Monthly Archives: February 2022

Sri Lanka: Detained rights lawyer Hejaaz Hizbullah granted bail

Sem categoria 07/02/2022 Leave a comment

07/02/22

Attorney-at-law Hejaaz Hizbullah has been granted bail by the Court of Appeal after being detained for over 20 months.

Hizbullah was released on bail today after the Puttalam High Court judge refused to grant bail to him last month.

Refusing bail, she claimed that it was not under her jurisdiction, despite the Attorney General having consented to grant bail.

The judge further informed the defense to request bail from the Court of Appeal on the 9th of February 2022.

The bail application had been filed at the Puttalam High Court after Hizbullah’s lawyer had agreed to a settlement with the other parties in the interest of his client.

On 20th January, the Attorney General’s (AG) Department said it has no objections to releasing Hizbullah on bail subject to conditions.

The AG’s Department informed the Court of Appeal that the bail will be granted only if the defence makes an application for bail at the Puttalam High Court when the case is taken up for hearing today.

Attorney-at-law Hejaaz Hizbullah was arrested in April 2020 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and has been in remand custody for over 20 months.

An indictment had been served on Hejaaz Hizbullah under the PTA and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Act accusing him of making certain statements to students in contravention of these laws.

https://www.hirunews.lk/english/296368

Appeal Court directs to grant bail to Hejaaz Hizbullah

Egypt: Dozens of lawyers protest decision to refer 9 colleagues to trial over 2015 dispute

Sem categoria 07/02/2022 Leave a comment

06/02/22

Dozens of lawyers stood in silent protest outside a North Giza courthouse on Sunday to oppose the referral of nine lawyers to criminal trial over a 2015 dispute, while the North Giza branch of the Lawyers Syndicate called for a partial strike starting Tuesday.

Having recently revived investigations into the 2015 incident, the North Giza Public Prosecution referred the nine lawyers on February 1 to criminal trial on charges of gathering and disrupting the work of a court, several members of the Lawyers Syndicate branch told Mada Masr.

One of the defendants, Ramadan Kishk, who is a member of the North Giza syndicate council, told Mada Masr that more than 100 lawyers, most of them young, stood in silence outside the court on Sunday in protest of the referral decision. The branch opted for a silent vigil as it waited for approval from authorities for a more vocal demonstration, Kishk said.

Kishk was among several of the defendants who visited the public prosecutor’s office on Saturday to demand that the prosecution reverse its decision. However, they were told the case was out of the prosecution’s hands now that it had been referred to trial. In response, the syndicate branch called for a partial strike across all North Giza courts beginning on Tuesday, during which lawyers would refrain from paying court fees as an initial step.

In the referral decision, the Public Prosecution charged the nine lawyers with using force against the judges of the court’s appellate misdemeanor chamber for the Imbaba and Ausim district, its secretary, bailiff and police personnel on duty. The prosecution alleges that, during an April 30, 2015 court session, the defendants lined up in the courtroom and in front of the deliberation room and chanted insults against the judiciary with the goal of preventing the court from convening. The lawyers are also accused of stealing the court’s ledger for the day.

[…]

https://www.madamasr.com/en/2022/02/06/news/u/dozens-of-lawyers-protest-decision-to-refer-9-colleagues-to-trial-over-2015-dispute/

A call for the release of 50 lawyers held in pretrial detention

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/egypt-human-rights-lawyer-bayoumi-forcibly-disappeared

France: Expulsion de l’avocat Paul Sollacaro d’une salle d’audience: le CNB propose des solutions pour éviter de nouveaux incidents

Sem categoria 06/02/2022 Leave a comment

06/02/22

La Commission Libertés et Droits de l’Homme du Conseil national des barreaux a adopté vendredi 4 février un rapport sur l’incident survenu en mars 2021, au cours duquel Me Paul Sollacaro a été expulsé d’une audience par des policiers. L’institution juge partiale les rapports de l’inspection générale de la justice dans cette affaire et fait des propositions pour éviter que de tels faits ne se reproduisent en audience.

L’inspection générale de la justice (IGJ) a rendu deux rapports après que le président du tribunal correctionnel d’Aix-en-Provence a fait expulser l’avocat Paul Sollacaro par des policiers lors d’une audience en mars 2021.

