Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network – EMHRN – November 2008

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Gaza Border Crossings are closed for 27th consecutive day	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: PCHR
PCHR Demands International Community Intervenes to end Israeli Collective Punishment of Civilian Population of Gaza Read more

An Appeal to H.E. Mr. Nader Al-Dahabi; Jordanian Prime Minister	Date: 03-12-2008

An Appeal to H.E. Mr. Nader Al-Dahabi; Jordanian Prime Minister By the Arab Women Organization of Jordan, Amman Centre for Human Rights, the Jordanian Human Rights Society and the Arab Organization for Human Rights/Jordan On the occasion of 60th anniversary of the Human Rights Declaration Read more

Supreme Court Complies with Adalah's Requests and Refuses to Remove the al-Jabha Party from Sakhnin Municipality	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: Adalah
Today 27 November 2008, the Supreme Court of Israel rejected a petition filed by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel which demanded the cancellation of the local election results in the Arab town of Sakhnin in the Galilee and the removal of three members from the al-Jabha (Hadash) Party from the town’s local council. Read more

Al Mezan Condemns Sorrowful Incidents of al-Aqsa University; Calls for Opening Investigations, Taking Measures to Protect University Premises	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: Al Mezan
On Tuesday, 25 November 2008, al-Aqsa University – Khan Younis witnessed sad incidents when heated arguments developed into fighting between female students of the Islamic Bloc and those of Shabiba Youth Movement (affiliated with Fateh). A police force intervened and beat the students with batons. As a result, 14 female students were injured and suffered mild to moderate bruises, according to medical resources at Nasir Hospital and al-Amal Hospital. A university lecturer was also injured. Read more

Greece: Iraqi Asylum Seekers Denied Protection	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: HRW
Greece denies protection to vulnerable people and abuses them in detention. Until Greece cleans up its act, EU states shouldn’t send asylum seekers back there. Read more

Mauritania: Government guilty of routine torture	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: Amnesty
Amnesty International today accused the Mauritanian government of routine and systematic torture, saying that the security apparatus has adopted torture as the preferred method of investigation and repression. Read more

	Date: 03-12-2008

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Gaza: Power and water cuts and bread shortage	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: B'Tselem
On 5 November, Israel closed the crossings into the Gaza Strip and blocked the entry of goods and supplies, including basic foodstuffs. Read more

PCHR Calls for Investigating the Death of Kamel Nofal at the Hands of Police in El-Maghazi Refugee Camp	Date: 03-12-2008
Author: PCHR
PCHR calls upon the Attorney-General to open a serious investigation into the circumstances that lead to the death of Kamel Mohammad Nofal (41) from El-Maghazi refugee camp in the center of the Gaza Strip. Nofal was killed by a bullet fired from a policeman’s pistol during an attempt to arrest the victim yesterday. Read more

	Date: 26-11-2008

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	Date: 26-11-2008

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Algeria: Dispise won't stop us!	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: CFDA
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The Amman Center for Human Rights Studies [ACHRS] and the Jordanian Alliance for the Combat of the Death Penalty commend the improvement of the Jordanian position on the death penalty	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: ACHRS
Those who are following up the progress of human rights in Jordan in general can sense that advanced steps have been made on several aspects pertaining to human rights and fundamental freedoms in view of the presence of the political will that pays special attention to the issues of human rights. Read more

France: No More ‘Memory Laws’	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Article 19
ARTICLE 19 welcomes the recommendation of an official report on ‘memory laws’ that no new laws on ‘historical truth’ and memory should be adopted. The report made public on 18 November 2008, indicates that it is not the role of Parliament to adopt laws which, in effect, pre-judge the relative importance or value of historical facts, particularly when such laws include criminal sanctions. Read more

