The US government was obliged to uphold the rights to life and peaceful assembly, IBAHRI said
The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute has decried the human rights violations it said was being committed by the US’ public authorities, particularly in the shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers last month.
The IBAHRI noted that violence in attacks on protestors and the lack of independent investigations being conducted. The body said in a statement that the incidents “reflect a troubling pattern of executive overreach and impunity that undermines fundamental principles of democracy.”
Before Good and Pretti, at least 12 shootings of civilians had already been attributed to ICE officials.
“It is a source of great concern that we are seeing in Minneapolis, and across the United States, the use of a policing force, an arm of the state, overreaching, with no means of identification, where they cover their faces, where there are no identifying numbers on their clothing, allowing them to enjoy immunity from prosecution,” said IBAHRI co-chair Mark Stephens in a statement.
The body lauded Minnesota district judge Eric Tostrud’s ruling to preserve evidence in the matter of Pretti’s death, but it expressed concern about the weak advancement in Good’s case. It urged the US government to fulfill its obligations under the UN Basic Principles and hold the officers responsible for the incidents accountable.
The IBAHRI highlighted the US’ obligation to uphold the rights to life and peaceful assembly in Articles 6 and 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, of which the US is a state party. The IBAHRI also pointed to the US government’s need to comply with Article 7 of the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, which requires governments to treat the arbitrary or abusive use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials as a criminal offence.
Moreover, the IBAHRI spotlighted ICE operations that superseded judicial processes, including arrests without warrants and deportations executed without due process. It noted that ICCPR Article 14 mandated that must have access to legal representation, be informed of the grounds for deportations and have the ability to challenge decisions before an impartial authority through an effective appeals process. In addition, individuals possessed the right to non-refoulement, which bars the return of individuals to a country in which they faced a real risk of persecution or harm, per customary international law and the 1951 Refugee Convention.
“Every life lost is a tragedy. But when a life is lost through breaches of fundamental human rights carried out by public authorities, the institutions that are meant to protect citizens, and no one is held to account, a message is sent to the wider community that impunity will reign,” IBAHRI co-chair Hina Jilani said in a statement. “The IBAHRI hopes that meaningful investigations into the violations committed by ICE are able to be carried out without impediment.”
