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UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani on the Treatment of Migrants in Tunisia
“We are very concerned by the increased targeting in Tunisia of migrants, mostly from south of the Sahara, and individuals and organisations working to assist them. At the same time, we are witnessing a rise in the use of dehumanising and racist rhetoric against Black migrants and Black Tunisians,” spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
“Our Office has recorded incidents of arbitrary arrest and detention of human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists critical of the Government, as well as its migration policies,” she said.
Shamdasani also flagged another worrying recent development.
“Reported raids in the past week on the Tunisia Bar Association undermine the rule of law and violate international standards on the protection of the independence and function of lawyers. Such actions clearly constitute forms of intimidation and harassment,” Shamdasani noted.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk urges the authorities to respect and safeguard freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly, as guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Tunisia is a party, the spokesperson said.
“The rule of law must be upheld, and those arbitrarily detained, including for defending the rights of migrants and for combating racial discrimination, released. The human rights of all migrants must be protected, and xenophobic hate speech must stop,” stressed Shamdasani.
ENDS
For more information and media requests, please contact:
In Geneva
Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org or
Liz Throssell - + 41 22 917 9296 / elizabeth.throssell@un.org or
Marta Hurtado - + 41 22 917 9466 / marta.hurtadogomez@un.org
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STORY: UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani on the Treatment of Migrants in Tunisia
TRT: 01:21
SOURCE: UNTV / OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 17 May 2024 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Exterior shot: Palais des Nations
2. Interior shot: Briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “We are very concerned by the increased targeting in Tunisia of migrants, mostly from south of the Sahara, and individuals and organisations working to assist them. At the same time, we are witnessing a rise in the use of dehumanising and racist rhetoric against Black migrants and Black Tunisians.”
4. Cutaway: briefing room
5. SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Our Office has recorded incidents of arbitrary arrest and detention of human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists critical of the Government, as well as its migration policies.”
6. Cutaway: briefing room
7. SOUNDBITE (English)—Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Reported raids in the past week on the Tunisia Bar Association undermine the rule of law and violate international standards on the protection of the independence and function of lawyers. Such actions clearly constitute forms of intimidation and harassment.”
8. Cutaway: briefing room
9. Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Furthermore, the rule of law must be upheld, and those arbitrarily detained, including for defending the rights of migrants and for combating racial discrimination, released. The human rights of all migrants must be protected, and xenophobic hate speech must stop.”
10. Cutaway: briefing room
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