Dear friends,
The TRIAL International team is happy to be back with you after the summer break and to share with you the events that marked the months of July and August in the fight against impunity. Our organization has intensified its efforts to continue to work with victims of the most serious crimes and has achieved important victories.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the district of Brcko, for the first time in Europe, children born as a result of sexual violence in times of conflict were granted the status of civil victims of wars and recognized as such by the law. In Burundi, the UN Committee against Torture issued another favorable decision for a victim. These are two countries where TRIAL International has been fighting for a long time.
On the 30th of August, the Day for Victims of Enforced Disappearances took place. We wanted to come back to this theme in the framework of our program in Nepal and the activities of our partner, the Human Rights and Justice Center. Twenty years after the events that deprived them of a loved one, five women are asking the government to finally investigate what happened to them. Watch their testimony here.
Finally, for TRIAL International's 20th anniversary, the contemporary artist from Geneva, Jérôme Hentsch, has lent his brushes and his talent to our organization. We invite you to discover his paintings from the 11th to the 16th of October at the Flux Gallery, in the Bains district of Geneva, and to reserve the evening of October 12th for the opening. The profits from the sales of the paintings will be donated to our organization. The week will also be punctuated by events and conferences. More information will follow soon.
We hope you will attend this event and we would like to thank you once again for your support and wish you a pleasant reading of this newsletter.
The TRIAL International team
PS: Do you know that by subscribing to a monthly donation of just 10 CHF your impact is doubled? You become a crucial player in ending impunity for international crimes and you enable us to accompany victims in the long run!
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Bosnia and Herzegovina – Recognition of the status of children born of sexual violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Brčko district recognizes the status of children born as a result of sexual violence during the 1992-1995 war
After years of struggle, one of the three administrative units of Bosnia and Herzegovina has granted civil victim of war status to children born of sexual violence during the conflict. TRIAL International, together with the association Forgotten Children of War, fought hard to have the status of these children recognized.
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Burundi – UN Committee against Torture rules in favor of a victim
Will the Burundian government acknowledge its obligations and put an end to human rights violations committed on its territory?
On 12 December 2015, Michèle (borrowed name) was arbitrarily arrested at her home, humiliated, beaten and tortured before being sentenced and imprisoned for three years. In 2019, faced with the indifference of the Burundian authorities, TRIAL International helped Michèle to file a complaint with the United Nations Committee against Torture, whom in 2022 ruled in her favor and called on Burundi to carry out a thorough investigation into the facts denounced by Michèle.
Read more
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Ukraine – Conflict related sexual violence
Legal avenues for survivors of sexual violence in times of conflict
As the war in Ukraine continues to rage, it is extremely difficult to estimate the number of victims of sexual violence. Why are these cases of war-related sexual violence in Ukraine under-reported? What legal avenues and support models can help survivors to obtain justice? Elsa Taquet, our Senior Legal Advisor, tries to bring answers to these questions in this video.
Watch the video
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TRIAL International - Accountability of economic actors
The end of impunity for economic actors
On June 17th, the Swiss authorities opened a criminal investigation against a Swiss trader for the war crime of looting in The Gambia. Since the end of the Second World War, looting has never been prosecuted. Now the Swiss prosecuting authorities are ready to prosecute economic actors who are guilty of this crime. Philip Grant, our Executive Director, explains why this announcement is a big step forward.
Watch the video
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