It was three o’clock in the morning on 2 May 2011, when some 60 police and military personnel entered the small village of Bosanga, located in Yalisika, in the Equator Province, North DR Congo. “The men in uniform raped several women and young girls. Numerous beatings ensued. An elderly man died. Police and military also went from house to house seizing and destroying our property”, witnessed a community member. At least, 15 persons –including two minors – were arrested and ill-treated.

This operation was retaliation to at least three incidents which had taken place earlier in that year, when villagers seized some goods of the logging company SIFORCO to force the company to engage a dialogue. SIFORCO started logging in the area in 1993 and signed a “social responsibility agreement” with traditional chiefs in 2005. “Such agreements are a legal obligation and imply benefits for local people when industrial loggers arrive in their communities”, explains Bahia Zrikem, ASF Country representative in Kinshasa. “But five years later, the community had still not received either the school or health facility promised by SIFORCO. They were tired of the company’s stalling on the delivery of benefits. This explains the incidents”.

The case of human rights violations by the police and military in Yalisika was taken on by ASF in March 2012. “Our role is to organise the victims’ legal representation before the Congolese jurisdictions, to defend their interests and also ensure their protection”, adds Bahia Zrikem.

The Military Prosecutor’s office started investigations, which are still on-going. 60 members of the police and military forces are allegedly involved in the crimes and there are elements showing that some SIFORCO employees would have participated in the planning and the preparation of the attack. A trial could be organized two months after the closing of the investigation. “This will be an important moment. We believe that the human rights abuses committed constitute crimes against humanity and need to make sure that all public and private perpetrators involved will be held accountable”, concludes the ASF Country representative.

Over the years, ASF has built up a specific expertise in the field of international criminal justice in DR Congo, notably through its pool of local lawyers. This case is part of a general effort to fight impunity for particularly vulnerable communities, living in remote areas such as the Equator province, for which access to justice is virtually impossible.

Note: On April 25 2013, a complaint was filed in Germany against the multinational company Danzer, SIFORCO’s parent company at the time of the crimes. This legal action complements ASF intervention in support to the victims before Congolese Courts.

Featured image: Logging companies in DR Congo often do not meet their obligations in terms of compensation for local communities. In Lisala, the material provided by a logging company to build a school is of bad quality. © Photo 2011 – D. Gessara Koyambo/ASF

Due to its geographical location, Burundi has been welcoming people in need of international protection for decades. “It’s the only country in the Great Lakes region to have an institution responsible for dealing with asylum issues”, explains Katia Urteaga Villanueva, ASF Head of Mission in Burundi. “Burundi has also ratified all relative conventions for refugees and has had a law in place for asylum and refugee protection since 2008.”

Nathalie Yabidi, originally from DR Congo and a refugee in Burundi since 2006 © ASF/Katia Urteaga Villanueva

In reality, however, those eligible to apply for asylum do not necessarily know which procedure to follow. Furthermore, refugees are at greater risk of sexual violence and other violations of their rights than the rest of the population.

This is the case of Nathalie Yabidi, originally from DR Congo and a refugee in Burundi since 2006 (see small photo). “My husband had a Burundian mistress. She threatened me all the time, saying that I was only a poor refugee and that I had no rights in Burundi”, she tells. “One day, my husband hurt me. I fled the house. The people at the ASF legal aid office listened to my problems, and then accompanied me to the police station to press charges. My husband and his partner were summoned to explain their actions. Thanks to this support, the threats that I was subjected to stopped, and I now know that I have rights as a refugee.”

Nathalie’s case illustrates the need to improve access to justice for asylum seekers and refugees by offering them quality legal and judicial aid. “Our mission is to support people who are in need of international protection, both inside and outside of the refugee camps,” explains Axelle Nzitonda, coordinator of the PIDDAR project. “The asylum procedure must be accessible, the conditions for granting asylum guaranteed, and the legal difficulties experienced by refugees overcome.”

