UN Reports: Human Rights

Training Sessions on Human and Women’s Rights to address Violence against Persons accused of Witchcraft in the Central African Republic, October 2012

Hundreds of people – mostly women – in the Central African Republic are accused every year of practicing witchcraft. “Witches” are often accused of causing a wide range of misfortunes such as infected toes, collapsed granary roofs, and even bad weather. Witchcraft is included as a crime in the country’s penal code (even punishable by execution), which is rarely contested given that the belief in witches as a source of several misfortunes is deeply embedded in the Central African Republic’s society.
Women, particularly old single women, and girls who are accused of witchcraft are often subject to SGBV. Due to cultural stigmas and lack of knowledge on basic rights, SGBV cases are often not reported, consequently leaving survivors/victims unassisted and perpetrators unpunished.

See full report here

Angola – Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economics, social and cultural rights – Human Rights Council 7th session, 6 March 2008

The historical and political context of the current assessment is the 27-year civil war in Angola following independence in 1975 and an earlier lengthy struggle against colonialism. A peace agreement signed in 2002 between the Government of the People’s Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) put an end to the conflict but could not reverse the devastating effect it had had on the country and its infrastructure, which reportedly left at least 500,000 people dead and, at the time, millions of internally displaced persons. An armed struggle has persisted in the enclave of Cabinda led by the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda, albeit at a much lower level, despite the signing of a memorandum of understanding for peace and reconciliation on 1 August 2006.
In Angola today, many are able to practice their religion or belief freely; there is, in this regard, a measure of tolerance within Angolan society. The Special Rapporteur, however, notes a number of concerns.

See full report here

Crimes, conflicts and courts: the administration of justice in a Zambian refugee settlement, November 2010

During a visit to Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya in March 1996, a researcher came across three minors and a mentally ill woman, detained in two cells in the middle of the camp and guarded by a young man with a long whip. When the researcher raised the human rights implications of this situation with UNHCR staff, his concerns were “dismissed with the observation that ‘this is their culture.’” Yet the Sudanese Bench Courts in Kakuma, of which the detention cells were part, were originally funded by the Lutheran World Federation, an international NGO responsible for the management of the camp.

See full report here

Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, on her mission to Papua New Guinea (18–26 March 2012)

The present report contains the findings of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, following her visit to Papua New Guinea. The
Special Rapporteur examines the situation of violence against women in the country, including violence that is perpetrated within the family and the community; violence
occurring in institutional settings; and violence related to the development of the country‟s extractive industries. She discusses the State‟s legislative and institutional responses to such violence, and provides recommendations. Read the full report  here

WHRIN Launches Report to UN – 21st Century Witchcraft Accusations and Persecution

Geneva, March 10th  2014 – WHRIN launches what may be the first ever report into the global scale of witchcraft accusations and persecution, muti killings and human sacrifice at the 25th session of the UN Human Rights Council. See full report here
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Persons with albinism: Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

This preliminary report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the attacks and discrimination against persons with albinism is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 23/13 of 13 June 2013.In some communities, erroneous beliefs and myths influenced by superstition put the security and life of persons with albinism at risk. OHCHR has received information from various countries on cases of killings and dismembering of persons with albinism for ritual purposes. It has also collected information on the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination persons with albinism face worldwide.To read full report click here

WHRIN Report to UN: Exploring the Role of Nollywood in the Muti Murders of Persons with Albinism

A Report to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Right for the 24^th Session of the Human Rights Council on the Attacks and Discrimination Against People With Albinism (PWA). See full report  here

Children with Albinism in Africa: Murder Mutilation and violence

This report was written for the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against children, Mme. Marta Santos Pais. The report presents a detailed and comprehensive overview of the situation in Tanzania concerning persons living with albinism (PWA), particularly children. See full report here: Comprehensive Report to Marta Santos – UN-SRSG and APPENDICES To Report to Marta Santos

Witchcraft accusations: A protection concern for UNHCR and the Wider Humanitarian Community?

The following paper takes a broad look at the belief in witchcraft around the world, identifies key groups that are at risk of witchcraft accusations, outlines where witchcraft accusations may be most likely to occur, analyses the factors that lead to these becoming a protection concern and finally makes a number of recommendations for policy makers and practitioners working on this issue. See here

Protecting children from harmful practices in plural legal systems

With a special focus on Africa, the following report addresses law reform in countries with plural legal systems that combine national codified law with informal and unwritten customary and religious law, to support the development of the CRC/CEDAW General Comment/General Recommendation on harmful practices. Full report here.