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Renan Araujo - 20th May 2019
The Brazilian Supreme Court has begun a confidential inquiry, ex officio, to investigate alleged crimes against the honour of the Justices and ‘fake news’ about the Court. This inquiry is a part of a trend in which the Supreme Court has censored news reports relating corrupt conduct by its Justices and facilitated the confiscation of […]
Tom Lowenthal - 17th May 2019
On Wednesday, the UK Supreme Court delivered its judgment in Privacy International. The issue was whether the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), a body set up to review state surveillance decisions, was itself subject to judicial review in the ordinary courts. The Supreme Court decided that it was, in spite of the fact that an “ouster […]
Saeed Bagheri - 25th April 2019
While nearly three weeks have passed since local elections were held in Turkey on 31st March 2019, the Turkish Supreme Electoral Council has not issued any statement on the election results in two major cities of the country – Istanbul, and the Turkish capital, Ankara. According to Article 79 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey (1982), election […]
Mwai Daka - 18th April 2019
Recent reports and video footage of the political unrest in Sesheke’s Parliamentary by-elections have brought to light the disproportionate use of force by Zambia’s police, who opened fire at the opposition party, the United Party for National Development (UPND) and its supporters, during a political rally. These events have brought the uneasy relationship between President […]
Azadeh Chalabi - 6th March 2019
What has been largely overlooked in the human rights theory and practice is what I would call the lack of “social will” as the twin concept of the lack of political will to implement universal human rights. Whereas the lack of political will is concerned with states’ rights practices, the lack of social will is […]
Stephanie Tai - 8th February 2019
The Hong Kong Bar Association formally issued a statement on 21st December 2018, regarding the Department of Justice’s choice to not obtain independent legal advice in its decision not to prosecute former Chief Executive C.Y. Leung over the UGL corruption incident. The Department of Justice’s decision not to consult independent legal advice is worrying and […]
Camilla Alonzo - 28th January 2019
Last week marked the 8th anniversary of the Egyptian revolution – known as the “25 January revolution” – which led to the deposal of President Mubarak after 29 years in office. As with other countries that experienced popular uprisings during the Arab Spring, the post-revolutionary era in Egypt heralded the promise of freedom, equality and […]
Rahul Bajaj - 9th January 2019
In a powerful dissenting opinion that has reignited the debate on the retention of the death penalty in India, Justice Kurian Joseph of the Indian Supreme Court has called for a reassessment of the need for the death penalty. Justice Joseph’s dissent was delivered in an appeal by an accused sentenced to death for committing […]
Jason Brickhill - 21st December 2018
In a series of earlier posts, I have tracked a series of events in Zimbabwe beginning with the military-assisted coup to remove Robert Mugabe and install Emmerson Mnangagwa as President. The coup of November 2017 and its assault on constitutionalism is the dark strand running through the ensuing events. In ‘Coup and Constitution’, I argued […]
Talitha Ramphal - 10th December 2018
A highly discussed issue within the EU is whether the extradition of individuals to Poland is permissible under EU Law. In December 2017, the European Commission submitted a reasoned proposal activating the Article 7 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) mechanism to determine whether there is a real risk of a serious breach […]
Jack Maxwell - 26th November 2018
Queensland is soon to be the third Australian jurisdiction with a statutory bill of rights. Earlier this month, the Queensland Labor Government introduced the Human Rights Bill 2018 (Qld) to Parliament. While not perfect, the Bill is a significant step forward for human rights in Australia. Australia has limited constitutional protections for human rights, and […]
Parimal Kashyap - 7th November 2018
In what has been earmarked as a ‘revolutionary’ judgment in the field of international human rights law, the Spanish Supreme Court has ruled that views expressed by UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies (‘the Views’) are, in fact, legally binding on Spain. The judgment is extraordinary as it is a well-accepted position in international human rights law that decisions […]