Saudi Arabia: Women’s rights defender Loujain Al-Hathloul released after three years in prison | Welcome Developments

Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada welcomes the release of women’s rights defender, Loujain Al-Hathloul, after 1001 days of imprisonment on spurious charges. She was released on 10 February 2021 after persistent international pressure, including interventions by LRWC. Ms Al-Hathloul was arrested in May … [Read more...]

Myanmar: Restore elected authorities, release detainees, and protect freedoms of information, expression, and assembly | Statement

Full .pdf Statement Myanmar: Restore elected authorities, release detainees, and protect freedoms of information, expression, and assembly  LRWC calls for concrete action by the UN Human Rights Council  STATEMENT  8 February 2021 Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada (LRWC) welcomes the UN … [Read more...]

Turkey: International law obligations to release arbitrarily detained lawyer Mr. Aytaç Ünsal | Letter

Full PDF (ENG) 8 February 2021 Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan The President of Turkey Cumhurbaşkanlığı Külliyesi 06560 Beştepe- Ankara-Turkey Fax : (+90 312) 525 58 31 E-mail: contact@tccb.gov.tr Mr. Abdulhamit Gül Minister of Justice 06659 Kizilay Ankara, Turkey Fax: +90 (0312) 419 … [Read more...]

USA: Lawyers’ organizations convene public inquiry into racist police violence in the US | Update

More information about the International Commission of Inquiry, 18 January to 6 February 2021. Register here to attend online hearings. | Videos of hearings on Facebook. Three lawyers’ organizations based in the United States (US) have assembled a group of experts from twelve countries to conduct … [Read more...]

In memoriam: Joe Arvay, O.C, O.B.C, Q.C. (1949-2020)

Lawyers' Rights Watch Canada is saddened by the passing of Canadian lawyer Joe Arvay on 7 December 2020. Joe Arvay was a giant in Canada’s civil rights and human rights community and was recognized for his contributions by being invested as an Officer in the Order of Canada. Joe Arvay was counsel on … [Read more...]

Myanmar: Advocacy Charter for the Universal Periodic Review, January 2021

Full Advocacy Charter PDF (ENG)  Lawyers for Lawyers and Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada (LRWC) submitted an advocacy charter to several country delegations to draw attention to the situation of lawyers in Myanmar at the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Myanmar scheduled for 28 January 2021. The … [Read more...]

Defending Defenders: The Right to Know Rights | The Advocate, January 2021

"Defending Defenders: The Right to Know Rights," by Catherine Morris, The Advocate, January 2021. Abstract: The first two decades in this millennium have seen dramatic increases in risks to those reporting or protesting rights violations or advocating human rights, particularly in relation to … [Read more...]

Azerbaijan: Day of the Endangered Lawyer 24th January 2021 | Petition

Full PDF Petition See an invitation to a related online event to be held 21 January 2021. 11th DAY OF THE ENDANGERED LAWYER 24th January 2021 - AZERBAIJAN: The struggle to protect Azerbaijani lawyers   The DAY OF THE ENDANGERED LAWYER is commemorated each year on 24 January. On … [Read more...]

Azerbaijan: Day of the Endangered Lawyer | online event 21 January 2021

Invitation and Registration Information Learn more about the situation of lawyers in Azerbaijan Invitation to an online Seminar – Day of the Endangered Lawyer (Azerbaijan) Thursday, 21 January 2021 15:00 to 16:30 CET; 2.00-3.30pm UK time; 6:00-7:30 am PST; 9:00-10:30 am EST) This … [Read more...]

Doing the two-step on uneven platforms: Successes and setbacks of human rights advocacy

First published by Slaw.ca, Canada's online legal magazine, on 30 December 2020 Human rights advocates are sometimes asked whether human rights advocacy works. Most human rights defenders answer in the form of anecdotes, because empirical research on effectiveness is scarce in a world where human … [Read more...]