Updates Archives
Court decision is a blow to freedom of expression and independence of lawyers
Amnesty International: The Beirut Court of Appeals’ decision to dismiss the petition by lawyers seeking the annulment of apparently unconstitutional amendments to lawyers’ code of
APCOF delivers statement at ACHPR 75th Session
APCOF delivered a statement on behalf of the Campaign during the 75th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, held in Banjul and online.
Uganda’s Constitutional Court Holds Vagrancy Laws Unconstitutional
On 2 December 2022, in a ground-breaking decision for street vendors and other informal workers, the Constitutional Court of Uganda in Francis Tumwesige Ateenyi v Attorney
Malawi High Court declares unconstitutional the banning of dreadlocks in government schools
SALC: On 8 May 2023, the High Court of Malawi delivered a judgment declaring that the unwritten or written policy of the Government requiring all
Being homeless is not a crime — conflating criminality and homelessness is a dangerous stereotype
Ndifuna Ukwazi: Treating the life-sustaining activities of street-based people as a criminal nuisance, in the manner that the City of Cape Town’s by-laws do, will
National Homelessness Law Center responds to murder of Jordan Neely
(May 5, 2023, Washington, DC) – The National Homelessness Law Center is outraged over the strangulation and murder of Jordan Neely Monday, May 1, 2023. The Law
LGBTQ rights and inclusion amid Botswana’s constitutional review process
SALC: The Botswana courts are among the very few in Southern Africa that has set a trajectory in realizing and protecting LGBTIQ+ rights. In 2016,
False News or Free Speech: Protecting Freedom of Expression In Botswana
SALC: Publishing false news or alarming/misleading information, defined differently in different jurisdictions, has a long and infamous history. From ancient Rome to the present day,
Attacks on journalists on the rise as authorities seek to suppress press freedom
Amnesty International: Authorities across East and Southern Africa escalated their attacks against journalists and press freedom across the region to suppress reporting of corruption and
Call for inputs: Report on colonialism and sexual orientation and gender identity
The Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity (IE SOGI), Mr. Victor Madrigal-Borloz, will dedicate his report
Extrajudicial Killings in Nigeria, the unending circle
Hope Behind Bars: On February 17, 2023, viral social media allegations of extra-judicial killings led to the arrest of three police officers in Anambra state. CSP Patrick
Why are we still sending people to jail for being Poor? It’s time to truly abolish debtors’ prisons
FFJC: Imagine spending a week in jail for being unable to pay a bill. That’s what happened to Roxana Beck. After she pleaded guilty to
PALU 2023 Annual Conference announced
The Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU), the premier continental forum for lawyers and lawyers’ associations, which membership has grown exponentially and now comprises of over
CleanStart Founder awarded Elevate Prize 2023
CleanStart: Congratualations to Teresa Njoroge, the CEO & Founder of the CleanStart, for being awarded the coveted Elevate Prize. Through Clean Start, her innovative approach
APCOF submits amicus in support of challenge to Cape Town by-laws criminalising homelessness
APCOF has been admitted as amicus curiae in Gelderbloem and Others v City of Cape Town (WCHC 5708/21 and EC06/2021), which will be heard in
Report on Advocacy visit to Hisbah, Kano, Nigeria to decriminalize petty offences
Lawyers Alert with the support of the Open Society Initiative of West Africa (OSIWA) is implementing a project that seeks to deepen efforts at decriminalization
RTI key stakeholders validate CHRI’s Right To Information training manual for judges
From CHRI: Some selected judges and members of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have endorsed a Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) Right To Information (RTI) training
Freedom of Expression cannot be Suppressed, Urges Sierra Leone’s Civil Society
AdvocAid, L.A.W.Y.E.R.S., I.LR.A.J., A Girl At A Time, Amnesty International, and Girlz Empowered are concerned about the recent arrest of Zainab Sheriff who was arrested and detained for a video she posted online
Malaysia’s sedition irony
One of the Sultan of Malaysia’s purchased a painting depicting parliamentarians as apes and frogs, a commentary on floor crossing, with no consequence (top image).
