Just a quick update in case you missed it.
 | Released on 06.09.2024 |  |
 | Venezuela: UN rights office describes pervasive ‘climate of fear’ The UN human rights office, OHCHR, reiterated deep concerns on Tuesday over the continuing “climate of fear” in Venezuela, after an arrest warrant was issued for the opposition’s presidential candidate in the country’s recent election. “It is a climate of fear in the country at the moment. We are urging the government to ensure that all steps are taken in line with international human rights law with transparency and that steps are taken to resolve this dispute peacefully,” OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told journalists in Geneva. Read more: news.un.org |
 | Pope Francis Must Urge Indonesia to Respect Human Dignity and Social Justice in Development Germany justice minister warns against travel to Russia amidst prisoner exchange and human rights concerns German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann told a local magazine on Tuesday that he advises Germans against travelling to Russia, stressing that no one has been safe in Russia for a long time. Buschmann’s comments came in the wake of a recent prisoner exchange with Russia, in which Germany played a pivotal role. Read more: amnesty.id |
 | Tugendhat doubles down on bid to win over rightwing Tories with attack on human rights convention Tom Tugendhat doubled down on his bid to reinvent himself as a candidate of the Tory right as he waded into the growing debate within the party over ditching the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). Just 24 hours after the contest’s frontrunner Kemi Badenoch had dismissed leaving the ECHR as an attempt to seek “easy answers”, the former security minister told his supporters that he was willing to ditch it. Read more: independent.co.uk |
 | UN Experts “Alarmed” by Surge in Unlawful Executions in Iran, Call for Halt to Death Penalty UN experts have voiced grave concern over a sharp rise in executions in Iran, urging authorities to halt the use of the death penalty. “Reports of serious violations of fair trial and due process rights mean that the death penalty as it is currently practiced in the Islamic Republic of Iran amounts to unlawful execution,” the experts said in a press release issued on August September 3. In August 2024 alone, 81 people were executed—double the number from July. The total number of executions this year has exceeded 400, including 15 women. Read more: iranhumanrights.org |
 | Many asylum seekers are persecuted for what they believe in – but what about those who don’t believe? In many countries, being non-religious can make someone a target for vicious persecution. This leads some to seek sanctuary elsewhere. But once they have claimed asylum, apostates can face trivial or confusing questions that often have no relation to the experience of someone who has lost faith. Such questions do not delve into the core reasons for their lack of belief or the persecution they fear. Freedom of religion or belief is a fundamental human right enshrined in several human rights laws. Claiming asylum on religious grounds should, in principle, include non-religious beliefs. Read more: theconversation.com |
 | Oppression of Afghan women: 'The world seems to be responding with a shrug,' HRW says Human rights groups are reacting with fury after a further curtailing of women’s rights in Afghanistan. New laws brought in last month impose severe new restrictions on women that oblige them to not only cover their faces, but also forbid them from raising their voices or reading aloud in public. Although Western countries and blocs like the US and EU have condemned the new laws, NGOs say much more could and should be done. In Perspective, we spoke to Heather Barr, interim women's rights deputy director for Human Rights Watch. Read more: france24.com |
 | European Court of Human Rights: Hungarian anti-immigration law restricts NGOs ARTICLE 19 submitted an amicus brief to the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) in Amnesty International Hungary v. Hungary. The case concerns the compatibility of Article 353A of the Criminal Code of Hungary, entitled ‘Facilitating Illegal Migration’, with the rights to freedom of association and expression. In the submission, ARTICLE 19 analyses the law in the context of other legislation inhibiting the independent operations of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and shows how the provision violates the rights to freedom of expression and assembly. Read more: article19.org |
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