The Equal Rights Trust has brought together an unprecedented coalition of leading global equality organisations to express grave concern that States are failing to meet their binding legal obligations to ensure non-discrimination in the enjoyment of human rights for all – irrespective of their identity, status or beliefs – including in states of emergency.

While the virus is indiscriminate, the impacts of State responses are not.

The Equal Rights Trust provided comments on the revised draft General Comment No. 37 on Article 21 ICCPR (right of peaceful assembly). The Trust's focus in the submission and its central recommendation is that the General Comment should fully recognise the relevance of the right to non-discrimination to Article 21, both in framing the nature and scope of the right, and in determining the nature and scope of permissible restrictions. The equal and unfettered enjoyment of the right of peaceful assembly is particularly important for groups that are at risk of exclusion, marginalisation and discrimination. Its exercise is fundamental to the affirmation and expression of identity; essential to allowing group ideas, beliefs and interests to be heard and taken into account and necessary to ensure that those exposed to discrimination can come together to challenge it.  

The Equal Rights Trust has taken the opportunity to respond to the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in relation to the call for submissions on the acute and structural threats that new information technologies such as big data, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) pose to the rights to non-discrimination and racial equality human rights principles and standards.

To read the submission, click here.

A joint Third Party Intervention by the Equal Rights Trust, Equality Now and the European Human Rights Advocacy Centre was submitted to the European Court of Human Rights on 29 January 2020.

The submissions address current human rights standards and requirements on the definition and interpretation of rape and its investigation, and the necessity to examine rape complaints and their investigation under the right to non-discrimination (article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights) in conjunction with the prohibition of torture or inhuman or degrading treatment (article 3). The applicant in this case is a Russian national who claims that the State failed to conduct an effective investigation into her allegations of rape by her husband.

Today, the Equal Rights Trust launches its new report Sifting the Grain: 6,000 Testimonies of Discrimination and Inequality from Yemen, which presents an analysis of extensive field research on discrimina­tion, inequality and other human rights abuses conducted in Yemen by eleven field research teams between 2015 and 2017 and analysed by Yemeni researchers in 2018.

Pakistani equality and human rights defender, Asma Jahangir, has died

London, 12 February

The Equal Rights Trust is deeply saddened by the sudden death of our former trustee Asma Jahangir, yesterday. Asma made an enormous contribution to the advancement and protection of human rights at the international level and her loss will have a profound impact. Importantly, Asma consistently championed the most marginalised and made them the focus of her immense efforts for change. Her work as UN Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Religion and Belief leaves a particularly valuable legacy for religious minorities around the world. 

The Equal Rights Trust, the Association of Citizens Praxis (Praxis), and Sandžak Committee for the Protection of Human Rights and Freedoms (Sandzak Committee) call for applications from lawyers in Serbia who wish to participate in strategic litigation on the rights to equality and non-discrimination.  

In July, the Equal Rights Trust completed its final factfinding mission as part of its work promoting the implementation of three UN conventions and seven core International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions in nine countries around the world. During our missions, we have met with approximately 400 representatives from civil society and trade unions, gathering critical information on how best to strengthen their efforts to monitor and advocate for the effective implementation of the conventions in their respective countries.

The Equal Rights Trust is delighted to announce Mr Mamikon Hovsepyan, Executive Director of PINK Armenia as the winner of the 2017 Bob Hepple Equality Award. Despite facing considerable challenges, Mr Hovsepyan has fought tirelessly to combat discrimination against LGBT individuals in Armenia. In addition, he has advocated a holistic approach to non-discrimination, working to challenge violence against women, and collaborating with other members of the Non-Discrimination and Equality Coalition to promote the adoption of comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation in Armenia.