Pakistan: GB lawyers association President arrested over Facebook post

February 13, 2018

An Anti-Terrorism court in Gilgit has sent the President of Gilgit-Baltistan Supreme Appellate Court Bar Association, Advocate Ehsan Ali, for judicial remand until February 26 for a facebook post he had made.

The detention comes after an FIR was registered against the progressive human rights lawyer for sharing ‘derogatory content’ on social networking website Facebook.

The content in question had been a photograph related to the anti-government protests in Iran, along with an explanatory note, describing the rationale behind him sharing the post. Advocate Ehsan had come under fire immediately afterwards, as he was accused of sectarian hate speech and inciting violence between the different religious communities of the area.

Since then, the prominent lawyer has removed the content, and has apologised to the people who found the post derogatory, and whose sentiments were hurt. He later met prominent clerics in the region to explain his position and seek forgiveness.

…

https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2018/02/13/gb-lawyers-association-president-arrested-over-facebook-post/

https://www.dawn.com/news/1389143/atc-sends-gb-lawyers-leader-on-judicial-remand

https://nation.com.pk/14-Feb-2018/facebook-activity-lands-lawyer-rights-activist-in-jail

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/280705-call-for-release-of-jailed-activists-end-to-rights-abuses-in-gilgit-baltistan

France: Dijon : les avocats en “grève totale” jeudi et vendredi

le 13 février, 2018

C’est dans un communiqué de presse envoyé ce mardi à notre rédaction que l’annonce est tombée : réunis en assemblée générale la semaine passée, les avocats du barreau de Dijon ont voté une grève totale les jeudi 15 et vendredi 16 février “pour une Justice de qualité, accessible, avec un budget, des équipements et des effectifs à la hauteur d’un Etat européen du 21e siècle”.

Dans ce texte, le barreau de Dijon dénonce un “dialogue à marche forcée” de la part de la ministre de la Justice. “La ministre de la Justice a lancé de nombreux chantiers en affichant des objectifs de simplification des procédures pénales et civile et d’amélioration de la qualité, la lisibilité, l’accessibilité de la justice et l’efficacité des peines. La consultation n’est évidemment que de pure façade : un agenda impossible de consultations qui aboutissent à des rapports aux conclusions prévisibles sur lesquelles s’organise un “dialogue” à marche forcée. Les propositions ne tiennent aucun compte de la réalité de la justice en France”.

“Nous exigeons de conserver notre Cour d’appel”

Dans nos éditions du 9 février, nous évoquions également l’inquiétude des avocats dijonnais quant à l’avenir de la Cour d’appel de la ville. Un point également abordé dans ce texte où les avocats du barreau de Dijon détaillent les points qui les poussent à la grève. “Nous exigeons de conserver notre Cour d’appel de plein exercice à Dijon et refusons les spécialisations et autre “délestage” qui n’ont d’autre objectif que de vider de leur substance nos juridictions et d’éloigner les justiciables des lieux de justice. Nous demandons des réformes cohérentes pour une justice indépendante, humaine et protectrice, nous dénonçons ces projets régressifs et refusons le statu-quo”.

…

http://www.bienpublic.com/edition-dijon-ville/2018/02/13/dijon-les-avocats-en-greve-les-15-et-16-fevrier

https://radiocapitole.fr/societe/4683/digne-bains-avocats-greve?amp=1

http://lessor38.fr/jeudi-15-fevrier-la-justice-sera-morte-en-isere-21288.html

http://www.lavoixdunord.fr/316793/article/2018-02-13/le-tribunal-de-grande-instance-presque-raye-de-la-carte

http://www.herault-tribune.com/articles/167081/rassemblement-le-jeudi-15-fevrier-contre-la-suppression-du-tribunal-grande-instance-beziers/

http://lessor38.fr/isere-justice-en-berne-le-15-fevrier-21288.html

http://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2018/02/14/justice-nous-voulons-une-reforme-adaptee-aux-besoins-des-citoyens_5256439_3232.html

