Olivier Chamard / Geneva Academy
5 March 2018
Leading academics, law enforcement experts and practitioners from different regions and legal backgrounds, and representatives from international organizations and civil society will join an academic working group to discuss use of force challenges in different contexts.
This academic working-group will address strategic approaches and responses to specific use of force issues like less lethal weapons, crowd control or the use of new technologies. Its composition will vary according to the topics discussed.
‘It was important for us to bring together leading use of force actors and institutions to reflect upon existing challenges and the way to address them’ underlines Kamelia Kemileva, Executive Manager at the Geneva Academy.
This academic working-groups forms part of the Geneva Human Rights Platform, which notably focuses on current human rights challenges related to the use of force.
‘The Geneva Human Rights Platform, hosted by the Geneva Academy, provides a dynamic forum in Geneva for all stakeholders in the field of human rights to discuss and debate topical issues and challenges’ recalls Kamelia Kemileva. ‘The objective is to foster interactions and discussions on topical issues and challenges through regular events, conferences, expert roundtables and private meetings’ she adds.
The academic working-group will start working on the issue of less-lethal weapons (LLW) for law enforcement purposes, related human rights challenges and the lack of international regulation and standards.
The objective is to develop a document to guide practice concerning the use of LLW and other equipment in law enforcement. This document will build on, and in no way challenge or update, the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials.
‘This issue is currently discussed at the UN Human Rights Council, at the UN Human Rights Committee and at the Conference on Disarmament, but also at the national and regional levels. It is therefore important to provide guidance on the human rights challenges related to the use of LLW and how to address them’ underlines Kamelia Kemileva.
News
Geneva Academy
Sixteen diplomats from fifteen Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries participated in a two-day Practical Training on Human Rights Council Procedures.
Global Torture Index
Via its DHRTTDs Directory, the Geneva Human Rights Platform provides a comprehensive list and description of such key tools and databases. But how to navigate them? Which tool should be used for what, and by whom? This interview helps us understand better the specificities of the current highlight of the directory: Global Torture Index
Event
Un Flickr
This side event will examine how LRGs can be better recognized and empowered as key human rights actors, building on recent Human Rights Council resolutions.
Training
UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré
This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.
Project
Adobe
To unpack the challenges raised by artificial intelligence, this project will target two emerging and under-researched areas: digital military technologies and neurotechnology.
Adobe
This initiative wishes to contribute to better and more coordinated implementation, reporting and follow-up of international human rights recommendations through a global study on digital human rights tracking tools and databases.
Publication