazeera, the “Women Dignity March” concluded at Rajghat, the tallest memorial of Mahatma Gandhi.  On the same day, Junior Education Minister Shashi Tharoor advocated that the proposed new anti-rape law be named after the dead student.

Moreover, on Friday, India’s cabinet approved a majority of the commission’s recommendations on sex crime laws.  Appointed to review India’s sex crime laws, the commission is led by ex-chief justice JS Vermam, who issued a report on January 23, 2013.

The court will begin administering evidential hearings this upcoming Tuesday.

For more information, please see:

Aljazeera – India rapists ‘tried to run over victim’ – 02 February 2013

BBC News – Delhi rape case: Five accused plead not guilty – 02 February 2013

The Guardian – India gang rape accused plead not guilty in fast-track court – 02 February 2013

The Voice – 5 Men Plead Not Guilty in India Rape Case – 02 February 2013

French National Assembly Approves Same-Sex Marriage Bill

By Alexandra Sandacz
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

PARIS, France – On Saturday, France’s National Assembly approved legislation that will allow gay couples to get married and adopt children. The Assembly approved the bill despite enormous protests that lured hundreds of thousands of people in Paris to oppose the new proposal.

Parisians show their support for the legalisation of gay marriage and LGBT parenting. (Photo Courtesy of RT)

President Françoise Hollande’s socialist party and their left-wing supporters supported the same-sex marriage provisions. Conversely, the UMP – the party of former President Nicholas Sarkozy – and many centrists MP opposed the bill.

However, despite opposition, deputies voted 249-97 in favor of redefining marriage as a contract between two people, rather than just between a man and a woman.

The same-sex bill celebrates one of France’s biggest social reforms since the abolition of the death penalty in 1981.

Justice Minister Christiane Taubira stated, “We are happy and proud to have taken this first step. We are going to establish the freedom for everyone to choose his or her partner for a future together.”

Christophe Barbier, editor of the influential L’Express weekly news magazine and a supporter of the law, said, “Marriage should be a simple contract between two individuals. Let’s make it available to all couples eager to make this contract to each other.”

However, those who opposed the legislation maintain that their movement is not homophobic. Rather, the legalization of gay adoption breaks down the traditional family, and the legislation that gives gay couples the right to adopt will remove the fundamental right of a child to have a mother and a father.

Spokesman for the anti camp called “manif pour tous,” Tugdual Derville, stated, “We must think of future generations. Not only of the desires of adults today.”

Protestors chant, “Une mère, un mari, un mariage” (One mother, one husband, one marriage).

UMP MP, Philippe Gosselin, believes the legislation is opening a gate of trends of which the French people do not approve. He states, “Today it is marriage and adoption. Tomorrow it will be medically assisted conception and surrogate mothers.”

Furthermore, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, the Roman Catholic archbishop of Lyon, argued that redefining marriage would “open the door to incest and polygamy.”

Other countries in Western Europe, such as Belgium and the Netherlands, already legalized same-sex marriage. However, France demonstrated the largest disapproval.

For further information, please see:

BBC News – France’s Parliament Approves Gay Marriage Article – 2 February 2013

Expatica – Gay Pride As France Lays Foundation For Same Sex Marriage – 2 February 2013

NBC News – Why Some In Supposedly Liberal France Are Up In Arms About Gay Marriage – 2 February 2013

RT – French National Assemble Approves Gay Marriage Law – 2 February 2013

Human Rights Watch Releases Annual World Report

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

A couple of days ago, Human Rights Watch issued its twenty-third annual world report for 2013. A large portion of the six-hundred and sixty-five page report centered around the Arab Spring and its effects on the Middle East.

In the wake of the Arab Spring, Human Rights Watch hopes that the newly implemented governments will not fail their human rights obligations. (Photo Courtesy of the Daily Star Lebanon)

When the Arab Spring started, the initial hope was that the uprisings would lead to the beginning of legitimate democracies. Presently, in many states there is a fear that the ousting of the old authoritarian regimes will only lead to authoritarian regimes of different forms.

It is far too early to judge exactly what the spring has given birth to yet. The world must wait to see how these new governments will respect their citizens human rights. Appropriate efforts would include the installation of a professional police force, creation of independent courts, and the prudence of the majority not to abuse the rights of minority factions.

The report highlights the difficulty for these new governments to develop the necessary institutions for a successful democracy. The executive director of Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, stated that, “[t]he path ahead may be treacherous, but the alternative is to consign entire countries to a grim future of oppression.”

The report specifically looks at several countries in its exposé on human rights. A few of such countries include Egypt, Syria, and Libya.

Human Rights Watch analyzed the effect that Egypt’s new constitution has on the countries future. It praised its efforts to clearly terminate the practices of arbitrary detention and torture, but feared that far too many of its provisions pertaining to family, religion, and speech were vague. Such undisciplined drafting may allow for abuses against women and minority religious groups who should be protected under international law.

Over the past year, Syria has provided the perfect example for what may happen when sectarian factions cannot co-exist. Syria has been a hot bed for war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture, and summary executions. The United Nations Security Council has referred the situation to the International Criminal Court but Russia and China have vetoed the referral.

Libya is a prime example of a government unprepared to govern itself after its abusive regime was ousted. Gaddafi intentionally insured that government institutions were weak so that no one could challenge his law. As a result, much of the country is ruled by militias and government who has no problem to detain dissidents and without any likelihood of a future trial.

A further common theme exists amongst most of these Middle Eastern countries. The overwhelming majority of these countries are ruled by Islamic powers. In such situations, it is not uncommon under conservative rule for women to be viewed as second class citizens. Many of these ruling powers consider expanding the rights of women as a western imposition opposed to a natural right codified through international law. Additionally, in these religious states, it is not uncommon for those who offend the religion to be treated improperly. Such countries claim to allow free speech, but do not practice what they preach. Countries that the report criticize for acting in the aforementioned ways include Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates.

The Arab Spring uprisings took place because citizens were fed up with their governments’ treatment of its people. As Kenneth Roth declared, “[i]t turns out, in fact, the toppling of a dictator may have been the easy part. The difficult part is replacing that repressive regime with a rights-respecting democracy.” Hopefully a year from now the 24th annual Human Rights Watch World Report will show a stable Middle East that is routed in democracy and a concern for human rights.

For further information, please see:

Human Rights Watch – World Report 2013: Challenges for Rights After Arab Spring – 1 February 2013

Radio France International – Human Rights Watch Focuses on Arab Spring Fallout – 1 February 2013

Daily Star Lebanon – Arab Spring States Must Respect Rights: Human Rights Watch – 31 January 2013

United Press International – Human Rights Watch Issues Annual Report – 31 January 2013