UN OHCHR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights [to 16 April 2016]
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/media.aspx?IsMediaPage=true
Selected Press Releases

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Zeid calls for an end to executions for drug offences in Iran
GENEVA (14 April 2016) – UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on Thursday appealed to Iran to halt executions for drug offences until Parliament debates a new law that would remove the mandatory death penalty for drug crimes…
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Alarming reports of human rights violations in the Republic of Congo – Zeid
GENEVA (13 April 2016) – Statement by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on the situation in the Republic of Congo:
“Very alarming reports have been coming out of the Republic of Congo regarding an apparent Government security operation in an area of southern Brazzaville known as “the Pool”. Since the March 20 presidential election, there have been reports that security operations have been conducted against opposition leaders and supporters who allegedly attacked a police station and areas in the southern part of the capital on 4 April. The Government has announced that 17 people died in security operations, including three members of security forces, with several others wounded.

There have been reports of mass arrests and torture in detention, as well as the killing and displacement of people from the Pool. The reports have been difficult to verify, given a lack of access to the area by independent actors…
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Spotlight on mega sporting events
UN Asia Regional Forum on Business & Human Rights / 19-20 April 2016 – Qatar
GENEVA (14 April 2016) – The human rights issues associated with mega sporting events will be one of the topics discussed at the United Nations Asia Regional Forum on Business and Human Rights, from 19 to 20 April in Doha.

Professor John Ruggie, the author of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, will talk about his report, commissioned by FIFA, in which he makes recommendations on how FIFA can integrate human rights into its policies and practices.

“The scale of FIFA’s global activities and relationships means that acting on its commitments to respect human rights has the potential to be a landmark for advancing human dignity through sports around the world,” said John Ruggie, who is a Professor at Harvard University…
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8 April 2016
Press briefing notes on Bangladesh
We are concerned about the latest death sentences handed down against two men by the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal, particularly given continued concerns in relation to international due process and fair trial standards.
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Panama Papers: UN rights expert calls for the end of financial secrecy to halt flow of illicit funds
GENEVA (8 April 2016) – The United Nations Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, today called on the international community to urgently put an end to financial secrecy. He warned that tax evasion and the flow of funds of illicit origin undermine justice and deprive Governments of resources needed for the realization of economic, social and cultural rights.

The expert’s call comes as leaked documents have shown how corporations, wealthy individuals and politically exposed persons have systematically hidden assets in more than 21 offshore jurisdictions.
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Press briefing notes on Mob killings in Malawi
Date: 5 April 2016
We are concerned about the increasing number of people killed in mob attacks in Malawi. Over the past two months, at least nine separate incidents leading to the death of 16 people have been reported across the country.
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Tunisia torture prevention: UN body to make advisory visit
GENEVA (8 April 2016) –Tunisia’s efforts to establish a functioning independent body to monitor places of detention will be the focus of the first visit to the country by the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) from 12 to 14 April.
Tunisia ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture in June 2011 and, as part of its treaty obligations, has to set up such a monitoring body, officially known as a National Preventive Mechanism (NPM). Tunisia passed legislation in 2013 to establish the body and its 16 members were appointed in March this year.

“Tunisia is the first country in the region to establish, albeit with some delay, a national preventive mechanism. We see this as a hugely positive step and look forward to advising the Government, as well as other stakeholders, on the next steps to ensure the body is swiftly able to function effectively,” said Hans-Jörg Bannwart, who will head the three-member SPT delegation. “We are especially looking forward to meeting the newly elected members of the NPM in order to discuss with them the challenges they will face in setting up and starting work,” he added.
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UN human rights expert to assess freedom of expression situation in Japan
GENEVA (8 April 2016) – United Nations Special Rapporteur expert David Kaye will carry out his first visit to Japan, from 12 to 19 April 2016, to assess the situation of the right to freedom of opinion and expression in the country.

“I look forward to visiting Japan and learning at first-hand about its norms and policies in the area of freedom of expression as well as the main challenges faced in the country today,” said the independent expert designated by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor and report on violations of the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

“The independence and the freedom of the Japanese media, the space for protesting and the access of the public to information held by the State are among the issues I will study during my stay in Japan,” he noted.
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What is permissible and what is not when countering terrorism? UN experts welcome new African guidelines
GENEVA (7 April 2016) – A group of eighteen United Nations independent experts* has welcomed the new Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights while Countering Terrorism in Africa launched this year by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR).

Speaking ahead of an upcoming ACHPR’s panel discussion in Banjul, The Gambia (11 April), in which Member States will be briefed on the new Principles and Guidelines, the UN experts called on all African governments to fully implement the Commission’s recommendations in order to respect human rights in the context of fighting terrorism.