How to Stop Third-Party Enablers of Genocide and Other Crimes Against Humanity
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Mass atrocities are organized crimes. Those who commit genocide and crimes against humanity depend on third parties for the goods and services—money, matériel, political support, and a host of other resources—that sustain large-scale violence against civilians. Third parties have supplied military aircraft used by the Sudan Armed Forces against civilians, refined gold and other minerals coming out of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and ensured a steady flow of arms into Rwanda. Governments seeking to prevent atrocities cannot afford a narrow and uncoordinated focus on the perpetrators of such violence. Rather, an effective strategy must include identifying and pressuring third-party enablers—individuals, commercial entities, and countries—in order to interrupt the supply chains that fuel mass violence against civilians.
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Detained and Denied in Afghanistan: How to Make U.S. Detention Comply with the Law examines the situation of more than 1700 detainees held at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan – more than triple the number held by the Bush administration and around 10 times the number at Guantanamo Bay. It is based on observation of hearings given to detainees by the U.S. military in Sept. 2010 and Feb. 2011; an Afghan trial supported by the U.S. military in February; as well as interviews with 18 former detainees, all of whom had been released from U.S. custody within the previous year. This report follows up on Human Rights First’s earlier report, issued two years ago, on US and Afghan detention practices in Afghanistan.
The report, backed by on-the-ground research in Afghanistan, finds that although improvements have been made, the current detention system is still plagued by failures to comply with international law.
Accountability and Oversight of U.S. Private Security and Other Contractors
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State of Affairs: Three Years After Nisoor Square assesses the current status of reforms aiming to improve oversight and accountability of private contractors fielded abroad. It offers a series of recommendations to fix these problems.
Since the Nisoor Square incident, when Blackwater contractors killed 17 innocent civilians and injured 24 more, the U.S. government has enacted many positive reforms in U.S. law and policy. However, gaps remain in U.S. agencies’ reporting, investigation, prosecution and oversight of serious contractor incidents persist. This report outlines what further reforms are needed.
A Report from Retired Federal Judges
June 2010 / 46pp.
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Habeas Works: Federal Courts’ Proven Capacity to Handle Guantanamo Cases examines the capacity of federal courts to handle habeas corpus cases of Guantanamo detainees. The Supreme Court, in its landmark Boumediene v. Bush decision, upheld detainees’ rights to challenge their detention in U.S. federal courts. The report analyzes how the federal court system has handled complex evidence, determined the lawfulness of detention, and established consistent procedural guidelines.
The report concludes—with the backing of 16 of the nation’s most respected former federal judges—that courts can and has set a framework for wartime detention, and there is no need for legislation, as certain commentators and legislators have argued.
2009 / 104pp.
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Since 2001, U.S. immigration policy changes intended to protect the United States from terrorists are hurting thousands of legitimate refugees who pose no threat to the United States. This Human Rights First report offers a series of recommendations to fix this serious problem.
2009 / 68 pp.
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“Since its publication last year, In Pursuit of Justice has become a kind of Bible in the escalating debate over whether our 200-year-old system of justice can withstand the challenge of trying accused 21st-century global terrorists charged with killing Americans at home and abroad. This update vindicates the original report’s conclusion that the criminal justice system continues successfully to surmount a wide array of novel dilemmas presented by these difficult cases within the parameters of time-honored rules for fair and efficient trials. The proven success of the efforts by the federal courts compares favorably with the rocky course alternative systems such as the military commissions have taken and the formidable conceptual and practical problems that would be posed by dramatic departures such as the establishment of a preventive detention scheme.”
— Patricia M. Wald, Former Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
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2009 / 106 pp
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Since 2003, U.S. immigration authorities have spent more than $300 million to detain over 48,000 asylum seekers in jails and jail-like facilities. Some of the facilities are located in remote areas, far from legal representation. Asylum seekers are detained in a system that lacks basic due process safeguards and is inconsistent with America’s longstanding commitment to protect those who flee from persecution. The report outlines ways to improve this process in ways that are more cost-effective, just, and humane.
(2009) / ISBN: 978-0-9799975-6-3 / 64 pp.
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In a criminal justice system plagued by impunity, the tenacity with which Colombian prosecutors pursue human rights defenders for supposed crimes is striking. While corruption and arbitrary actions are a systemic problem throughout the judicial system, those who peacefully promote human rights are singled out for particular intimidation through baseless investigations and prosecutions. Unfounded charges are often widely publicized, undermining the credibility of defenders and marking them as targets for physical attack, usually by paramilitary groups. The spurious charges usually allege that the defenders are terrorists.
The report identifies patterns and trends and provides recommendations to the Colombian authorities and United States government in order to address this serious problem. It also contains a table summarizing original research from over 32 cases of unfounded prosecutions against defenders.
(2009) / ISBN: 978-0-9799975-7-0 / 70 pp.
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En un sistema de justicia penal destacado por sus niveles de impunidad, la tenacidad de los fiscales Colombianos que persiguen casos en contra de los defensores de derechos humanos es impresionante. Si bien hay problemas sistemáticos de corrupción y acciones arbitrarias en el sistema judicial, se están abriendo casos en contra de los que defienden los derechos humanos de una manera particular; se les intimida con investigaciones y procesos penales sin fundamento. Además, se hacen muy públicos los cargos sin fundamento, lo que mina la credibilidad de los defensores y los señala como blancos de ataques, frecuentemente por parte de grupos paramilitares. Por lo general son acusados de rebelión y pertenencia a las organizaciones guerrilleras.
El informe contiene un análisis de 32 casos de investigaciones infundadas. Los casos presentes permiten la identificación de los temas comunes y un análisis de ellos para revelar las raíces del problema y posibles políticas para resolverlo.
2008 / 183 pp.
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The latest release by Human Rights First provides the most comprehensive and up-to-date overview of hate crime in the 56 countries comprising the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The Survey includes sections examining six facets of violent hate crime: Violence Based on Racism and Xenophobia, Antisemitic Violence, Violence Against Muslims, Violence Based on Religious Intolerance, Violence Against Roma, and Violence Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Bias. The Survey also examines government responses to violent hate crimes in sections on Systems of Monitoring and Reporting and The Framework of Criminal Law and includes a Ten-Point Plan for governments to strengthen their responses. The Survey also includes an in-depth look at the Russian Federation, Ukraine, and the United States and contains a Country Panorama section that profiles individual hate crime cases from more than 30 countries within the OSCE.
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