Donors Should Not be “Partners in Crime” with Rights Abusers

Click on the link to get more news and video from original source:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rebecca-schleifer/donors-should-not-be-part_b_1613800.html

Rebecca Schleifer

Advocacy Director, Health and Human Rights Division at Human Rights Watch.

Around the world, millions of people are locked up because of drug use. Some languish in prisons, some in compulsory drug detention centers. Few have access to effective, evidence-based treatment for drug dependency if they need it. The problem is not isolated in any one part of the world, but it is most pernicious when international donors and UN agencies promote and fund drug detention policies that systematically deny people the right to due process and healthcare, and ignore forced labor and psychological and physical abuse.

The relationship of the US government and Laos is an example.

Earlier in June, with much fanfare, the U.S. Government pledged a new round of funding and collaboration in Lao People’s Democratic Republic. The U.S. committed $400,000 to support the Lao National Commission for Drug Control and Supervision to “upgrade the treatment of drug addicts at the Somsanga Treatment Center and at other centers.”

The name Somsanga should ring alarm bells. Human Rights Watch conducted research in Laos in 2011 as part of a series of investigations of drug detention centers. It was not easy. Laos is largely a closed country, which permits little free speech or scrutiny of its human rights record.

What the government and its donors describe as a voluntary “health-oriented” center arbitrarily detains people who use drugs – including those who are not dependent – as well as street children, the homeless, the mentally ill, and other undesirable populations behind high walls and barbed wire.

Somsanga holds most people against their will. They are detained by police or local militia, or “volunteered” by local communist commune authorities or family members who have the mistaken belief that the center offers therapeutic treatment, or who buckle under social pressure to make their village “drug free.” Once inside, they cannot leave. Some attempt or commit suicide by ingesting glass, swallowing soap, or hanging. As Maesa, a child who spent six months in Somsanga, told Human Rights Watch: “Some people think that to die is better than staying there.”

Upgrading drug treatment and tackling crime are worthy goals. But the U.S. should not so blithely ignore the Laos government’s history of human rights violations at the Somsanga Center. It needs to insist on development of stronger legal protections to ensure that people cannot be subject to arbitrary detention and torture, and on community and evidence-based drug dependency treatment.

Detention in government centers in the name of treatment and rehabilitation is not unique to Laos. As Human Rights Watch and other research has shown, hundreds of thousands people identified as drug users are held in drug detention centers in China, Vietnam and Cambodia too.

Nor are such centers and what goes on inside their locked doors and high walls the only human rights abuses associated with drug enforcement funding. Thirty-two countries worldwide retain the death penalty for drug offenses. China, Iran and Vietnam are among those that utilize the death penalty the most, and they all get drug enforcement assistance from international donors and the United Nations.

Governments and drug control agencies regularly announce successes in fighting the drug trade, counted in kilos of drugs seized and numbers of people prosecuted. But we rarely hear about the fate of those arrested, including how they came to be involved in the drug trade. Those sentenced to death become a statistic in drug enforcement “successes,” while passing simultaneously into human rights statistics documenting ongoing abuse.

It is a clear example of the wide gap between drug control and respect for human rights.

In recent years, due to the efforts of Harm Reduction International, Human Rights Watch and our colleagues and partners, there have been increasing calls to close all drug detention centers and end the death penalty for drugs.

But there has been little practical progress toward ending these abuses. UN agencies and international donors continue to fund activities inside drug detention centers, and to support drug enforcement efforts despite the human rights consequences.

Scant attention has been paid to the UN and international donors’ human rights obligations and ethical responsibilities with respect to drug control efforts they support, or indeed to safeguards to prevent them from effectively facilitating human rights abuses with their support.

A new report called “Partners in Crime” makes an important contribution to addressing this gap. In providing specific examples of financial and material support provided by UN and international donors for drug control efforts, and human rights concerns raised by such support, the report compels readers to think critically about government efforts to meet their shared responsibility to address drug use and drug-related crime. It should serve as a catalyst to ensure that all governments – including donors – and international actors move quickly to develop and support drug control policies that truly respect, protect, and fulfill human rights.

