Equal Rights Trust and International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights: Joint statement to the OSCE 2007 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting.

Makuc and Others v. Slovenia (Application No. 26828/06)

WRITTEN COMMENTS OF THE EQUAL RIGHTS TRUST

On 2nd November 2007 Amnesty International and The Equal Rights Trust called on the Slovenian government to withdraw the draft Constitutional Law, presented to parliament on 30 October, which is intended to resolve the status of the “erased” – people unlawfully removed from the registry of permanent residents in 1992.

On November 13, 2007, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights, overturning the Chamber judgment of 7 February 2006, found that the right to non-discrimination guaranteed by Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights had been violated by Czech authorities who had been placing disproportionately high numbers of Romani children in substandard special schools for children with learning disabilities.

In support of the Global Day of Action to protest against the state of emergency in Pakistan, on 15th November 2007 The Equal Rights Trust urged President Musarraf to order the immediate release of all those arbitrarily arrested and detained, following the introduction of the state of emergency on 3 November 2007.

On 14th of December 2007 The Equal Rights Trust urged Abdullah bin Ahmad Badawi, the Prime Minister of Malaysia , to immediately release from detention P. Uthayakumar, M. Manoharan, R. Kenghadharan, V. Ganabatirau and T. Vasanthakumar; and to ensure that everyone, without distinction of any kind, including ethnic origin and political or other opinion, is effectively protected from arbitrary arrest and charges for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and assembly.

On 21 December 2007 the Supreme Court of Nepal issued directive orders to the Government of Nepal to end discrimination against people of different sexual orientation or gender identity. The Equal Rights Trust considers the decision of the court to be a progressive step in recognising the equal rights for those with different sexual orientations and gender identities. The decision is a significant victory for the lobbying efforts of the Blue Diamond Society, a local non-governmental organisation supporting people with different sexual orientation or gender identity.

On 22 January 2008 the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) held that France violated Article 14 (right to non-discrimination) in conjunction with Article 8 (right to private and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in refusing the adoption application of a lesbian woman. The case of E.B. v France began proceedings in the Strasbourg Court in 2002 following the rejection of a number of national appeals to overturn the decision of an adoption board to reject the adoption application of the applicant, E.B.

The Equal Rights Trust urges Turkish authorities to consider the two newly adopted constitutional amendments that will ease restrictions on the freedom to wear the Islamic headscarf in public higher education institutions, as a first step to putting in place a comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation that would effectively combat all forms of discrimination.

On 26 February 2008, The Equal Rights Trust again urged Abdullah bin Ahmad Badawi, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, to ensure that the police does not abuse its powers to discriminate against certain civil society groups and opposition party activists. ERT has also called on the Malaysian Government to accede to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its optional protocols and to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and thus reinforce the safeguards for the enjoyment of human rights in Malaysia.