L’un des rapports portait sur les faits eux-mêmes et l’autre proposait d’améliorer la gestion des incidents opposant magistrats et avocats en audience pénale.

La Commission Libertés et droits de l’homme du Conseil national des barreaux (CNB) a soumis à l’assemblée générale ce 4 février son rapport sur les faits. La Commission juge le rapport de l’IGJ partial. Notamment parce qu’il met en avant la grève des avocats contre la réforme des retraites comme cause de la détérioration des rapports entre avocats et magistrats, sans que les inspecteurs de l’IGJ n’aient posé de questions aux avocats à ce sujet. Le rapport de l’IGJ pointe également quatre autres incidents survenus avant les faits.

Les avocats mis en cause

Pour le CNB, cette présentation de l’affaire “est perçue comme marquant une volonté de l’IGJ de minimiser les faits des 11 et 12 mars et d’imputer aux avocats une part de responsabilité dans tous ces incidents et problèmes de relations entre avocats et magistrats.” Selon la Commission, l’IGJ affiche une  volonté “très nette” de minimiser “la responsabilité de l’Etat dans les problèmes rencontrés par le Tribunal judiciaire d’Aix-en-Provence pour le traitement des dossiers dans un délai raisonnable” ainsi que la responsabilité des magistrats mis en cause dans la gestion de cet incident.

Le rapport du CNB préconise une modification des textes relatifs à la police d’audience en améliorant le déroulement de celle-ci et de multiplier les moments et les lieux de rencontre et d’échange. Il émet l’idée de modifier le Code de procédure pénale pour qu’en matière disciplinaire, les avocats ne soient pas traités de la même manière qu’un justiciable ou un “assistant”. Le rapport propose par exemple que “si le président estime que l’ordre de l’audience est troublé par un avocat, celle-ci est suspendue et le bâtonnier ou son délégataire est appelé immédiatement. Les chefs de la juridiction en sont aussitôt informés. Ensemble, ils recherchent en chambre du conseil une résolution amiable de l’incident.”

[…]

https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/corse/corse-du-sud/expulsion-de-l-avocat-paul-sollacaro-d-une-salle-d-audience-le-conseil-national-des-barreaux-propose-des-solutions-pour-eviter-de-nouveaux-incidents-2450688.html

https://www.actu-juridique.fr/justice/affaire-sollacaro-un-rapport-du-cnb-denonce-la-partialite-de-linspection-generale-de-la-justice/

https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/provence-alpes-cote-d-azur/l-avocat-nicois-paul-sollacaro-recoit-le-soutien-de-sa-profession-apres-avoir-ete-malmene-lors-d-une-audience-2263045.html

https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/corse/expulsion-de-l-avocat-paul-sollacaro-d-une-salle-d-audience-le-magistrat-non-sanctionne-la-conference-des-cent-reagit-2260624.html

Pakistan: Islamabad Bar Council Observes Strike Against Four Murders

Sem categoria 05/02/2022 Leave a comment

04/02/22

Islamabad Bar Council (IBC) on Friday observed strike in protest against killing of four people including a lawyer Raja Haroon in Federal capital.

The most of the cases in Islamabad High Court (IHC), district court and judicial complex were adjourned without further proceeding due to the lawyers strike.

Vice Chairman IBC Syed Qamar Hussain Shah Sabzwari and other members of the lawyer bodies had condemned the tragic incident.

They stated that the incident took place due to the negligence of police and administration.

No lawyer appeared before the courts in line of the strike.

https://www.urdupoint.com/en/pakistan/ibc-observes-strike-against-four-murders-1463091.html

https://www.dawn.com/news/1673320/two-of-four-killed-over-land-dispute-in-capital-were-on-bail-police

https://www.24newshd.tv/04-Feb-2022/arrests-made-after-five-slain-in-islamabad-firing-incidents

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2342005/six-held-in-capital-killing-incidents

https://www.brecorder.com/news/40151925

Mexico: Fue amenazada la abogada asesinada en Tonalá; luchaba contra el basurero de Matatlán

Sem categoria 05/02/2022 Leave a comment

04/02/22

¿Quién fue Verónica Guerrero, abogada asesinada en Jalisco?