Thanks to this project, refugees and asylum seekers will be informed of their rights and duties as well as the asylum procedure itself. Free reception and orientation services and legal advice will be offered. Refugees and asylum seekers, who are victims of sexual violence or other violations of their rights, will be given legal aid in court. Finally, training on refugee rights will be organised for the authorities, the various police forces, as well as civil society and the media.

For a period of three years, the project will be co-financed by the European Union and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), who is also  partner in the project implementation. Other partners include the National Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless People, International Rescue Committee and other international organisations.

*PIDDAR = an acronym for “Protection Internationale et Droits des Demandeurs d’Asile et des Réfugiés” (International Protection and Rights of Asylum Seekers and Refugees)

Featured image: Congolese Refugee boys in Burundi © UNHCR/C.-L. Grayson

Ntaganda Jean Bosco © ICC-CPI

The surrender of Bosco Ntaganda takes in place in the context of the destabilization of Eastern DR Congo where the M23 – the rebel movement of which he was one of the pillars – split, leading one part to flee to Rwanda. The tensions in this region afflict an extremely vulnerable and terrorized civilian population.

Allied with Thomas Lubanga, who was himself sentenced by the International Criminal Court last year for recruiting child soldiers, ex-general Bosco Ntaganda is accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, rape and sexual slavery, ethnic persecution and looting. These crimes were committed in Ituri between September 2002 and September 2003.

The transfer of Ntaganda to the International Criminal Court in The Hague depends on the willingness of the United States to cooperate. Neither Rwanda nor the United States has ratified the Rome Statute, and therefore have no obligation to cooperate with the Court.

“We hope that the American authorities will cooperate with the Court as they did in other cases handled by the Court concerning crimes committed in Libya, Darfur and Ivory Coast,” says Jean-Philippe Kot, ASF expert in international criminal justice. “International criminal justice is a collective responsibility. Beyond this particular case, it is a strong signal of the importance of cooperation of States with the Court and the strengthening of the Rome Statute system.”

ASF has been working in DR Congo since 2002, carrying out projects that aim to increase access to justice for victims of international crimes and other violations of human rights. Should Bosco Ntaganda be brought before the Court, ASF teams will provide legal assistance to victims of crimes committed by rebels under the command of Ntaganda. “This will allow these people, who often live in very remote villages, to participate in the proceedings before the Court and also, ultimately, to obtain redress,” explains Jean-Philippe Kot.

According to the arrest warrant issued by the Court, the troops led by Bosco Ntaganda are responsible for the deaths of at least 500 people, all civilians, as well as for the rapes of many people.

Featured Image:  Congolese refugees board a truck at Bunagana on the Uganda-DRC border heading to Nyakabande transit centre in western Uganda’s Kisoro District, 19 May 2012. Hundreds of Congolese refugees (30,000-40,000 refugee) have camped at this border over the on-going fighting between Government troops and “mutineers” of Gen. Bosco Ntaganda © Samuel Okiror/IRIN

ASF’s experience has shown that while stakeholders, such as State authorities, officially express their commitment to gender equality through the law, little progress has been made in reality, affecting the ability of women around the world to realise their rights. The difficulties women face in accessing justice are numerous: lack of information about their rights, lack of financial resources to pay for legal assistance, inadequate public services, or fear for retaliation.

Thulesa*, living in Nepal, was beaten by her husband and kicked out of her house with her two children. “I filed a complaint with the police but nothing happened because my husband had friends there”, she explains. Following the advice of an acquaintance, she decided to seek the help of a lawyer. “I went to a legal clinic supported by ASF, where I received free legal aid. This allowed me to go to court”, she tells.

Click on the picture and see Thulesa’s story © ASF

ASF’s work in fragile countries shows that when women can access justice, they are able to realise a wider range of their rights than the specific problem for which they sought help. In this case, Thulesa was able to not only seek damages and continued financial support for her children, she was also successful in stopping her husband’s threats and abuse.

