Kunduz
In September 2009, two US fighter jets bombed a large group of people and two tanker trucks on a sandbar in the Kunduz River in Afghanistan. More than 100 people were killed or injured. ECCHR supports a criminal investigation in the matters and supports the affected persons' compensation claims.
Torture
The case of Khaled El Masri is one of the best documented extraordinary renditions by the CIA. Several inquiry commissions took up this case and a number of lawsuits were filed before different national and regional courts.
Kunduz
In September 2009, two US fighter jets bombed a large group of people and two tanker trucks on a sandbar in the Kunduz River in Afghanistan. More than 100 people were killed or injured. ECCHR supports a criminal investigation in the matters and supports the affected persons' compensation claims.
Military Dictatorship
More than 30,000 people fell victim to the military dictatorship in Argentina (1976-1983). The victims included around one hundred people with German citizenship or German roots, among them Elisabeth Käsemann.
Military Dictatorship
In the Mercedes Benz case ECCHR is assisting relatives of trade unionists who disappeared from a Mercedes Benz plant in Buenos Aires. A senior manager at the company stands accused of involvement in the disappearances and murders of trade union activists carried out by Argentine security forces.
Textile Industry
A few months before the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Dhaka, TÜV Rheinland audited the production facilities at textile producer Phantom Apparel Ltd as part of a social audit. ECCHR argues that TÜV Rheinland ignored professional auditing standards.
Textile Industry
On the initiative of ECCHR the Hamburg Consumer Protection Agency filed an unfair competition complaint against the German discount retailer Lidl for claims made in the company's advertisements about fair working conditions in their supplier chain.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Professional Training
With the help of the Bertha Foundation ECCHR has the capacity to offer two-year fellowships to particularly qualified candidates from our alumnx. Bertha Justice Fellows are part of the global Bertha Justice Network comprised of organizations whose goal is to enforce human rights by legal means.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Police Violence
In 2013, ECCHR submitted a criminal complaint against a German manager of timber company Danzer Group. He is accused of aiding and abetting, through omission, the crimes of rape, grievous bodily harm, false imprisonment and arson in the DR Congo.
War Crimes
In the course of a military action in Gaza in 2014, Israel's armed forces killed, among others, members of the German-Palestinian Kilani family. Israeli legal authorities have refused to investigate. ECCHR, on behalf of Ramsis Kilani from Germany, demands that Germany investigate the case.
Pesticides
Bayer CropScience sells highly toxic pesticides in India. The company fails to ensure that consumers are adequately informed of both the dangers of pesticides and the requisite protective measures.
War Crimes
In October 2016, an airstrike – alleged to have been carried out by the Saudi-led military coalition – struck a civilian home in the village of Deir Al-Hajari in northwest Yemen. The intentional directing of attacks against the civilian population amounts to war crimes. ECCHR is taking legal action against this.
Textile Industry
The 18 minute video from Forensic Architecture details the lack of stairs, emergency exits, fire extinguishers and fire alarms in the factory. Inadequate fire safety measures at the company, a supplier for the German clothes retailer KiK, led to the agonizing deaths of 260 factory workers in the blaze.
Arms Exports
Since May 2016, employees of the arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch have had to testify at the regional court in Stuttgart in legal proceedings concerning the shipment of Type G36 rifles to Mexico. Between 2006 and 2009, Heckler & Koch sold rifles to the police in the Mexican state of Guerrero.
Genocide
Following the symposium "Colonial Repercussions" in January 2018, a delegation from ECCHR was invited to Namibia for the commemoration of the genocide (1904-1908). Together with ECCHR, those affected by (post-)colonial injustice talk about their fight for the regocnition of their rights and what they expect of the German goverment.
Textile Industry
Transnational corporations' responsibilities also extend to the working conditions in their subsidiary and supplier companies abroad. This position is supported by survivors and relatives of victims of the fatal fire at the Ali Enterprises textile factory in Karachi. Together with ECCHR, they filed a legal action for compensation against KiK.
NATO
The Varvarin court proceedings in Germany concern the bombing of a bridge in rural Serbia as part of the NATO Operation Allied Force during the Kosovo war. Since 1999, those affected by the attack have been seeking compensation from the Federal Republic of Germany.
Armed Conflict
Ever since the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war in 2009, issues of the criminal accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the ongoing sexualized violence against women have been part of ECCHR's work.
Apartheid
ECCHR is supporting the lawsuit filed by South African victims of the apartheid regime against eight European and US corporations (among them Daimbler and Rheinmetall). The plaintiffs accuse the companies of either directly committing human rights violations in South Africa, or of facilitating and supporting state-sponsored human rights violations.
Infrastructure
In 2010, those affected by the construction of the Merowe dam in North Sudan filed criminal complaints against Lahmeyer employees. The German company played a major role in the construction. Over 4,700 families lost their belongings and their means of subsistence.
Torture
The case of Khaled El Masri is one of the best documented extraordinary renditions by the CIA. Several inquiry commissions took up this case and a number of lawsuits were filed before different national and regional courts.
Torture
ECCHR has filed a criminal complaint with the German Federal Public Prosecutor calling for investigations into Gina Haspel's role in the torture of detainees at a CIA secret prison in Thailand in 2002. Haspel was appointed Director of the CIA by President Donald Trump in May 2018.
Surveillance
British-German surveillance technology provider Gamma infringed on its human rights obligations with products such as 'state trojan' FinFisher. This was confirmed by the UK's OECD National Contact Point. In 2013, ECCHR submitted a complaint against Gamma and German firm Trovicor.