[…]

La abogada asesinada ayer en el centro de Tonalá, Verónica Guerrero, agredida cuando abordaba su vehículo, era también la representante de la lucha legal de los vecinos de Urbi Quinta contra la empresa Caabsa y la operación del basurero de Matatlán.
Advierten que la abogada había sido amenazada en las últimas semanas, algunas de ellas directas, por parte de pepenadores que se oponen al cierre de este vertedero.
Incluso señalan a un familiar de la lideresa Araceli Batres como responsable de dichos hostigamientos en contra de la litigante.
Los vecinos señalan que las amenazas escalaron en las última dos semanas y la pasada incluso recomendó la abogada tomar precauciones ante el incremento de hostilidades.

https://www.notisistema.com/noticias/fue-amenazada-la-abogada-asesinada-en-tonala-luchaba-contra-el-basurero-de-matatlan/

https://lasillarota.com/estados/quien-fue-veronica-guerrero-abogada-asesinada-en-jalisco/613536

https://www.eloccidental.com.mx/policiaca/abogada-asesinada-en-tonala-recibio-amenazas-por-protestar-contra-basurero-de-matatlan-7824560.html

Asesinan a lideresa de lucha contra el basurero de Matatlán; pidió ayuda al gobernador y al alcalde de Tonalá

Nigeria: Insecurity: Warri, Benin lawyers worried over abduction of three colleagues, driver

Sem categoria 04/02/2022 Leave a comment

03/02/22

Lawyers

The Nigerian Bar Association, Warri and Benin branches have raised security concerns as kidnappers abduct three of their members, alongside a driver, on their way to the court.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the trio of Fred Aburu, Esq., Isreal Unurierume, Esq., Eda Gbejule, Esq., and Kome Esike, the driver of their vehicle, all from Warri, were kidnapped on Wednesday, along Benin -Auchi road, in Edo State.

The Chairman, NBA Warri Branch, Chief Emmanuel Uti, in a statement made available to journalists lamented that the development “is disturbing”.

“The incident awakens the sad reality of what has bedeviled our society, which the Government has found difficult to contain, in order to reassure its citizens of their safety,” the NBA chairman said.

He added that this act of kidnapping has called “for a revisit of the Branch resolution that, our Branch members should not appear for any accused charged with kidnapping”.

Also, the NBA, Benin Branch, in a similar statement issued by its Publicity Secretary, Ogaga Emoghwanre, expressed concern that the kidnapping of lawyers along the Benin/Auchi Road “has become a recurring decimal”.

The statement read, “The Branch ‘is alarmed over the incessant and unending kidnap of lawyers and citizens plying Benin/Auchi Road by dare-devil kidnappers and has for the umpteenth time made vociferous calls on the security operatives in the state to put an end to the ugly trend.

“In what has become a recurring decimal, the kidnappers struck again in the early hours of today, 2/2/2022 shooting sporadically. While at it, they kidnapped three lawyers and their driver to wit: Mr. Fred Aburu, Mr. Israel Unurierume, Mr. Eda Gbejule and Mr. Kome Esike, the driver.

“It was revealed that the affected lawyers who are members of the Warri branch of the NBA, (“The Radioactive Bar”) were on their way from Warri to Sabo-gidda Ora High Court when they were attacked at the Ehor axis of the expressway.

https://punchng.com/insecurity-warri-benin-lawyers-worried-over-abduction-of-three-colleagues-driver/

https://punchng.com/nba-knocks-govt-on-insecurity-as-three-lawyers-driver-kidnapped/

https://www.channelstv.com/2022/02/03/gunmen-kidnap-three-lawyers-along-benin-auchi-road/

Past Chairman of NBA Benin Branch, Ede Asenoguan Condemns the Kidnap of Lawyers and Citizens in Edo State
NBA Warri and Benin Raises Alarm Over Abduction of Three Lawyers, Driver
Insecurity: Warri, Benin NBA worried over abduction of three colleagues, driver

Mexico: La SEP pretende criminalizar al reconocido abogado defensor de los derechos humanos, Juan de Dios Hernández

Sem categoria 04/02/2022 Leave a comment

03/02/22

En un video difundido en sus redes sociales, el abogado Juan de Dios Hernández Monge, conocido por su defensa de los derechos humanos y laborales, ha denunciado que la SEP trata de criminalizar su comportamiento como abogado y defensor de derechos humanos.