Follow Rebecca Schleifer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@BeccaSchleifer

United Nations Declares Internet Access a Basic Human Right

Jun 3 2011, 4:17 PM ET

View Original Source:  http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/06/united-nations-declares-internet-access-a-basic-human-right/239911/

The report comes the same day that a monitoring firm found two-thirds of Syria’s Internet access has been shut down without notice

A lengthy report (PDF) released by the United Nations Friday argued that disconnecting individuals from the Internet is a violation of human rights and goes against international law. “The Special Rapporteur underscores the unique and transformative nature of the Internet not only to enable individuals to exercise their right to freedom of opinion and expression,” according to the report’s summary, “but also a range of other human rights, and to promote the progress of society as a whole.”

A BBC survey of 26 countries in March 2010 found that 79 percent of people believe access to the Internet is a fundamental right.

Released after the seventeenth session of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council, the report “on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression” comes on a day when its message couldn’t be more important. It’s the same day, Wired‘s Threat Level blog points out, that “an Internet monitoring firm detected that two thirds of Syria’s Internet access has abruptly gone dark, in what is likely a government response to unrest in that country.”

The report’s authors speak to a wider issue that we’re currently facing, though; this isn’t just a problem in Syria. “[T]he recent wave of demonstrations in countries across the Middle East and North African region has shown the key role that the Internet can play in mobilizing the population to call for justice, equality, accountability and better respect for human rights,” the report notes. “As such, facilitating access to the Internet for all individuals, with as little restriction to online content as possible, should be a priority for all States.” Of course, many of the dictators and leaders across the Middle East region that the report highlights recognized the power of the Internet early — and attempted to cut it from their citizens’ lives.

But people, in most cases, found a way online. In Egypt, for example, we saw hundreds of individuals using old modems and telephone lines to route their traffic through a volunteer network around the globe. And we support them. A survey of 26 countries conducted by the BBC in March 2010 found that nearly four out of five people (79 percent, to be exact) believe that access to the Internet is a “fundamental human right.”

Some countries have taken things one step further. Estonia passed a law in 2000, for example, that declared access to the Internet a basic human right. In 2009, France followed. Legislators in Costa Rica, in 2010, reached a similar decision. In 2009, Finland, the report notes, “passed a decree … stating that every Internet connection needs to have a speed of at least one Megabit per second (broadband level).” There, should they need to, people will be able to organize even faster.

Image: United Nations.

Internet should remain as open as possible – UN expert on freedom of expression

View Original Source:  http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=11108&LangID=E

 

GENEVA (3 June 2011) – UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression Frank La Rue warned Friday that fearful Governments are increasingly restricting the flow of information on the Internet due to its potential to mobilize people to challenge the status quo.

“In recent months, we have seen a growing movement of people around the world who are advocating for change – for justice, equality, accountability of the powerful and better respect for human rights,” Mr. La Rue said while presenting his new report* on the right to freedom of opinion and expression on the Internet to the UN Human Rights Council.

“However, the unique features of the Internet, which allow individuals to spread information instantly, to organize themselves, and to inform the world about situations of injustice and inequality, have also created fear among Governments and the powerful,” the expert said.

In his report, Mr. La Rue explores key trends and challenges to the right of all individuals to exercise their right to freedom of expression, as guaranteed in article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

While noting that the Internet is a relatively new communication medium, the expert stressed the applicability of the international human rights framework when assessing whether Governments are unduly restricting the flow of information online.

“Legitimate expression continues to be criminalized in many States, illustrated by the fact that in 2010, more than 100 bloggers were imprisoned,” the Special Rapporteur warned. “Governments are using increasingly sophisticated technologies to block content, and to monitor and identify activists and critics.”

“There should be as little restriction as possible to the flow of information via the Internet, except in a few, very exceptional, and limited circumstances prescribed by international human rights law,” Mr. La Rue stressed.

“Essentially, this means that any restriction must be clearly provided by law, and proven to be necessary and the least intrusive means available for the purpose of protecting the rights of others,” added La Rue.

The Special Rapporteur also called upon Governments to develop a concrete and effective plan of action to make the Internet widely available, accessible and affordable to all segments of the population.

Frank La Rue (Guatemala) was appointed as Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression in August 2008 by the United Nations Human Rights Council. As Special Rapporteur, he is independent from any government or organization and serves in his individual capacity.

(*) Check the full report: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/17session/A.HRC.17.27_en.pdfhttp://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/17session/A.HRC.17.27_en.pdf

Learn more about the mandate and work of the Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/OpinionIndex.aspx

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/ccpr.htm

For inquiries and media requests, please contact Momoko Nomura (Tel: +41 22 917 9304 / e-mail: mnomura@ohchr.org) or write to freedex@ohchr.org

Laotian children to get healthy meals under UN project that also helps local farmers

For the first time in Laos, nearly 1,000 primary school children will receive a healthy, balanced school lunch prepared from food bought at the local market under a joint United Nations-Government pilot project that will also benefit local farmers.