Arab Spring
ECCHR has appealed to five UN Special Rapporteurs on behalf of two injured demonstrators who were shot by security forces during the Egyptian protests in spring 2011. ECCHR is calling for adequate support to be given to the men and their families.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Arab Spring
ECCHR has appealed to five UN Special Rapporteurs on behalf of two injured demonstrators who were shot by security forces during the Egyptian protests in spring 2011. ECCHR is calling for adequate support to be given to the men and their families.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Pesticides
ECCHR and its partner organizations urged the FAO/WHO in an open letter and monitoring report to implement urgently needed changes to effectively address the widespread mismanagement of pesticides worldwide.
Pesticides
Research by ECCHR showed: Syngenta's Gramoxone – which is banned in many countries including throughout the EU – is used on plantations in Indonesia and the Philippines with almost no protective measures.
Mining
Mining projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America often give rise to environmental problems and social conflict. Local communities near the Tintaya Antapaccay mine in Peru have raised concerns about heavy metals polluting the water and associated health problems. The mine is run by a Glencore subsidiary.
Torture
As a signatory of the Convention against Torture, the US is obliged to prosecute for these crimes. Nevertheless, there is evidence concerning the torture program after 11 September 2001 with a particular focus on the liability of high ranking US officials, including former President Bush.
Military Dictatorship
In October 2010, ECCHR, along with Theo van Boven filed two amicus curiae briefs before Argentinean courts. The briefs support four different cases in the trials regarding sexualized violence in detention centers during the military dictatorship.
Military Dictatorship
More than 30,000 people fell victim to the military dictatorship in Argentina (1976-1983). The victims included around one hundred people with German citizenship or German roots, among them Elisabeth Käsemann.
Military Dictatorship
In the Mercedes Benz case ECCHR is assisting relatives of trade unionists who disappeared from a Mercedes Benz plant in Buenos Aires. A senior manager at the company stands accused of involvement in the disappearances and murders of trade union activists carried out by Argentine security forces.
Military Dictatorship
In 2011, ECCHR submitted an amicus curiae brief in the criminal investigation examining sugar company Ledesma's liability for human rights violations during the Argentine military dictatorship.
Military Dictatorship
In 2012, ECCHR submitted a legal brief in the case relating to the unlawful detention and torture of workers of the company Minera Aguilar S.A. during the Argentine military dictatorship (1976-1983).
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Arab Spring
ECCHR sent an advisory opinion to the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry. The statement seeks to draw the commission's attention to the cases of two persons who suffered severe injuries when they were shot at by Bahraini security forces before being forcibly removed from hospital, imprisoned, and abused.
Torture
Torture of detained members of the opposition: London High Court accepted in 2014 that Bahraini Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al-Khalifa is not immune from prosecution. This decision opened the door to an investigation by the Metropolitan Police War Crimes Team.
Torture
Bahrain-born British citizen Jaafar al-Hasabi submitted a criminal complaint in Dublin against Bahraini Attorney General Ali Bin al-Buainain. Al-Hasabi was detained and tortured in Bahrain in 2010. Since then, he tries to bring those responsible to court.
Surveillance
British-German surveillance technology provider Gamma infringed on its human rights obligations with products such as 'state trojan' FinFisher. This was confirmed by the UK's OECD National Contact Point. In 2013, ECCHR submitted a complaint against Gamma and German firm Trovicor.
Torture
Torture of detained members of the opposition: London High Court accepted in 2014 that Bahraini Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al-Khalifa is not immune from prosecution. This decision opened the door to an investigation by the Metropolitan Police War Crimes Team.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Textile Industry
The 18 minute video from Forensic Architecture details the lack of stairs, emergency exits, fire extinguishers and fire alarms in the factory. Inadequate fire safety measures at the company, a supplier for the German clothes retailer KiK, led to the agonizing deaths of 260 factory workers in the blaze.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Torture
Bahrain-born British citizen Jaafar al-Hasabi submitted a criminal complaint in Dublin against Bahraini Attorney General Ali Bin al-Buainain. Al-Hasabi was detained and tortured in Bahrain in 2010. Since then, he tries to bring those responsible to court.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Textile Industry
A few months before the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Dhaka, TÜV Rheinland audited the production facilities at textile producer Phantom Apparel Ltd as part of a social audit. ECCHR argues that TÜV Rheinland ignored professional auditing standards.
Textile Industry
On the initiative of ECCHR the Hamburg Consumer Protection Agency filed an unfair competition complaint against the German discount retailer Lidl for claims made in the company's advertisements about fair working conditions in their supplier chain.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Textile Industry
On the initiative of ECCHR the Hamburg Consumer Protection Agency filed an unfair competition complaint against the German discount retailer Lidl for claims made in the company's advertisements about fair working conditions in their supplier chain.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
(Post-)Colonialism
With the Colonial Repercussions/Koloniales Erbe event series, the Akademie der Künste examined the structures of colonial power relations, which continue to impact on science, art and society today.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Memory
The symposium 'Memory and Justice' at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin created a platform for interdisciplinary debates – spanning various epochs and regions – on legal proceedings, inquiries and other state responses to grave crimes and the extent of civil society participation in these processes.
Human Rights Due Diligence
As part of a publication series on the topic of international economic law, Miriam Saage-Maaß, Vice Legal Director of ECCHR, co-edited a publication which is the result of a workshop at Humboldt University designed to give a platform to emergent legal scholars.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Education
Together with the Kreuzberger Kinderstiftung we offer young human rights lawyers with limited financial means the opportunity to gain professional experience in our day-to-day legal work.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
(Post-)Colonialism
With the Colonial Repercussions/Koloniales Erbe event series, the Akademie der Künste examined the structures of colonial power relations, which continue to impact on science, art and society today.
