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We work for their adoption and implementation at national level.
We promote the independence of the judiciary, and support judges, lawyers, and prosecutors in their roles as human rights defenders.
Updates
News & advocacy
Tunisia: end crackdown on political opponents and allow free and fair elections
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) condemns the Tunisian authorities’ continued attacks on opposition leaders, including the recent arbitrary arrest and detention of Lofti Mraihi, the Republican People’s Union party leader and prospective presidential candidate. Continue Reading Tunisia: end crackdown on political opponents and allow free and fair elections
Nepal: Moot Court Competition on Persons with Disabilities’ Rights
Art by Rashmi Amatya The ICJ held the first-ever intra-college moot court competition on the rights of persons with disabilities in collaboration with Nepal Law Campus and CBM Global Disability Inclusion. Participants gathered in Kathmandu from 27-30 June to...
EU: ICJ and civil society urge the EU to prioritize equality and non-discrimination
The ICJ and 140 civil society organizations call on EU leaders to ensure that equality before the law and non-discrimination be central priorities in the EU’s upcoming work programme. Continue Reading EU: ICJ and civil society urge the EU to prioritize equality and non-discrimination
Libya: the Human Rights Council must establish an independent international investigative mechanism
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) participated in the interactive dialogue on the report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on technical assistance and capacity-building to improve human rights in Libya. In a...
Kenya: Security forces must refrain from unlawful use of force at ongoing demonstrations
The ICJ recalls that, under international law, security forces must respect the principles of necessity and proportionality and that the use of lethal force is only permissible when strictly necessary to protect life. Continue Reading Kenya: Security forces must refrain from unlawful use of force at ongoing demonstrations
EU: ICJ urges continued scrutiny of Hungary and Poland under Article 7 TEU
Ahead of the upcoming General Affairs Council meeting on 25 June, the ICJ and other organizations call on EU Ministers in a joint letter to take the Article 7.1 TEU procedure against Hungary forward and issue recommendations. Continue Reading EU: ICJ urges continued scrutiny of Hungary and Poland under Article 7 TEU
Most Recent
Publications
Tunisia: Authorities must end Attacks on Judges and Prosecutors
In a briefing paper published today, the ICJ called on the Tunisian authorities to immediately end their attacks on independent judges and prosecutors, drop any criminal charges against them, and reinstate all those arbitrarily dismissed....
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Lithuania: ICJ and partners intervene in a European Court of Human Rights case on immigration detention
Today, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), the AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe), the Dutch Council for Refugees (DCR), and the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE), submitted a third-party intervention to the European Court of Human Rights in the case S.M.H. v Lithuania, concerning the deprivation of liberty of an asylum seeker.
S.M.H., an Iraqi citizen, who entered Lithuania irregularly and sought asylum, was subsequently arrested and detained in various centres. The applicant claimed that his detention was not justified, lacking both individualised assessment and effective legal assistance.
In its intervention, the ICJ and its partners focus on Article 5.1 and Article 5.4 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). In particular, the interveners analyse the requirements for lawful deprivation of liberty, the right to have the lawfulness of detention promptly examined by a Court, and the right to have effective legal assistance. The intervention considers both the EU and international law and standards related to deprivation of liberty and the right to an effective remedy against unlawful detention and material conditions of detention.
The key points of the intervention are as follows:
- The interveners submit that under Article 5.1 detention must not be arbitrary, and be prescribed by law both substantively and procedurally. The intervention highlights that detention must be a measure of last resort, it should follow an individualised and exhaustive examination, and it may be imposed only when less strict measures cannot be effectively applied.
- Regarding Article 5.4, the interveners clarify that an effective judicial review of detention prescribed by law and accessible in practice constitutes a safeguard against arbitrary detention. Legal aid and competent legal representation are essential elements in ensuring the accessibility and effectiveness of judicial review of the lawfulness of detention.
- Finally, the interveners stress that lack of access to clear information, lack of access to a lawyer, and lack of access to an effective remedy contravene the guarantees under Articles 3 and 13 ECHR, rendering them ineffective, theoretical, and illusory.