En el video, que abajo se inserta, el abogado relata que desde el año 2013, un grupo de 21 maestros y maestras, todos adultos mayores, solicitaron su asesoría legal para defender sus legítimos derechos laborales, dado que fueron despedido con motivo de la reforma educativa realizada por el entonces presidente Enrique Peña Nieto. Incluso el abogado relata que las renuncias de maestros y maestras fueron obtenidas (en 2013), bajo presiones y en medio de “armas largas”. Una vez que se desarrolló el juicio, en 2019 lograron que un tribunal ordenara el pago de los salarios caídos e indemnizaciones. Empero, con diferentes artimañas la SEP intentó evadir su responsabilidad, por lo que los demandantes interpusieron denuncias penales; según precisa el abogado, entre los denunciados ante el Ministerio Público se encuentra el actual embajador en Estados Unidos, Esteban Moctezuma Barragán y quien fuera secretario de la SEP.

Según explicó de Dios Hernández en el video, la razón por la que lo pretenden criminalizar es porque tardaron un tiempo en notificar a los tribunales el fallecimiento de dos de las profesoras demandantes y ello fue así porque, como se recordara, el 30 de marzo del 2020 se declaró la emergencia sanitaria y obligó a la suspensión de las actividades en las diferentes instancias de gobierno; por ello, sigue relatando el abogado, en cuanto las condiciones de la emergencia sanitarias lo permitieron, hicieron la notificación respecto de los fallecimientos; no obstante, la SEP pretende “intimidarlo” mediante su criminalización por una causa que “no procede”; según el abogado, se trata de una argucia legal de la SEP para no cumplir con su obligación de pagar los salarios caídos e indemnizaciones.

[…]

La SEP pretende criminalizar al reconocido abogado defensor de los derechos humanos, Juan de Dios Hernández

https://www.change.org/p/delfina-g%C3%B3mez-evitemos-la-criminalizaci%C3%B3n-de-juan-de-dios-reconocido-abogado-de-causas-justas (FIRMA LA PETICION!)

https://www.facebook.com/juandedios.hernandezmonge/videos/1603358576668938

THE TOLL OF HIDING IN AFGHANISTAN

Sem categoria 03/02/2022 Leave a comment

02/02/22

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It’s been almost six months since the United States packed up and pulled out of Afghanistan, ending the longest war in American history and sending thousands of Afghans into hiding. The Taliban, rebranded as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, initially promised amnesty and understanding to those who had opposed the terror group for more than 20 years.

But as many had feared, the Taliban lied.

A United Nations report released this week and seen by several news organizations claims approximately 100 former Afghan military members and government officials have been killed since the Taliban took over, at least two-thirds of them directly by the Taliban or their affiliates. That figure seemed improbable to one woman reached by Coffee or Die Magazine who is currently hiding in Afghanistan from Taliban retaliation. And it rang “unrealistically low” to a Marine Corps veteran in Mississippi who spends his free hours desperately trying to coordinate the rescue of people still in the country.

In a tweet, an account linked to the Taliban Ministry of Interior Affairs said the government “has not killed anyone since the amnesty.”

Aysha, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, is a 26-year-old human rights activist in Afghanistan who has spent the last five months hiding in fear for her life. She moves from one safe house to the next every few weeks, a shell-game tactic used to avoid the Taliban’s door-to-door searches.

“They are killing soldiers, activists and lawyers in the cities, villages and surrounding areas by [calling them] thieves, or removing them from their homes to unknown places,” Aysha told Coffee or Die. “No trace of them is left.” 

[…]

“The Taliban are actively persecuting those who either worked against the Taliban movement with the government or those who spoke out against the Taliban movement while they were conducting their insurgency,” Espinal said. “Two weeks ago we had an incident where one of the judges left the compound and the Taliban controlling that district recognized [him]. And [he] and his wife were beat in front of the family pretty much and they were taken away to an unknown prison. Luckily for them, they were one of the few that were released.”

