The recently released 6th Edition of Liberal International’s quarterly Human Rights Bulletin has cracked open the debate surrounding the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) principle ten years after it was adopted by the international community. This edition features an exclusive interview with the formerly imprisoned Al-Jazeera journalist and founder of the Fahmy Foundation for Free Speech, Mohamed Fahmy.
In an op-ed co-authored by LI President, Dr. Juli Minoves, Fahmy appealed to liberals in government and in opposition to safeguard journalists and the right to freedom of expression around the world, while calling on the United Nations to create the position of a Special Representative for the Safety of Journalists. Highlighting the urgency of the issue, he said:
Despite numerous resolutions adopted on this monumental issue in the past decade, including by the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, illiberal governments and extremist groups have been increasingly targeting reporters leaving almost no neutral ground to report freely and safely- a fundamental core of democracy. In order to implement these binding laws only a Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Protection of Journalists, working closely and swiftly with a mandate applicable to that of the UN Secretary General, will bring the much needed political experience and legitimacy to extract and help targeted journalists. This special envoy will bear the main responsibility of monitoring compliance by UN member states within their obligations under international law.
The Bulletin has also presented the views of one of the leading academics in the field, Dr. Alex Bellamy, Director of the Asia-Pacific Center for RtoP at the University of Queensland (Australia), who stressed that RtoP was always meant to be a challenge but exposing the gap between rhetoric and reality is a first step towards closing the gap.
R2P is a challenge to world leaders, though leaders and civil society actors alike. It is not a self-implementing panacea to the world’s problems. Whether or not the international community fulfils its commitment depends entirely on the choices we make. But unless those that champion the principle most loudly do more to support its realisation, more and more people will begin to ask whether world leaders really meant it when they promised an end to genocide and mass atrocities,
he said.
A short video from the LI Human Rights Committee meeting commemorating the ten year anniversary of the RtoP principle with commentary from two key participants in the debate: Angela Patnode from the International Coalition for RtoP and Jonas Claes from the United States Institute of Peace.
The LI Human Rights Committee met in the European Parliament in Brussels late last year to debate the future of the Responsibility to Protect Principle, 10 years after its adoption. Bringing together liberal parliamentarians, diplomats, civil society representatives and human rights practitioners, the discussions focused on the growing challenges and misconceptions attached to the implementation of the principle.
LI has created a short video to highlight the major conclusions from some of the experts who participated.
In Tbilisi, Georgia – at LI’s most recent Executive Committee meeting – a new intake of international liberal parliamentarians and activists was confirmed to fight for fundamental freedoms around the world.
The composition of LI’s Human Rights Committee is the largest since the Committee was formed and, at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva last month, members came together to identify their priorities.
Celebrating the success of last year’s Committee, read about what it is that the LI Human Rights Committee got up to in 2015-2016 by accessing the annual report using the button below.
Under the theme Imprisoned for Thinking, the Liberal International Human Rights Committee (LI HRC) met at the headquarters of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Geneva for the fourth consecutive year, focusing its debates on the principle of freedom of expression.
With special guests, including formerly imprisoned Al Jazeera Bureau Chief Mohamad Fahmy and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Special Representative for Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović, discussions also touched on the developments which have resulted in the recent crackdowns in Turkey.
– Delegates of Liberal International’s 4th annual meeting at the United Nations Human Rights Council.