Torture
ECCHR supports claimants in a case of corporate crime in front of the US Supreme Court. The proceedings are a continuation of the high-profile case taken against Shell. The claimants argue that Shell, through its Nigerian subsidiary, aided and abetted crimes, including torture and extra-judicial executions.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
With the help of the Bertha Foundation ECCHR has the capacity to offer two-year fellowships to particularly qualified candidates from our alumnx. Bertha Justice Fellows are part of the global Bertha Justice Network comprised of organizations whose goal is to enforce human rights by legal means.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Armed Conflict
Eleven former Syrian employees of French company Lafarge submitted a criminal complaint against Lafarge. By having business relations with the terrorist group ISIS in Syria, the company may have taken part in the financing of the group, being therefore complicit in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Guantánamo
Former Guantánamo detainees Sassi and Benchellali filed a complaint in France against William "Jim" Haynes. He was one of the Architects of the US torture system during the George W. Bush administration.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Pharmaceutical Industry
In 2009, the States of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat launched a research project for the vaccination against the human papilloma virus (HPV). In 2010, the Government of India suspended the program as several violations of ethical standards were reported.
Armed Conflict
Ever since the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war in 2009, issues of the criminal accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the ongoing sexualized violence against women have been part of ECCHR's work.
Iraq
ECCHR demands investigations into the role and responsibility of British military officials in Iraq. A communication documents 2000 cases of grave mistreatment during the five years which UK forces operated in Iraq.
Surveillance
British-German surveillance technology provider Gamma infringed on its human rights obligations with products such as 'state trojan' FinFisher. This was confirmed by the UK's OECD National Contact Point. In 2013, ECCHR submitted a complaint against Gamma and German firm Trovicor.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Pesticides
ECCHR and its partner organizations urged the FAO/WHO in an open letter and monitoring report to implement urgently needed changes to effectively address the widespread mismanagement of pesticides worldwide.
Pesticides
Bayer CropScience sells highly toxic pesticides in India. The company fails to ensure that consumers are adequately informed of both the dangers of pesticides and the requisite protective measures.
Pesticides
Research by ECCHR showed: Syngenta's Gramoxone – which is banned in many countries including throughout the EU – is used on plantations in Indonesia and the Philippines with almost no protective measures.
Pharmaceutical Industry
In 2009, the States of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat launched a research project for the vaccination against the human papilloma virus (HPV). In 2010, the Government of India suspended the program as several violations of ethical standards were reported.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Italy
The Sigonella airbase in Sicily, Italy, is considered of strategic importance for US drone operations in North Africa. ECCHR has filed requests to access information regarding US drones located at Sigonella according to the Italian Freedom of Information Act.
Double Standards
For several years now, ECCHR has been working on so-called "terrorism lists." The main focus of this work is to address the grave violation of basic constitutional and human rights that arises by identifying individuals and groups in such a process of listing.
War Crimes
In October 2016, an airstrike – alleged to have been carried out by the Saudi-led military coalition – struck a civilian home in the village of Deir Al-Hajari in northwest Yemen. The intentional directing of attacks against the civilian population amounts to war crimes. ECCHR is taking legal action against this.
Textile Industry
Italian audit company RINA certified a Ali Enterprises (Pakistan) building shortly before a fire broke out in the factory. The certificate failed to guarantee high standards of security. ECCHR is lending support to the legal proceedings underway in Pakistan, Italy and Germany.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Resource Exploitation
Local residents of the Romanian region of Roșia Montană successfully opposed the building of a gold mine. Now, mining company Gabriel Resources is suing the Romanian state. ECCHR and its partner organizations have filed an amicus petition and are supporting the community so that their rights continue to be taken into consideration.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Arms Exports
Since May 2016, employees of the arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch have had to testify at the regional court in Stuttgart in legal proceedings concerning the shipment of Type G36 rifles to Mexico. Between 2006 and 2009, Heckler & Koch sold rifles to the police in the Mexican state of Guerrero.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Professional Training
With the help of the Bertha Foundation ECCHR has the capacity to offer two-year fellowships to particularly qualified candidates from our alumnx. Bertha Justice Fellows are part of the global Bertha Justice Network comprised of organizations whose goal is to enforce human rights by legal means.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Torture
ECCHR supports claimants in a case of corporate crime in front of the US Supreme Court. The proceedings are a continuation of the high-profile case taken against Shell. The claimants argue that Shell, through its Nigerian subsidiary, aided and abetted crimes, including torture and extra-judicial executions.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Push-Backs
At least 15 dead and many more injured: this is the outcome of a Guardia Civil operation on 6 February 2014 on the beach of El Tarajal, located at the border between Morocco and the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. The deadly push-back has still not been investigated properly. ECCHR is working with survivors who are willing to give witness evidence.
Franco Dictatorship
The Spanish judiciary brought charges against judge Garzón, who declared his court competent to undertake preliminary investigations into the enforced disappearance, torture and execution during the Spanish Civil War and the Franco dictatorship. Garzón was acquitted of the charges later-on. It remains doubtful whether Spain is willing to independently adress the past atrocities.
Guantánamo
In March 2009, a criminal complaint was filed against six former US officials regarding their accountability for violations of international law, including war crimes and torture. The US officials became known as the Bush Six.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Professional Training
With the help of the Bertha Foundation ECCHR has the capacity to offer two-year fellowships to particularly qualified candidates from our alumnx. Bertha Justice Fellows are part of the global Bertha Justice Network comprised of organizations whose goal is to enforce human rights by legal means.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Armed Conflict
Ever since the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war in 2009, issues of the criminal accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the ongoing sexualized violence against women have been part of ECCHR's work.
Armed Conflict
Eleven former Syrian employees of French company Lafarge submitted a criminal complaint against Lafarge. By having business relations with the terrorist group ISIS in Syria, the company may have taken part in the financing of the group, being therefore complicit in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Italy
The Sigonella airbase in Sicily, Italy, is considered of strategic importance for US drone operations in North Africa. ECCHR has filed requests to access information regarding US drones located at Sigonella according to the Italian Freedom of Information Act.
Pharmaceutical Industry
In 2009, the States of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat launched a research project for the vaccination against the human papilloma virus (HPV). In 2010, the Government of India suspended the program as several violations of ethical standards were reported.