But in order to get this decision, this woman, a victim of domestic violence, had to overcome numerous obstacles before becoming aware of her rights and of the existing legal and judicial mechanisms to exercise her rights. “We encounter many women with stories such as Thulesa’s. There are norms and guidelines meant to protect and defend women. But in addition to public awareness of these laws and rights, the bigger issue is about enforcing existing laws”, reports Shira Stanton, Economic and Social Rights Expert at ASF. “States must carry out their obligations in enforcing and implementing the law.”

In a contribution to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), ASF urges States to make greater effort in translating norms into action that is directed toward all stakeholders in the legal chain: rights-holders, such as Thulesa, civil society, lawyers, customary leaders, and judicial stakeholders such as judges.

These comprehensive recommendations aimed to enrich CEDAW’s discussions on the elaboration of a General Recommendation on women’s access to justice. “This is not only an opportunity to share our experience and expertise in access to justice”, says Jean-Charles Paras, ASF’s Civil and Political Rights expert who attended the CEDAW meeting on women and access to justice in Geneva in February. “This recommendation will carry a lot of weight for States and their obligations to respect, protect and fulfill their human rights”.

The CEDAW is a body composed of 23 experts on women’s rights from around the world. It monitors the implementation of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

*Name changed for privacy purposes

Two years after the regime change, Tunisia is still struggling to respond to the economic and social problems that formed the basis of the revolt that led to Ben Ali’s overthrow. Tunisian society is facing structural unemployment (18%), a lack of transparency in the public sector recruitment process, and precarious working conditions.

“This situation directly affects the lives and rights of Tunisians. A peaceful transition to democracy could be threatened if nothing is done to express the frustrations and exclusions within a legal framework”, says Solène Rougeaux, ASF Head of Mission in Tunis.

Monument of martyrs, mining basin Redeyef © ASF/ S. Rougeaux

However, these injustices are not inevitable. “We are supporting the Forum Tunisien pour les Droits Economiques et Sociaux (FTDES) to develop advocacy actions based on a human rights approach, that is to say by focusing on who is responsible for what”, explains Shira Stanton, ASF Expert in Economic and Social Rights. “The FTDES will put pressure on State authorities to ensure, for example, that factories comply with the legislation on minimum wages, contribute to the social security system, and ensure safe working conditions.”

Funded by the European Union, the ASF project will last 18 months. “We will organise trainings and monitoring in the form of coaching for lawyers, human rights activists and FTDES employees”, explains Hakima Ghorri, Project Coordinator. “In the regions targeted, such as Monastir and the mining basin region of Gafsa, we will support active civil society organisations to collectively negotiate and protect the rights of vulnerable groups.”

Some 1,500 people in vulnerable  situations will benefit from the project: textile workers, victims of corruption, precarious workers, unemployed youth and the disadvantaged.

“Under the Ben Ali regime, we lived too long without being heard by the authorities,” says Jihen Hmida, a representative of the FTDES in Redeyef. “We hope that with the support of ASF, we can finally ensure respect of the most fundamental economic and social rights of our citizens.”

For more info on ASF in Tunisia

Featured image: mining basin region of Gafsa © ASF/ S. Rougeaux

Laxmi Dangoriya lives with her family in Pathaarganj of the Motipur Village Development Committee, in the Rupandehi District, 300 kilometers from the capital city of Kathmandu. On 26 January 2013, Laxmi Dangoriya was accused of witchcraft by villagers. “One of my neighbours was sick. Someone then said that the sickness was caused by witchcraft and a makdum baba (local priest) was called for treatment”, she recounts. “He pointed at our house and villagers started to accuse me of being a witch. They first threatened us, and then beat me, my husband and my father-in-law”.

View of remote Nepal © ASF/Shira Stanton

Laxmi’s family first tried to file a complaint with the local police but after inaction on the part of the police, they informed the legal aid lawyer of the district bar association of their misfortune. ASF’s partner – the PPR – was also called in for support. The victims received legal counseling and assistance in filing the official report required for the opening of a criminal case. As part of typical ASF action, “we help the local police collect evidence and we support the victims to go to trial”, explains Gopi Parajuli, ASF Head of Mission in Nepal. “In the five districts where we work, we also organise regular meetings involving legal aid lawyers, bar associations, and representatives of the judiciary”. The objective is to fight practices prohibited by law, such as accusations of witchcraft.

