06 October 2021
Towards Institutional Guarantees for Democratic Rotation
In a recent Advisory Opinion the Inter-American Court of Human Rights established that indefinite presidential re-elections constitute a violation of Inter-American human rights standards. In doing so it sets substantive limits to states regarding the design of their political and electoral systems. This is a far reaching and bold move. Continue reading >>
0
25 April 2021
Paving the Way for Equitable Access to Vaccination
The global and regional distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has become one of the biggest geopolitical issues in the fight against the pandemic. On April 7, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights published its Resolution 1/2021 “COVID-19 Vaccines and Inter-American Human Rights Obligations.” As it looks back on more than one year of health crisis and its multiple effects over all spheres of life, the Resolution addresses the urgency of ensuring rapid immunization throughout the Americas. Continue reading >>
0
22 May 2020
States of Emergency without Rule of Law: The Case of Venezuela
Nicolás Maduro, who still holds the presidency, declared a state of alarm on March 13, 2020, invoking the need to counter the pandemic. However, the corresponding decree not only contradicts the constitutional provisions for states of exception but is also being employed to impose abusive limitations on human rights, to aggravate political repression and persecution, to blur the seriousness of certain socio-economic problems, and to contain social protests. The absence of judicial and parliamentary controls that could counteract these excesses of power has resulted in an autocratic shift within a context that was already authoritarian. Continue reading >>25 April 2020