	Date: 26-11-2008

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Ignoring Public Opinion, Council of Europe Set to Adopt Contentious Treaty on Access to Information	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Article 19
Ignoring Public Opinion, Council of Europe Set to Adopt Contentious Treaty on Access to Information Leaked documents show plans to reject Parliamentarians’ opposition and adopt Convention on Access to Official Documents London, Madrid – The Council of Europe has formally refused to make public details of its plans to adopt, on 27 November, the much-criticised Convention on Access to Official Documents. The decision to adopt the convention overrides concerns raised by parliamentarians representing over 800 million people in the Council of Europe’s 47 member states, and by many civil society organisations, who called for the treaty to be redrafted. Documents obtained by human rights groups show that the Council of Europe took a decision on 12 November to reject the Parliamentary Assembly’s concerns, but this information has been kept from the public. Under the arcane internal rules of the Council of Europe, the formal adoption of the treaty on 27 November should take place “without debate”. At the same time, Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis this week rejected a request for information about the 12 November meeting, stating: “Unfortunately, it is not possible for me to reply to your questions. ... discussions in the Rapporteur Group on Human Rights are held on a confidential basis and the ensuing report is also restricted.” “The refusal violates the very standards that the Council of Europe is promoting with this new Convention,” said Helen Darbishire, Director of Access Info. “The refusal fails to indicate any legal basis for withholding the information and does not explain how the rules have been applied in this specific case or how the public interest in the information has been taken into account.” The refusal was challenged yesterday by Access Info, ARTICLE 19, and the Open Society Justice Initiative who argue the drafting of this new treaty is in essence a law-making process and as such entitled to the highest possible level of transparency. The groups note that declarations adopted by the Council of Europe stress the importance of wide public access to documents as being essential for ‘‘encouraging informed participation by the public in matters of common interest”. In a further twist, the Convention is to be adopted on the last day of Sweden’s Chairmanship of the Council of Europe, even though Sweden pledged to increase transparency of the body when it took office in May 2008. The Council of Europe is trumpeting the adoption of the Convention as a success of the Swedish term in office, and a 25 November press release makes no mention of the widespread objections, the official response to which has been brushed under a carpet of secrecy. “Sweden’s reputation as an advocate of transparency will be substantially tarnished if Foreign Minister Carl Bildt allows the treaty to be adopted in its current form without adequate attention to the concerns raised by civil society, information commissioners, and parliamentarians”, said Sandra Coliver of the Open Society Justice Initiative. Read more

In Coordination with Women's Organizations and in the Context of the 16 Days Campaign, PCHR Women's Rights Unit Organizes a Series of Awareness Lectures	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: PCHR
On 25 November 2008, PCHR Women's Rights Unit, in coordination with several women’s organizations, launched a series of lectures throughout the Gaza Strip. Read more

Amnesty International voices concern over pattern of reckless policing	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
Against the backdrop of recent killings during police operations, Amnesty International deplores the increasing use of excessive force by police and security forces in Egypt when carrying out search operations, seeking to disperse protestors or patrolling the Egyptian borders, which have often led to deaths. Read more

	Date: 26-11-2008

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On the Anniversary of the International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women, the Suffering of Gaza Women Doubles due to the Siege and its Repercussions	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: PCHR
Today, 25 November, 2008, women worldwide celebrate the International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women, that had been officially adopted by the UN in 1999, as part of the effort exerted to eliminate violence against women, and to urge countries to take actions necessary to ensure women’s enjoyment of necessary protection. Read more

Algeria in front of the UN Human Rights Committee	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: CFDA
In French Read more

Adalah to Supreme Court: Arab Family Must be Permitted to Rent Home from Jewish Israeli Family in Moshav Nevatim Despite the Moshav's Racist Objections	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Adalah
On 12 October 2008, Adalah submitted its response to an appeal filed to the Supreme Court of Israel by Moshav Nevatim. Moshav Nevatim is challenging a Beer el-Sabe (Beer Sheva) District Court decision, which upheld the right of a Jewish Israeli family to rent their home on Moshav Nevatim in the Naqab (Negev) to an Arab family - the Trabein family. Read more

The Gaza Strip: Drifting into Deeper Darkness under the Silent Gaze of the International Community	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Al Haq
As an organisation dedicated to the protection and promotion of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Al-Haq is compelled to yet again raise a voice that has been consistently and wilfully ignored by the international community over the last three years. Read more

Journalists Endorse Draft Declaration of Best Practices for Press Work; Demand Better Media Environment	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Al Mezan
In a workshop organized by Al Mezan as part of a project on promoting free expression and press in Gaza, journalists discussed and adopted a draft declaration of the best practices for the work of press. Read more

Algerian human rights lawyer convicted for denouncing violations	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
The Court of Appeals in Algiers upheld the conviction of a prominent human rights lawyer on Tuesday. Amine Sidhoum was found guilty of bringing the Algerian judiciary into disrepute on 18 April 2008. Read more

Al Mezan Lawyer Visits PLC Members Sa'dat and al-Barghouthi in Hadarim Jail	Date: 26-11-2008
Author: Al Mezan
On Sunday, 23 November 2008, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights' lawyer visited two Members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Ahmad Sa'dat and Marwan al-Narghouthi, who are held in Hadarim Jail. Read more

