Sri Lanka Letter for Lakshan Dias
On 26 February 2013, human rights lawyer Lakshan Dias from Sri Lanka received a number of anonymous threatening phone calls. The day before the phonecalls he was already followed by a white van. On this incident, Dias lodged a formal complaint with the Moratuwa Police, Colombo district, on 25 February 2013. These incidents follow a series […]
Malaysia L4L submits UPR report
In March 2013, L4L together with the Law Society of England and Wales filed a submission in the context of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Malaysia before the UN Human Rights Council. Lawyers in Malaysia are often the subject of threats and improper interference. They receive anonymous death threats in the form of pamphlets, email and Phone calls. Furthermore, organizations which present themselves as NGOs organize […]
L4L Schrijf u nu in de voor de Snelste Advocaat!
Zondag 26 mei a.s. zal voor de 2e keer het startschot gegeven worden voor De Snelste Advocaat. Deze loop maakt deel uit van de Sdu Royal Ten, waarvan Sdu Uitgevers sinds een aantal jaren hoofdsponsor is. De route voert onder meer langs het Paleis Huis Ten Bosch en het Haagse Bos. Een verkeersvrij […]
Turkey 22 lawyers 500 days in pre-trial detention
Last week, 22 lawyers of the 46 that were arrested in November 2011 in connection to the ‘KCK-case’, were in custody for 500 days. To mark these 500 days of pre-trial detention and draw attention to the next hearing in the trial on 28 March, L4L, together with a large coalition of other organizations, published […]
UAE Letter for Mohamed Al-Roken and collegeagues
On 22 March 2013, L4L sent a letter to the United Arab Emirates authorities on behalf of human rights lawyer Mohamed Al-Roken and his colleagues. On 4 March 2013, 94 human rights activists from the UAE went on trial, including lawyers Dr Mohamed al-Mansoori and Dr Mohamed Abdullah al-Roken – who were arrested on 16 […]
Colombia Six recent cases of lawyers being killed
Different sources have informed L4L on the recent murders of as many as six lawyers in Colombia. Eduardo Antonio Almario Martinez and Daniel Alejandro Almario Calderon were murdered on the 24th of January 2013. Amaury Manuel Saez Coronado was found mutilated and murdered on the 7th of March, after having disappeared on the 4th of […]
Mexico L4L, LRWC and Law Society file joint UPR submission
L4L has together with Lawyers Rights Watch Canada and the Law Society of England and Wales filed a joint submission for the Universal Periodic Review before the UN Human Rights Council of Mexico, which will take place in November 2013. In this submission, problems that exist with the protection of lawyers who are threatened because […]
Zimbabwe Beatrice Mtetwa released on bail
On 25 March 2013, the High Court of Zimbabwe has granted Beatrice Mtetwa bail during a bail appeal hearing held in Harare. On Sunday 17 March 2013, Zimbabwean police arrested Mtetwa, on allegations of ‘obstructing or defeating the course of justice’. Mtetwa was arrested while attempting to provide legal assistance to Thabani Mpofu, Director of […]
Zimbabwe Joint letter for arrested human rights lawyer
On Sunday 17 March 2013, Zimbabwean police arrested prominent human rights lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa, on allegations of ‘obstructing or defeating the course of justice’. Mtetwa was arrested while attempting to provide legal assistance to Thabani Mpofu, Director of Research and Development in the Office of the Zimbabwean Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, who was arrested the same day. […]
Vietnam Petition sent to WGAD on behalf of Le Quoc Quan
On 13 March, L4L has submitted, together with a large coalition of NGO’s, requests for urgent action to three United Nations Special Rapporteurs and the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, calling for the immediate release of Vietnamese human rights lawyer and blogger Le Quoc Quan. On 27 December 2012, Mr. Le Quoc Quan was arrested by the police in […]
Tunisia Radhia Nasraoui awarded with the Dutch Geuzenpenning
On 13 March 2013, Radhia Nasraoui has been awarded the Dutch Geuzenpenning, from Stichting Geuzenverzet 1940 – 1945, for her many years of courageous struggle against torture and for an independent judicial system in Tunisia. Nasraoui, now 58 years old, is one of Tunisia’s best-known lawyers. She has worked tirelessly for human rights in her […]
Kazakhstan Lawyers disbarred on improper grounds
Several lawyers in Kazakhstan have been disbarred, or are facing disbarment, on improper grounds. Also the case of lawyers Raziya Nurmasheva and Iskander Alimbayev of the Almaty City Lawyers Collegium demonstrates a violation of article 16 of the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers. On 7 December 2012, in the course of a hearing […]
Iran Lawyers call upon authorities to revoke controversial bill
Thirty five lawyers sent an open letter to the Iranian authorities on 25 February 2013, urging them to stop infringements on the independence of the legal profession. In the letter, the lawyers asked in particular for the revocation of a proposed bill which is supposed to reform the supervision on the legal profession. One of […]
China L4L and LRWC file UPR submission
On 4 March 2013, L4L and Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada (LRWC) filed a joint submission for the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of China. China will be discussed in the seventeenth session of the UPR on 22 October 2013. L4L and LRWC recommend the Chinese authorities, among other things, to ensure that lawyers advocating for human […]
Vietnam Le Cong Dinh released from prison
On 6 February 2013, prominent human rights lawyer Le Cong Dinh was released from prison after serving more than three years in prison. However, Dinh still is placed under a three years house arrest as part of his sentence. Dinh who has been detained since June 2009, was one of four democracy activists convicted in […]
Turkey Four lawyers sentenced to long prison terms
On 24 January 2013, four Ankara lawyers, Ms Filiz Kalaycı, Mr Hasan Anlar, Mr Halil İbrahim Vargün and Mr Murat Vargün received sentences ranging from 6 years and 3 months to 7 years and 6 months in jail on charges of being a member of “an armed, illegal organization”. L4L and Fair Trial Watch (FTW) have closely followed the case against the […]
