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	Comprehensive solution needed to end mass displacement of Rohingya by United Nations News, agencies   31 Jan. 2023   As Myanmar crisis enters third year, Special Envoy Heyzer urgently calls for international unity on humanitarian aid, stance on elections and civilian protection   BANGKOK – The Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General on Myanmar Noeleen Heyzer today highlighted key areas for concrete action where greater regional and international unity can support a Myanmar-led process to end the violence and suffering and help Myanmar return to the path of democracy guided by the will of the people.   In her urgent call, the Special Envoy focused on humanitarian aid without discrimination and through all available channels, a unified position on the military’s plans for elections, and protection of civilians including both people inside Myanmar and refugees.   Over the past two years, the military’s disruption of Myanmar’s democratic transition has inflicted enormous damage on the country and people, and led to a multidimensional crisis spanning severe humanitarian, human rights and socio-economic consequences with serious regional ramifications.   As of the end of last year, 15.2 million people were food insecure, more than 1.5 million internally displaced and an estimated 34,000 civilian structures had been destroyed since the military takeover.   The Rohingya people in refugee camps and those remaining in the country, as well as other marginalized communities, are at heightened risk with 2022 marking one of the deadliest years for people forced to undertake perilous sea journeys.   The Special Envoy renewed the United Nations’ solidarity with the people of Myanmar and the need for protection of all communities, which the United Nations Secretary-General reinforced in his recent statement.   She reiterated the Secretary-General’s concern regarding the military’s stated intention to hold elections, which threatens to worsen the violence and instability in the absence of inclusive political dialogue and conditions that permit citizens to freely exercise their political rights without fear or intimidation.   The Special Envoy urgently calls for greater unity and commitment among the international community in three key areas:   First, the international community, and particularly donors and Myanmar’s neighbours, must come together with humanitarian actors including local humanitarian networks to scale up urgently needed assistance to all those in need without discrimination and through all available channels. A commitment to increase levels of cross-border aid, along with more flexible banking and reporting rules, will facilitate humanitarian support to people most in need.   Second, the international community must forge a stronger unified position regarding the military’s potential elections which will fuel greater violence, prolong the conflict and make the return to democracy and stability more difficult.   Third, the international community must implement measures to increase protection for civilians inside Myanmar as well as for Myanmar refugees in the wider region. Such measures could include an on-the-ground monitoring mechanism as part of the implementation of ASEAN’s Five-Point Consensus and its commitment to stop the violence in Myanmar, and regional frameworks for the protection of refugees and forcibly displaced people.   “It is inconceivable any form of peaceful and democratic transition can be initiated by those perpetrating harm on their own citizens,” Special Envoy Heyzer said. “The violence has to stop, including the aerial bombings and burning of civilian infrastructure along with military’s ongoing arrests of political leaders, civil society actors and journalists.”   http://myanmar.un.org/en/217185-media-advisory-myanmar-crisis-enters-third-year-special-envoy-heyzer-urgently-calls http://news.un.org/en/story/2023/01/1133027 http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/01/two-years-after-coup-myanmar-faces-unimaginable-regression-says-un-human http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/01/myanmar-un-experts-report-highlights-juntas-fraudulent-claim-legitimacy http://www.icj.org/myanmar-two-years-after-the-coup-country-further-than-ever-from-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law/ http://www.globalr2p.org/publications/outcomes-from-strategizing-a-new-response-to-the-crisis-in-myanmar/   Feb. 2023   UN experts appeal for immediate funding to avert food ration cuts for Rohingya refugees. (UN News)   UN experts warn of catastrophic consequences for Myanmar Rohingya refugees living in camps in Bangladesh if life-saving food aid is slashed, and issue an urgent plea for donations to the UN World Food Programme Rohingya Refugee Response.   “The planned rations reductions are the devastating consequence of the international community’s failure to provide funding for initiatives that address the fundamental needs of Rohingya refugees. Rations will be slashed for Rohingya refugees starting in a few weeks, just before Ramadan. This is unconscionable,” the experts said.   The World Food Programme indicated that it would reduce rations for Rohingya refugees by 17 per cent in March and warned that if no new funding commitments were made by April, a new round of deeper cuts will have to be made. It is appealing for $125 million in funding to avoid ration cuts.   "If these cuts are made, they will be imposed on vulnerable people who are already food insecure. Acute malnutrition levels remain high, and chronic malnutrition is pervasive among the Rohingya refugee population in Bangladesh, with more than a third of children stunted and underweight," the UN experts said.   “The repercussions of these cuts will be immediate and long-lasting, as refugees remain almost entirely dependent on this assistance for their nutritional needs,” they said.   “The most vulnerable, including children under five, adolescent girls, and pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, will be particularly exposed,” they said.   “The Rohingya, survivors of genocidal attacks by the Myanmar military, are now further victimised by the failure of the international community to ensure their basic right to food.”   “While many States have called for justice and accountability for the Rohingya, those in the camps need more than words and statements of solidarity. Rohingya refugees need immediate action from the international community to ensure that these cuts – and their generation-spanning consequences – are avoided. The stakes could not be higher,” they said.   http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/02/bangladesh-un-experts-appeal-immediate-funding-avert-food-ration-cuts http://news.un.org/en/story/2023/02/1133597   Aug. 2022   ‘Comprehensive’ solution needed to end mass displacement of Rohingya   It’s been five years since more than 700,000 ethnic Rohingya fled from Myanmar to Bangladesh to escape a brutal military crackdown. The UN chief on Thursday called on the international community to find “comprehensive, durable and inclusive solutions” to help end their plight.   Some one million refugees remain in the vast camps of Cox’s Bazar, without any immediate prospect of being able to return home, which more than 150,000 mostly-Muslim Rohingya are still “confined in camps” in their native Rakhine state, said a statement issued on behalf of UN Secretary-General António Guterres.   And following the military coup of February 2021, the humanitarian, human rights and security situation in Myanmar itself, has rapidly deteriorated, making conditions even less conducive to refugees’ return.   Participation crucial   “The Secretary-General notes the unflagging aspirations for an inclusive future among the country’s many ethnic, and religious groups and underlines that the full and effective participation of the Rohingya people is an inherent part of a Myanmar-led solution to the crisis”, the statement said.   “Greater humanitarian and development access for the United Nations and its partners to affected areas is crucial. Perpetrators of all international crimes committed in Myanmar should be held accountable. Justice for victims will contribute to a sustainable and inclusive political future for the country and its people.”   Intensifying crisis   Speaking in Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Michelle Bachelet, said that Myanmar’s Tatmadaw forces had maintained and even escalated operations against civilians in residential areas in southeast, northwest and central regions, 18 months since they overthrew the democratically-elected overnment.   The use of air power and artillery against villages and residential areas has “intensified”, the UN human rights chief said, while also warning that recent spikes of violence in Rakhine - the historic former home of ethnic Rohingya - could upset the relative calm in the region, and that the last fairly stable area of the country may not avoid a resurgence of armed conflict.   Rohingya communities have frequently been caught between the Tatmadaw and rebel Arakan Army fighters or have been targeted directly in operations. Over 14 million need humanitarian assistance.   UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Myanmar, Noeleen Heyzer, said during her four-day mission to Bangladesh to highlight the anniversary, that “we cannot let this become a forgotten crisis”.   She expressed the UN’s deep appreciation to the people and Government of Bangladesh for their immense contribution. “The generosity of Bangladesh and host communities towards Rohingya refugees in their time of need conveys a critical need for greater international and regional commitment to burden share and ensure that the Rohingya do not become forgotten,” Special Envoy Heyzer said.   “I will continue to advocate for greater leadership of countries in the region in supporting Bangladesh and leveraging their influence with Myanmar to create conducive conditions for the voluntary, safe and dignified return of refugees.”   She stressed that Rohingya people continue to undertake perilous land and sea journeys that expose them to criminal exploitation including human trafficking and gender-based violence, and emphasized that it was ultimately Myanmar’s responsibility to establish conducive conditions for the voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return to Myanmar of all refugees and those forcibly displaced.   Stand in solidarity   The UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramilla Patten, also urged greater international action, and for countries to stand in solidarity with the Rohingya survivors of grave international crimes to ensure access to justice and redress, which is foundational for recovery and peace.”   “In 2017 and 2018 during my visits to the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, I had witnessed firsthand the visible scars on women and girls from the sexual violence they endured. All of the women I spoke with said they wanted to see the perpetrators punished. They all – without exception – demanded justice”, she added.   Since 2010, the annual reports of the Secretary-General on conflict-related sexual violence have documented patterns of sexual violence crimes perpetrated against the Rohingya, and in 2019 the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar (IIMM) concluded that “rape and sexual violence are part of a deliberate strategy to intimidate, terrorize or punish a civilian population, and are used as a tactic of war” - one of the hallmarks of the military operations conducted by the Tatmadaw.   Growing recognition   She said momentum was growing in Myanmar for leaders to recognize the Rohingya as an ethnic nationality, entitled to citizenship and other collective and individual rights, and to ensure accountability and reparations. This encouraging shift means no more that the people of Myanmar are confronting history and are willing to work towards lasting solutions to build peace and reconciliation.   “We must heed the call of the people of Myanmar and work collectively towards ensuring justice which has been delayed for far too long. I reiterate my call for enhanced efforts by the international community to continue supporting the dignity and well-being of the Rohingya community and to ensure that perpetrators will be held accountable and that survivors will have effective access to reparations and redress. I call for the collective search of lasting solutions for one of the most persecuted people on earth.”, the Special Representative concluded.   http://news.un.org/en/story/2022/08/1125412 http://msf.org.au/rohingya-worlds-largest-stateless-population http://msf.org.au/article/stories-patients-staff/rohingya-five-stories-five-years-displacement http://www.msf.org/rohingya-refugee-crisis http://www.iom.int/news/iom-calls-increased-support-and-lasting-solutions-rohingya-refugees-crisis-five-years http://www.nrc.no/news/2022/august/one-million-rohingya-refugees-are-at-point-of-no-return-as-crisis-marks-five-years/ http://www.unhcr.org/en-au/news/briefing/2022/8/63048f944/unhcr-appeals-renewed-support-solutions-rohingya-refugees.html http://www.unhcr.org/en-au/rohingya-emergency.html http://www.ifrc.org/press-release/nearly-1-million-still-await-life-world-largest-displacement-camp http://www.acaps.org/country/bangladesh/special-reports#container-1798 http://www.hrw.org/news/2022/08/24/myanmar-no-justice-no-freedom-rohingya-5-years http://blog.witness.org/2022/03/documenting-sgbv-crimes-during-conflict/ http://www.article19.org/resources/bangladesh-media-rohingya-refugees/ http://reliefweb.int/country/bgd Visit the related web page
	Abuse of anti-terror laws to restrict civil society by UN Human Rights Office, agencies   Mar. 2024   Rampant abuse of counter-terrorism laws threaten human rights globally, warns UN expert. (OHCHR)   Over two decades of prolific global efforts to counter terrorism have not been matched by an equally robust commitment to human rights, warned the recently appointed UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights while countering terrorism, Ben Saul.   In his first report to the Human Rights Council, the Special Rapporteur painted a counter-terrorism landscape strewn with human rights violations, including unlawful killings, arbitrary detention, torture, unfair trials, privacy infringements from mass surveillance, and the criminalisation of freedoms of expression, assembly, association and political participation.   “The misuse of counter-terrorism measures not only violates the rights of suspected criminals but can also jeopardise the freedoms of the innocent,” Saul said.   He condemned the rampant weaponisation of overly-broad terrorism offences against civil society, including political opponents, activists, human rights defenders, journalists, minorities, and students. Unjustified and protracted states of emergency continue to undermine human rights, the expert warned.   “Excessive military violence in response to terrorism also destroys fundamental rights, including through violations of international humanitarian law and international criminal law,” Saul said. “Cross-border military violence is increasingly used by states even when it is not justified under the international law of self-defence.”   “Many states have also failed to address the root causes of terrorism, including state violations of human rights – while impunity for those violations is endemic,” he said.   Saul said regrettably, the UN has been part of the problem, by encouraging authoritarian regimes to strengthen counter-terrorism laws in the absence of a rule of law culture or human rights safeguards. “The UN must also do better to meaningfully consult civil society on counter-terrorism,” he said.   Announcing his priorities for his three-year term, the Special Rapporteur said his focus would include ensuring regional organisations respect human rights when countering terrorism; all coercive administrative measures used to prevent terrorism comply with human rights; and States are held accountable for large-scale violations of human rights resulting from counter terrorism – and victims receive full and effective remedies.   Saul will also continue the efforts of his predecessor on preventing the abuse of counter-terrorism measures against civil society; protecting the 70,000 people arbitrarily detained in north-east Syria in the conflict against ISIL; protecting detainees and transferees from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; ensuring that the UN safeguards human rights in its counter-terrorism work, regulating new technologies used in counter-terrorism; and protecting the victims of terrorism.   “Human rights in counter-terrorism are at increased risk because of rising authoritarianism, surging domestic polarisation and extremism, geopolitical competition, dysfunction in the Security Council and new tools, including social media, for fuelling dehumanisation, vilification, incitement and misinformation,” the Special Rapporteur warned.   “Double standards and selectivity by major powers in the enforcement of human rights is also eroding public confidence in the credibility of the international human rights system,” he said. “States must move beyond rhetorical commitment to human rights and instead place human rights at the heart of all counter-terrorism measures.”   http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2024/03/rampant-abuse-counter-terrorism-laws-threaten-human-rights-globally-warns-un   OHCHR: Civic space and human rights defenders   Civic space is the environment that enables civil society to play a role in political, economic and social life. In particular, civic space allows individuals and groups to contribute to policy-making that affects their lives, including how it is implemented.   This civic space is increasingly under pressure from repressive laws and increased restrictions on freedoms to express, participate, assemble and associate. Civil society actors, including human rights defenders and individuals who cooperate with the United Nations, are also facing a pushback, online and offline, across the world. Civic space is essential for rights holders to engage on all types of rights.   Mar. 2022   Terrorizing Human Rights Defenders: Counter-Terrorism as a Tool of Repression, by Fionnuala Ni Aolain - Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism. (Extract)   "As Special Rapporteur since 2017, I have seen firsthand and will continue to document the rising tide of abuse of counter-terrorism and countering violent extremism measures across the globe by States seeking to crack down on civil society, democracy advocates, human rights defenders, cultural actors, and humanitarians.   As I explained in my 2019 report to the Human Rights Council on closing civic space, since 9/11, counter-terrorism laws and regulations have dramatically proliferated and at the same time, Governments have increasingly adopted harsh laws and regulations restricting civic space, and the two are intimately connected. Often these laws and regulations are contemporaneous and doing the same thing.   Increasingly they involve administrative and other informal measures that seek to sidestep the traditional consensus-making and public consultations central to formal legislation and vital for protecting the right to take part in the conduct of public affairs.   Turning to a little statistics: since my mandate’s inception (2005), 66% of all relevant communications sent to Governments by the mandate have related to the misuse and abuse of counter-terrorism measures against civil society. This is lousy counter-terrorism. It’s also terrible for human rights.   What we see is core and well-established rights and freedoms, including the rights to freedom of association and freedom of expression, and the right to participate in public affairs and practice one’s religious faith, the right to have a fair public hearing, are all under mounting attack across the globe. None of this is making us safer. None of this is making us more secure. Civil society actors have been subject to arbitrary detention and denied the most fundamental rights and freedoms, including fair trial and due process rights abuse.   It is clear that States are drawing from the same playbook and inspiring one another to do the same. The playbook commonly starts with an overly expansive and purposefully vague definitional framework that takes advantage of the fact that there are no internationally agreed upon definitions for terrorism and violent extremism. The definitions often forego what the mandate deems to be the crux of terrorist activities: the intent or danger that an act will lead to the actual commission of violence and physical harm. Increasingly, States are criminalizing a catch-all of activities including mere criticism of the government or engagement with UN actors to talk about what’s happening in their domestic contexts".   