• “Indigenous protesters in traditional headdress” clash with police in Brazil ahead of the World Cup. One officer was shot in the leg with an arrow and a ceremony to open the cup trophy exhibition was cancelled (abcnews.go.com). Photos (Daily Mail) • Thailand’s coup leader appeals for protesters to stand down: “Everyone must help me,” he said, adding: but “do not criticize, do not create new problems. It’s no use.” (cbsnews.com) • Kenya’s police inspector general bans “political” assemblies saying “Criminals may take advantage… Continue reading →
In an effort to strengthen global understanding of civil society’s right to access resources, UN Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai and the Community of Democracies have issued a set of “general principles” summarizing key aspects of the right, along with their legal bases. The document summarizes three general principles under international human rights norms and standards regarding the ability of civil society to seek, receive and use resources. It also provides arguments and legal backing to support specific aspects of each principle, with… Continue reading →
Issue No. 4 of the Assembly and Association Briefing, the newsletter of Maina Kiai, UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. In this issue: • UN Releases Special Rapporteur Kiai’s latest report on groups ‘most at risk’ • Kiai joins UN experts in urging Azerbaijan to drop charges against human rights defenders • OSCE civil society says ‘political will’ a major obstacle in protecting right to funding • Three years after Tunisia: Thoughts on the rights to freedom of assembly… Continue reading →
For International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO-T), Saturday 17 May 2014, a Joint Statement by UN human rights experts, the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media GENEVA – Marking International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO-T), a group of international and regional human rights experts, including Maina Kiai, call on States to end discrimination and address violations against lesbian, gay, bisexual,… Continue reading →
BANJUL / GENEVA – A group of African and UN human rights experts, including Maina Kiai, today called on the Egyptian authorities to bring its legal system into compliance with international and regional standards so as to ensure long-term justice and contribute to reconciliation efforts in Egypt. The appeal by nine United Nations independent experts, together with the Chairperson of the Working Group on Death Penalty and Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Killings in Africa, comes after the second wave of mass death sentences pronounced in Egypt… Continue reading →