Read the full intervention here.
Tunisia: End Judicial Harassment of the President of the Tunisian Judges’ Association
البيان باللغة العربية على هذا الرابط
On August 21, Judge Anas Hmedi, President of the Tunisian Judges’ Association (Association des Magistrats Tunisiens, AMT), is set to appear before an investigating judge at the Kef Court of First Instance, facing charges of “inciting to cease work” arising from a judicial strike in 2022, seven human rights groups said today.
The undersigned human rights organizations call on the Tunisian authorities to drop the charges against Anas Hmedi and end all forms of harassment against judges exercising their rights to peaceful freedom of expression, assembly, and association.
Belarus: lawyer Yuliya Yurgilevich and journalist Pavel Mazheika unjustly sentenced to six years in prison
Today, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has condemned the unjust conviction and sentencing of prominent Belarus lawyer, Yuliya Yurgilevich, and journalist, Pavel Mazheika, to six years’ imprisonment on trumped up charges.
Yurgilevich, who has practised law for almost 18 years and has a record of defending human rights activists, was accused of publicizing her disbarment and providing Mazheika with information on political prisoners in Belarus, notably on dissident artist Ales Pushkin, who was recognized as a political prisoner by a number of leading human rights groups, and who died in a Belarusian prison of an unknown cause earlier this month.
Southeast Asia: New ICJ report highlights discriminatory online restrictions against LGBT people
The authorities in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand should immediately reform laws, policies and practices that have led to violations of the right of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and gender diverse (LGBT) persons to safely and freely express themselves and access information online, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) said in a new report launched today.
The 50-page report, Silenced But Not Silent: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Persons’ Freedom of Expression and Information Online in Southeast Asia, documents the restrictions and barriers LGBT individuals face to safely and freely express themselves and access information online in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
Tunisia-Silencing Free Voices: a briefing paper on the enforcement of Decree 54 on “Cybercrime”
The Tunisian authorities must drop all charges against anyone being prosecuted under Decree 54 for the legitimate exercise of their freedom of expression, and provide reparation for the harm suffered to the victims of such arbitrary prosecutions, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) said today.
In a new briefing paper published today, the ICJ examines the Tunisian authorities’ enforcement of Decree 54 through which they have imposed illegal and arbitrary restrictions on the legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression, among other human rights.
Continue Reading Tunisia-Silencing Free Voices: a briefing paper on the enforcement of Decree 54 on “Cybercrime”
Most recent
Events
A human rights-based approach to criminal law: Africa regional consultation
On 5 and 6 June 2024, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and its partners – the Institute of Commonwealth Studies and the Commonwealth Secretariat – held an Africa regional consultation on a human rights-based...
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Uzbekistan: ICJ launches international human rights law course at the Higher School of Judges
On 11 June 2024, the ICJ, in collaboration with the East-West Management Institute (EWMI) and the Higher School of Judges (HSJ) under the Supreme Judicial Council of the Republic of Uzbekistan, launched an international human...
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EU: Comparative discussion on the right of judges to be independent
On 2 May 2024, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) held a meeting for EU lawyers to discuss the right of judges to independence, as established by the jurisprudence of the Inter-American system.
EU: Lawyers strategizing ways forward against threats to judicial independence across the EU
On 21-22 March 2024, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), together with Forum for Human Rights, Human Rights in Practice, aditus and Free Courts, held a workshop on tackling attacks on judicial independence and the autonomy of the prosecution...
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Uzbekistan: Expert discussion on advancing cultural rights and artistic expression
On 11 March 2024, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), the “Yuksalish” Movement, Mark Weil’s “Ilkhom” Theatre and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) held an international public discussion on “Advancing Cultural Rights...
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Philippines: Public prosecutors are critical to protecting human rights in the digital space
On 5 – 6 December 2023, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) co-organized a workshop, with the Department of Justice (DOJ) of the Philippines, on ensuring the protection of human rights in the online sphere...
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