These traditional practices unfortunately often still take place in villages like Pathaarganj. There is no exact data available but observers report an increasing number of similar incidents, with some 100 cases in 2012, including in Kathmandu. “Victims are mostly illiterate women living in poverty who do not generally have the necessary means to protect themselves. What happened to Ms. Dangoriya is a gross violation of her human rights, especially of her rights to a dignified life and development”, says lawyer Sunil Kumar Tripathi of the Rupandehi Bar Association who intervened in this case, now in court.

“The villagers who accused me of witchcraft threatened to banish me from my village but once I was able to access justice, I regained hope for a better life and future”, recounts Ms. Dangoriya. “Our family is poor so I am very grateful to the lawyers and ASF for having provided me with legal aid at no cost”.

ASF activities providing free legal aid services to the population are financed by Belgium’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Forum for Protection of People’s Rights is a non-governmental organisation established in 2002 advocating and working in the area of human rights and access to justice in Nepal.

For more information, visit ASF in Nepal.

Featured Image: accused of witchcraft, Laxima Dangoriya (left) was able to go to Court thanks to ASF support

“We offer our sincere condolences to the family of M. Belaïd, a key leader of the Tunisian opposition. His freedom of speech and his political engagement cost him his life. This is unacceptable in the rule of law and cannot go unpunished,” declared Francesca Boniotti, Executive Director of ASF in Brussels.

restoring confidence in justice system © ASF/G Van Moortel

ASF is pleased with the swift opening of the investigation by Tunisian authorities but insists that measures be taken in order to preserve the independence and impartiality of the investigation, so that justice is achieved.  In the current atmosphere, only such measures can appease the public opinion of the Tunisian people and contribute to restoring their confidence in their justice system. “For this to happen, one should consider involving high-level neutral figures– even international investigators – in the search for truth,” suggests Ms. Boniotti.

More generally, ASF is concerned about the increasing number of acts of violence which affect the Tunisian society and the related sense of impunity. ASF calls for authorities to guarantee the necessary measures to ensure that different viewpoints and thoughts can be expressed in a secure and stable climate.

ASF salutes the Tunisian men and women engaged in the fight for justice and respect of human rights, and encourages them to pursue, in spite of the difficulties, their efforts in establishing the rule of law in their country.

Specialised in the support of access to justice for those people most vulnerable and support for lawyers, ASF has been active in Tunisia since the beginning of 2012. In partnership with the Tunisian League for Human Rights and the National Organisation of lawyers of Tunisia, the organisation supports among others the Observation Network of Transitional Tunisian Justice.

Read ASF’s press statement in Arabic

Established by the United Nations Human Rights Council, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), aims to examine the human rights situation in each UN Member State every four years. This process brings together a large number of States, and national and international civil society organisations. Each review results in a final document which lists recommendations whose implementation must be justified by the State in question at the next review.

Access to justice remains a real challenge for the most vulnerable people, such as the Batwa ethnic minority whose economic and social rights have been all but desecrated” remarks Jean-Charles Paras, ASF’s civil and political rights expert. “Another example concerns the thousands of people placed in illegal detention. 90% of these people cannot realise their rights because they do not have the means to pay for legal aid.”

Economic and social rights of Batwa minorities are not respected © ASF/Shira Stanton

Based on its fifteen years of experience in Burundi, ASF contributed a stakeholder submission to be considered during the review on Burundi. (Pour un accès effectif à la justice au Burundi : Contribution d’ASF à l’Examen Périodique Universel 2013 – French version only)

ASF used this opportunity to recommend the installation of legal aid offices in each jurisdiction in order to better inform and guide the population, and the creation of a fund to finance systematic and non-discriminatory legal aid, prioritising prisoners and minors in conflict with the law. “With the support of the international community, the Burundian State must commit itself further to permit each person to have, without discrimination, access to justice,” declared Jean-Charles Paras, who represented ASF at the 24 January 2013 session.