Harm reduction, racial justice, Indigenous Peoples rights: UN Human Rights Council breaks new ground on drug policy
IDPC: History was made this week at the UN. The Human Rights Council in Geneva adopted the most ambitious and progressive resolution on drug policy to date,
Food, Housing, and Racial Justice Symposium
The Human Rights Clinic and Program at the University of Miami School of Law, in collaboration with the Human Rights Society, the Office of Intellectual
Morocco: Journalist faces three years in jail for Facebook post
From Amnesty International: Responding to the opening today of the trial of journalist Hanane Bakour who faces up to three years in prison and a
Namibia | Same-sex couples find community in their legal challenge
From SALC: Daniel Digashu, one-half of one of the two couples fighting for the right to be recognised by the Namibian state, writes about how they found
Nigerian Mental Health CSOs call for the decriminalisation of suicide
No fewer than 41 health Civil Society Organisations have called on the Nigerian Federal Government to end the criminalisation of suicide in the country. The
Malaysia seeks to decriminalize suicide attempts
KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia is seeking to decriminalize suicide attempts, its law minister said on Tuesday, the latest in a recent slew of legal reforms
USA: DC Council votes unanimously to decriminalize street vending
The measure passed Tuesday April 4, 2023, also creates vending zones, waives unpaid civil citations and streamlines the licensing process. It requires the mayor’s signature
Support. Don’t Punish Initiatives programme – Call for expressions of interest
Through this call, the Support. Don’t Punish campaign aims to identify and support local partners (up to 7) with funding of between USD 4,000 – 5,000 for
How harsh drug laws undermine health and human rights in Asia Pacific
From IDPC: Twenty-one countries in the [Asia Pacific] region operate either state-run compulsory detention and rehabilitation facilities for people who use drugs or similar facilities.
USA: New Mexico signs groundbreaking Fee Elimination Bill into Law
From Fines & Fees Justice Center: SANTA FE, NM – Last night, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed HB 139, which eliminates the post-adjudication and bench warrant
Draft French law increasing penalties for ‘squatting’ denounced by UN Special Rapporteurs
(30 March 2023) The UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Olivier De Schutter, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to
Report human interest stories – journalists told
Ghanaian journalists have been advised not to forget their core mandates as agenda setters to report human interests stories particularly on the vulnerable to engender
“Decriminalising poverty in South Africa” – Webinar report
South Africa’s Constitution, reflective of regional human rights law, embodies values and principles that mandate the adoption and implementation of measures that promote a more inclusive and egalitarian
Abuja High Court denounces violation of Women’s Rights by law enforcement agencies
12 August 2021, Abuja – On 5 August 2021, the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Abuja Division, per Justice Maha, handed down a groundbreaking decision against
Abuja High Court denounces violation of Women’s Rights by Law Enforcement Agencies
Lawyers Alert & SALC: On 5 August 2021, the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Abuja Division, per Justice Maha, handed down a groundbreaking decision against
Malawi High Court to Determine Constitutionality of Police Sweeping Exercises
21 June 2021, Blantyre – Today, Judge Zione Ntaba heard the case of State v Officer in Charge, Kasungu Police Station and Inspector General of
African Court Challenges States to rethink the Basis of their Criminal Laws
Africa.com 22 January 2021 By Anneke Meerkotter On 4 December 2020, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights issued an Advisory Opinion which challenges
Africa: a Regional Campaign to Decriminalise Petty Offences
In March 2015, a street vendor named Mayeso Gwanda was arrested on his way to work in Malawi for being a ‘rogue and vagabond’. He
Prioritise non-custodial sentencing
Speakers at a roundtable discussion on sentencing in the country’s Criminal Justice System have called on judges to prioritise the option of non-custodial sentencing that
Campaign partner APCOF recommends investigation into bylaws
To promote constitutionally compliant legislation, in the past 27 years, South Africa’s policy and legislative environment has been a subject of sustained and progressive reform. However,
Scrap Vagrancy Laws – Advocates Appeal
With the increasing number of inmates in Ghana’s prisons, crime prevention organization Crime Check Foundation (CCF) has partnered with the Open Society Initiative for West
Crime Check Foundation & OSIWA partner on Decriminalizing Vagrancy Laws and Advocacy (DVLA) project
The Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) has extended funding support to Crime Check Foundation (CCF) in a collective quest to end laws, which
Decriminalising and declassifying petty offences in Tunisian legislation
Recently, the Organization Against Torture in Tunisia organised an experts seminar, as part of this campaign’s activities. The seminar was held in a hotel in
Statement in response to the activity report of the Special Rapporteur on Prisons, Conditions of Detention and Policing in Africa (Item 7)
68th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights 14 April – 4 May 2021 Dear Hon. Chairperson, Hon. Commissioners, all protocols
Eleven people who are homeless go to court to challenge Cape Town’s discriminatory by-laws
Last week eleven people experiencing homlessness launched applications in both the Western Cape High Court and the Equality Court (South Africa) challenging the constitutionality and
Petty Offences Newsletter: November 2020 to February 2021 Activities
The quarterly digest of petty offences campaign activities for November 2020 to February 2021 is in three languages, English, Portuguese and French.