http://www.hauteprovenceinfo.com/article-18981-avocats-journee-daction-contre-reforme-la-justice.html

http://www.larepubliquedespyrenees.fr/2018/02/13/pau-avocats-magistrats-et-greffiers-manifestent-jeudi,2281446.php

https://abp.bzh/reforme-de-la-carte-judiciaire-41-parlementaires-bretons-ecrivent-a-la-garde-des-sceaux-contre-le-detachement-de-la-loire-atla-44309

https://actu.fr/normandie/evreux_27229/reforme-la-justice-barreau-leure-emet-bulletin-dalerte_15511119.html

https://www.lanouvellerepublique.fr/actu/poitiers-rassemblement-d-avocats-ce-jeudi

http://www.nicematin.com/politique/le-trayas-rapatrie-dans-les-a-m-c-est-pas-gagne–208027

https://www.republicain-lorrain.fr/justice/2018/02/13/c-est-cette-justice-la-que-l-on-veut-demain

http://www.larepubliquedespyrenees.fr/2018/02/14/macron-le-temps-de-l-hyper-reformisme,2281839.php

https://www.sudradio.fr/politique/reforme-de-la-carte-judiciaire-les-avocats-comptent-bien-faire-entendre-leur-voix

https://mavillesoissons.blogspot.fr/2018/02/reforme-de-la-cartejudiciaire.html

http://www.lavoixdunord.fr/317258/article/2018-02-14/si-j-avais-su-je-n-aurais-jamais-fait-ca-dans-la-vie

http://www.lemonde.fr/police-justice/article/2018/02/14/des-magistrats-critiquent-la-methode-belloubet_5256697_1653578.html

http://www.lavoixdunord.fr/317260/article/2018-02-14/touche-pas-mon-tribunal-saint-omer-la-fronde-s-organise-contre-la-reforme

http://www.macommune.info/article/les-cours-dappel-menacees-une-mobilisation-ce-jeudi-a-besancon-175718

https://secure.avaaz.org/fr/petition/tout_public_Sauvez_le_Tribunal_de_Grande_Instance_dALES/(SIGNEZ LA PETITION!)

https://secure.avaaz.org/fr/petition/tout_public_SAUVEZ_LES_TRIBUNAUX_DE_LONGWY_ET_BRIEY/?aZgtJab (SIGNEZ LA PETITION!)

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeYAoke-LGvKlQVIp5rWqhD34uUiWCq0L0C8k7Eop222k54jg/viewform?c=0&w=1 (SIGNEZ LA PETITION SVP!)

https://www.unepetition.fr/mobilisationpourlajustice (SIGNEZ LA PETITION!)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2014487138769867/

https://www.facebook.com/events/338592969959830/

https://www.facebook.com/events/555696148141025/

https://www.facebook.com/events/1965523327033138/

https://www.facebook.com/Sauvez-Les-Tribunaux-De-Longwy-Et-Briey-164205770879782/

https://www.facebook.com/events/1355851691185535/

#Cartejudiciaire #Réforme #Justiceprocheducitoyen #Touchepasamacour

Algeria: Répression des défenseurs des droits de l’Homme : Alger pointé du doigt par une ONG européenne

le 13 février, 2018

L’ONG européenne «Euromed Droits » a appelé les autorités algériennes à «mettre un terme à la répression et au harcèlement à l’encontre des défenseurs des droits humains et des syndicalistes».

L’organisation condamne fermement, dans un communiqué, «le harcèlement judiciaire » que subissent de nombreux militants des droits humains en Algérie. Euromed Droits qui rappelle que l’Algérie, s’était engagée lors de l’Examen Périodique Universel en septembre 2017, à garantir les libertés d’expression et de réunion, conformément à sa Constitution et au Pacte international relatifs aux droits civils et politiques, appelle Alger à mettre un terme à la répression et au harcèlement à l’encontre des défenseurs des droits humains et des syndicalistes.