In order to reinforce the right of access to a quality justice system for the most vulnerable people in society, ASF introduced in 2010, a National Legal Aid Strategy which brings together the State, the National Bar Council, and civil society organisations.

” In spite of the deterioration of civil liberties in recent years and the absence of any notable progress in realising economic and social rights, we are continuing our work on the ground. The hopes expressed by the population remain very strong” concluded Mr. Paras.

Timor-Leste gained its independence after 27 years of Indonesian occupation and an internal conflict which took the lifes of an estimated 150,000 people. For the past decade, Timorese judicial institutions have been substantially reformed and the legal framework completed.

Regarding international justice, Timor Leste has ratified the Rome Statute in 2002. In practice, however, Timor Leste is facing challenges in addressing international crimes. “Though generally speaking, the legal system is independant, it can be influenced by the authorities”, admits East Timorese lawyer Benjamin Barros. “This has been the case with Martinus Bere, the commander of a pro-Indonesia militia who, in 1999, led an attack on a church during which about 200 people were killed. Despite these charges, he was released by the Government in 2009.”

Another issue related to international criminal justice is the low level of knowledge amongst local lawyers. “This is why, together with our local partner AATL, we organised last December a three-day training course for 35 lawyers in the capital city of Dili”, tells International Justice Project Coordinator at ASF, Luc Meissner. ”Members of ASF’s International Legal Network and a representative of the Coalition for the International Criminal Court (ICC) introduced the trainees to international criminal justice, the role of the ICC and a number of key case studies”.

© ASF/L.Meissner

This training session for lawyers is part of the EU-funded project, launched in 2011, to promote international criminal justice and the role of the ICC in East Timor and five other countries. “We also held a workshop on these issues for NGO representatives, the Ministry of Justice and other stakeholders”, adds Luc Meissner. “Finally, a baseline study will help identify the main issues such as legislative reforms that are necessary in the area of the administration of international justice.”

2013 is a key year in terms of strengthening international justice. The United Nations Integrated Mission in East Timor (UNMIT), present since 2006 to support stability and national reconciliation, came to an end in 2012. “In the course of this year, the East Timorese authorities will need to take over the outstanding cases of serious human rights violations committed in the country in 1999 which the UN’s Serious Crimes Investigation Team was addressing until now. We sincerely hope that the judicial system will be able to ensure accountability for these violations and redress for the victims”, concludes Luc Meissner.

ASF and its partner – an umbrella organization of lawyers in Timor-Leste called AATL (Asosiasaun Advocado Timor Lorosa’e) – have been working together between 2002 and 2009, notably to improve general public knowledge about the justice system and to enhance access to justice for the most vulnerable members of the Timorese society.

Thanks to you, ASF turned 20 this past year, having celebrated two decades of active commitment for human rights. We are grateful to those of you who have provided us with your longstanding support and those of you who have more recently taken interest in us.

The world will not dramatically change in 2013. Whether in Colombia, in Eastern Congo or in Tunisia, the rights of the most vulnerable people will not be fully respected.

Nevertheless, we can act for more accessible justice, for more perpetrators of human rights violations to be tried by the justice system, and for more widespread acknowledgement of victims. As in 2012, 2011 and each year since our first missions, we will pursue our work in the field, alongside populations in need of justice, as well as with our partners, lawyers, bar associations and civil society organisations.

Poverty will not disappear in 2013. The Millennium Development Goals to which the international community committed to will not be met.

This is the reason why we will appeal States and donors to invest in the field of justice. Because fighting poverty will continue to be ineffective without improved access to justice and remedy for the most marginalised people in society.

Despite the economic crisis, ASF will meet the challenges that 2013 will bring. Because we, as do you,  consider injustice to be unacceptable.

The ASF teams