28 October 2016
Spokespeople for the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights: Ravina Shamdasani
Location:
Geneva
Subject: (1)
Iraq
(2)
Turkey
(3)
Kenya
(1) Iraq
Credible reports suggest that ISIL has been forcing tens
of thousands of people from their homes in sub-districts around Mosul and has
been forcibly relocating civilians inside the city itself since operations
began on 17 October to restore Iraqi Government control over Mosul. ISIL
fighters are allegedly killing civilians who refuse to comply with ISIL’s
instructions or who previously belonged to the Iraqi Security Forces, including
232 civilians who were shot to death last Wednesday.
At least 5,370 families were abducted by ISIL from Shura
sub-district, another 160 families from al-Qayyarah sub-district, 150 families
from Hamam al-Alil sub-district and 2,210 families from Nimrud sub-district of
al-Hamdaniya district, reports indicate. Forced out by gunpoint, or killed if
they resist, these people are reportedly being moved to strategic locations
were ISIL fighters are located. Information received indicates that 60,000
persons are currently residing in Hamam al-Alil, an ISIL stronghold with a
previous population of 23,000.
Of the 232 civilians reportedly shot to death on
Wednesday, 190 were former ISF personnel. They were killed at the al-Ghazlani
military base in Mosul. It appears that a day earlier many of these men and
their families had been forced by ISIL from Shura and al-Qayyarah
sub-districts, and were initially taken to Hamam al-Alil, where the men were
separated from the women and children. The other 42 civilians were reportedly
shot in the head at the al-Izza military base after they refused to join ISIL.
The use of human shields is prohibited under international
humanitarian law, and constitutes a violation of the right not to be
arbitrarily deprived of life.
A press release with more details will follow shortly.
(2) Turkey
We are very concerned about the arrests on Tuesday of Gultan Kisanak and Firat Anli,
the co-mayors of the city of Diyarbakir in southeast Turkey on
terrorism-related charges. Ms Kisanak and Mr Anli’s arrests are the latest in a
series of arrests affecting democratically elected representatives over the
past few months in eastern and southeastern Turkey. Dozens have reportedly been
suspended from public office and many detained.
We are also concerned about other professional groups,
including civil servants, who have been affected by measures taken under the
state of emergency. In the absence of access, the UN Human Rights Office
continues to observe the situation remotely and we will be providing more
updates.
We remind the Turkish authorities that even during a
state of emergency, the principles of legality, proportionality and necessity,
due process guarantees and the presumption of innocence – fundamental
requirements for a fair trial – must be respected. We call on the Government to
ensure full respect for human rights and maximum transparency in the
administration of justice.
(3) Kenya
We welcome the decision by President Uhuru Kenyatta this
week to commute all death sentences to life imprisonment, removing 2,747
convicts from death row, including 2,655 men and 92 women.
Article 6 (4) of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, which Kenya ratified in 1972, states that anyone sentenced to
death shall have the right to seek pardon or commutation of the sentence.
We hope that Kenya will build on the momentum created by
Monday’s mass commutation and work towards establishing an official moratorium
on the death penalty, aiming at its full abolition for all crimes. Kenya has
not implemented death penalty sentences since 1987 and it accepted
recommendations made by the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review
in 2015 to establish a moratorium and work towards abolition of capital
punishment.
We hope Kenya’s initiatives will inspire other States to
push forward with efforts to abolish the death penalty, joining the 106 other
countries that have rid themselves of this inhumane practice.
We stand ready to continue to support all efforts in this
direction.
ENDS
For more information and media requests, please contact
Ravina Shamdasani (+41 22 917 9169 / rshamdasani@ohchr.org ) or Liz
Throssell ( +41 22 917 9466/ethrossell@ohchr.org )
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