Czech anti-Roma demonstrators clash with police	Date: 25-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
About 500 demonstrators linked to the far right Czech Workers Party clashed with police on 17 November, when they tried to attack a Roma community in the town of Litvinov, in the northern Czech Republic. Read more

PCATI submitted a List of Concerns to the UN Committee Against Torture	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Public Committee Agaisnt Torture in Israel
PCATI submitted a List of Concerns to the UN Committee Against Torture Read more

	Date: 19-11-2008

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Military Court in Bethlehem Sentences a Palestinian to Death	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: PCHR Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
On Wednesday, 12 November 2008, the Military Court in Bethlehem sentenced Ayman Ahmed 'Awwad Daghamgha, 24, a member of the Palestinian General Intelligence Service, from al-'Arroub refugee camp north of Hebron, to death by firing squad. Read more

Council of Europe Accused of Secrecy Over Convention on Transparency	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Article 19
Public kept in the dark on world’s first international treaty on access to information Read more

	Date: 19-11-2008

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Adalah Demands that Court Prevent the Expulsion of 1,000 Arab Bedouin from their Homes and the Destruction of their Village in the Naqab in Israel	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Adalah
On 6 November 2008, Adalah submitted its concluding arguments to the Beer el-Sabe (Beer Sheva) Magistrates’ Court against evacuation orders issued by the state of Israel against all residents of the unrecognized Arab Bedouin village of Atir–Umm el-Hieran in the Naqab (Negev). Read more

Increase in using the Authority of Gun in a manner that is opposite to Human Rights and Aggressive Provocation	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: IHD
Right to life and right of inviolability of material and spiritual entity are the rights that are guaranteed by Universal Declaration of Human Rights and basic human rights instruments, to which Turkey is a party State, of the UN and Council of Europe. Read more

	Date: 19-11-2008

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Al Mezan Condemns IOF's Arrest of Fishermen and Foreign Supporters; Calls for International Protection for Civilians in OPT	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Al Mezan
At around 9:00am on Tuesday, 18 November 2008, The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) attacked Palestinian fishing boats opposite to the Gaza Strip Middle District's shore. Read more

Spain: No global exception when investigating the crimes of the past	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
Amnesty International has called on the Spanish government to comply with its international obligations regarding past crimes and to protect victims’ rights by ensuring there is an effective judicial enquiry into the enforced disappearances committed during the Civil War and Franco’s regime (1936-1975). Read more

Israel/Occupied Palestinian Territories: Israeli blockade causes worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
Amnesty International urges the Israeli authorities to allow the immediate passage of humanitarian aid, medical supplies and fuel to the Gaza Strip, where the situation is nothing short of a disaster. Read more

Egypt: End ‘Shoot to Stop’ Practice at Sinai Border Crossings	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: HRW
Egypt should stop shooting migrants who pose no threat and deporting others to possible torture...Israel should not be forcibly returning people to Egypt, where they are detained arbitrarily and even deported to abusive home countries. Read more

States must reaffirm their will to support the International Criminal Court	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: FIDH
The seventh session of the Assembly of States parties (ASP) to the Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is taking place from 14 to 22 November 2008 in The Hague, in the presence of the 108 States parties, observatory States and an important number of NGOs. Read more

	Date: 19-11-2008

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Policeman who killed Palestinian in Tel Aviv sentenced to one year in jail	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: B'Tselem
On 4 October 2006, Border Police officers detained three Palestinians at a construction site in Jaffa on suspicion of staying illegally in Israel. One of the three Palestinians was Iyad Abu Ra’iyeh, 33, a resident of Tarqumiya and father of five children whose wife was in her eighth month of pregnancy. One of the policemen, Avraham Tomer, shot and killed him. Read more

Guilty verdict upheld for student who "offended" Moroccan king	Date: 19-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
The Marrakesh Court of Appeals in Morocco has upheld a lower court's guilty verdict against an 18-year-old student for insulting the King. Yassine Bellasal was sentenced to a one-year suspended prison term and a fine of 1,000 dirhams (approximately US$115). Read more

Al Mezan Condemns Blackmailing Patients; Calls the International Community to Intervene	Date: 11-11-2008
Author: Al Mezan
The Israeli Occupation Forces continue to blackmail the Palestinian patients who need to travel for treatment in Israeli hospitals or Palestinian hospitals in the West Bank. Read more

