CHRI at HRC48: Oral Statement in the Interactive Dialogue with the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (Agenda Item 3)
20 September 2021, Geneva: CHRI made a video intervention in the Interactive Dialogue with the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) at the 48th Regular Session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
The WGAD report was presented by Ms. Elina Steinerte, the Chair-Rapporteur of the Group. In addition to the activities of the WGAD over the year, the report specifically mentioned three thematic issues and WGAD's Deliberation No. 12 on 'women deprived of their liberty'.
In the statement, delivered by Ms. Aditi Patil, CHRI thanked the WGAD for addressing the arbitrary detention of human rights defenders across the globe. It appreciated the holistic approach in Deliberation No.12 which addresses the concerns of ‘women deprived of their liberty’ in contexts going beyond the criminal justice system, including their gender-specific needs and intersecting vulnerabilities. The statement focused on the issues of women prisoners and foreign nationals in detention.
Supporting the WGAD's recommendations, CHRI called on Member States to:
- ensure availability of non-custodial measures and quality legal representation at all stages of the criminal justice process.
- facilitate continued contact of women prisoners with their children and families in line with the Bangkok Rules 2010.
- impose the duty on the arresting authority to inform the foreign national of their right to consular access as well as that of the consular representatives to track and inform the foreign national's family about such detention within a stipulated time.
- review cases of foreign nationals in detention from time to time to ascertain that no person is confined beyond their sentence and take immediate measures for their release and repatriation in light of the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
You can read the statement here and watch the video below: