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	Witchcraft killings of people with albinism rose during pandemic by Ikponwosa Ero Independent expert on the rights of people with albinism   July 2021   Killings of people with albinism have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, as some people plunged into poverty turned to witchcraft in hopes of gaining quick wealth, Ikponwosa Ero, the outgoing UN independent expert on the rights of people with albinism, said today.   “Despite progress on many fronts, I was deeply saddened at the notable increase in reported cases of people with albinism being killed or attacked because of the mistaken believe that using their body parts in potions can bring good luck and wealth,” she said. “Even more tragically, the majority of victims have been children.”   Ero was named to the post by the Human Rights Council in 2015 and will be succeeded on 01 August by Ms. Muluka Anne Miti-Drummond of Zambia.   “As I leave office, I am gratified that the Human Rights Council has, in an historic resolution, condemned harmful practices related to witchcraft and ritual attacks, but there is still much to be done,” she said.   The ground-breaking resolution passed by the Human Rights Council earlier his month condemned human rights violations committed through witchcraft accusations and ritual attacks and called for international consultation and recommendations on the matter.   “I have spent the last six years battling witchcraft-related attacks against people with albinism, and am gratified that there has been much progress on several continents, despite some setbacks during the pandemic,” said Ero.   As progress on the issue, she cited a regional action plan on albinism in Africa in collaboration with the African Union. In addition, awareness-raising campaigns have increased public understanding of the challenges for persons with albinism in Africa and globally, including in countries like Brazil, Japan and Fiji.   Research on albinism has increased more than tenfold, she said, and the explosion in data and reliable information has increased understanding of how the right to health, education, on disability rights and racial discrimination pertain to people with albinism.   There is also increased understanding of the rights of women and children impacted by albinism and the need to protect against harmful practices.   “While we have come very far in the fight against these heinous acts, the road ahead remains long and arduous,” said Ero. “For this reason, this mandate remains crucial, and I call on States to provide all possible support to my successor.” Visit the related web page
	International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists by OHCHR, International Federation of Journalists   Nov. 2021   International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists. (OHCHR)   On the occasion of the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Morris Tidball-Binz and the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Reem Alsalem, issue the following statement:   "The safety of journalists remains as precarious as ever, impunity for crimes against them as high and persistent as before.   Over the past year, around the world journalists have been threatened, harassed, attacked physically, abducted, arbitrarily detained, forcibly disappeared, tortured and killed – simply for doing their job.   Threats to the safety of journalists, far from abating, have taken new forms in the digital age, especially for women journalists. While both male and female journalists are threatened in the course of their work, women, including those from minority groups, are at much higher risk of sexual attacks and online gender-based violence, including online harassment, trolling, doxing, rape, and death threats.   The failure to investigate and address attacks online has real-life consequences for women journalists, affecting their mental and physical health, undermining their confidence and autonomy, stigmatizing them and generating fear, shame and reputational and professional damage. In extreme cases online threats can escalate to physical violence and even murder, as the killing of Daphne Caruana Galizia showed.   Whether targeting male or female journalists, online or offline, crimes against journalists seek to intimidate and silence those who dare to seek and expose the truth. Attacks on journalists are an assault on society's right to be informed, on the right to freedom of expression as well as many other human rights, including the right to life and liberty of the individuals concerned.   Impunity emboldens perpetrators. UNESCO's research shows that where impunity for crimes against journalists is high, so too are the numbers of journalists killed.   States have an obligation to conduct prompt, impartial, thorough, independent and effective investigations into all crimes against journalists, online or offline. When they fail to investigate and prosecute the crimes, they are effectively censoring speech, muzzling those who dare to report and chilling others into silence.   Furthermore, a failure to conduct a proper investigation of a potentially unlawful death is regarded, in itself, as a violation of the right to life.   Nine out of ten killings of journalists continue to go unpunished. That the needle has not shifted over the past decade is a clear indication that national and international measures for protecting the safety of journalists are failing. Much more needs to be done.   We reiterate the call for a standing investigatory mechanism to be set up by the United Nations, drawing on independent international experts, including from the Special Procedures and the Treaty Bodies, to assist investigations, identify avenues for justice at national, regional and international levels, and support measures to end impunity and prevent violence against journalists.   We reiterate the need for States to consider individualized sanctions against those responsible for ordering, carrying out or threatening acts of violence against journalists, or preventing or hampering effective investigations.   We call on States to prohibit, investigate and prosecute online and offline gender-based violence against women journalists. Investigators must presume such crimes are connected to the journalist's work unless proven otherwise.   States as well as companies must include a gender perspective in all initiatives aimed to create a safe and favourable environment for independent, diverse and pluralistic media.   In an increasingly digitalized world, States must ensure that all journalists, women as well as men, are free to carry out their vital work free from threats, intimidation or any form of reprisal online or offline."   July 2021   Malta: State responsible for journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder - International Federation of Journalists   An independent inquiry into the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia published on 29 July found that the Maltese state bears responsibility for creating a culture of impunity as it failed to take action in protecting the journalist.   The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) welcomes the findings and now calls for accountability and concrete reforms to protect all media professionals.   According to the public inquiry conducted by three judges, the Maltese state created a “culture of impunity”, but also “failed to recognise the real and immediate risks” to Daphne Caruana Galizia’s life and “failed to take reasonable steps to avoid them”.   Daphne Caruana Galizia, a well-known investigative journalist, was murdered on 16 October 2017 by a car bomb in the town of Bidnija, near her family home. She had been investigating financial corruption, often involving some important political figures of Malta. She had also investigated the Panama Papers scandal.   Prior to the murder, Daphne Caruana Galizia had faced verbal and legal retaliation, continuous harassment and occasional physical threats. She reported it but nothing was done to protect her. Today, the perpetrators of these attacks remain unpunished.   Three men were arrested for her murder in December 2017, and one of them pleaded guilty in February 2021. The other two suspects are still awaiting trial. Yorgen Fenech, a Maltese businessman, has also been charged with complicity, but denies the accusation and is also awaiting trial. Fenech, who is close to certain figures in the Maltese government, is suspected of having bribed some in the case.   According to the independent inquiry, the Maltese government, through its inaction and lack of concrete measures, has created a culture of impunity and has failed in its obligation to protect journalists. In its campaign against impunity in 2018, the IFJ and EFJ had already denounced the lack of independence and media concentration in Malta.   IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “We welcome the findings of the independent inquiry and hope they will prompt the Maltese state to finally take concrete steps to end impunity for crimes against media workers. Ending the culture of impunity for crimes against journalists and ensuring their safety is a precondition for good journalism and democracy.”   http://www.ifj.org/media-centre/news/detail/category/press-releases/article/malta-state-responsible-for-daphne-caruana-galizias-murder.html http://www.ipsnews.net/2021/08/daphne-caruana-galizias-family-hope-lessons-learnt-protect-investigative-journalists/
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