	Date: 10-11-2008

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Lebanon: Act Now on Steps to Prevent Torture	Date: 09-11-2008
Author: Human Rights Watch
Lebanon should take concrete and public measures to stop the use of torture in detention facilities and submit a long-overdue report on the subject to the United Nations, a group of eight Lebanese and international human rights organizations said today. Read more

Final declaration Euromed Civil Forum 2008 « Moving and Living together in the Euromed space »	Date: 05-11-2008

Gathered in Marseille the 31 October, 1 and 2 November 2008, the 250 representatives of civil society organizations from North and South Mediterranean strongly reassert their commitment to the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership proclaimed in Barcelona in 1995... Read more

PCHR Welcomes Invitation to Dr. Ahmed Bahar to Visit European Parliament	Date: 05-11-2008
Author: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) welcomes the official invitation to Dr. Ahmed Bahar, Acting Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), to visit the European Parliament in March 2009,. The Centre views this as a significant development towards breaking the international boycott imposed on the Palestinian people since Hamas’ victory in the Palestinian elections in 2006. Read more

Jordan: Drastic improvement needed for domestic workers	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Amnesty
Tens of thousands of domestic workers in Jordan live in appalling conditions with many forced to work up to 19 hours per day and denied their salary. Amnesty International is urging the Jordanian authorities to ensure that the current review of employment regulations leads to a drastic improvement in their working conditions. Read more

After the IHD General Assembly: List of the new Board Members	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: IHD
Human Rights Association (IHD) held the 14th Ordinary General Assembly on 01-02 November 2008, Ankara Turkey. here is the new list of board members: Read more

Council of Europe to decide on draft Convention on Access to Official Documents on 12 November 2008	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Article 19
Civil society groups are calling on the Council of Europe not to ignore calls by its Parliamentary Assembly to send the draft Convention on Access to Official Documents back for redrafting so that it provides strong recognition of the right of access to information. Read more

Rebranding Israel: an attempt to mask injustice?	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Al Haq
As a Palestinian human rights organisation committed to the promotion and protection of human rights throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Al-Haq is deeply concerned with the intention of Acanchi to ‘rebrand’ Israel’s international image and create a ”brand disconnected from the Arab-Israeli conflict that focuses instead on Israel‘s scientific and cultural achievements.” .. Read more

Call on the OECD to consider human rights in Israel’s accession process	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Arab Association for Human Rights
Twenty two human rights, humanitarian and peace organizations have called upon the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to place human rights conditionalities on Israel within the framework of Israel's accession to the OECD. Read more

Testimony: 12-year-old beaten and imprisoned with adults	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: B'Tselem
I live with my family in Ni’lin. We live on the ground floor of the house, my two uncles and their families live on the first floor, and my grandmother lives on the second floor... Read more

EU: Integration Policies Should Respect Rights	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: HRW
The European Union must ensure that measures aimed at integrating migrants also respect their human rights, Human Rights Watch said today. EU integration ministers will meet in Vichy, France, on November 3 and 4, 2008, to discuss common approaches to integration in Europe. Read more

The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI), the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and HaMoked: The Center for the Defence of the Individual Filed a Contempt of Court Petition to the High Court of Justice through Attorney Avigdor Feldman	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Public Committee Against Torture in Israel
The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI), the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) and HaMoked, the Center for the Defence of the Individual (HaMoked) filed a contempt of court motion to the High Court of Justice against the government of Israel and its head, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, and against the General Security Service (GSS) and its head Yuval Diskin for their responsibility for the policy that grants a-priori permits to use torture in interrogation that fundamentally violates the High Court of Justice decision of September1999 today. Read more

PCHR Receives European Parliament Delegation	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
On Monday, 3 November, 2008, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) received a delegation from the European Parliament (EP) at its office in Gaza City. The delegation included European Parliamentarian Kyriacos Triantaphyllides, and EP Vice President Louisa Morgantini. Read more

	Date: 04-11-2008

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	Date: 04-11-2008

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Al Mezan Center Welcomes Releasing 19 Political Prisoners in Gaza; Calls for Freeing All Political Prisoners	Date: 04-11-2008
Author: Al Mezan
On Thursday evening, 30 October 2008, the Gaza government freed 17 political prisoners, including 7 leaders of Fateh movement. Another two persons who had been granted temporary permission to leave detention were also set free for a short time before they would return to prison. With those two, the number of freed political prisoners reached 19. Read more

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