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UN Human Rights Committee says Brazil must guarantee Lula's political rights

DECISION IS A RESPONSE TO A PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION FILED BY THE COURT FOR THE DEFENSE OF THE FORMER PRESIDENT, BUT IS NOT BINDING

The UN Human Rights Committee decided on Friday that the Brazilian state should guarantee former President  Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva  the exercise of all political rights even in prison. This includes access to members of his party and the press, and that he is not barred from running for the 2018 elections until all pending legal remedies are reviewed. The ruling is a response to a request for injunction filed by the former president's defense of the body on July 25 this year. However, it has no binding character, ie the Brazilian Government is not obliged to comply with it.

In its decision, the committee claims to have concluded that "the facts indicate the possibility of irreparable damage to the rights of the plaintiff," and therefore the requirement that Lula be guaranteed the exercise of his political rights "until all remedies on their conviction have been completed in impartial judicial proceedings and their conviction is final. "

Lula has  been imprisoned in Curitiba  since the beginning of April serving 12 years and 1 month for corruption and money laundering in the case of the  triplet in Guaruja  under the Lava Jato operation, and must be ineligible under the Clean Tab Act. The former president denies having committed any irregularities.

The decision of the UN committee, signed by two experts of the organization's human rights commission, Sarah Cleveland and Olivier de Frouville, notes that "no decision was taken by the committee on the substance of the subject under consideration." The decision also asks that, in order to avoid greater damages that can not be repaired later, measures are taken by the Brazilian Government. The decision need not be complied with by the Brazilian bodies. However, it causes embarrassment to the country and gives more impetus to the PT's speech that its political rights are being violated. Lula was registered as a candidate for the presidency on the last day 15 and his campaign asks him to participate in the debates and the sabatinas and interviews that are being done with the presidential candidates.

"This is a very welcome decision that demonstrates how human rights can help in the democratic process. Lula was condemned by a hostile judge in what was, in my view, a spurious indictment. He has been kept in a virtually solitary confinement so that he could not campaign and possibly be disqualified to run on this conviction before he could see it revoked in a final decision, "said lawyer Geoffrey Robertson, who is in charge of Lula's UN and in international forums.

Lula's defense further stated in a note that the "decision recognizes the existence of a violation of Article 25 of the UN Civil Rights Pact and the occurrence of irreparable damage to Lula in an attempt to prevent him from competing in the presidential or presidential elections. deny him unrestricted access to the press or members of his political coalition during the campaign, "the statement said. Supporters also say that in Legislative Decree No. 311 of 2009, Brazil has incorporated into the "legal system of the country the Optional Protocol recognizing the jurisdiction of the UN Human Rights Committee and the binding of its decisions." "Faced with this new decision,

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also states in a note that the committee's conclusions are a recommendation and do not have a legally binding effect and that the content of the Committee's deliberation will be forwarded to the Judiciary. It further states that the Permanent Delegation of Brazil in Geneva has become aware without any prior notice or request for information. "The Committee, which oversees the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, is composed not by countries, but by experts who perform the function in their personal capacity," he says. "Brazil is a faithful adherent to the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and its principles of equality before the law, respect for due process of law and the right to ample defense and adversary are also Brazilian constitutional principles,

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source redaccion https://brasil.elpais.com/brasil/2018/08/17/politica/1534523449_561893.html