Imprisoned under the Cover of COVID
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism25 November 2020 Edward was lying on his bed when he heard shouting and banging. Last night had been fun: he’d
Documentary on Zambia prisons
The Legal Resources Foundation, Southern Africa Litigation Centre, Prisoners Reintergration and Empowerment Organisation and Decisive Minds put together a documentary on prison conditions in Zambia
Rwanda Should Stop Locking Up the Poor
Reliefweb 21 December 2020 African Court Decision Condemns Practice The African Court on Human and People’s Rights has held that states’ laws enabling the detention
COVID-19 Rules Haunt the Poor
The NationBy James Chavula27 January 2021 In 2017, a vendor moved the Constitutional Court to scrape a colonial law made by Britain in 1924 that
Decriminalization of Petty Offences in Morocco towards Restorative Justice
As part of the African campaign to decriminalise petty offences, the ADALA (Association “for the right to a fair trial”), with the support of the
South African vagrancy laws hark back to colonial times and violate human rights
Daily MaverickAbdirahman Maalim Gossar13 December 2020 In a watershed judgment, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights has ruled that vague, outdated colonial-era laws,
African Court’s Landmark Opinion Could Reduce Criminalization of Poverty, Prison Overcrowding
All Africa Open Society Foundations (New York)‘s Press Release 4 December 2020 Today, a continental court in Africa delivered a landmark opinion on colonial era
Repeal Vagrancy Laws as they are Discriminatory: African Court Declares!
The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, in its 59th Ordinary Session, has today declared that vagrancy laws as contained in national laws are
Findings on Petty Offences Violations in Nigeria
Lawyers Alert in partnership with Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) released petty offences violations data report for Nigeria. The data is captured using
Johannesburg cannot Police its Future
The Mail & Guardian On 29 June this year, amid the generalized panic and concern about rising Covid-19 infection and police brutality both locally and
Kenya’s Gulag: The Dehumanisation and Exploitation of Inmates in State Prisons
The ElephantBy Patrick Gathara Kenyan prisons today carry the DNA of their forebears – the colonial prisons and Mau Mau detention camps. They are about
Petty Offences Newsletter: Digest of Campaign activities in September 2020
In September 2020, the Regional Campaign to Decriminalise Petty Offences hosted a virtual conference entitled Policing Pandemics, Balancing Rights. The conference communique and recordings of the
Petty Offences Newsletter: Increased Criminalisation in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Africa
Regional Campaign partners remain deeply concerned about the criminalisation of poverty across our continent. It is critical that the Principles on the Decriminalisation of Petty
ZIMBABWE: Balancing Human Rights and Enforcement of Public Health Measures
ICJ Kenya By Richard Ncube Corona virus which is popularly known as COVID 19 has taken a terrible grip of the world- it is described
Enemies of the Nation: How the ‘war on drugs’ has failed South Africa
The Daily Maverick First published by GroundUp The global “war on drugs” has failed. The decades during which it has been waged have inflicted devastating
PRESS RELEASE: With People in Detention Vulnerable to Uncontrollable spreads of COVID-19, Ground-Breaking Research Investigates the Gruelling Reality of Female Imprisonment in Sierra Leone
AdvocAid First comprehensive study of women in Sierra Leone’s prisons finds 62% of those interviewed were pre-trial detainees Pretrial detention contributes to overcrowding, which is
Malawi Human Rights Groups Warn of COVID Deaths in Packed Prisons
The Guardian Human rights campaigners in Malawi are calling on the government to urgently release people from its notoriously overcrowded prisons as cases of Covid-19
In Prisons Across Sierra Leone, Women are Detained because they Owe Debt
Progressive International Women’s imprisonment is closely related to poverty: women are in debt because they are poor and cannot afford basic life expenses, and their
