AUTHOR
BY LISA JUNG, ALICJA SZAMBELAN, MAGDALENA SUZA & ANTONIA LANDWEHR
IN THIS BLOG WE’LL REPORT ON RELEVANT HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES THAT HAVE OCCURRED IN THE LAST WEEK AND THEIR RELEVANCE. THIS WEEK’S BLOG CONCERNS NUMEROUS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS ALL OVER THE WORLD. THIS WEEK CONCERNS THE FOREST FIRES IN CHILE, THE NAVALNY ARREST IN RUSSIA AND JOE BIDEN’S FIRST DAYS AS PRESIDENT.
FOREST FIRES IN CHILE
IN THE RECENT WEEKS, 6000 HA HAVE DESTROYED BY FOREST FIRES IN CHILE (AS OF 21ST JANUARY). OUT OF 38 FIRES IDENTIFIED, UNTIL NOW ONLY 3 HAVE BEEN EXTINGUISHED AND 28 ARE UNDER CONTROL. THE BIGGEST FIRES OCCURRED IN THE MUNICIPALITIES OF VALPARAÍSO AND QUILPUÉ, IN THE CENTRE OF THE COUNTRY.
FREQUENT FOREST FIRES HAVE BEEN OCCURRING IN CHILE FOR MORE THAN A DECADE NOW. DUE TO THE DROUGHT AFFECTING A BIG PART OF THE COUNTRY, THEY ARE ABLE TO SPREAD DANGEROUSLY QUICKLY. THEY USUALLY RESULT FROM NEGLIGENCE OR ARE STARTED INTENTIONALLY.
IT HAS ALSO BEEN SUSPECTED THAT THE CURRENT FIRES IN VALPARAÍSO HAVE BEEN STARTED DELIBERATELY. TILL NOW, ONE PERSON HAS BEEN DETAINED ON THE SUSPICION OF STARTING THE FIRE.
ARRESTING OF ‘THE MAN VLADIMIR PUTIN FEARS THE MOST’- ALEKSEI NAVALNY
ALEKSEI NAVALNY IS A RUSSIAN POLITICIAN, OPPOSITION LEADER, LAWYER AND ANTI-CORRUPTION ACTIVIST. IN THE SUMMER, LAST YEAR ALEKSEI HAS BEEN POISONED WITH A NOVICHOK NERVE AGENT. HE FELT ILL WHILE ON BOARD A DOMESTIC FLIGHT FROM THE TOMSK TO MOSCOW. HE REMAINED IN A COMA FOR TWO WEEKS, AND AFTER RUSSIAN AUTHORITIES ALLOWED, HE WAS AIR- LIFTED TO BERLIN FOR TREATMENT.
THE GERMAN GOVERNMENT CONFIRMED THAT ACCORDING TO TOXICOLOGY TESTS CONDUCTED BY A SPECIAL MILITARY LABORATORY, HE HAD BEEN POISONED. DESPITE, HE WAS ATTEMPTED TO BE KILLED AND KNOWING HE COULD BE ARRESTED, HE DECIDED TO RETURN TO RUSSIA.
HE WAS ARRESTED ON SUNDAY UPON ARRIVAL IN MOSCOW. THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON EXTRAJUDICIAL, SUMMARY OR ARBITRARY EXECUTIONS, AND SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR OF FREEDOM OF OPINION AND EXPRESSION, SAID THAT ‘IT WAS APPALLING THAT MR NAVALNY WAS ARRESTED FOR BREACHING PAROLE TERMS, FOR A SENTENCE HE SHOULD NOT HAVE RECEIVED IN THE FIRST PLACE AND DESPITE THE AUTHORITIES BEING FULLY AWARE THAT HE HAD BEEN SEVERAL MONTHS IN GERMANY RECOVERING FROM AN ATTEMPT ON HIS LIFE”.
MR NAVALNY HAS VIOLATED A SUSPENDED SENTENCE FOR A FRAUD CONVICTION FOLLOWING PROCEEDINGS THAT THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS SAID IN 2018 WERE ARBITRARY AND UNFAIR; THEREFORE IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE ARREST WAS RELATED TO IT.