Torture
ECCHR supports claimants in a case of corporate crime in front of the US Supreme Court. The proceedings are a continuation of the high-profile case taken against Shell. The claimants argue that Shell, through its Nigerian subsidiary, aided and abetted crimes, including torture and extra-judicial executions.
Indigenous Rights
In 2012, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) of the World Bank rejected a joint petition from ECCHR and the chiefs of four indigenous communities to be admitted as amici curiae in two cases in which European investors sought to sue the Government of Zimbabwe.
Guantánamo
In March 2009, a criminal complaint was filed against six former US officials regarding their accountability for violations of international law, including war crimes and torture. The US officials became known as the Bush Six.
Torture
ECCHR sumbitted an amici curiae brief in order to support the compensation claim in the Arar case. Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen, was arrested and abducted by US officials in 2002 and brought to Syria. During his one-year detention he suffered torture and was imprisoned under inhumane conditions.
Torture
Between 2004 and 2007, three complaints were filed in Germany and in France against members of the US Government, including former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and members of the military forces in connection with war crimes, torture and other criminal acts in the military prisons of Guantánamo and Abu Ghraib.
Torture
ECCHR has filed a criminal complaint with the German Federal Public Prosecutor calling for investigations into Gina Haspel's role in the torture of detainees at a CIA secret prison in Thailand in 2002. Haspel was appointed Director of the CIA by President Donald Trump in May 2018.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Hotspots
According to ECCHR's analysis of a series of admissibility interviews conducted on the Greek Islands, EASO fails to respect core standards of fairness. The interviews do not permit a fair assessment of cases and do not give room for a thorough investigation of vulnerability.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Peace Process
ECCHR criticizes the passing of a new law in context of peace negotiations with Colombian FARC. The law contains gaps, including those regarding military commanders' effective control over their subordinate units.
Armed Conflict
ECCHR submitted a communication to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court requesting action on violence against trade unionists as human rights defenders in Colombia.
Armed Conflict
General Padilla was General Commander of the Colombian Military Forces when the practice of 'falsos positivos' escalated. He is presumably responsible for international crimes committed by his subordinates, he neither prevented nor punished the wrongdoers.
Armed Conflict
The Colombian state is denying women the protection against sexualized crimes and access to justice that it is obliged to guarantee under national and international law. In response, ECCHR has submitted a criminal complaint against Colombia to the International Criminal Court.
Trade Unionists
ECCHR filed a criminal complaint against Nestlé and some of its top managers in 2012. The complaint accuses the managers of being in breach of their obligations by failing to prevent crimes of Colombian paramilitary groups and failing to adequately protect trade unionists from these crimes.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities systematically and often violently expel refugees and migrants at their borders. The long-standing practice of push-backs at the external borders of the European Union is unlawful, as the European Court of Human Rights ruled. ECCHR supports the claims of two refugees against Spain.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities apprehend and summarily deport unaccompanied minors to Morocco without a procedure to identify them and protect their rights. ECCHR supports an individual communication against Spain on behalf of the unaccompanied Malian minor D.D., submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Pakistan
ECCHR advises in the case of the German victim of a drone strike in Pakistan: Bünyamin E. According to ECCHR's examinations, the case raises a number of serious doubts as to the application and interpretation of the law and shows insufficient investigations.
Textile Industry
The 18 minute video from Forensic Architecture details the lack of stairs, emergency exits, fire extinguishers and fire alarms in the factory. Inadequate fire safety measures at the company, a supplier for the German clothes retailer KiK, led to the agonizing deaths of 260 factory workers in the blaze.
Textile Industry
Italian audit company RINA certified a Ali Enterprises (Pakistan) building shortly before a fire broke out in the factory. The certificate failed to guarantee high standards of security. ECCHR is lending support to the legal proceedings underway in Pakistan, Italy and Germany.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Resource Exploitation
Local residents of the Romanian region of Roșia Montană successfully opposed the building of a gold mine. Now, mining company Gabriel Resources is suing the Romanian state. ECCHR and its partner organizations have filed an amicus petition and are supporting the community so that their rights continue to be taken into consideration.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Armed Conflict
Sri Lanka must comply with its international obligations in the fight against gender-based discrimination. The country should bring its law in line with the UN Convention on Women.
Armed Conflict
Ever since the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war in 2009, issues of the criminal accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the ongoing sexualized violence against women have been part of ECCHR's work.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Apartheid
ECCHR is supporting the lawsuit filed by South African victims of the apartheid regime against eight European and US corporations (among them Daimbler and Rheinmetall). The plaintiffs accuse the companies of either directly committing human rights violations in South Africa, or of facilitating and supporting state-sponsored human rights violations.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Torture
The group around the former Syrian military police employee 'Caesar' took for the first legal action by filing together with ECCHR a criminal complaint against senior officials from the Syrian intelligence services and the military police concerning crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Torture
In Syria, the word Saydnaya has become a synonym for unimaginable torture, systematic degradation and mass executions. Together with four individuals who survived the torture in Saydnaya ECCHR has filed in Germany a criminal complaint against seven high-ranking Syrian military officials.
Torture
"As the head of Syrian Air Force Intelligence, Jamil Hassan is responsible for the torture me and my friends suffered. The international arrest warrant shows, that our criminal complaint is the right path to achieve justice”, says Yazan Awad, a Syrian torture survivors who cooperates with ECCHR.
Armed Conflict
Eleven former Syrian employees of French company Lafarge submitted a criminal complaint against Lafarge. By having business relations with the terrorist group ISIS in Syria, the company may have taken part in the financing of the group, being therefore complicit in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Torture
The Syrian government led by president Bashar al-Assad is responsible for systematic and widespread torture. ECCHR together with seven Syrian torture survivors as well as the Syrian lawyers al-Bunni and Darwish submitted the first criminal complaint against six high-level officials of the Syrian military intelligence service to the German Federal Prosecutor.
