By Tom Sparks Just Access Why should we pay to defend criminals? It’s a beguiling argument that populists all over the world have used to gut legal aid budgets. On its face, the argument seems straightforward enough. The police do their job with professionalism and skill. They investigate crimes, and they wouldn’t bring charges against […]
By Luca Brocca Just Access On October 10, 2023, Just Access participated in the event at the European Parliament “EPRS Book Talk | Digital Empires: The global battle to regulate technology”. After an introduction by European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, the book was discussed by Anu Bradford, author and Professor of Law at Columbia Law […]
By Leyan AlMaqousi Just Access Gaza is not merely a label on a map; it’s an integral part of Palestine, the capital of which is Jerusalem. It’s also my homeland, the very essence of my beginnings. Despite enduring blockades and wars, it remains our beacon of hope. Its beauty is unparalleled, its sea distinctive, its […]
Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, the Bosnian society was divided between ethnic Muslim Bosniaks, ethnic Orthodox Serbs, and Croats of Catholic origins. In a violent surge of Serbian nationalism, the Serbian high officials claimed that, in fact, the south Bosnian region, which had Bosnian Muslims as the majority ethnic group, belonged to them and had […]
The foundation of our justice system lies in its ability to deliver timely and appropriate verdicts. For the public, the sentencing hearing is a culmination of this process – it represents the system’s judgment and its promise of retribution and rehabilitation. But what happens when offenders choose to skip their own sentencing hearings? The recent […]
The issue of recidivism – or the tendency of a convicted criminal to reoffend – has long been a challenge for many countries. The cycle of crime, imprisonment, release, and re-offending has proven difficult to break. But what if the key to breaking this cycle isn’t just in the rehabilitation techniques employed but in the […]
Seventy-six years after World War II (WWII), the world is still trying to soothe the wounds of those affected by the tragic manifestations of evil that the world witnessed during that time. While justice delayed does not always imply justice denied,[1] sexual violence during the war has, to this day, not been adequately addressed. One […]
Just Access Director, Professor Mark Somos, is proud to have joined Scholars Without Borders (SWB), a new programme at Harvard University’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. SWB aims to support scholars from Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus affected by the war, both those directly impacted by the destruction in Ukraine, and those who’ve had […]
In the last sixty years, there has been a remarkable increase in international courts and tribunals established by states through international or supranational bodies.[1] These institutions have been entrusted with the task of adjudicating cross-border matters, resulting in what has been called the “legalization of world politics”.[2] These various courts and tribunals have not only […]
On July 17th, we commemorate a significant milestone that symbolizes our commitment to justice and the protection of human rights worldwide. It is the anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute in 1998, the foundational treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). This treaty holds immense importance in safeguarding individuals from the most […]
Just Access welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Call for input of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism for her Report to the 78th session of General Assembly. Just Access would like to inform the Special Rapporteur about the recent developments regarding the establishment of organisations in North Macedonia that carry […]
Sanctions are a powerful foreign policy tool. However, when it comes to matters of corruption, the European Union (EU) still lacks a consistent policy in order to deter individuals and larger entities from abusing their power. Nevertheless, the EU is currently working on a directive meant to strengthen its anti-corruption practices, both within Europe and beyond, […]
This article critically analyzes the activity of the International Criminal Court (ICC), highlighting several areas which are in need of improvement, among which one can count the outreach to civil society and victims, the transparency of the Court’s activities and, or the case prioritization strategies. It emphasizes the need for the ICC to address these […]
The war in Ukraine began one year ago when Russia launched a massive invasion of Ukraine, marking the biggest conflict in Europe since WWII. The war has had a devastating impact on Ukraine, with thousands killed and over 8 million Ukrainians fleeing abroad. The economic consequences have been significant, affecting energy supplies in Europe and […]
‘If humanitarian intervention is indeed an unacceptable assault on sovereignty, how should we respond to a Rwanda, to a Srebrenica – to gross and systematic violations of human rights that offend every precept of our common humanity?’ -Kofi Annan, UN General Assembly 2000 Following a grim decade of global powerlessness in which the international community […]
Our legal fellow, Marija Chekredji, writes about grand corruption as a problem which has devastating effects on democracy, the rule of law, and human rights globally. Even though there is an ongoing debate among the international community regarding the best way to tackle this problem, there is an agreement that grand corruption is a serious […]
The problem of domestic violence is a global concern and a gross violation of human rights and freedoms. As this issue affects society as a whole, with a major impact on women and children, it is necessary for all nations to take steps to prevent family violence, prosecute perpetrators, and protect the victims. The Republic […]
Between 5 and 10 December 2022, the Just Access Representative to the Coalition for the International Criminal Court, Zinovia Verikokidi, had the pleasure of participating in the 21st annual session of the Assembly of States Parties (the Assembly/ASP21) to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), held at the World Forum Convention Center […]
Victims of corruption often struggle to claim reparation for the harm they have suffered and legal requirements make it difficult for victims to be represented and recognised in enforcement proceedings. The UNCAC Coalition for Victims of Corruption Working Group seeks to facilitate discussions, the exchange of information and joint advocacy among civil society experts around […]