Lawyers Alert Releases Data on Human Rights Abuse Associated with Petty Offences in Nigeria
The Nigerian Voice Data on human rights abuse associated with petty offences in Nigeria covering the period October 2019 and March 2020 have been released
Thousands of South Africans who Broke Lockdown Rules could have Criminal Records
Business Tech The Department of Justice and Correctional Services is currently working on new legislation which will stop admission of guilt fines attracting criminal records
Three Months in Jail for Breaking Lockdown Rules, Judge Orders Release of Waste Pickers
The Citizen Forced to choose between hunger and breaching the lockdown regulations, two waste pickers chose the latter – and wound up behind bars for
Prisons, Overcrowding and Preventing Covid-19 Transmission
Over 163,000 people are in correctional facilities in South Africa. Outbreaks of Covid-19 in these prisons can have catastrophic consequences for both prisoners and the
Amnesty International: Sub-Saharan States must Protect Detainees against COVID-19
Amnesty International In many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, prisons are overcrowded. Prisoners often live in squalid conditions and the healthcare systems inside prisons are extremely
Malawi to Decongest Prisons With Covid-19 Cases Rising Fast Among Inmates
AllAfrica Minister of homeland security, Richard Chimwendo Banda , acknowledged that the situation in the the country’s prisons over Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic is deteriorating because
Digest on Excessive Use of Force in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic
The Regional Campaign to Decriminalise Petty Offences has long argued for a change in police arrest practices and increased accountability of law enforcement agencies. Deprose
Overhaul and Align Laws on use of Force
The Mail & Guardian By Sean Tait On April 10, Collins Khosa was allegedly assaulted by members of the South African National Defence Force and
Malawi: Human Rights During a Lockdown
The Weekend Nation By Victor Mhango from the Centre for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance (CHREAA) and Anneke Meerkotter and Chikondi Chijozi from the
Municipal oversight bodies must be beefed up to protect against human rights abuses by police
The Daily Maverick In the wake of the controversy surrounding a video of Cape Town resident Bulelani Qolani being dragged naked from his shack by
UN Torture Prevention Body: COVID-19 shows need to Strengthen National Preventive Mechanisms
GENEVA (2 July 2020) — The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) has called for the role of domestic monitoring bodies, officially known as National Preventive Mechanisms
UN Statement on COVID-19 Exacerbating the Risk of ill-treatment and Torture Worldwide
On 26 June 2020, the UN Anti-Torture Mechanisms issued a statement on how COVID-19 exacerbates the risk of ill-treatment and torture worldwide. The statement notes
Sex Workers in Africa Are More Vulnerable During COVID-19
The Global Fund Sex workers in Africa are among the communities suffering the most due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as lockdowns and police crackdowns leave
Why Criminal Justice Reforms are on Course
The Daily Nation By Grace Ngenye When I read the Daily Nation article (June 17, 2020) on the Committee on Criminal Justice Reforms (NCCJR), my
Judge rules that kids who possess or use cannabis cannot be criminals
Times Live A law that criminalises children who possess or use cannabis has been declared unconstitutional by a Johannesburg high court judge. Judge Ingrid Opperman
CSOs Call for Urgent Decongestion as Prisons Record COVID-19 Cases
On 14 July 2020, the Malawi Prison Service registered its first COVID-19 case at Mzimba Prison through a prisoner. On the same day, an inmate
Decongest prisons now!
The COVID-19 pandemic has again highlighted the urgent need to decongest prisons throughout Africa. Although many countries have initiated decongestion measures, there is a simultaneous
The Campaign to Decriminalise Poverty and Status is a coalition of organisations from across the world that advocate for the repeal of laws that target people based on poverty, status or for their activism.
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