Czech Centre for Human Rights and Democracy

The Centre is an independent academic institution monitoring human rights developments both domestically and worldwide, issuing a monthly Bulletin, as well as organizing conferences.

31. 10. 2018   Dougals Radcliff

Chechnya is an autonomous republic of Russia, located in the North Caucasus, near the Caspian Sea, in southern Russia. With a reported (though disputed) population of around 1.3 million people, the Chechen Republic is also, arguably, one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a homosexual.

The Crisis

The crisis was first made aware to the public on April 1, 2017 in the newspaper, “Novaya Gazeta.” The paper reported that numerous men between the ages of 16 and 50 had simply disappeared. The paper continues to specify the men were arrested for their practice of, or suspicion of, “non-traditional sexual orientation”.  

2. 11. 2018  

The October Bulletin opens with an exclusive interview with the President of the relatively new court in The Hague. Judge Ekaterina Trendafilová presides over the so-called Kosovo tribunal (Kosovo Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor's Office). What crimes will this institution, located in the world’s judicial capital, focus on?

Additionally, this year’s Nobel Peace Prize is being discussed, which was awarded to  Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad as an appreciation for their long-term activities against the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war.

Furthermore, there are a number of articles regarding current human rights developments.  These articles are divided into the following four categories: International Criminal Justice; European System of Human Rights Protection; International Politics, Business and Human Rights; and the Czech Republic and Human Rights.

27. 8. 2018   Douglas Radcliff

In recent months North Korea and the United States have launched a process to reconcile some of the differences existing between their political cultures. More specifically, the overarching goal of the US in the summit is the nuclear disarmament of North Korea.

North Korea – United States Summit

The attempt to disarm is a step in the right direction when dealing with Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, but it is of vital important to consider his optics; what does North Korea Want?

17. 10. 2018  

In October, The Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation (EIUC) based in Venice published the final thesis of the head of the Czech Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, Jan Lhotský. EIUC annually publishes five of the best theses online from its E.MA human rights programme. In the text, Jan Lhotský analyses the functioning of the UN human rights treaty bodies that are based in Geneva and proposes a concrete reform for 2020 when the UN General Assembly is expected to decide on the necessary changes.

27. 9. 2018  

The September Bulletin opens with three contributions discussing the institutional set-up of human rights protection in the Czech Republic. Lucie Nechvátalová focuses on the question of whether it is sufficient to have the human rights agenda under the Ministry of Justice or if it is more suitable to have a separate person responsible for it. Two interviews follow, the first with the former minister of human rights, Džamila Stehlíková, and the second with the former government’s plenipotentiary for human rights, Monika Šimůnková. What are their experiences?

Furthermore, there are a number of articles regarding current human rights developments.  These articles are divided into the following four categories: International Criminal Justice; European System of Human Rights Protection; International Politics, Business and Human Rights; and the Czech Republic and Human Rights.

3. 9. 2018  

Our two-month summer Bulletin opens with an exclusive interview with the Czech President of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Judge Ivana Hrdličková. What crimes does this so-called hybrid tribunal based in The Hague focus on?

Additionally, the Czech member of the Venice Commission, Veronika Bílková, discusses in detail the June session of the commission that elaborated mainly on the Hungarian package of legislative amendments referred to as Stop Soros.

Nikola Klímová then discusses the outcomes of the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council in connection with the developments in Turkey, Tanzania, Poland and El Salvador.

3. 9. 2018  

The Czech Centre for Human Rights and Democracy is proud to present a new issue of the Czech Republic Human Rights Review examining the period of 2016.

We are opening the issue with a piece from a guest writer Jan Kozubík who offers a description of the 2016 developments in the Czech LGBT policy areas.