Our legal intern, Luca Brocca, discusses the importance of youth activism events and organisations and how they contribute to improve access to justice. In this blog post, he suggests that “more attention should be paid to student-authored resolutions and documents at the national and European level. Across Europe, youth activism programmes are organised to raise awareness of […]
Our legal intern, Luca Brocca, writes about #corruption and some modern tools used to tackle it, reflecting on two meetings with the #UNCAC Coalition Victims of Corruption working group. Victims of corruption often struggle to claim reparation for the harm they have suffered and legal requirements make it difficult for victims to be represented and […]
Our Legal Intern, Luca Brocca, writes about e-Justice and how technology both improves and hampers access to justice by investigating legal precedents at both national and EU level Technology can increase the efficiency and transparency of the justice system and make it easier for individuals to access justice. However, it also risks undermining access to […]
Our legal intern Luca Brocca writes about access to justice in environmental matters, the main legal instruments that protect it, and the obstacles to its implementation, through the analysis of concrete cases that illustrate the state of affairs in this area. According to international and European human rights law, the concept of access to justice […]
The concept of access to justice has many different elements, mostly connected to the right to a fair trial. However, perhaps the main right through which it materializes is the right to an effective remedy. This right is commonly included in international human rights instruments, but perhaps where it has become more important is […]
Abstract Has there already been a Grotian Moment for corruption? If not, what would it take for new legal rules and doctrines on corruption to crystallise? This article seeks to answer these two questions by reviewing the relevant history of international legal scholarship, the current public international law framework for anticorruption, and recent […]
A year ago, Just Access published an analysis1 pointing to the abuse of EU’s accession procedural rules committed by Bulgaria’s blocking of the opening of the negotiations for North Macedonia’s EU membership. It argued that: 1) by de facto and arbitrarily vetoing North Macedonia’s bid to access the EU, Bulgaria violated the bilateral “Treaty of […]
Our legal fellow Sara Masetti, a volunteer in Avvocato di Strada, writes about the housing problem in Italy and the legislative that shapes it, the specific Italian context and the emerging creative solutions to it. She introduces the organisation and talks about her experience there as well as her motivation behind it. Italy, alongside with other 170 […]
This post focuses on the issue of regular encounters with law enforcement authorities that lead to police stops, arrests and police custody, during which the fundamental human rights of the detainees are increasingly being violated. It highlights that specific categories of population are especially more frequently exposed to coercive treatment. Although there is a global […]
This post focuses on the issue of regular encounters with law enforcement authorities that lead to police stops, arrests and police custody, during which the fundamental human rights of the detainees are increasingly being violated. It highlights that specific categories of population are especially more frequently exposed to coercive treatment. Although there is a global […]
After a violent internal conflict, or in the context of transitioning from an authoritarian regime to democracy, one of the main hurdles that victims of violence face in order to have access to justice is the existence of amnesty laws. These can be either ‘self-amnesty laws’, adopted by an incumbent regime in order to avoid […]
An introduction to ESG through investor/shareholder activism For giant corporations and businesses around the globe, climate justice goals have often reflected less of a conscious accountability towards the larger issue of environmental rights and more of a strategic matter of regulatory compliance at best. Although concerns on sustainable investment practices and carbon output by […]
On 18-22 October 2021 in Geneva the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights will hold its 69th Pre-Sessional Working Group to start the process of reviewing States’ compliance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (“ICESCR”), one of the most important core human rights treaties.[1] The forthcoming ICESCR compliance […]
Myanmar is the largest provider of narcotics in Asia, and probably the whole world. Since the military junta’s coup d’état in February 2021, the country has aslo been suffering from ferocious oppression and civil war. Given the persistence of broad-based civilian protests and multiple well-organised ethnic armed groups, the situation in Myanmar may escalate to […]
Brief journey of the Aarhus Convention Environmental rights and climate justice under the international law regime cannot be discussed without referring to the 1998 Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision–Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters, more popularly known as the Aarhus Convention (the ‘Convention’). Negotiated and adopted under the […]
As the national judicial systems in Iraq and Syria are unable to respond to demands for justice from victims of ISIL, the international community has to fulfill its responsibility in promoting accountability for crimes committed by the jihadist group. This is particularly the case for states whose nationals have been implicated in some of […]
Efforts to hold ISIL accountable for the heinous crimes committed that may amount to genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, and to attain justice for its victims are stalling due to Iraq’s inadequate constitutional framework and overwhelmed judicial system. Confirming long-held fears, the United Nations established, on 10 May 2021, that there is […]
Later this year, in the second session of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (‘GANHRI’), the Qatar National Human Rights Committee ( ‘QNHRC’) will be assessed for re-accreditation.1 This is an opportunity to reflect on Qatar’s influence on GANHRI and the UN at large, and on the loopholes, poor institutional design, and misaligned […]
Coronavirus may be sweeping the globe, but over the past three decades the contagion of corruption has done much to harm public trust in democracy throughout the world. As western states channel money towards struggling sections of their populations and economies, literal and metaphoric contagions look set to collide. In both Europe and the Americas, […]
At the occasion of the 130th Session of the Human Rights Council (12 October 2020 – 6 November 2020), Just Access together with the Maat Foundation for Peace, and Development and Human Rights Association (MAAT), filed a submission in August 2020 in the context of the review of Yemen under the International Covenant on […]