By UN News

Cached:  http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37872&Cr=Laos&Cr1=

Thursday, March 24, 2011

School meals provide vital nourishment, act as safety net for poor families and also help keep children in school

23 March 2011 – For the first time in Laos, nearly 1,000 primary school children will receive a healthy, balanced school lunch prepared from food bought at the local market under a joint United Nations-Government pilot project that will also benefit local farmers.

The children will receive a lunch made from rice provided by the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and completed by food which their school buys at local markets.

“The Government of Lao PDR has already made great strides towards a national school meals programme,” WFP country representative Eri Kudo said, using the official title of the South-East Asian country – Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

“The Home Grown School Feeding (HGSF) pilot is an important step in this direction, and WFP stands ready to support the Government now and in the future to ensure no child in Lao PDR has to attend school hungry.”

During the past week, 42 officials from the Laotian education ministry have been trained on the principles of HGSF and healthy nutrition. Activities will be piloted in nine villages across Phongsaly and Oudomxay provinces during the 2011-2012 school year, starting in September.

The project will not only ensure children receive a nutritious meal every day they attend classes, but also support local farmers by buying the foods they produce. The lessons learned in the pilot villages will be used to refine the programme and expand HGSF to more schools in the following school year.

Some 157,000 pre-primary and primary school students children living in remote villages in Laos already benefit from the WFP-assisted school meals programme. Every day at school, they receive a nutritious mid-morning snack that stills short-term hunger and helps them concentrate on their lessons.

At the beginning and end of the school year, take-home rations of rice are given to the students to help them and their families continue on the path of education. In addition to the nutritional benefits, school meals have been shown to be an effective way to encourage parents to send their children, especially girls, to school.

UN seeks $498 million for annual mine clearance activities

Cached:  http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37810&Cr=landmine&Cr1=

18 March 2011 – The United Nations today appealed to the world community to make up a huge shortfall in this year’s nearly half-billion-dollar programme to clean up mines and other remnants of war, which claim thousands of victims annually long after the conflicts that spawned them have ended.

“Remarkable progress has been made in eliminating the threat of landmines and explosive remnants of war, but more work is required,” senior UN Development Programme (UNDP) official Neil Buhne said in launching the 2011 edition of the annual Portfolio of Mine Action Projects.

The combined 2011 budgets for 238 projects in 29 countries and territories total $498 million, of which only $131 million have been secured as of last month, leaving a $367-millon shortfall.

Mr. Buhne, Director of the Geneva Liaison Office of the UNDP Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery, noted that more than 65 countries are affected by landmines or explosive remnants, which claimed nearly 4,000 casualties, a third of them children, in 2009. “Landmines and explosive remnants of war also take a heavy toll on people’s livelihoods, countries’ economic and social development, and international peacebuilding efforts,” he said.

UN support ranges from building the capacities of national mine action institutions to backstopping humanitarian relief initiatives and ensuring the safe deployment of peacekeepers and UN political missions. Clearance activities account for 36 per cent of this year’s shortfall, while projects covering multiple elements such as capacity building and coordination amount to a further 55 per cent.

“With International Mine Awareness Day coming up on 4 April, the urgent and compelling need to protect civilians from landmines and explosive remnants of war is rightly attracting media attention,” UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) Director Maxwell Kerley said. “We must continue to raise awareness about the impact of these indiscriminate weapons.”

The portfolio is an annual snapshot of the impact of such weapons in countries or territories with mine action programmes, providing proposals for projects and detailing their costs. The largest funding gap is for Sudan, which has requested the largest amount – $71 million. The smallest amount requested is for the occupied Palestinian territory – $494,000.

Seventy-one agencies, including UN bodies, governments and international or national non-governmental organizations (NGOs), submitted proposals. Many projects will help remove and destroy cluster munitions, teach people how to stay out of harm’s way, and assist victims of these devices in countries such as Cambodia, Chad, Laos, Lebanon, Tajikistan and Somalia.

Fourteen United Nations departments, programmes, agencies and funds are involved in mine action. The portfolio is published jointly by the UNMAS, UNDP and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).