UN HUMAN RIGHTS CALLED FOR HIS IMMEDIATE RELEASE AND FOR HIS DUE PROCESS RIGHTS TO BE RESPECTED IN LINE WITH THE RULE OF LAW. MOREOVER, THE INDEPENDENT EXPERTS AND SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS ARE APPOINTED BY THE GENEVA UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL TO EXAMINE AND REPORT ON A SPECIFIC HUMAN RIGHTS THEME OR COUNTRY SITUATION.
BIDEN’S EXECUTIVE ACTION ON HIS FIRST DAY AS PRESIDENT
JUST HOURS AFTER TAKING THE OATH OFFICE, NEW PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN HAS TAKEN A HISTORIC NUMBER OF ACTIONS. BIDEN CEASED THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION’S PROCESS OF WITHDRAWING FROM THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION. THE BIDEN/HARRIS ADMINISTRATION WILL PARTICIPATE IN A WHO EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING THIS WEEK. MOREOVER, BIDEN ASKED THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO CONSIDER AN IMMEDIATE EXTENSION OF THE PAUSE ON INTEREST AND PRINCIPAL PAYMENT FOR DIRECT FEDERAL (STUDENT) LOANS UNTIL SEPTEMBER 2021. CONCERNING CLIMATE CHANGE, BIDEN SIGNED AN INSTRUMENT TO RE-JOIN THE PARIS AGREEMENT. THE INSTRUMENT HAS BEEN DEPOSITED WITH THE UNITED NATIONS, AND THE UNITED STATES WILL BECOME A PARTY AFTER ONLY 30 DAYS. BIDEN ALSO COMMITTED TO ROOTING OUT SYSTEMIC RACISM IN THE US BY SIGNING AN EXECUTIVE ORDER BEGINNING THE WORK OF EMBEDDING EQUITY ACROSS FEDERAL POLICY MAKING. ADDITIONALLY, HE SIGNED AN EXECUTIVE ORDER WHICH BUILDS ON THE U.S. SUPREME COURT’S DECISION BOSTOCK V. CLAYTON COUNTY (2020) ENSURING INTERPRETATION OF TITLE VII OF THE CIVIL RIGHT ACT 1964 WHICH PROHIBITS DISCRIMINATION IN THE WORKPLACE ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY. HE ALSO REVERSED SOME OF TRUMP’S POLICY DECISIONS LIKE EXCLUDING UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS FROM THE REAPPORTIONMENT COUNT, THE MUSLIM BAN AND THE BORDER WALL CONSTRUCTION. WITH THESE ACTIONS TAKING PLACE IN JUST HIS FIRST DAYS AS A PRESIDENT, WE CAN CONFIDENTLY STATE THAT BETTER TIMES ARE AHEAD FOR ALL THE PEOPLE LIVING IN AMERICA.
THAILAND – WOMAN SENTENCED TO 43 YEARS IN PRISON FOR INSULTING MONARCHY A COURT IN THAILAND SENTENCED A WOMAN TO 43- YEARS IN PRISON, AFTER SHE WAS ACCUSED OF INSULTING THE MONARCHY. BETWEEN 2014 AND 2015 THE 65-YEAR OLD WOMAN SHARED AND POSTED CLIPS ON YOUTUBE AND FACEBOOK, WHICH WERE CONSIDERED TO BE AN INSULT TO THE KING. IN THAILAND, THE LAWS FORBIDDING AN INSULT TO THE MONARCHY ARE ONE OF THE STRICTEST IN THE WORLD. THE HARSH SENTENCE FOLLOWS A SERIES OF PROTESTS LEAD BY MOSTLY YOUNG ACTIVISTS. THEIR DEMANDS INCLUDE A RESTRICTION OF THE KING´S POWER, AS WELL AS TRANSPARENCY OVER HIS FINANCES. AFTER THE LAW HAS NOT BEEN USED FOR THREE YEARS, EXPERTS CLAIM THAT IT IS NOW BEING USED AS A TOOL TO SCARE THE OPPOSITION, WHICH IS DEMANDING A REFORM IN THE COUNTRY.
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