On the occasion of its presentation to Parliament, the signatories commend the publication of the report written by the multidisciplinary team of experts mandated by the Special Parliamentary Commission on Belgium’s Colonial Past. This report is a new milestone towards a better understanding of the Belgian colonial era. It constitutes an important contribution to a peaceful debate on this issue between the different segments of contemporary Belgian society.

In Tunisia, the actors of the penal chain tend to perpetuate the repressive reflexes of the former Ben Ali regime. Prison overcrowding remains very high: around 131% rate of occupation with 23,607 prisoners at the end of 2020 (accused and convicted together) for around 18,000 places available, resulting in detention conditions below international standards.

Throughout the world, the pandemic has pushed people further away from access to justice. In Morocco, ASF has been relying for several years on legal clinics, set up in universities, to promote access to justice, particularly for people in vulnerable situations. Under the supervision of teachers and legal professionals, students provide legal services to the population.

(Nederlands) In het kader van het project “Alternative”, gefinancierd door de Europese Unie en uitgevoerd door ASF en ATL MST SIDA, streeft de Association des Juristes de Sfax naar de modernisering van het penitentiaire en strafrechtelijke systeem in Tunesië. Door middel van verschillende pleitbezorgings- en bewustmakingsactiviteiten met magistraten en gevangenispersoneel in Sfax werkt de vereniging vanuit het algemene streven om de overbevolking in de gevangenissen in Tunesië te verminderen, door met name alternatieven voor gevangenisstraffen uit te werken.

In Uganda, access to justice is limited by the financial resources of local populations but also by the geographical distance to the courts of law. In this context, ASF focuses on the training of community-based mediators to promote access to justice and enable local populations to claim their rights.

In a letter made public today, Sherpa, Friends of the Earth France and Avocats sans Frontières call the oil company Perenco S.A out. Our associations denounce the opacity of Perenco group’s organization and operation, as well as the absence of any information on the way the French company takes into account the social and environmental consequences of its activities abroad. While its activities are regularly criticized for their negative impacts on the environment and human rights, the multinational seems to be favoring this opacity, which would allow it to continue operating with impunity.

ASF has been active in the fight against impunity and the field of international justice for over 15 years in the DRC. During that time, the organization has witnessed great progress but regrets that current mechanisms are still not up to the challenges at stake.

Each week this summer, we will publish an article from our annual report on our website. This week, find out more about ASF’s work in Indonesia to improve access to justice for women victims of violence.

The Djugu 2 trial came to an end on 1 April 2021. It concluded with 21 defendants being sentenced to life imprisonment for crimes against humanity by murder, arson, destruction, pillaging and persecution, and 11 defendants being acquitted. The 219 civil parties were also granted most of their claims for reparations, both individual and collective, including rehabilitation measures, thus breaking with the practice of awarding only damages.

Discover the work done by the association Art Acquis with prisoners in Tunisia. With its Perspectives project, supported by ASF and ATL MST SIDA Bureau National, the organisation uses art as therapy. Through the activities offered, it seeks to help prisoners express themselves better about their experience, to occupy themselves constructively during their incarceration and to promote their reintegration into society.