Freedom Convoy 2022 truck lineup

The Keeping Ontario Open for Business Act Forgets about Human Rights

What lessons have we learned from the debacle as to how police and governments responded to the occupation, blockades and protests associated with the self-styled Freedom Convoy earlier this year? Is there an appreciation of the range of human rights concerns that were in play and sold short; and are any reforms being guided by a clear human rights framework?
A group of armed Ukrainian soldiers near the flag of Ukraine

Foreign Fighters, Mercenaries and the Ukraine Conflict

The reaction by the international community to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been unprecedented and multi-faceted extending to action taken by both States and private corporations. States have condemned Russia in the United Nations General Assembly, imposed significant sanctions, provided humanitarian aid to neighbouring countries and Ukraine, as well as ship armaments and other military supplies to Ukraine.
The International Criminal Court in Hague

Canada joins in the referral of the situation in Ukraine to the International Criminal Court

On March 2, 2022, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced that he had received a coordinated referral from 39 States Parties to investigate the recent military invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces. Canadian observers will recall that Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly had announced, a few days earlier, that Canada intended to request an investigation from the Court. This is only the second time that States Parties have exercised the State referral power to initiate an investigation under the Rome Statute.
A cubic shaped metal unlocked jail cell

The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals and “residual” problems with former accused

On February 7, 2022, Judge Joseph E. Chiondo Masanche ordered a number of persons formerly prosecuted before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda to be returned to the Arusha, Tanzania branch of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals because they had been given seven days to leave Niger for reasons of public order.
Kosovo Flag on soldiers arm

Kosovo Specialist Chambers draws the jurisdictional line on ex-President Thaci’s appeal

The Court of Appeal of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers recently denied the appeals brought by ex-President Thaci and his co-accused from an unsuccessful challenge to the jurisdiction of the Specialist Chambers set to hear indictments for war crimes and crimes against humanity they had allegedly committed during the Kosovo conflict from 1998-1999 as leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army.
The memorial stupa of the Choeung Ek Killing Fields

The end of the judicial mandate of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia is near

The judicial mandate of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) nears its end. On January 12, 2022, the Chambers issued a Press Release headlined that it had entered the residual phase of its mandate, though its text notes that the residual functions would actually commence at the end of judicial proceedings in any Chamber of the ECCC.
Close-up of gavel hammer and glass globe on United States

Climate Litigation and Emerging Environmental Dimensions of Human Rights: An Opportunity in Canada

Since December 2019, three landmark judgments were rendered in rights-based climate litigation in Germany, Ireland, and the Netherlands. Given each of these cases are grounded in the rights to life and health, these cases offer insight into how environmental risks can be protected under existing human rights structures.
The Hague Holland

Jurisdiction Challenges Rejected in Al-Rahman case by ICC Appeals Chamber

On November 1, 2021, the Appeals Chamber (AC) of the ICC upheld on appeal the rejection of several jurisdictional challenges, which was issued by the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) on May 17, 2021in a case where the Security Council of the United Nations (UNSC) had referred the situation of Darfur to the ICC as a result of resolution 1593.
Protesters hold placards at the Defend the Right to Asylum

European Court of Justice Ruling Bolsters Refugee and Migrants Rights Defenders

A recent European Court of Justice ruling dealing with Hungary has shone the spotlight on the insidious array of legal measures that a growing number of governments have resorted to in recent years, criminalizing the efforts of individuals and organizations to defend the human rights of refugees and migrants. It is a reminder that more needs to be done to push back against that criminalization, including through legal challenges and public awareness campaigns.
Protester wounded in his heard

Medical and Humanitarian Challenges in Urban Operations

Urban operations embrace a range of policing and military operations that challenge commanders and operators conducting successful interventions intended to preserve legitimate state (military and security) objectives and protect of civilians and civilian objects. Meeting these challenges is of increasing importance as military, police, fire service, medical, civil defense, and humanitarian actors converge in urban conflict settings.
A property key in the block of ice as a symbolic of freeze asset

Distilling the Aims of International(ized) Criminal Tribunals’ Asset Freezing Powers through the Crucible of Prosecutor v Félicien Kabuga

In the early hours of Saturday, 16 May 2020, French authorities arrested Félicien Kabuga in the Parisian suburb of Asnières-sur-Seine, bringing an end to a manhunt that spanned more than two decades since he was first indicted by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).
The Flag of Quebec flying against the sky

The Culture Wars in Quebec?

On May 13 2021, the government of Quebec tabled Bill 96, An act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec [“Bill 96”]. The aim of the Bill is to further promote the French language and respond to a growing concern among Francophones that French is on the decline in Quebec.
Display and presentation of the ICC

The Absconding Accused and the ICC: An examination on the legitimacy and capacity of the International Criminal Court to hold in absentia trials

The term ‘trial in absentia’ refers to a proceeding in a court of law in which the accused is not physically present. This form of trial is at odds with a defendant’s right to be present in court; as first recognized in Article 14(3)(d) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and other subsequent international human rights documents.
Hate speech communication concept

Hate speech and international criminal law

In recent years and decades, the topic of hate speech has become the focus of increasing attention and debate in international legal circles. Legal scholars and prominent international bodies alike have remarked not only on the growing prevalence of hate speech and discrimination directed against minority populations, but also on the frequency with which these acts precede, accompany, or even provoke large-scale violent atrocities and human rights violations
Security has been increased at Singhu border of Delhi-Haryana

The Indian Government: Aiding and Abetting Crimes Against Humanity

The Indian government’s response to the farmers’ protest has attracted international news-media attention. This publicity is due to the callous misconduct of police officers when dealing with protestors. To justify law enforcement’s use of excessive force, the government blames the actions of certain protestors and accuses them of sedition and anti-nationalism.
Kosovo flag on soldiers arm

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers clarifies the law that applies to charges against its ex-President

Recently, in a pre-hearing Decision on Motions Challenging the Jurisdiction of the Specialist Chambers, a pre-trial judge of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers clarified a number of issues bearing on the charges filed against Kosovo’s ex-President Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, former leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Rexhep Selimi, a former Parliamentary leader of the Self-Determination Movement, and Jakup Krasniqi, a former acting President of Kosovo.
SINJAR IRAQ

Destroying the Yazidis: How Killing & Sexual Slavery Could Anchor ISIS Genocide Charges

While international action and anger have erupted amid continued violent abuses of the Rohingya and Uyghurs, the atrocities committed seven years ago against a particular community of Yazidis have attracted quiet negligence. Justice – holding the perpetrators to account – has been elusive for the terrorized Yazidis, a religious minority nestled into the northwest corner of Iraq.