In UK News
On Thursday, representatives from Liberty, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Inclusion London addressed journalists at a briefing in Westminster to call for politicians and the public to stay alert to human rights issues over the election campaign period. Warnings were given about the diminution in worker’s and migrant’s rights, among others, in recent years. Calls were made by multiple representatives for closer scrutiny of the potential implications of challenges to human rights frameworks such as the HRA and ECHR. “Human rights in the UK have too long been cast in political debate as an obstacle”, said Sacha Deshmukh, Chief Executive of Amnesty International. “In reality, they can provide solutions to the problems we face here, at home, and on the global stage”.
Several anti-racism campaigning groups, led by Action for Race Equality, published a manifesto last Friday in anticipation of Windrush Day calling for immediate reform to the Windrush Generation documentation scheme, claiming that the ongoing backlog is worsening the ‘unconscionable’ trauma inflicted upon the Windrush Generation. Government figures suggest over 50,000 individuals remain eligible for the scheme. Saturday saw the sixth annual celebration of Windrush Day, marking 76 years since the arrival of the HMT Empire Windrush in 1948 which carried hundreds of passengers arriving to the UK from the Caribbean. The Windrush Generation had been invited to Britain in an attempt to help rebuild the post-war economy. In April 2018, the ‘Windrush scandal’ begun when it emerged that the Home Office had kept no formal records of Commonwealth individuals living in the UK with indefinite leave to remain granted under the Immigration Act 1971. This had resulted in those affected being unable to prove their legal migration status, thus unable to access healthcare, housing, employment and more. Many were deported or threatened with deportation. Windrush Day celebrates the legacy of these individuals in the UK and the contributions they have made to British society. The event was marked on Saturday with exhibitions, block parties, and other festivities.
In Other News
Last Wednesday, the UN Office for Human Rights published a thematic report finding that Israeli airstrikes in Gaza might have ‘systematically violated’ several of the ‘fundamental principles of international humanitarian law on the conduct of hostilities’. ‘When committed intentionally’, the report states, ‘such violations may amount to war crimes’. Six events were investigated as emblematic incidents of attack since October 7th. The events were assessed across the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precautions in attack, finding breaches of all. ‘The scale of human death and destruction wrought by Israel’s bombing of Gaza since 7 October has been immense’, the report states. The report calls for immediate, thorough, and transparent investigations into all allegations of violations of international human rights law, noting that the time already elapsed since several of the incidents assessed ‘calls into serious question the compliance of [Israeli Government] processes with international obligations to ensure prompt and effective accountability’. Israeli representatives have condemned the report. Israel’s mission to the UN have stated they believe “the only objective of this thematic report is to lambast and single-out Israel, while further shielding Hamas terrorists in Gaza”.
Last Tuesday, Thailand’s Senate passed a marriage equality bill by an overwhelming majority during an ad-hoc parliamentary session, the bill garnering the approval of 130 out of 152 members. The country will become the first in Southeast Asia to recognise same-sex marriage and the third Asian jurisdiction after Taiwan and Nepal. The bill will become effective following royal assent and 120 days after publication in the Government Gazette. The bill will amend Thailand’s Civil and Commercial Code to replace gendered words like ‘man’ and ‘woman’ with gender neutral alternatives such as ‘individual’. Mookdapa Yangyuenpradorn, representative for the human rights organisation Fortify Rights, has called the bill’s passage a “triumph for justice and human rights”. She added that “marriage equality is fundamental to human dignity, and it is essential that Thailand protects these rights without delay or discrimination.”
In the Courts
The Namibia High Court has held that the common law offences of sodomy and unnatural sexual offences are unconstitutional as they amount to unjustified discrimination against the LGBT community. As such, the impugned laws have been declared invalid. In June 2022, Namibian LGBT+ activist Friedel Dausab launched a legal challenge to the constitutionality of Namibia’s anti-homosexuality laws. The laws criminalise same-sex sexual activity – the campaign sought to see the laws held unconstitutional and to overturn the convictions made under them. In May 2023, the Namibian Supreme Court recognised same-sex marriages lawfully entered abroad, after which the parliament passed bills restricting marriage to those of opposite sex. Support or promotion of same-sex unions was criminalised with up to 6 years imprisonment. Dausab has celebrated the judgment, stating: “I feel elated. I’m so happy. This really is a landmark judgment, not just for me, but for our democracy.”
The post The Weekly Round Up: OHCHR Report on Israeli Airstrikes & the 76th Anniversary of the Empire Windrush appeared first on UK Human Rights Blog.