http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/06/un-expert-launches-global-study-documenting-misuse-counter-terrorism http://defendcivicspace.com/ http://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/2022-03/2022-03-10-Statement.pdf http://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-terrorism/interviews-and-videos http://srdefenders.org/information/video-counter-terrorism-civil-society-a-short-film-by-un-special-rapporteur-fionnuala-ni-aolain/ http://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-terrorism   Civil Society and Counter Terrorism.(OHCHR)   This extract is from a summary of the March 2019 Human Rights Council report (A/HRC/40/52) of the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism.   The report focuses on the role of measures to address terrorism and violent extremism on closing civic space and violating the rights of civil society actors and human rights defenders..   There are no systematic humanitarian exemptions for protecting civil society and humanitarian actors operating in challenging environments.   Current counter-terrorism framework enables:   • Repressive national measures against lawful non-violent activities of civil society and the targeting of “undesirable” individuals within civil society.   • National legal provisions that restrict rights that are key to civil society: freedom of expression and opinion, freedom of association, freedom of assembly, and freedom of religion.   • Limiting civil society access to financial services, refusal to open or arbitrary closure of bank accounts, inordinate delays or termination of transactions, and onerous administrative requirements.   • Instances of verbal criticism of and disagreement with the State, the government, or its authorities being considered as an act of terrorism.   • Governmental smear campaigns, through State controlled media or through statements by public officials whose objective is to delegitimize civil society and tarnish their reputation, by loosely characterizing them as “terrorists,” implying that they are “threats to national security” or “enemies of the State.”   • Many activities of civil society, human rights defenders, journalists, bloggers, and political opponents falling under laws whose stated purpose is to counter-terrorism, prevent and counter violent extremism, and protect national security.   Existence of these measures, and their use against some civil society actors is sufficient to silence those who are targeted and send a message to all other civil society actors that they too are at risk, creating a chilling effect on civil society space.   Any effective counter-terrorism strategy must strengthen, not weaken, civil society.   Criminalization and repression of civil society must be urgently addressed as a misuse of law and an abuse of the rule of law by States. http://bit.ly/3HhQJNM   19 Aug. 2022   Saudi woman jailed for 34 years over tweets. (OHCHR)   We are appalled by the sentencing of Saudi doctoral student Salma Al-Shehab to 34 years in jail followed by a 34-year travel ban in connection with a series of tweets and retweets on political and human rights issues in Saudi Arabia. We urge the Saudi authorities to quash her conviction and release her immediately and unconditionally. She should never have been arrested and charged in the first place for such conduct.   The extraordinarily lengthy sentence adds to the chilling effect among Government critics and civil society at large and is yet another example of Saudi authorities weaponizing the country’s counter-terrorism and anti-cybercrime laws to target, intimidate and retaliate against human rights defenders and those who voice dissent.   Saudi Arabia must not only release Al-Shehab so that she can re-join her family, but also review all convictions stemming from free expression against human rights defenders, including women who were jailed after they legitimately demanded reforms of discriminatory policies, as well as religious leaders and journalists.   The Saudi Government should also establish a robust legislative framework in line with international human rights law to uphold the rights to freedom of expression and association, and the right of peaceful assembly for all.   Al-Shehab, 34, was arrested in Saudi Arabia in 2021 while on holiday from the United Kingdom, where she is a student. She was accused of spreading false information and aiding dissidents seeking to disrupt public order with her tweets, retweets and follows on Twitter.   http://www.ohchr.org/en/statements/2022/08/comment-un-human-rights-office-spokesperson-liz-throssell-after-saudi-woman http://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures/sr-human-rights-defenders/about-human-rights-defenders http://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/07/russia-un-experts-condemn-civil-society-shutdown http://bit.ly/3QRHng5 Visit the related web page
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