Latest news
REDRESS has officially started its operations in The Hague, the international city of peace and justice! To mark the opening we held a conference on “Justice for victims and accountability for torturers: past, present and future strategies” on 29 September 2016, at The Carlton Ambassador Hotel in The Hague.
The aim of the conference was to reflect on a range of approaches taken to afford justice to victims and to hold those responsible for torture to account. It drew on experiences in several countries, and brought together lawyers and other experts with direct knowledge of regional, hybrid and domestic efforts and mechanisms.
Paul Lomas, Chair of the inaugural Board of Directors of our Dutch charity, and a Senior Partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, opened the conference.
REDRESS attends the 59th Ordinary Session of the African Commission and NGO Forum
REDRESS attended the 59th Ordinary Session of the African Commission which started on 21 October, as well as the NGO Forum that took place just before it.
This year, the African Commission celebrated the Year of Human Rights with a particular focus on the rights of women. To mark the occasion, REDRESS, in collaboration with its partners from Kenya, Uganda and Sudan, held a panel discussion on "Reparation for Conflict- Related Sexual Violence in Africa" during the NGO Forum on 18 October.
REDRESS also hosted a side event in Banjul, the Gambia, with the Committee for the Prevention of Torture in Africa (CPTA) on anti-torture legislative frameworks in Africa. The event brought together law reform experts from Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda. Civil society groups and state representatives participating on the margins of the African Commission’s session also took part.
REDRESS attends international conference in Kyrgyzstan
Our International Legal Advisor Kyra Hild was among more than 200 experts who attended a high level international conference in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, from 21 to 22 September – Istanbul Protocol Implementation: Transforming Regional Experiences into International Norms for Effective Torture Investigation and Documentation. Kyra discussed REDRESS’ work on translating the right to redress into reality during a session examining “Effective Adjudication and Redress.”
Last month, Kyra and our Post-Conflict Legal Advisor, Beini Ye, also met State representatives in Geneva to discuss our work with victims of sexual violence in conflict in Northern Uganda and to call on States to make robust recommendations to the Government of Uganda during the Universal Periodic Review.
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Case updates
REDRESS reiterates call for justice in case of tortured Mexican journalist
On the UN International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists on 2 November REDRESS demanded justice in the case of Olivier Acuña Barba. The Mexican journalist was arbitrarily arrested and subsequently tortured along with two of his neighbours by agents of the elite corps of the ministerial police of Sinaloa, Mexico.
No one has ever been investigated, arrested or sanctioned for the crimes committed against Mr Acuña Barba, even though he has suffered torture, arbitrary detention, police harassment and has lost his home, his possessions and his valuable journalistic files, and has been forced to live in exile since 2010.
Our full statement is available in English and Spanish.
Release Nazanin Ratcliffe immediately and give her compensation, UN body tells Iran
On 7 September 2016 the WGAD issued its Opinion stating that Nazanin Ratcliffe’s deprivation of liberty was arbitrary, and called on Iran to release her immediately and to accord her an enforceable right to compensation. It also urged Iran to fully investigate the circumstances surrounding Nazanin Ratcliffe’s arbitrary detention of liberty and to take appropriate measures against those responsible. In addition it referred the case to the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
REDRESS press statement, 13 October 2016
Please read more about her case here
REDRESS and other NGOs call on Boris Johnson to step up demarches with Ethiopia to secure Andy Tsege's release
Andargachew Tsege, a prominent figure in Ethiopian politics who is a British citizen and long-time London resident was sentenced to death in 2009 in his absence, in proceedings described as "lacking in basic elements of due process". On 23 June 2014 Andy was travelling from Dubai to Asmara, on his British passport. The journey involved a brief transit through Sana'a international airport in Yemen. While on an internal airport bus to his connecting flight, he was abducted by what are believed to have been Yemeni intelligence officers, acting on the orders of the Ethiopian authorities. He was kidnapped, illegally transferred to Ethiopia and is now detained with a constant threat that his death sentence will be carried out.
We are calling on the UK Government to call for his immediate release and return to his family. See our letter: here
For more information on Andy's claim against Ethiopia before the African Commission, see: here
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