Central American Deportation Project
For several years, U.S. Immigration authorities have intensified deportations of undocumented foreign nationals, as well as “green card” holders that
have committed felonies. There have been a range of concerns expressed about the deportations themselves, and the raids that ordinarily precede them.
This clinical project focuses on the consequences for those individuals that are deported.
In the Spring of 2006, the clinic began research, traveling to El Salvador and Honduras to speak with deportees on their arrival at airports, in
detention centers, and other settings. In August 2006, students participated on a follow-up field mission to El Salvador, conducting further interviews
and documentation. In February 2007, the International Human Rights Clinic released a report, No
Place to Hide: Gang, State, and Clandestine Violence in El Salvador, documenting the phenomenon of youth gangs in El Salvador, human rights abuses
associated with gang violence, and the Salvadoran government's response to gang activity.
Panama Prison Conditions
Like many of its neighboring countries, Panama’s penitentiary system is characterized by harsh prison conditions. However, in contrast to several of its neighbors,
there has been little significant international attention regarding this problem. This project seeks to document prison conditions and
possible human rights violations in Panama’s detention centers. Initial research was done over the fall term 2006. Interviews were
conducted in Panama with government officials, former prisoners, and civil society members over January Term 2007. In March 2007, students
participated on a fact-finding mission to Panama City, where they visited six detention centers, met with government officials and human
rights groups, and interviewed over 100 inmates. The students are currently compiling their documentation into a report to be released in
Spanish and English.
Brazilian Criminal Gang Violence and Police
Responses
Working jointly with the Global Justice Center and a coalition of NGOs and academic experts in Brazil,
this project seeks to document state actions and possible abuses in the
context of responding to organized criminal violence in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In May of this year, the
“First Command of the Capital” (a criminal organization formed in Brazil’s prisons), attacked police districts and public buildings, causing a
number of deaths and shutting the city of Sao Paulo down. In the days and weeks after the attacks, police forces responded. Reports suggest that many offciers executed a number of criminal suspects. To date, there has been relatively little comprehensive analysis of the state response.
In October 2006, students participated on a field mission to Sao Paulo, Brazil, to conduct fact-finding research on the response. Students
documented specific cases, and researched evidence including death certificates, necropsy reports, media stories, and reports of Public Ministry.
The students also interviewed NGO representatives, police, municipal, and state officials. With partner organizations, the students will compile their
research into a report, to be released in Portuguese and English.
Reducing Maternal Mortality as a Human Rights Imperative
Physicians for Human Rights, an NGO that mobilizes health professionals to advance health,
dignity and justice to promote the right to health for all,
has launched a new multi-year initiative relating to maternal mortality. Over the course of the initiative’s duration, the project will: identity the
major obstacles in reducing maternal mortality in a select number of countries, as well as the opportunities for creating programmatic and political/legal
change to overcome these obstacles; engage in participatory capacity-building programs with local partners and communities around the importance of maternal
health care as a human rights issue; and mobilize the health professional and human rights constituency in the U.S. to advocate for changes in policies at
both the local and international levels relating to maternal health.
During the initiative’s first year, with the International Human Rights Clinic, work will include fact-finding and consultation missions in country
(including a Winter 2007 trip to Peru), and the research and drafting of a policy backgrounder relating to many aspects of maternal mortality.
In addition to conducting investigations, students will also participate in strategy team meetings and work with the advocacy and communications
department of Physicians for Human Rights.
Paraguay Criminal Violence Project
Following up on field missions to Paraguay in Fall 2005 and Spring 2006, International Human Rights Clinic students participated on an October 2006
mission to research human rights abuses in the context of the battle to control crime. Working with Paraguayan partner organizations, students are
helping to develop strategies for crime control that respects rights, including comparative research on means of responding to crime that are consistent
with human rights norms. In Spring 2007, the Clinic will finalize and release a report on the findings.
International Challenge to Canadian Limitations on Refugees' Rights
The International Human Rights Clinic, together with the Canadian Council for Refugees, Vermont Refugee Assistance, Amnesty International Canada,
Freedom House (Detroit, MI), Global Justice Center, and the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic filed a petition with the Inter-American Commission
on Human Rights against the State of Canada. The petition argues that Canada’s action in ‘directing back’ persons seeking asylum at the United States-Canada
border violates the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man and the Refugee Convention. The suit grows out of a Canadian immigration policy
implemented in January 2003 (the ‘direct back’ policy) whereby Canadian authorities return arriving refugee claimants to the United States, without seeking
assurances that these claimants will be permitted to return to Canada to pursue asylum claims there. Once the refugee claimants are returned to the United
States, U.S. authorities may detain and deport them to their home countries without allowing them to attend their scheduled asylum proceedings in Canada.
The litigation against Canada has included an October 2005 hearing before the Inter-American Commission and several filings from both parties.
Most recently, in November 2006 the Inter-American Commission resolved several crucial issues of admissibility in favor of the petitioners, thus
bringing the litigation to the merits stage.