Elle rappelle que, mardi dernier, des syndicalistes et défenseurs algériens des droits de l’homme comparaissaient devant le tribunal de Ghardaïa, accusés d’“incitation à attroupement non armé, atteinte à corps constitué et non-respect d’une décision administrative” en raison de leurs activités de défense des droits humains.

Euromed Droits explique que ces poursuites sont en lien avec leur arrestation le 13 juillet 2016 à Ghardaïa. Ce jour-là, rappelle l’ONG, la police avait embarqué les six hommes, alors assis dans un café, pour empêcher tout rassemblement devant le Tribunal de Ghardaïa où comparaissait Me Salah Dabbouz, avocat et défenseur des droits humains.

http://www.2m.ma/fr/news/repression-des-defenseurs-des-droits-de-lhomme-alger-pointee-du-doigt-par-une-ong-europeenne-20180212/

India: Man Wanted For Allahabad Law Student’s Murder Has Political Links: Police

February 13, 2018

What led to the assault was a minor argument that started when Vijay Shankar Singh, entering the Kalika restaurant in Uttar Pradesh’s Allahabad with his friends, brushed against the law student Dilip Saroj, who was sitting on the stairs outside.

Three days after a 26-year-old man was beaten to death at a restaurant in Uttar Pradesh’s Allahabad, a horrific assault caught on mobile phone camera by a witness, the main accused is yet to be arrested. Vijay Shankar Singh, an Indian Railways employee missing since the killing, is linked to a politician and strongman, according to the police.

Chief Minister Adityanath has announced Rs. 20 lakh compensation for the family of Dilip Saroj, the law student who died after being beaten with a hockey stick, an iron road and bricks on Friday night. The mobile phone video taken by a passerby outside the restaurant has captured a part of the assault, after which Dilip is seen lying on the road, unconscious.

Vijay Shankar Singh, seen in a red jacket, keeps hitting the lifeless Dilip.

…

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/man-wanted-for-allahabad-law-students-murder-has-political-links-police-1811969

https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/120218/protests-allahabad-university-law-student-murder-bus-set-ablaze-dilip.html

https://thewire.in/223530/opposition-parties-hit-bjps-politics-hatred-dalit-students-murder-allahabad/

http://www.livelaw.in/26-year-old-law-student-beaten-death-allahabad/

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/students-killing-in-allahabad-sparks-uproar-in-up-legislative-council-1811905

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/students-killing-in-allahabad-sparks-uproar-in-up-legislative-council-1811905

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/vijay-shankar-singh-wanted-for-allahabad-law-students-murder-arrested-1812536

http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2018/feb/14/prime-accused-in-dalit-law-student-dileep-saroj-murder-arrested-in-uttar-pradesh-1773165.html

http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2018/feb/14/murder-of-dalit-law-student-dileep-saroj-three-accused-arrested-in-allahabad-1772923.html

https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/opinion/hate-killed-dilip-saroj-horrifically-in-allahabad

Argentina/Iran/Israel: Streaming Giant Netflix to Produce Miniseries on Murder of Argentine AMIA Bombing Prosecutor Alberto Nisman

February 12, 2018

Internet streaming giant Netflix has reportedly begun production in Buenos Aires on a documentary miniseries probing the January 2015 murder of Alberto Nisman – the federal prosecutor who spent more than a decade investigating the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center in the Argentine capital, and then later exposed the role of former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and her colleagues in a cover-up of Iran’s responsibility for the atrocity.

Reports in the Argentine press on Monday said that Catalan production company JWP had been commissioned by Netflix to produce the series. Founded by the British documentary film director Justin Webster, the company has produced award-winning documentaries on Spain and Latin America, including a film about the celebrated Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez and another on the Basque terrorist group ETA.

Nisman was found dead in his Buenos Aires apartment on January 18, 2015, hours before he was due to deliver a complaint to the Argentine Congress that charged Kirchner, former Foreign Minister Hector Timerman, and several key aides and cabinet officials with having negotiated a pact with Iran that involved the cancelation of six “Red Notices” — international arrest warrants issued by global law enforcement agency Interpol — for the Iranian officials wanted in connection with the AMIA bombing. The pact was voided by Argentina’s Supreme Court following Kirchner’s electoral defeat by current President Mauricio Macri in November 2015.