Torture
They survived torture and detention in Syria and fled to Europe, where they now hope to obtain justice. Austrian authorities should follow the example set in Germany, Sweden and France and initiate investigations into systematic torture under Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
Surveillance Technology
The Syrian intelligence services have been collecting without cause information about political opponents, members of the opposition and human rights activists. Spying often goes hand in hand with torture. Software from Western corporations may have played a role in the surveillance. In order to address this, transnational investigations have to be initiated.
Torture
ECCHR sumbitted an amici curiae brief in order to support the compensation claim in the Arar case. Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen, was arrested and abducted by US officials in 2002 and brought to Syria. During his one-year detention he suffered torture and was imprisoned under inhumane conditions.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Torture
A criminal complaint against former Uzbek minister of interior Zakir Almatov, the Uzbek head of secret service Rustan Inojatov, and others was filed to the Federal Public Prosecutor on behalf of eight Uzbek citizens because of torture and crimes against humanity.
Textile Industry
Uzbekistan is considered one of today's most repressive regimes in the world. ECCHR has been engaged in various proceedings to demand that the political and economical interests of Western actors do not further undermine human rights in Uzbekistan.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
Education
ECCHR's Legal Training Program offers participants a unique platform for the theory and practice of international human rights law. We aim to develop and further a well-founded and critical analysis of the most pressing contemporary issues of law and society. If you have questions concerning the Legal Training Program, please contact Marie Badarne: application@ecchr.eu
Alliances
Since the establishment of ECCHR in 2008 nearly 400 young human rights lawyers from more than 40 countries have participated in our Education Program. Together they constitute our alumni group, and their numbers are now into the hundreds.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Double Standards
For several years now, ECCHR has been working on so-called "terrorism lists." The main focus of this work is to address the grave violation of basic constitutional and human rights that arises by identifying individuals and groups in such a process of listing.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Textile Industry
Uzbekistan is considered one of today's most repressive regimes in the world. ECCHR has been engaged in various proceedings to demand that the political and economical interests of Western actors do not further undermine human rights in Uzbekistan.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Double Standards
For several years now, ECCHR has been working on so-called "terrorism lists." The main focus of this work is to address the grave violation of basic constitutional and human rights that arises by identifying individuals and groups in such a process of listing.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities apprehend and summarily deport unaccompanied minors to Morocco without a procedure to identify them and protect their rights. ECCHR supports an individual communication against Spain on behalf of the unaccompanied Malian minor D.D., submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Franco Dictatorship
The Spanish judiciary brought charges against judge Garzón, who declared his court competent to undertake preliminary investigations into the enforced disappearance, torture and execution during the Spanish Civil War and the Franco dictatorship. Garzón was acquitted of the charges later-on. It remains doubtful whether Spain is willing to independently adress the past atrocities.
Armed Conflict
Sri Lanka must comply with its international obligations in the fight against gender-based discrimination. The country should bring its law in line with the UN Convention on Women.
Apartheid
ECCHR is supporting the lawsuit filed by South African victims of the apartheid regime against eight European and US corporations (among them Daimbler and Rheinmetall). The plaintiffs accuse the companies of either directly committing human rights violations in South Africa, or of facilitating and supporting state-sponsored human rights violations.
Guantánamo
Belgium failed to investigate and prevent torture in US detention camp Guantánamo. Former detainee and Belgian citizen Zemmouri together with ECCHR argues that Belgian officials were complicit in the abuse.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Surveillance Technology
The Syrian intelligence services have been collecting without cause information about political opponents, members of the opposition and human rights activists. Spying often goes hand in hand with torture. Software from Western corporations may have played a role in the surveillance. In order to address this, transnational investigations have to be initiated.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
University
The exchange with universities takes place through a number of different avenues, such as collaborative seminars on human rights issues or the participation of ECCHR staff in university courses.
Professional Training
ECCHR has been able to invite colleagues from international partner organizations to come to Berlin for a set period of time as part of an intensive exchange of experiences and know-how. Bertha Global Exchange Fellows are actively involved in ECCHR’s day-to-day work and contribute to issues and cases that their sending organizations are also working on.
Pesticides
Research by ECCHR showed: Syngenta's Gramoxone – which is banned in many countries including throughout the EU – is used on plantations in Indonesia and the Philippines with almost no protective measures.
Sexualized Violence
ECCHR calls for individual compensation to be provided to Philippine survivors of sexual violence (so-called 'comfort women') during the Second World War. Already at the time of the Second World War, the systematic wartime enslavement of women by Japanese soldiers constituted a violation of international law.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
Networks and partnerships excel when expertise and practical experience are shared. With this in mind, ECCHR regularly hosts workshops and exchanges on transnational human rights litigation.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Colonia Dignidad
Colonia Dignidad, founded by a German named Paul Schäfer in 1961, was a fortress-like German settlement in central Chile where grave human rights violations were committed over several decades. The former doctor of the Colonia Dignidad, Hartmut Hopp, should face prison in Germany.
Colonia Dignidad
Colonia Dignidad, founded by a German named Paul Schäfer in 1961, was a fortress-like German settlement in central Chile where grave human rights violations were committed over several decades. The former doctor of the Colonia Dignidad, Hartmut Hopp, should face prison in Germany.
Armed Conflict
The Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart handed down convictions in the trial of two Rwandan leaders of the Hutu militia group FDLR, Ignace Murwanashyaka and Straton Musoni. The FDLR are alleged to have utilized sexualized violence against the Congolese civilian population and to have in numerous cases plundered, killed and inflicted grievous bodily injuries.
Police Violence
In 2013, ECCHR submitted a criminal complaint against a German manager of timber company Danzer Group. He is accused of aiding and abetting, through omission, the crimes of rape, grievous bodily harm, false imprisonment and arson in the DR Congo.
