Press Release / Article
Three decades on from its foundation, the work of the IBA’s Human Rights Institute is more essential than ever amid a changing global landscape and the rise of authoritarianism.
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI). Founded in 1995 under the honorary presidency of Nelson Mandela, the IBAHRI has spent three decades promoting and protecting human rights and the rule of law globally.
‘Human rights is a very important ingredient in the rule of law,’ says Hans Corell, ex officio of the IBAHRI Council and former Legal Counsel of the United Nations. ‘Regrettably, the respect for the rule of law in the world has receded in recent years. The World Justice Project publishes a yearly index on the rule of law, and in 2024 evaluated 142 countries and jurisdictions. For the seventh year in a row, the rule of law has declined in most. This has definitely influenced the development of the IBAHRI.’
The work of the IBAHRI concerns threats to law, policy, institutions and practice that challenge human rights and the rule of law and puts forward corresponding recommendations for legal and policy reform at national, regional and international levels. The IBAHRI’s range of activities includes advocacy and awareness raising, capacity building, technical assistance, fact-finding and trial observations. None of the IBAHRI’s work would be possible without the tireless efforts of its dedicated staff members.
Richard Goldstone, Honorary President of the IBAHRI Council, says: ‘I have been impressed with the manner in which the IBAHRI has consistently remained at the forefront of issues relating to international criminal law. Its support for the ICC and other international criminal tribunals has been striking. At the same time, it has been objective and has not hesitated to criticise developments that might have been inconsistent with the rule of law, ethical behaviour and the respect for human rights.’
The work of the IBAHRI is developed and implemented based on five thematic pillars: Independence and Protection of the Legal Profession; Human Rights in the Administration of Justice; Freedom of Expression; Freedom of Assembly and Association; and Justice and Accountability for International Crimes. The work of the IBAHRI is informed by world events and the ever-shifting global political landscape that has seen many changes since the IBAHRI’s conception in 1995.
The key milestones and significant achievements from the IBAHRI’s first 20 years are covered in ‘Twenty years of the IBA’s Human Rights Institute’. Areas of focus from those years include lawyers’ rights in Myanmar and global threats to rule of law following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
In 2020, the IBAHRI released a short film on Human Rights Day to commemorate its 25th anniversary. It says ‘the need now is for us to reassert the centrality of law and a respect for human rights’ and reflects on the nascent hope towards the end of the 20th century and the start of the new millennium for a more just world. It then looks at the reality of today and the swift diminishing of that hope, brought about by reduced freedoms around the world and a creeping resurgence of authoritarianism.
Afghanistan evacuation and gender apartheid
The IBAHRI’s work over the past ten years has involved supporting at-risk judges and lawyers. In Afghanistan, this resulted in direct intervention when the Taliban took over in September of 2021. The IBAHRI coordinated the evacuation of 114 people from Afghanistan including 26 female judges, MPs, lawyers and human rights defenders. Two further flights relocating 77 female judges, lawyers and journalists departed and landed in Athens on 24 October 2021. In total, close to 500 people were evacuated.
The IBAHRI worked with UK-based refugee charity Breaking Barriers to find employment opportunities for those evacuated to the UK. The IBAHRI supported the work of Trauma Treatment International, who coordinated mental health services for all the women evacuated in London and abroad.
The Taliban takeover involved the systematic segregation of women from society. In response, in January 2024, the IBAHRI hosted an inquiry into gender apartheid in Afghanistan working with the Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and experts on gender apartheid. The report was launched on 4 March 2024.
‘The initiative on gender apartheid is another important example of the work of the IBAHRI,’ adds Anne Ramberg, past Co-Chair of the IBAHRI. ‘The work of the IBAHRI is of huge importance in the fight for upholding rule of law and protecting human rights all around the world. We are at the forefront protecting lawyers and vulnerable groups that suffer from atrocities.’
The IBAHRI’s work has also focused on Iran. In response to the turmoil that followed the death of Mahsa Amini on 16 September 2022, the IBAHRI issued several statements to condemn the violent crackdown of protests, the extrajudicial killings, the enforced disappearances of protestors and the ongoing culture of impunity for such abuses. Amini was a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who was stopped and arrested by Iran’s Gasht-e Ershad (guidance patrol, widely referred to as the ‘morality police’) on a visit to Tehran for allegedly not complying with the country’s compulsory veiling laws. Three days later she died in police custody.
In March 2023 during the 2023 Lexis Nexis Legal Awards the IBAHRI evacuation team received the accolade of ‘Highly Commend’ for their work on Afghanistan. (L-R) IBAHRI Project Manager Emily Foale, IBAHRI Director Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC, IBAHRI Programme Lawyer Ewelina Ochab.
The initiative on gender apartheid is another important example of the work of IBAHRI
Anne Ramberg
Past Co-Chair of the IBAHRI
In a statement, IBAHRI Co-Chair Mark Stephens CBE said that ‘the IBAHRI strongly condemns the ongoing, systematic use of the death penalty in Iran and repeats its call to the Iranian authorities to introduce a moratorium on executions and to ratify the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR without delay.’
The IBAHRI’s UN programme
In 2015, the IBAHRI established a permanent presence in Geneva with the placement of a full-time legal specialist to work on strengthening the involvement of legal professionals in UN human rights mechanisms.
Since then, the IBAHRI has been engaged on several fronts at the UN level to highlight attacks on lawyers in Iran, with a particular focus on women lawyers. The IBAHRI has hosted Iranian lawyers for training and study visits on UN Human Rights Mechanisms and Strategic partnerships for lawyers in Geneva to enhance engagement of legal professionals with the UN Human Rights Mechanisms.
‘The IBAHRI is a leading force in promoting and protecting human rights worldwide,’ says Mark Stephens CBE, IBAHRI Co-Chair, who took up the role in 2022. ‘Through its work at the UN, in Parliament, and within individual countries, the IBAHRI provides a vital platform for improving human rights conditions globally. By combining legal expertise and advocacy, the IBAHRI responds effectively to current events in order to hold governments accountable for violations and put pressure on governments to secure meaningful change in order to preserve human rights.’
Through the UN programme, the IBAHRI works closely with thematic and country-specific UN Special Rapporteurs and Independent Experts, in particular with the UN Special Rapporteurs on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, on Human Rights Defenders, on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, on Counter Terrorism, and on Belarus, Russia, and Iran, among others. The IBAHRI works closely with Working Groups on Arbitrary Detention, Enforced Disappearances and Discrimination Against Women.
The IBAHRI collaborated with the UN Special Rapporteur on Peaceful Assembly and contributed to the UN Guidelines for Lawyers on engagement in Peaceful Assembly, as well as in the Report of the Special Rapporteur on Peaceful Assembly and Access to Justice.
Russia-Ukraine
The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 prompted the IBAHRI to work with the whole IBA and international community on a response. IBAHRI Director Baroness Kennedy LT KC was among the co-signers of a letter urging the ICC Prosecutor to proceed with investigations into the situation in Ukraine. The IBAHRI participated in the urgent debate on the human rights situation in Ukraine following the military invasion of Russia, and delivered an oral statement calling for the establishment of a commission of inquiry mandated to initiate prompt, independent and impartial investigation into any violations. The IBAHRI has also contributed to the negotiations of the Human Rights Council Resolution that then established an independent international commission of inquiry.
Read full article at
https://www.ibanet.org/The-IBA-Human-Rights-Institute-marks-30-years-of-defending-the-rule-of-law