 

While the Kirchner government’s initial efforts to portray Nisman’s murder as a suicide have been completely discredited by official forensic analysis of the crime scene, the exact reason behind his murder and the identity of his killers is yet to be revealed. According to Argentine news outlet Diario 26, the producers of the Netflix series are hoping to obtain interviews with Kirchner herself; Nisman’s former assistant Diego Lagomarsino, who was indicted in December 2017 as an accomplice to the murder; and with a number of the key officials who claimed that Nisman took his own life.

Often described as the “86th victim” of the AMIA bombing, Nisman took over the case in 2005 after the previous corrupted investigation into the attack collapsed. Eighty-five people were killed and hundreds more wounded after a truck packed with explosives drove into the AMIA building in downtown Buenos Aires on July 18, 1994 in what remains the worst terrorist attack on Latin American soil.

https://www.algemeiner.com/2018/02/12/streaming-giant-netflix-to-produce-miniseries-on-murder-of-argentine-amia-bombing-prosecutor-alberto-nisman/

https://www.thejc.com/news/world/argentina-shines-the-spotlight-on-former-president-in-alberto-nisman-murder-probe-1.457474

http://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/americas/165618-180120-congress-urges-probe-into-murder-of-argentine-prosecutor-alberto-nisman

https://www.algemeiner.com/2018/02/16/argentina-begins-trials-sentencing-of-senior-officials-who-corrupted-investigations-into-iranian-bombing-of-amia-jewish-center/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Alberto_Nisman

Burma: Lawyer, protester facing trial for ‘insult’ during 2015 protest

February 13, 2018

A MAN who took part in the 2015 protest for the democratisation of education and a lawyer who defended the jailed protesters are facing trial two-and-a-half years after the fact, according to the Union Lawyers & Paralegals Association.

They are being prosecuted by Tharrawaddy township for insulting a public officer on duty, under criminal law section 228.

The passage of the National Education Law in September 2014 sparked a protest by student unions, who said the law was too strict. On March 10, 2015, security forces beat protesting students at Letpadan township in Bago Region, injuring about three dozen. About 100 protesters were arrested.

In April 2016, during the early days of the NLD government, the student protesters’ case was closed and those arrested were released. However, lawyer Daw Khin Khin Kyaw, who defended the protesters, and Ko Than Htike, who joined the protests, still face trial nearly two-and-a-half years later.

 

Prosecution by Tharrawaddy township started in September 2015, and the two defendants have appeared in court 52 times.

Daw Khin Kyaw Kyaw, lawyer of the accused, said: “I was prosecuted while covering the students’ cases. When the new government was elected, the NLD closed that case and other political cases but not our case.

“It has been a long time and it is really exhausting for me. The trial is wasting my time and money. They are prosecuting a lawyer with section 228, which is a law from the colonial era. This law should not remain under a democratic regime,” she added.

…

https://www.mmtimes.com/news/lawyer-protester-facing-trial-insult-during-2015-protest.html

https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/case/case-history-khin-khin-kyaw

Australia: Man arrested at Sydney Airport over ‘shooting murder’ of lawyer, 65, at cafe – just minutes before he was about to board an international flight to Bali

February 13, 2018

A man has been arrested at Sydney International Airport in relation to the shooting murder of criminal lawyer Ho Ledinh late last month.

The 65-year-old was gunned down as he sat outside Happy Cup cafe in a prominent shopping strip in Bankstown, in the city’s west, on January 23.

A 38-year-old man was arrested by NSW homicide squad as he prepared to board a flight to Bali just before 10am on Tuesday.

He has been taken to Mascot Police Station, where he is assisting with inquiries.

Strike Force Eugene was set up in response to the shooting of Mr Ledinh, a leading lawyer in the city’s west who had represented gangland clients.

