Lawyer Vitaliy Moiseyev and his wife killed
Russian lawyer Vitaliy Moiseyev and his wife Elena Moiseyeva were murdered on 24 October 2014. They were reportedly shot at least 30 times. Lawyers for Lawyers has reason to belief that they were killed because of Mr. Moiseyev’s legitimate legal activities. Mr. Moiseyev represented Sergey Zhurba, a key witness in a case concerning a significant […]
Lawyer Arkady Chaplygin assaulted
Well-known St. Petersburg lawyer Arkady Chaplygin beaten in the premises of the bar association; law enforcement agencies refuse to take action. Arkady Chaplygin is a lawyer and head of the specialised bar association ‘Prizyvnik’ in St. Petersburg. He is also chairman of the regional branch of the Party of Progress. On 26 November 2014, two […]
Kennedy Masiye human right lawyer of the year
On 9 November 2014, Zimbabwean human rights lawyer Kennedy Masiye was honoured as Human Right Lawyer of the Year by the Law Society of Zimbabwe for his outstanding contribution to the protection and promotion of human rights in the country. Unfortunately he was unable to attend the presentation of the award at the Law Society’s […]
WGAD: detention Abdul Aziz Moussa arbitrary
Lawyers for Lawyers was informed that, in an opinion adopted at its 70th session on 28 August 2014, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) found that the detention of Bahraini human rights lawyer Mr. Abdul Aziz Moussa and his client Mr. Mohammed Hasan Sedif were arbitrary. On 8 August 2013, lawyer Abdul […]
Hearing in ‘Raml police station’ case
On 17 November 2014, the Raml Misdemeanour Court held a hearing in the ‘Raml police station’ criminal case in which human rights lawyer Ms. Mahienour el-Massry is being prosecuted. The court heard three testimonies provided by witnesses presented by the defence. The defense additionally requested the court to summon the persons who filed the complaint […]
Meeting between lawyer and local communities interrupted by military
On 11 November 2014, a meeting between lawyer Sor Rattabanee Polkaw and members of local communities in Udon Thani Province, North-Eastern Thailand, was interrupted by members of the military and the police. Ms. Polkaw is a human rights lawyer from the Community Resources Centre (CRC), and visited the Udon Thani region for legal consultations with […]
Lawyers for Lawyers monitors hearings in Istanbul
This week Lawyers for Lawyers observed two hearings in the cases in which a large number of lawyers are being prosecuted. Both sessions were adjourned to May 2014. Lawyers for Lawyers monitored two hearings in the trials against Turkish lawyers in Istanbul on 11 and 13 November 2014. On 13 November, the trial against the 46 […]
Police beat up lawyer Kennedy Masiye
On 6 November 2014, lawyer Kennedy Masiye was physically attacked by police officers, when he tried to intervene in an assault by police officers on journalist Itai Dzamara. Masiye was left severely injured with a broken arm. In October 2014, Itai Dzamara, organised the Occupy Africa Unity Square, a sit-in in which the protesters demanded […]
Preliminary report on findings Caravana 2014
A short preliminary report on the first findings of the Caravana Internacional de Juristas (Caravana) mission was published in October 2014. During the Caravana 2014 mission, which took place from 23-30 August, a group consisting of 70 lawyers and judges visited Colombia to investigate the situation of lawyers and judges in this country. Two volunteers of the Lawyers […]
Court extends pre-trial detention Intigam Aliyev
On 24 October 2014, the Nasimi District Court in Baku uled to extend the pre-trial detention of Intigam Aliyev until 8 February 2015. At the hearing it became clear that Aliyev is in poor health conditions. A petition from Itigam Aliev’s lawyer to release his defendant on bail or to convert his detention to house arrest […]
Court: Interrogation of lawyer Yegor Mylnikov illegal
Russian Lawyer who refused to testify against his client vindicated by the Court Lawyer Yegor Mylnikov has been forced to stop the defence of his client in a criminal case twice. In both cases, he had to defend himself in court. After he won his cases, Mylnikov received a formal warning from the Bar Association, which […]
Upcoming hearing in case of Maseko and Makhubu
On November 3, 2014 a hearing in the case of Thulani Maseko and Bheki Makhubu is scheduled at the Supreme Court of Swaziland, in which the charges against them could be dropped. On 17 July lawyer Maseko and journalist Makhubu, were convicted of ‘contempt of court’ by the High Court of Swaziland. Shortly afterwards they were both sentenced […]
Nasrin Sotoudeh’s law license suspended, sit-in to protest
On 18 October 2014, a disciplinary investigation panel of Tehran’s Bar Association communicated a ruling to Ms. Sotoudeh that her law license is to be suspended for three years based on a complaint filed by the Islamic Revolution Court’s Prosecution Office. In August 2014, a first disciplinary panel of the Tehran Bar Association rejected a similar request filed by the same complainant and […]
Draft bill on attorneyship threatens independence legal profession
The Iranian judiciary has drafted a legislative proposal on attorneyship in 2012 which introduces state supervision of lawyers. The draft proposal has been met with serious concern from Iranian lawyers and international organizations in recent years, including from the International Bar Association. No formal introduction to the parliament of the 2012-proposal took place until very […]
Lobby in Geneva for UPR Iran and Kazakhstan
On Monday, October 6th, and Wednesday, October 8th, Lawyers for Lawyers attended ’pre-sessions’ organized by the NGO ‘UPR-Info’. During these sessions NGOs have the opportunity to lobby country delegations in Geneva, to take over the recommendations of UPR submissions previously submitted by NGOs. Lawyers for Lawyers has filed submissions for Kazakhstan and Iran, in which recommendations […]
Martin Ennals Award for human rights lawyer
On 7 October 2014, the Martin Ennals Jury presented Alejandra Ancheita with the 2014 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders (MEA). Alejandra Ancheita is a Mexican lawyer and activist who leads the fight for the rights of the migrants, workers, and indigenous communities of her native country to raise their standard of living. The […]