Good day,
I write ascertain if you are in touch with someone in the Dominican Republic that would be able to give me the name, address, telephone number and email address of a process server in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic .Your kind assistance with this information would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Deidre S. Powell
deidre@mannlawyers.com
The Jamaican Bar Association hosts "Bar Beat"
When: Saturday, November 15, 2008 @ 9:00pm
Where: Village Cafe Blues Bar, Orchid Village Plaza,
26 Barbican Road, Kingston 6
Tickets are $1,000 and are available at the JBA office - tele : 967-1528 or 967-9034
From:
Candis CraigTo:
'Candis Craig'Sent: Tuesday, November 04, 2008 3:47 PM
Subject: Inter American Commission on Human Rights on-site visit to Jamaica
Dear Colleagues,
Please see below the recent press release from the Inter American Commission on Human Rights, the English version is at the bottom. You will note the IACHR will be visiting Jamaica December 1-5 2008. This is the first time the IACHR will be conducting an on-site visit to an English-speaking Caribbean Member States since 1994, and I encourage you to bring to their attention the pressing human rights issues facing your organization or special interest group. If you would like to be considered in the agenda of the Commission please send a request to
IZarifis@oas.orgMy understanding is that six of the seven Commissioners will be included in the delegation which will provide the public with a unique opportunity to voice their concerns directly with the Commissioners. However, given the limited time frame the requests will have to be submitted for consideration as soon as possible. I particularly encourage colleagues in the areas of children’s rights, women’s rights, discrimination based on sexual orientation, discrimination based on HIV status, and mental health to make use of this opportunity. This of course is not to the exclusion of human rights issues related to crime and violence, but I want to ensure that these other areas are included in their agenda. Also, if you know of any organizations working on economic social and cultural rights issues please send this email to them as well, as some of the Commissioners are particularly interested in this area.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me directly, and please feel free to send this email to your friends and colleagues across the island as well.
Regards,
________________
Candis Craig
Partner
Hamilton & Craig
Attorneys-at-Law
11 Fairfield Road
PO Box 159, Fontana
Montego Bay, St. James
Jamaica, W.I.
Telephone: 876 979 7945/7213
Telefax: 876 940 1748
Press Release No. 46/08
IACHR CONCLUDES 133rd PERIOD OF SESSIONS
Washington, D.C., October 31, 2008—The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States (OAS) held its 133rd regular period of sessions from October 15 to 31, 2008. During the sessions, the Commission approved reports on cases and individual petitions, and held 57 hearings and 34 working meetings.
The hearings encompassed issues that have a general impact on all the countries of the region, as well as specific issues related to one country or sub-region in particular. During this period of sessions, the Commission held hearings on the rights of women, persons deprived of liberty, children, Afro-descendents, and indigenous peoples, among others. Hearings were also held on issues having to do with obstacles to obtaining access to justice; citizen insecurity; the rights of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transsexuals, transvestites, and intersexuals; the situation of people who carry the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV); and economic, social, and cultural rights, among other topics.
The IACHR expresses its satisfaction with the agreement for a friendly settlement reached in a working meeting between the government of Paraguay and the petitioners in the case involving the Kelyenmagategma Indigenous Community (Puerto Colón) of the Enxet People. Under the agreement, the State makes a commitment to hand over lands and issue titles in the name of the Kelyenmagategma Indigenous Community of the Enxet People, as well as to provide a community development plan, among other key commitments. In addition, the IACHR will follow up on important agreements reached during working meetings with the government of Mexico and petitioners involving cases of disappearances and extrajudicial executions.
The IACHR received information in a public hearing on the impact caused by the four hurricanes that hit Haiti in August and September, and on the critical humanitarian crisis caused by the storms, particularly due to the loss of crops. The Commission urges the international community to make every effort to assist that country and its people.
The Commission received the government of Bolivia in a hearing in which the government provided information about the acts of violence that took place during the social conflicts of recent months and on the respective investigations undertaken. The IACHR will continue to closely follow the situation in that country.
The Commission would like to note that it received information during a hearing on the situation of children and adolescents in conflict with the law in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. On this point, the Inter-American Commission expresses its deep concern about the limitations of democracies of the Americas when it comes to guaranteeing policies that offer full protection to children in conflict with the law. The IACHR is in the process of preparing recommendations for the States to advance in the protection of the rights of children in conflict with the law.
During another hearing, the Commission received troubling information about the impact that the construction of a wall in Texas, along the U.S.-Mexico border, has on the human rights of area residents, in particular its discriminatory effects. The information received indicates that its construction would disproportionally affect people who are poor, with a low level of education, and generally of Mexican descent, as well as indigenous communities on both sides of the border. On another U.S.-related issue, the IACHR continued to receive troubling information during these sessions about the situation of detainees in Guantánamo. As it did on July 28, 2006, through its Resolution 02/06, and on subsequent occasions, the Commission again urges the government to shut down the detention center.
The IACHR received with concern information indicating that the State of Colombia’s Administrative Department of Security (DAS) conducted intelligence activities against opposition political leaders, national senators, and nongovernmental organizations. According to information provided by the government, the DAS director was dismissed as a result of this activity. The Inter-American Commission urges the justice system to investigate these acts, which undermine democratic institutions in Colombia, and to bring those responsible to justice.
The Commission also learned about administrative investigations that led to the dismissal of 27 members of the Colombian military for their alleged responsibility in disappearances and extrajudicial executions carried out in Soacha and other regions. The IACHR condemns these acts and calls on the regular justice system to prosecute the State agents responsible for these crimes.
During these sessions, several hearings were held on human rights defenders. The Commission reiterates its call to the States to respect their work and guarantee their rights. The IACHR is preparing a report following up on its Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Americas.
Hearings were also held on citizen insecurity in Venezuela and Mexico. The IACHR is following with particular attention the state of citizen insecurity in the region, as well as the respect for human rights as an essential component of all public policies to address the problem. The IACHR is in the process of preparing a report on citizen insecurity in the region, as part of an agreement signed with UNICEF.
The Inter-American Commission continues to strengthen its cooperation ties with the universal human rights system. In this context, the Commission met during the sessions with the new United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Business and Human Rights, John Ruggie, and with the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Indigenous People, James Anaya. In addition, for the first time a UN Rapporteur attended a working meeting of the IACHR; with the consent of the petitioners and the State, Professor Anaya participated in the meeting on precautionary measures for indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation in Peru.
During these sessions, the IACHR made progress in organizing its on-site visit to Jamaica, which will take place December 1-5. The IACHR thanks the government of Jamaica for the invitation, which will lead to the Commission’s first on-site visit to an English-speaking Caribbean country since 1994.
This press release has an Annex, which is available on the
Commission’s webpage.