Armed Conflict
The Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart handed down convictions in the trial of two Rwandan leaders of the Hutu militia group FDLR, Ignace Murwanashyaka and Straton Musoni. The FDLR are alleged to have utilized sexualized violence against the Congolese civilian population and to have in numerous cases plundered, killed and inflicted grievous bodily injuries.
Arms Exports
Since May 2016, employees of the arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch have had to testify at the regional court in Stuttgart in legal proceedings concerning the shipment of Type G36 rifles to Mexico. Between 2006 and 2009, Heckler & Koch sold rifles to the police in the Mexican state of Guerrero.
Police Violence
In 2013, ECCHR submitted a criminal complaint against a German manager of timber company Danzer Group. He is accused of aiding and abetting, through omission, the crimes of rape, grievous bodily harm, false imprisonment and arson in the DR Congo.
Yemen
The Administrative Court of Cologne dismissed the claim brought against the German government by three Yemeni citizens. The claimants survived a drone strike in Yemen in which US military base Ramstein played a central role.
War Crimes
In October 2016, an airstrike – alleged to have been carried out by the Saudi-led military coalition – struck a civilian home in the village of Deir Al-Hajari in northwest Yemen. The intentional directing of attacks against the civilian population amounts to war crimes. ECCHR is taking legal action against this.
Yemen
The Administrative Court of Cologne dismissed the claim brought against the German government by three Yemeni citizens. The claimants survived a drone strike in Yemen in which US military base Ramstein played a central role.
Yemen
The Administrative Court of Cologne dismissed the claim brought against the German government by three Yemeni citizens. The claimants survived a drone strike in Yemen in which US military base Ramstein played a central role.
Pakistan
ECCHR advises in the case of the German victim of a drone strike in Pakistan: Bünyamin E. According to ECCHR's examinations, the case raises a number of serious doubts as to the application and interpretation of the law and shows insufficient investigations.
Torture
The group around the former Syrian military police employee 'Caesar' took for the first legal action by filing together with ECCHR a criminal complaint against senior officials from the Syrian intelligence services and the military police concerning crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Torture
In Syria, the word Saydnaya has become a synonym for unimaginable torture, systematic degradation and mass executions. Together with four individuals who survived the torture in Saydnaya ECCHR has filed in Germany a criminal complaint against seven high-ranking Syrian military officials.
Torture
"As the head of Syrian Air Force Intelligence, Jamil Hassan is responsible for the torture me and my friends suffered. The international arrest warrant shows, that our criminal complaint is the right path to achieve justice”, says Yazan Awad, a Syrian torture survivors who cooperates with ECCHR.
Torture
The Syrian government led by president Bashar al-Assad is responsible for systematic and widespread torture. ECCHR together with seven Syrian torture survivors as well as the Syrian lawyers al-Bunni and Darwish submitted the first criminal complaint against six high-level officials of the Syrian military intelligence service to the German Federal Prosecutor.
Surveillance Technology
The Syrian intelligence services have been collecting without cause information about political opponents, members of the opposition and human rights activists. Spying often goes hand in hand with torture. Software from Western corporations may have played a role in the surveillance. In order to address this, transnational investigations have to be initiated.
Torture
Between 2004 and 2007, three complaints were filed in Germany and in France against members of the US Government, including former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and members of the military forces in connection with war crimes, torture and other criminal acts in the military prisons of Guantánamo and Abu Ghraib.
Torture
A criminal complaint against former Uzbek minister of interior Zakir Almatov, the Uzbek head of secret service Rustan Inojatov, and others was filed to the Federal Public Prosecutor on behalf of eight Uzbek citizens because of torture and crimes against humanity.
Pakistan
ECCHR advises in the case of the German victim of a drone strike in Pakistan: Bünyamin E. According to ECCHR's examinations, the case raises a number of serious doubts as to the application and interpretation of the law and shows insufficient investigations.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Resource Exploitation
Local residents of the Romanian region of Roșia Montană successfully opposed the building of a gold mine. Now, mining company Gabriel Resources is suing the Romanian state. ECCHR and its partner organizations have filed an amicus petition and are supporting the community so that their rights continue to be taken into consideration.
Torture
The case of Khaled El Masri is one of the best documented extraordinary renditions by the CIA. Several inquiry commissions took up this case and a number of lawsuits were filed before different national and regional courts.
Torture
As a signatory of the Convention against Torture, the US is obliged to prosecute for these crimes. Nevertheless, there is evidence concerning the torture program after 11 September 2001 with a particular focus on the liability of high ranking US officials, including former President Bush.
Italy
The Sigonella airbase in Sicily, Italy, is considered of strategic importance for US drone operations in North Africa. ECCHR has filed requests to access information regarding US drones located at Sigonella according to the Italian Freedom of Information Act.
War Crimes
In the course of a military action in Gaza in 2014, Israel's armed forces killed, among others, members of the German-Palestinian Kilani family. Israeli legal authorities have refused to investigate. ECCHR, on behalf of Ramsis Kilani from Germany, demands that Germany investigate the case.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
War Crimes
In the course of a military action in Gaza in 2014, Israel's armed forces killed, among others, members of the German-Palestinian Kilani family. Israeli legal authorities have refused to investigate. ECCHR, on behalf of Ramsis Kilani from Germany, demands that Germany investigate the case.
Hotspots
According to ECCHR's analysis of a series of admissibility interviews conducted on the Greek Islands, EASO fails to respect core standards of fairness. The interviews do not permit a fair assessment of cases and do not give room for a thorough investigation of vulnerability.
Trade Unionists
ECCHR filed a criminal complaint against Nestlé and some of its top managers in 2012. The complaint accuses the managers of being in breach of their obligations by failing to prevent crimes of Colombian paramilitary groups and failing to adequately protect trade unionists from these crimes.
