Description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources of the summons of two representatives of the Lebanese Centre for Human Rights (Centre libanais des droits de l’Homme - CLDH).
According to the information received, on March 14, 2011, two CLDH representatives were notified that they were requested to present themselves to the criminal investigation service in Beirut on March 17, 2011 at 10 a.m.
Reliable sources indicate that this summons might be related to the publication on February 10, 2011 of a report by CLDH, entitled Arbitrary detention and torture: the bitter reality of Lebanon [1]. The report presents an innovative study on the patterns of arbitrary detention and torture in Lebanon, based on statistical data, testimonies and interviews.
The Observatory fears that CLDH and its representatives might be harassed in relation with their human rights activities, and calls upon the Lebanese authorities to conform in all circumstances with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998 (UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders).
Actions requested:
Please write to the Lebanese authorities urging them to:
i. Guarantee in all circumstances the physical and psychological integrity of representatives of CLDH, as well as of all human rights defenders in Lebanon;
ii. Put an end to any acts of harassment, including at the administrative and judicial levels, against the representatives of CLDH, and more generally against all human rights defenders in Lebanon;
iii. Conform with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998, especially:
– its Article 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels”;
– its Article 6 (b) and (c), which states that “Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others […] as provided for in human rights and other applicable international instruments, freely to publish, impart or disseminate to others views, information and knowledge on all human rights and fundamental freedoms and [...] to study, discuss, form and hold opinions on the observance, both in law and in practice, of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and, through these and other appropriate means, to draw public attention to those matters”;
– its Article 12.2, which provides that “the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration”.
iv. More generally, ensure in all circumstances the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by Lebanon.
Addresses :
· Mr. Michel Suleiman, President of the Republic, Presidential Palace, Baabda, Lebanon. Fax: + 961 (0)5-922400
· Mr. Saad Hariri, Prime Minister, Grand Serail, Beirut, Lebanon. Fax: + 961 (0)1-983060
· Dr. Ibrahim Najjar, Minister of Justice, Ministry of Justice, Adlieh, Beirut, Lebanon. Fax: +961 (0)1-612564
· Mr. Ziad Baroud, Minister of Interior, Ministry of Interior, Sanayeh, Beirut, Lebanon. Fax: +961 (0)1-751622
· Permanent Mission of Lebanon to the United Nations in Geneva, rue de Moillebeau 58, 1209 Geneva, Switzerland. E-mail: mission.lebanon@ties.itu.int, Fax : +41 22 791 85 80
· Embassy of Lebanon in Brussels, rue G. Stocq, 2 1050 Brussels, Belgium. E-mail: ambassade.liban@brutele.be Fax: +32 2.645.77.69
Please also write to the diplomatic mission or embassy of Lebanon in your respective countries.