U.S. Immigrant Detention and Deportation 3.20.09

 

On Friday March 20, 2009 the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR) held a hearing on U.S. immigrant detention and deportation policies. Petitioners from the University of Pennsylvania Law School’s Transnational Legal Clinic went before the commission alleging (1) the duties delegated to local law enforcement from the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leads to widespread abuses of power, (2) U.S. policies deprive detainees of due process, and (3) the deplorable detention conditions amount to a human rights crisis.

Rule of Law and Independence of the Judiciary in Colombia 3.23.09

The Independence of the Colombian Judiciary is not a new issue. Since before 1998, when the International Center for Criminal Law Reform and Criminal Justice Policy researched the Colombian Judiciary for the World Conference on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Colombia has been fighting the allegations. On March 23, 2009 the Inter-American Commission on Human rights heard allegations against the Colombian government. The Petitioners made three allegations in regards to the current state of the Colombian Judiciary. As evidence of the lack of judicial autonomy, the Petitioners pointed to the extraditions of eighteen paramilitaries by the Colombian government to the United States, the State’s lack of respect for the Judiciary, and the State’s monitoring of the Judiciary via wire tapping.

Allegations on Partnerships between Politicians and Paramilitaries in Colombia 3.23.09

For the last forty to fifty years paramilitarism has been an ongoing threat for Colombian citizens.  Paramilitary groups are amongst the most common violators of Human Rights in Colombia.  Several decades ago paramilitary groups became associated with the business of illicit substances, yet in 2003 several efforts had been made to demobilize the paramilitaries and the Colombian drug lords.  Nevertheless, the Colombian paramilitaries are increasing, not only in numbers, but in power as they infiltrate the Colombian political system.

The Remnants of the Argentinean Dirty War 3.24.09

 

A three-member panel of the Committee, composed of its newly elected chair Luz Patricia Mejía, Paolo Carozza and Florentín Meléndez, heard a petition alleging ineffectiveness of current prosecutions of crimes against humanity committed under the military junta in Argentina in 1976-1983. The date of the hearing was highly symbolic in Argentina, as March 24 is a public holiday in Argentina.  This date symbolizes the coup that overthrew the legitimate government in 1976 – a fact that the petitioners, the state representatives, and the Commissioners highlighted.  

IACHR Photo

 

Commission

The Criminalization of the Defenders of Indigenous Peoples’ Rights 3.20.09

On Friday, March 20, 2009, the Inter-American Commission heard an account of the criminal processes taken against defenders of indigenous peoples in South America.  The purpose of the hearing was to examine the countries’ actions against the leaders, who defend the rights of indigenous people.  The Petitioners argue that the Colombian, Peruvian, Ecuadorian, and Chilean governments have violated the rights of indigenous peoples as established by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.  

The Case of Maria Isabel Veliz Franco 3.20.09

On Friday, March 20, 2009, the Inter-American Commission heard case 12.578 regarding the violent death and suspicion of sexual assault of Maria Isabel Veliz Franco, fifteen years old, of Guatemala.  The purpose of the hearing was to examine the State’s investigation of Franco’s murder that took place in 2001.  The Petitioners argued Guatemala violated Franco’s human rights as described in the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.  Claudia Paz, the expert testifying on the weaknesses of the investigation, identified fundamental failings by the State when handling the crime scene and pieces of evidence.  

AU Washington College of Law and the Center for Health and Gender Equity to Host Conference on Human Trafficking

WASHINGTON, DC, Mar. 11, 2009 – American University Washington College of Law and the Center for Health and Gender Equity are pleased to announce the upcoming conference entitled “Human Trafficking, HIV/AIDS, and the Sex Sector”, taking place March 18.