Push-Backs
With support from ECCHR, several refugees filed individual complaints against Macedonia in 2016. They assert that Macedonia's practice of unlawful expulsions is violating the European Convention on Human Rights.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities systematically and often violently expel refugees and migrants at their borders. The long-standing practice of push-backs at the external borders of the European Union is unlawful, as the European Court of Human Rights ruled. ECCHR supports the claims of two refugees against Spain.
Pesticides
Research by ECCHR showed: Syngenta's Gramoxone – which is banned in many countries including throughout the EU – is used on plantations in Indonesia and the Philippines with almost no protective measures.
Pesticides
Research by ECCHR showed: Syngenta's Gramoxone – which is banned in many countries including throughout the EU – is used on plantations in Indonesia and the Philippines with almost no protective measures.
Armed Conflict
The Colombian state is denying women the protection against sexualized crimes and access to justice that it is obliged to guarantee under national and international law. In response, ECCHR has submitted a criminal complaint against Colombia to the International Criminal Court.
Iraq
ECCHR demands investigations into the role and responsibility of British military officials in Iraq. A communication documents 2000 cases of grave mistreatment during the five years which UK forces operated in Iraq.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Alliances
ECCHR is part of the Bertha Justice Network which is comprised of 17 organizations from all continents, Bertha Justice Partners, as well as Bertha Justice Fellows and alumni.
Push-Backs
With support from ECCHR, several refugees filed individual complaints against Macedonia in 2016. They assert that Macedonia's practice of unlawful expulsions is violating the European Convention on Human Rights.
Genocide
Following the symposium "Colonial Repercussions" in January 2018, a delegation from ECCHR was invited to Namibia for the commemoration of the genocide (1904-1908). Together with ECCHR, those affected by (post-)colonial injustice talk about their fight for the regocnition of their rights and what they expect of the German goverment.
Textile Industry
Transnational corporations' responsibilities also extend to the working conditions in their subsidiary and supplier companies abroad. This position is supported by survivors and relatives of victims of the fatal fire at the Ali Enterprises textile factory in Karachi. Together with ECCHR, they filed a legal action for compensation against KiK.
Textile Industry
Transnational corporations' responsibilities also extend to the working conditions in their subsidiary and supplier companies abroad. This position is supported by survivors and relatives of victims of the fatal fire at the Ali Enterprises textile factory in Karachi. Together with ECCHR, they filed a legal action for compensation against KiK.
Mining
Mining projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America often give rise to environmental problems and social conflict. Local communities near the Tintaya Antapaccay mine in Peru have raised concerns about heavy metals polluting the water and associated health problems. The mine is run by a Glencore subsidiary.
Mining
Mining projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America often give rise to environmental problems and social conflict. Local communities near the Tintaya Antapaccay mine in Peru have raised concerns about heavy metals polluting the water and associated health problems. The mine is run by a Glencore subsidiary.
Sexualized Violence
ECCHR calls for individual compensation to be provided to Philippine survivors of sexual violence (so-called 'comfort women') during the Second World War. Already at the time of the Second World War, the systematic wartime enslavement of women by Japanese soldiers constituted a violation of international law.
NATO
The Varvarin court proceedings in Germany concern the bombing of a bridge in rural Serbia as part of the NATO Operation Allied Force during the Kosovo war. Since 1999, those affected by the attack have been seeking compensation from the Federal Republic of Germany.
Indigenous Rights
In 2012, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) of the World Bank rejected a joint petition from ECCHR and the chiefs of four indigenous communities to be admitted as amici curiae in two cases in which European investors sought to sue the Government of Zimbabwe.
Push-Backs
At least 15 dead and many more injured: this is the outcome of a Guardia Civil operation on 6 February 2014 on the beach of El Tarajal, located at the border between Morocco and the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. The deadly push-back has still not been investigated properly. ECCHR is working with survivors who are willing to give witness evidence.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities systematically and often violently expel refugees and migrants at their borders. The long-standing practice of push-backs at the external borders of the European Union is unlawful, as the European Court of Human Rights ruled. ECCHR supports the claims of two refugees against Spain.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities apprehend and summarily deport unaccompanied minors to Morocco without a procedure to identify them and protect their rights. ECCHR supports an individual communication against Spain on behalf of the unaccompanied Malian minor D.D., submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities systematically and often violently expel refugees and migrants at their borders. The long-standing practice of push-backs at the external borders of the European Union is unlawful, as the European Court of Human Rights ruled. ECCHR supports the claims of two refugees against Spain.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities apprehend and summarily deport unaccompanied minors to Morocco without a procedure to identify them and protect their rights. ECCHR supports an individual communication against Spain on behalf of the unaccompanied Malian minor D.D., submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Push-Backs
Spanish authorities systematically and often violently expel refugees and migrants at their borders. The long-standing practice of push-backs at the external borders of the European Union is unlawful, as the European Court of Human Rights ruled. ECCHR supports the claims of two refugees against Spain.
Infrastructure
In 2010, those affected by the construction of the Merowe dam in North Sudan filed criminal complaints against Lahmeyer employees. The German company played a major role in the construction. Over 4,700 families lost their belongings and their means of subsistence.
Infrastructure
In 2010, those affected by the construction of the Merowe dam in North Sudan filed criminal complaints against Lahmeyer employees. The German company played a major role in the construction. Over 4,700 families lost their belongings and their means of subsistence.
Torture
The group around the former Syrian military police employee 'Caesar' took for the first legal action by filing together with ECCHR a criminal complaint against senior officials from the Syrian intelligence services and the military police concerning crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Torture
The Syrian government led by president Bashar al-Assad is responsible for systematic and widespread torture. ECCHR together with seven Syrian torture survivors as well as the Syrian lawyers al-Bunni and Darwish submitted the first criminal complaint against six high-level officials of the Syrian military intelligence service to the German Federal Prosecutor.
