On December 4, 2014, the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) ruled in Ali Samatar and Others v. France and Hassan and Others v. France (French only) that France had violated Article 5 § 3 (right to be brought promptly before a judge) of the European Convention on Human Rights when, upon their arrest in Somalia for piracy and transfer to France, the applicants were transferred to police custody instead of being taken directly to an investigating judge. According to the press release, the Court ruled that France did not violate Article 5§ 1 (right to liberty and...
International Law in Brief
International Law in Brief (ILIB) is a forum that provides updates on current developments in international law from the editors of ASIL's International Legal Materials.
On December 4, 2014, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) signed a Framework Agreement for Cooperation (the Agreement) in order to steer the activities of both organizations in the region over the next five years. According to the press release, the Agreements seeks to “pursue their common goals of ensuring sustainable survival, growth, full development and participation of children in line with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals, as well as the global post...
On November 19, 2014, the England and Wales High Court (the Court) ruled in Rahmatullah v. the Ministry of Defence that Iraqi civilians who were arrested by British forces in Iraq, transferred to U.S. custody, held for years without a trial, and allegedly tortured while detained, may proceed with their case against the U.K. Ministry of Defence. The U.K. argued that the claims were barred by “the doctrine of state immunity and/or the doctrine of the foreign act of state [and] the doctrine of Crown act of state.” Referencing the UN Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States...
On December 2, 2014, the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) ruled in Urechean and Pavlicenco v. the Republic of Moldova that Moldova had violated Article 6 (right of access to court) of the European Convention on Human Rights when it did not allow the petitioners to sue then-President Voronin over defamatory remarks made about them on television. According to the press release, the Moldovan courts considered President Vornonin immune to such lawsuits under the Constitution of Moldova’s provision that a President may “not be held liable for opinions which he expressed in...
On December 2, 2014, the Court of Justice of the European Union (the Court) issued an advisory opinion clarifying guidelines for national authorities when determining whether an asylum seeker who claims persecution for homosexuality is indeed homosexual. According to the press release, the national authorities must take individual circumstances into account and may not assess individuals “on the basis solely of stereotyped notions associated with homosexuals.” The Court decided that physical tests to determine homosexuality do “not necessarily have probative value [and] such evidence...
On December 1, 2014, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (the Court) affirmed the Trial Chamber’s decision in Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo to convict Mr. Lubanga of the “enlistment, conscription, and use in hostilities of children under the age of fifteen” as well as his fourteen-year sentence. According to the press release, Mr. Lubanga appealed on the grounds that “the proceedings were unfair” and that he was not personally responsible for the individual criminal acts of which he was convicted. The Court affirmed “the Trial Chamber's approach that a...
On November 28, 2014, the East African Court of Justice (the Court) ruled that Burundi violated Article 80 of the Constitution of Burundi (non-interference of public powers in politics) and Articles 6 and 7 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community (functional and operational powers of the Community) when it did not allow the UPRONA party’s Executive Committee to hold a meeting. According to the press release, UPRONA is the “principal opposition party in Burundi preparing to challenge the ruling party during the forthcoming general election in May 2015.” According...
On November 28, 2014, the UN Committee Against Torture (the Committee) released its observations on the U.S. periodic report to the Committee. The Committee commended the U.S. on several aspects of the report, including “the efforts of the State party to amend its policies, programmes and administrative measures to give effect to the Convention [Against Torture and] the Promulgation of the National Standards to Prevent, Detect, and Respond to Sexual Abuse in Confinement Facilities.” However, the Committee also criticized several state practices, including the continued operation and...
On November 27, 2014, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) released a report, “The Least Developed Countries Report 2014: Growth with Structural Transformation,” about the progress of the forty-eight least-developed countries (LDCs) towards the Millennium Development Goals (MGDs). According to the press release, only the Lao People’s Democratic Republic “is on track to achieve all seven of the MDG targets analyzed in the report, and only four [LDCs in Africa] are on track to meet even a majority of these targets.” With the goal of eradicating poverty worldwide...
On November 27, 2014, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (the Commission) released a report, “The Right to Truth in the Americas,” about the importance of disseminating information on human rights abuses, particularly forced disappearances, during conflict. According to the press release, restriction of information during periods of dictatorship or violence has been a popular method of controlling populations, and “the report examines States’ obligations with regard to the goal of guaranteeing the right to the truth in the face of grave human rights violations.” As forced...