Mr Ledinh was brutally murdered when a gunman wearing a hi-vis top rushed inside the Happy Cup cafe, shot him up to four times and fled as he fell to the floor.

Despite the best efforts of paramedics and a close friend, crying out ‘say something, please!’, they could not revive him.

…

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5383949/Arrest-Sydney-lawyer-murdered-Bankstown-cafe.html

http://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/news/man-arrested-at-sydney-airport-three-weeks-after-ho-ledinhs-death/news-story/f85bb4aee683530e2c57a049b8fd16b2

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-13/bankstown-shooting-nsw-police-arrest-man-at-sydney-airport/9433456

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5384707/Man-charged-murder-shooting-Sydney-lawyer.html

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/alleged-killer-of-bankstown-lawyer-ho-ledinh-to-remain-behind-bars-20180213-p4z09w.html

The Philippines: Lawyer survives ambush in Quezon City, kills 1 attacker

February 13, 2018

A lawyer did not only survive an ambush in Quezon City at past midnight Tuesday, he also killed one of his attackers and injured another.

An Unang Balita report said lawyer Argel Joseph Cabatbat was on board his car when three men riding two motorcycles fired at him at the corner of East Avenue and EDSA.

Surviving the attack, the report said Cabatbat chased his attackers and ran them over.

Cabatbat was able to kill one of the attackers. He recovered a police ID of a certain Police Officer 1 Mark Ayeras from the slain attacker.

A Super Radyo dzBB report said that according to Quezon City Police District (QCPD) director Chief Superintendent Guillermo Eleazar, the policeman was assigned at the National Capital Region Police Office’s (NCRPO) anti-illegal drugs unit.

The radio report said the Quezon City police is already validating the identity of the slain attacker of the lawyer.

…

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/metro/643128/lawyer-survives-ambush-in-quezon-city-kills-1-attacker/story/

https://coconuts.co/manila/news/lawyer-survives-assassination-attempt-ends-killing-one-attackers/

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/968592/gunman-in-botched-hit-on-lawyer-was-awol-cop

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/metro/643492/frustrated-murder-charges-filed-vs-suspects-in-botched-ambush-of-lawyer/story/

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/969002/ibp-decries-treacherous-attack-on-member

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/metro/643742/lawyer-companions-who-survived-qc-ambush-may-face-criminal-raps-police/story/

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/972446/chr-to-pnp-prove-in-court-that-suspects-were-killed-in-self-defense

(Integrated Bar of the Philippines National Facebook)

Maldives: UN rights experts denounce detention of judges as ‘direct attack’ on Supreme Court

February 12, 2018

“It is clear that the rule of law in the Maldives is now under siege,” said the experts in a news release issued Monday by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

“We call on the Government to refrain from any threats or interference that may hamper the court’s independence as the supreme guardian of the country’s constitution and legislation,” they added.

In the release, José Antonio Guevara Bermúdez, the current Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention; and Diego García-Sayán, the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and magistrates, also stressed that judicial independence, enshrined in the national constitution and in international human rights treaties, had to be guaranteed by the State.

Mr. García-Sayán also raised concern over the timing of the arrests, five days after the Supreme Court had ordered the release and retrial of nine opposition leaders, including former President Mohamed Nasheed.

Following the arrest of Chief Justice H.E. Abdulla Saeed and Ali Hameed Mohamed – shortly after the Government declared a state of emergency – the three remaining Supreme Court judges overturned the order to free the nine leaders.

It is clear that the rule of law in the Maldives is now under siege — UN rights experts

“[This] is at best suspicious,” said Mr. García-Sayán, adding that the acts constitutes “an intolerable act of intimidation” against the highest judicial authority in the country.

