Scottish Human Rights Law Group

Human Rights Watch has published a 46-page report entitled ” Cruel Britannia: British Complicity in the Torture and Ill-treatment of Terror Suspects in Pakistan”, urging the UK government to immediately order an independent judicial inquiry into the role and complicity of British security services in the torture of terrorism suspects in Pakistan.

The Children’s Rights Bill, which is a Private Members Bill, was given its first reading in the House of Lords on 19 November 2009.  The Bill  proposes the incorporation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, and the Optional Protocol on …

By Kasey Lowe
The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [OHCHR] is very much the primary support for the international human rights system across the globe.  On 14 October 2009, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay opened the first OHCHR office in the European Union.  The new office, located in EU hub of Brussels, marks …

On 1 October the Rome Statute entered into force in the Czech Republic.  The signature of the Czech Republic marked not only the 110th State Party to submit to jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), but also signified the final step toward achieving full membership of all European Union States.  This final EU member ratification represented a concerted effort …

European Parliament Press Release – Communiqué de presse – 05.10.2009
Justice and home affairs
If the Lisbon Treaty comes into force, the European Parliament will play a bigger role in the protection of fundamental rights and any EU law will have to comply with the European Convention on Human Rights, stressed MEPs and other speakers at the EP Civil Liberties Committee on …