| WASHINGTON
- March 25 - The state of war declared last night by the Yugoslav Federal Government
should not be a screen for further human rights violations, Amnesty
International said today.
"Even in exceptional conditions the authorities are bound to observe the
basic human rights enshrined in the treaties to which the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia (FRY) is a party," the organization said.
In the early hours of this morning in Pristina Serbian police broke down the
door of Bajram Kelmendi, a prominent ethnic Albanian human rights lawyer, and
struck him with rifle butts claiming he had guns in the house. After ransacking
the house police took him away together with his two sons Kustrim (16) and
Kastriot (30). Police refused to reveal to Bajram Kelmendi's wife, Nekibe, also
a lawyer, where the men and boy have been taken.
A security guard at the Koha Ditore Albanian language newspaper was allegedly
shot dead by police when they forcibly closed down the newspaper during the
night.
"We condemn these acts and all similar attempts to curtail the human
rights of lawyers, activists in non-governmental organizations, journalists or
opposition supporters," Amnesty International said.
"In the context of gross human rights violations already seen in Kosovo
and of growing pressure on the independent media, we fear that emergency
legislation may now be passed to consolidate and try to legitimize further
violations."
The situation is tense in the country following air-strikes by the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) against military and police targets
throughout the FRY, which commenced last night. Foreign journalists form NATO
member countries are reported to have been ordered out of Serbia.
International human rights standards such as the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) permit states some derogations from these
obligations in times of emergency. However, states may not derogate from
fundamental human rights --especially the right to life and freedom from torture
-- under any circumstances.
Background information
One of the key human rights instruments to
which the FRY is a party is the ICCPR. Article 4 clearly states that some
fundamental human rights can never be suspended or limited. States are
prohibited from derogating from Articles 6, 7, 8 (paragraphs 1 and 2), 11, 15,
16 and 18.
Rights that can never be suspended include the right to life and to freedom
from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the right
to recognition as a person before the law; the right not to be subjected to
arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy, family, home or correspondence
or to attacks on one's honor or reputation; and the right to freedom of
thought, conscience and religion.
Article 4 requires that rights and freedoms may only be limited "to the
extent strictly required by the exigencies of the situation", that measures
taken "are not inconsistent with [the state's] other obligations under
international law" and that they "do not involve discrimination solely
on the ground of race, color, sex, language, religion or social origin."
Strict rules must also be observed in informing the United Nations
Secretary-General of any derogations.
The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and its Additional Protocols of 1977 -- to
which the FRY is a party -- cannot be derogated from in any circumstances. Among
other things, they protect civilians and persons detained in a conflict by
forbidding murder, torture, hostage-taking, humiliating and degrading treatment
and the passing of sentences without judgments pronounced by properly
constituted courts and other judicial guarantees.
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