Torture
They survived torture and detention in Syria and fled to Europe, where they now hope to obtain justice. Austrian authorities should follow the example set in Germany, Sweden and France and initiate investigations into systematic torture under Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
Armed Conflict
Eleven former Syrian employees of French company Lafarge submitted a criminal complaint against Lafarge. By having business relations with the terrorist group ISIS in Syria, the company may have taken part in the financing of the group, being therefore complicit in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Surveillance Technology
The Syrian intelligence services have been collecting without cause information about political opponents, members of the opposition and human rights activists. Spying often goes hand in hand with torture. Software from Western corporations may have played a role in the surveillance. In order to address this, transnational investigations have to be initiated.
Torture
They survived torture and detention in Syria and fled to Europe, where they now hope to obtain justice. Austrian authorities should follow the example set in Germany, Sweden and France and initiate investigations into systematic torture under Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
Torture
Ramzan Kadyrov officially resumed office in 2007 as head of the Russian republic Chechnya. The Republic suffers from two armed conflicts against Russia. The reconstruction processes is proceeding under Kadyrov, however, there have been repeated human rights violations.
Surveillance Technology
The Syrian intelligence services have been collecting without cause information about political opponents, members of the opposition and human rights activists. Spying often goes hand in hand with torture. Software from Western corporations may have played a role in the surveillance. In order to address this, transnational investigations have to be initiated.
Sexualized Violence
The Russian Federation fails to investigate, prosecute and punish serious violations of women's human rights, particularly in response of allegations of violence regarding adherence to a campaign to enforce an Islamic dress code.
Torture
Ramzan Kadyrov officially resumed office in 2007 as head of the Russian republic Chechnya. The Republic suffers from two armed conflicts against Russia. The reconstruction processes is proceeding under Kadyrov, however, there have been repeated human rights violations.
Guantánamo
Belgium failed to investigate and prevent torture in US detention camp Guantánamo. Former detainee and Belgian citizen Zemmouri together with ECCHR argues that Belgian officials were complicit in the abuse.
Guantánamo
Former Guantánamo detainees Sassi and Benchellali filed a complaint in France against William "Jim" Haynes. He was one of the Architects of the US torture system during the George W. Bush administration.
Guantánamo
In March 2009, a criminal complaint was filed against six former US officials regarding their accountability for violations of international law, including war crimes and torture. The US officials became known as the Bush Six.
Torture
Between 2004 and 2007, three complaints were filed in Germany and in France against members of the US Government, including former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and members of the military forces in connection with war crimes, torture and other criminal acts in the military prisons of Guantánamo and Abu Ghraib.
Guantánamo
Moroccan citizen El Haski was convicted to imprisonment in 2004 in Belgium for several offences committed with regard to an alleged terrorist group. At his conviction, witness testimony from Morocco was used which, according to El Haski, was procured by torture.
Guantánamo
Moroccan citizen El Haski was convicted to imprisonment in 2004 in Belgium for several offences committed with regard to an alleged terrorist group. At his conviction, witness testimony from Morocco was used which, according to El Haski, was procured by torture.
Torture
ECCHR has filed a criminal complaint with the German Federal Public Prosecutor calling for investigations into Gina Haspel's role in the torture of detainees at a CIA secret prison in Thailand in 2002. Haspel was appointed Director of the CIA by President Donald Trump in May 2018.
Iraq
ECCHR demands investigations into the role and responsibility of British military officials in Iraq. A communication documents 2000 cases of grave mistreatment during the five years which UK forces operated in Iraq.
Our Global Fight for Human Rights
In his new book "Law versus Power", Wolfgang Kaleck, founder and General Secretary of ECCHR, discusses what motivated him to begin fighting for human rights through legal means. After a book tour through the US in January (e.g. at UCLA School of Law, Stanford Law School, Human Rights Center at Berkeley Law), Kaleck will present his book in Berlin in February.
The Regional Court in Dortmund will not investigate the facts in the case against textile retailer KiK. In January 2019, the court rejected the lawsuit, which aimed to clarify KiK's joint responsibility for the fire safety deficiencies at a supplier factory in Pakistan, referring to a statutory limitation. KiK had initially agreed to waive a possible statutory limitation, but later insisted that this waiver was void.
Torture, enforced disappearances and executions of political opponents are only some of the crimes committed by the Syrian government. There is little prospect of accountability on an international level. Several European states opened criminal investigations to hold those to account who have committed international crimes. In Sweden, this could be made possible through the principle of universal jurisdiction. On 20 February 2019 in Stockholm, we will discuss the possible legal steps of the Swedish judiciary together with torture survivors and human rights activists from Syria as well as Swedish organization Civil Rights Defenders.
The almost global capacity to conduct airstrikes anytime, anywhere: that is one of the most distinctive features of armed drones – and therefore a new dimension of warfare. The US military bases at Ramstein (Germany) and Sigonella (Italy) play a crucial role in US drone strikes in Yemen, Somalia and elsewhere. ECCHR uses legal means to seek an end to unlawful killings by armed drones.
After Germany, Sweden and France, also Austrian authorities are investigating into the Syrian intelligence services for their role in systematic torture. The investigations were after 16 Syrian submitted a criminal complaint in May 2018. "I hope that Austria will issue arrest warrants against senior officials of Assad's torture system," said one of the complainants, who was tortured by the military intelligence service. In June 2018, in Germany similar complaints contributed to an arrest warrant against the head of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Service.
War and persecution, exploitation and severe hardship force people to leave their homes and make the life-threatening journey to Europe. But violence and unlawfulness do not end at the borders of Europe. Together with refugees and migrants, ECCHR makes legal interventions against push-backs and fights to enforce applicable human rights. Because everyone has the fundamental right to have rights.
