Ahead of the United Nations Universal Periodic Review (UN UPR) of Tajikistan in May 2016, members of the NGO Coalition against Torture, as well as other Tajikistani NGOs carried out advocacy in Geneva on 31 March and 1 April 2016. During the visit, which was organized by International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) along with the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Tajikistani NGO representatives shared key human rights concerns and recommendations with experts at the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and permanent diplomatic missions to the UN.
On 31 March, the NGO delegates from Tajikistan met with the Human Rights Treaties Division of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to discuss the NGO recommendations and future cooperation. On 1 April, the Coalition against Torture and other NGOs from Tajikistan delivered statements at the 13th round of UPR Pre-sessions, a public event organized by the Geneva-based NGO UPR Info at the International Conference Centre of Geneva, to which all permanent missions were invited. In addition, individual meetings were held with a number of permanent missions.
The NGO visit to Geneva took place in the framework of the EU-funded project, “Action for Freedom from Torture in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan“, which is co-funded by Open Society Foundations. The project is carried out by the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR, Poland), IPHR, Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law (KIBHR) and Nota Bene (Tajikistan).
The second review of Tajikistan in the framework of the UPR – a global peer review process – will take place at the 25th session of the UPR Working Group of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on 6 May 2016. At this review, all UN member states will have an opportunity to ask questions and make recommendations to the authorities of Tajikistan aimed at strengthening human rights protection in the country.
For further input into the UPR process, IPHR has also worked with its partners on written UPR submissions on Tajikistan:
- Submission on issues related to counteracting torture and ill-treatment prepared by the partners in the project on “Action for Freedom from Torture in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan” in September 2015. See also briefing on key concerns and recommendations on torture, ill-treatment and impunity prepared by the NGO Coalition against Torture in Tajikistan, IPHR, HFHR and OMCT for use during the advocacy in Geneva.
- Submission on freedom of expression, association and assembly and other fundamental rights issues prepared by Nota Bene (Tajikistan) and IPHR in the the framework of another Central Asia-focused project in September 2015. See also briefing on key concerns and recommendations regarding fundamental rights prepared by Nota Bene and IPHR for use during the advocacy in Geneva.
For further information, please contact: Brigitte Dufour, IPHR, Director, Mob. +32473363891, email: brigitte.dufour@iphronline.org or Lenur Kerymov, HFHR, Project Coordinator, Mob. +48504080257, email: L.Kerymov@hfhrpol.waw.pl
See also press release issued by the EU delegation in Tajikistan