Petition Submitted by Geneva Demonstrators On 26 June to the UN Human Rights Council

2015-07-02 05:09:23 Written by  Coordinating Committee of the Demonstration of Eritreans in Geneva Published in English Articles Read 2456 times

The organizing committee of the historic June 26 demonstration of justice-seeking Eritreans in Geneva submitted a petition to the UN Human Rights Council fully supporting the report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Eritrea and urging for concrete action against the cruel regime in Asmara.

The petition stated that the thousands of demonstrators were “glad to know that the international community is now paying due attention to the dire state of human rights in Eritrea”. It further noted that although the UN report was an important step forward in the fight to end impunity but demanded that those perpetrators of so many crimes in Eritrea for a prolonged period of time should be brought to a court of justice.

Below is the full petition submitted on behalf of thousands of Eritreans who trekked to Geneva that day from many countries in Europe as well as some from North America and the Middle East.

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To the President of the United Nations Human Rights Council

Geneva

Adopt appropriate measures to end impunity in Eritrea

Your Excellency,

This letter is addressed to you by a huge crowd of justice-seeking Eritrean exiles, who are congregating in Geneva on the 26th of June 2015, for a mass demonstration that coveys our unflinching support to the report of the UN-mandated Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea (COIE).

We are conducting our mass demonstration at a time when the crisis of human rights in Eritrea has reached a very crucial level, which involves a possible situation of crimes against humanity. We are glad to know that the international community is now paying due attention to the dire state of human rights in Eritrea. While we see this as a very important development in our fight to end impunity, we also note that some crucial measures still need to be taken urgently in order to avoid further human suffering in our country.

We therefore call on the Human Rights Council to ensure that those most responsible for a possible situation of crimes against humanity in Eritrea are held accountable pursuant to the existing legal framework of international criminal justice. Indeed, it is time for the international community to devise appropriate methods by which accountability for gross human rights violations is ensured meaningfully. Such measures shall include, among other things, the adoption of effective targeted sanctions against those who appear to be most responsible for a possible situation of crimes against humanity in Eritrea.

As noted by the report of the COIE, we also urge the Human Right Council to adopt appropriate follow-up measures, with a view to providing conclusive findings on the issue of crimes against humanity in Eritrea. In this regard, we also believe that the renewal of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur (Ms. Sheila B Keetharuth) is another important step.

Pending the adoption of appropriate accountability measures, we urge the Human Rights Council to give due consideration to the Eritrean refugee crisis, by advising recipient countries to continue providing appropriate legal protection to all Eritrean asylum seekers and refugees wherever they are.

Your Excellency, we hope that you will give your utmost consideration to the issues of concern we have pointed out above, and we look forward to reading a resolution of your Council that adequately captures these considerations.

Thank you in anticipation of your kind cooperation, and we will look forward to hearing from you.

Coordinating Committee of the Demonstration of Eritreans in Geneva

26 June 2015

Geneva

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CC: To all Members of the Human Rights Council(through their diplomatic missions in Geneva)

Last modified on Thursday, 02 July 2015 07:15