…

https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/02/1002541

http://www.nycbar.org/media-listing/media/detail/new-york-city-bar-association-issues-statement-on-the-state-of-emergency-in-the-maldives-including-the-arrest-of-two-supreme-court-justices

http://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2018/feb/13/to-ease-global-pressure-maldives-honouring-supreme-court-order-seeking-to-reinstate-defectors-1772517.html

https://avas.mv/en/44683

https://avas.mv/en/44693

https://avas.mv/en/44702

https://avas.mv/en/44714

http://www.dw.com/en/maldives-political-crisis-worst-in-its-modern-history/a-42561399

http://www.catchnews.com/international-news/maldives-crisis-a-bitter-religious-divide-comes-to-the-fore-99116.html

https://www.rt.com/news/418663-china-india-troops-maldives/

https://avas.mv/en/44734

http://moderndiplomacy.eu/2018/02/14/maldives-un-rights-experts-denounce-detention-judges-direct-attack-supreme-court/

https://www.aninews.in/news/world/asia/maldives-crises-military-throws-mps-out-of-parliament201802141707490002/

https://avas.mv/en/44788

http://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-maldives-crisis-we-have-a-thug-not-president-mps-alleges-abdulla-yameen-of-inciting-violence-2584900

https://raajje.mv/en/news/26962

https://raajje.mv/en/news/26985

http://www.europe1.fr/emissions/l-edito-international/maldives-entre-etat-durgence-et-islamisation-3573977 (FRANCAIS)

http://www.lejdd.fr/international/asie/pas-de-saint-valentin-aux-maldives-3573755 (FRANCAIS)

Iran/Canada: Investigate Suspicious Deaths in Detention, Release Activists

February 13, 2018

A third suspicious death in Iranian prisons since early January 2018 underscores the need for an immediate independent inquiry, Human Rights Watch said today. On February 10, the family of a well-known Iranian environmentalist, Dr. Kavous Seyed Emami, who had been in detention for two weeks on bogus charges, reported that he had died under unknown circumstances.

On January 24 and 25, security forces reportedly arrested seven environmental activists on January 24 and 25, including Seyed Emami, a well-known Iranian-Canadian academic and a faculty member of Imam Sadegh University. On February 10, Ramin Seyed Emami, his son, wrote on social media that authorities had summoned his mother the day before to inform her that her husband had “committed suicide” in detention.

“Iranian judicial authorities think they can get away with claiming that Seyed Emami, a well-known professor, simply committed suicide while being detained in one of the highest-security wards of Evin prison,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The Iranian judiciary long ago lost its credibility after failing to investigate repeated incidents of torture and mistreatment in detention.”

…

The authorities claimed, in reporting the other two deaths, that Sina Ghanbari committed suicide in Ervin prison and Vahid Heidari in Arak prison. However, the government has failed to conduct an independent inquiry into their deaths and has harassed lawyers working on Heidari’s case. On January 15, authorities arrested Mohammad Najafi, a human rights lawyer from Arak who was following Heidari’s case and detained him for several weeks.

…

https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/02/13/iran-investigate-suspicious-deaths-detention-release-activists

https://www.rferl.org/a/fellow-ecologists-skeptical-suicide-custody/29035934.html

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/02/iran-authorities-refuse-to-release-canadian-iranian-academics-body-for-independent-autopsy-in-callous-coverup/

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/federal-government-calls-on-iran-to-investigate-professors-death/article37957705/

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/02/kavous-emami-suicide-iran-cover-180212105244681.html

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/kavous-seyed-emami-lethbridge-1.4530435

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/12/renowned-canadian-iranian-environmental-activist-dies-in-jail-in-tehran

https://www.ncr-iran.org/fr/communiques-cnri/droits-humains/20667-la-resistance-iranienne-condamne-vivement-l-assassinat-du-dr-kavous-seyed-emami-sous-la-torture (FRANCAIS)

http://information.tv5monde.com/en-continu/iran-des-universitaires-interpellent-rohani-sur-le-deces-en-prison-d-un-des-leurs-220059 (FRANCAIS)

https://oglobo.globo.com/mundo/intelectuais-pressionam-governo-por-explicacoes-sobre-suicidio-de-ativista-no-ira-22392099 (PORTUGUES)