Perspectivas / Perspectives

Jimmy Lai is in prison in Hong Kong awaiting trial in September. While the outcome of the trial may be a foregone conclusion, Jimmy’s commitment to the cause of freedom and democracy for Hong Kong is an inspiration to all and reminds us that the fight for human freedom is always worth fighting.

Jimmy Lai personifies Hong Kong’s entrepreneurial spirit, and this spirit, coupled with an embrace of freedom, unleashed economic prosperity for Hong Kongers. Jimmy’s native China enjoyed similar prosperity after undertaking an experiment with personal and economic freedoms, lifting an astounding 800 million Chinese out of poverty. Today, however, it’s a different story—and the stakes couldn’t be higher for Jimmy Lai, the citizens of Hong Kong, the people of China, and everyone seeking to be free around the world.

Because of China’s illegal occupation, the people of Tibet have lost the right to determine their own destiny. But forced into exile, the Dalai Lama has become a compassionate leader for the world and a source of endless inspiration to resolve the Tibet-China conflict.

When Xi Jinping took over as China’s top leader in 2012, there were hopes that his reputation as a moderate and his father’s relationship with the Dalai Lama would lead to a softening of policies. Instead, Xi has proven to be a hardliner whose indefinite rule began this past month, unforeseen a decade ago.

By controlling Tibet’s environment, China controls life not just for Tibetans—but for the nearly 2 billion people across Asia that depend on Tibet’s water, land, and other resources. China is constructing massive dams on Tibetan rivers at an unprecedented pace. This weaponization of water and pollution from construction threatens nearly two billion people across Asia who depend on Tibet’s water.

At least 50 Tibetans have been persecuted for defending their environment, with four known deaths—one peaceful protestor was shot and killed by Chinese forces and three more died in prison. To make way for highways, mining projects, and sprawling development, tens of thousands of Tibetan nomads have been pushed off their lands.

• Border agents will take them into custody as part of a limited experiment that will grant them access to legal advice on the asylum claim.
  

Washington, DC, Apr.16.– Starting Friday, April 14, a small number of migrants trying to enter the country illegally will be able to count on legal advice as part of a border control experiment announced by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

This experiment has begun since the norm created by the previous pandemic, which facilitated the asylum-application procedures for the great majority of migrants, is coming to an end. The DHS has since this past Friday hired a provider of legal services to represent the applicants and counsel them on how to handle the assessment of their case during the so-called "founded fear interviews."

For this purpose, large temporary facilities of the Customs and Border Protection Office (CBP) have been built where migrants will be detained for a maximum of 72 hours to wait for the evaluation interview.

Ref. DC 084(2023)

Strasbourg, Apr.4.– The Secretary General of the 46-nation Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić, has urged member states to show increased political will to implement judgments from the European Court of Human Rights, and to improve their capacity for doing so.

“Complying with court rulings is essential to the rule of law. Over the years, our member states have made consistent progress in putting the European Court’s judgments into practice, but the Court is now dealing with more and more cases of increasing complexity,” said the Secretary-General.

“Across Europe, the human rights convention has progressively changed people’s lives for the better. In order for this positive impact to continue, our member states must demonstrate the political will to implement judgments fully and consistently.”

According to the latest annual report from the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers on the execution of ECHR judgments, 1,459 new cases were transferred by the European Court to the Committee of Ministers, which supervises their implementation by member states, in 2022.