[…]

https://coffeeordie.com/hiding-afghans/

http://crawler.com.ng/Gunmen-shoot-dead-two-Afghan-women-judges-in-Kabul-228259.html

https://www.lawsociety.ie/News/News/Stories/afghan-legal-response-progress-update

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-brother-of-canadian-embassy-worker-in-kabul-staff-killed-in/

https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=28076&LangID=E&fbclid=IwAR3pAw6x69CIgoUGnMjx6SKrHK-7ZxZKIPhqTO2PnFNdrdrZZVM_ADi3-yE

https://www.euronews.com/2022/01/28/the-afghan-women-making-athens-their-new-home

https://www.jurist.org/news/2022/01/afghanistan-dispatch-afghan-students-will-no-longer-have-the-opportunity-to-apply-for-fulbright-scholarships/

https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018829142/afghans-still-stranded-despite-high-court-win-lawyers

https://www.sudouest.fr/justice/bordeaux-une-avocate-afghane-accueillie-le-coeur-ouvert-par-ses-confreres-8135235.php (FRANCAIS)

https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2022/02/01/retour-a-kaboul-sous-emirat-taliban-sur-canal-une-vision-mi-figue-mi-raisin-du-nouvel-afghanistan_6111903_3246.html

Burma: Police Officer in Charge for NLD Lawyer’s Killing Left Unpunished and Promoted

Sem categoria 02/02/2022 Leave a comment

31/01/22

Ko Ni — Wikipédia

Five years after prominent lawyer U Ko Ni, the legal advisor to the National League for Democracy Party, was shot dead in broad daylight at Yangon International Airport, the mastermind behind his killing – Aung Win Khaing – is still at large.

At the same time, the police officer who was responsible for Yangon Airport’s security at the time of U Ko Ni’s assassination has been rapidly promoted over the past five years, despite the fact that he is a former classmate of the main culprits in the killing of the lawyer.

Win Min Thein was a police colonel when U Ko Ni was assassinated, but has since been promoted to police brigadier-general and appointed the head of the No. 2 Security Police Force, a rank higher than that of the chief of the Yangon Police.

Such a rapid promotion is rare in the history of Myanmar’s Police Force, said a retired police colonel.

Win Min Thein was a member of the 36th class at the Defence Services Academy, where he was the classmate of Aung Win Khaing and Zeya Phyo, the main culprits in the assassination of U Ko Ni.

[…]

Police Officer in Charge for NLD Lawyer’s Killing Left Unpunished and Promoted

https://www.myanmar-now.org/en/news/ko-ni-lawyers-begin-last-ditch-effort-to-get-harsher-sentences-for-men-involved-in-his-murder

https://www.myanmar-now.org/en/news/lawyers-barred-from-questioning-man-who-shot-ko-ni

Highlights of the U Ko Ni Murder Case

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

https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/01/28/myanmar-year-brutality-coups-wake

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ko_Ni (FRANCAIS)

Egypt: Human rights lawyer forcibly disappeared

Sem categoria 02/02/2022 Leave a comment

01/02/22

egypt-lawyer-mee-2022

Osama Bayoumi is working on a number of sensitive cases and his clients’ files are now in the hands of authorities after his laptop and phone were seized, a rights group says

Egyptian human rights lawyer Osama Bayoumi has been “forcibly disappeared” since his detention four days ago in Cairo, a rights group told Middle East Eye on Tuesday.

Bayoumi has been “arbitrarily detained” and has not been presented to any investigative authorities since his arrest in a dawn raid on his home on Saturday, Ahmed Attar, executive director of the London-based Egyptian Network for Human Rights (ENHR), said. 

Bayoumi, a prominent rights lawyer and member of the Lawyers Syndicate, is handling a number of high-profile cases, many of them involving political prisoners. 

According to Attar, Egyptian security forces stormed Bayoumi’s home at 1am in the capital, without presenting an arrest warrant. They confiscated his work laptop, mobile phone and some cash. 

“His work computer has confidential information about his cases and his clients,” Attar said.

“Mr Bayoumi has a known address and office in Cairo. Authorities who need to obtain any information from him could have easily reached him without the need for unlawful detention,” Attar added.

According to Egyptian law, detainees must appear before an investigative body within a maximum of 24 hours after arrest. 

Egyptian and international rights groups have documented hundreds of cases of enforced disappearance since President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi led his military coup against his democratically-elected predecessor Mohamed Morsi in 2013.

[…]

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/egypt-human-rights-lawyer-bayoumi-forcibly-disappeared

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