The Kenyan Constitution contains a bill of rights which protects rights such as the right to life, freedom from slavery, the right to property, and the right to healthy environment. These rights can be enforced in Kenyan national courts.
Despite occurring over 30 years ago, legal actions are still being pursued against Union Carbide for toxic gas leaks in India caused by their negligence. While some compensation has been awarded, this has been a long and exhausting process for victims.
After hearing a claim brought by a Chilean environmental organisation, the Inter-American Court on Human Rights ruled the right to access information was itself a human right which the State was obligated to provide access to information in all but exceptional cases. This paved the way for greater transparency across the Americas.
Facing restrictions on free speech and the imprisonment of government critics, the Ugandan Supreme Court upheld the constitutional right to freedom of expression. The court set out wide protections for the right to freedom of expression, preventing government from making further restrictions in the future, and ordered them to stop criminal prosecutions of political speech.
In Nepal, following a successful case brought by victims’ families, the Supreme Court ordered the government to change its policy of refusing to investigate past practices of enforced disappearances and provide remedies to victims. It also ordered the government to establish a truth commission to investigate instances of enforced disappearance. This created legal reform which […]
In the process of challenging the Nigerian government’s human rights abuses and complicity in environmental destruction in the Niger Delta, a diverse group of communities came together to exercise their voice and hold the government accountable before the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights. The case succeeded on putting the governments abuses on record, […]
The complainants, two NGOs, raised the case against Kenya on behalf of the Enderois people following the forceful removal of the Enderois people from their ancestral lands surrounding lake Bogoria, Baringo, and Koiatek without consultation or compensation. The reason for this removal was to expand the Lake Hannington Game Reserve to increase revenue from tourism. […]
The family of a person who died in military custody at an airport brought a claim against the State for violating the deceased’s right to liberty, and other rights. The IACtHR held that the failure to present reasons for the detention or a charge amounted to an arbitrary detention and a violation of the right […]
This provides courts in Pakistan with the power to issue a writ of habeas corpus to demand that people unlawfully held in detention can be released. The Pakistani Supreme Court has exercised this power in many cases, including: Government of West Pakistan v. Begum Agha Abdul Karim Shorish Kashmiri Muhammad Azam Malik v. A.C. Karachi
Mr. Aguilar-Rodrigez was a national of El Salvador who lived in the USA after fleeing El Salvador. In 2011 he was stopped by police for speeding, but never received a speeding ticket. The police alleged that he was intoxicated and served a 13-day jail term. Instead of being released, he was transferred to Immigration and […]
