International Legal News - 24 March 2025
- Ned Vucijak
- Mar 24
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 31
The following media round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period of 17 March to 23 March 2025. Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates from the International Criminal Court, European Court of Human Rights, United Nations, European Union and other sources. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.
19 March 2025
Detention of Istanbul Mayor set to run in presidential election described as politically motivated
According to Human Rights Watch, the detention of Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on March 19, 2025, along with approximately 106 other municipal officials and politicians is a politically motivated move to stifle lawful political activities. The mayor’s arbitrary detention undermines the rights of voters who elected him and the broader democratic process in Türkiye.
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said it ordered İmamoglu and others detained in the scope of two separate criminal investigations against him. The move came just days before March 23, when he is set to be nominated by the Republican People’s Party (Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi, CHP), Türkiye’s main opposition party, to run against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a presidential election in the next three years.
On the day of the detentions, the Istanbul governor’s office banned public assemblies and demonstrations in Istanbul between March 19 and 23. Internet users in Istanbul experienced bandwidth reduction on the internet (internet throttling), restricting access to social media and news sites.
19 March 2025
DR Congo and Rwanda call for ceasefire at Qatar talks
The leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda have called for a ceasefire in eastern Congo after having direct talks in Qatar. It is the first time two leaders met since Rwanda-backed M23 rebels stepped up an offensive in the region, where authorities say 7,000 people have been killed since January. It is unclear whether the M23 would heed the ceasefire call, after the rebels refused to attend peace talks in Angola this week.
DR Congo accuses Rwanda of arming the M23 and sending troops to support the rebels in the conflict. Despite assertions from both the UN and US, Rwanda has denied supporting the M23.
Rwanda has said its forces are acting in self-defence against the DR Congo army and allied militias.
According to a joint statement released by Qatar's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday, the two African presidents reaffirmed their commitment to an “immediate and unconditional” ceasefire, but it was not clear how that would be implemented or monitored. “The heads of state then agreed on the need to continue the discussions initiated in Doha in order to establish solid foundations for lasting peace,” it added.
19 March 2025
Mauritius’ Prime Minister should ensure respect for the rights of the Chagossians
In a letter to Mauritius’ Prime Minister, Human Rights Watch said that PM Navinchandra Ramgoolam should prioritise human rights in all policy decisions, both domestically and internationally, during his new term. Ramgoolam won a fourth term in elections on November 10, 2024. He previously served from 1995 to 2000 and 2005 to 2014.
“Ensuring respect for the rights of the Chagossian people in the continuing negotiations with the UK government should be a priority,” said Ashwanee Budoo-Scholtz, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The ongoing displacement of the Chagossian people is an ongoing colonial crime against humanity.”
18 March 2025
US Supreme Court reopens lawsuit over Nazi-looted Pissarro painting
The US Supreme Court has sent a Nazi-looted art claim over a painting at the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid back to the lower federal appeals court to reconsider who owns the work, after a new California statute changed the governing law of the case. The new statute applies the property law of California to lawsuits over art stolen during the Holocaust.
The Supreme Court order, issued on 10 March, granted the plaintiffs’ request for appeal from a 2024 judgment by the Ninth Circuit federal court of appeals in California, which applied the law of Spain, not California, to the case. On that basis, the appeals court concluded that the work that is the subject of the claim, Camille Pissarro’s Parisian streetscape painting Rue Saint Honoré, apres midi, effect de pluie (1897), belonged to the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection Foundation. The Supreme Court action now vacates that judgment and directs further consideration of the case in light of the California law.
COP30 leadership urged to prevent fossil fuel lobbyists from hindering climate negotiations
Anti-corruption NGO Transparency International, along with 264 separate rights groups and individuals, urged the UN climate change agency to call out fossil fuel lobbyists for their efforts in delaying climate progress on Tuesday.
The letter urged the leadership of 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) to “confront high-polluting industries’ undue influence in climate negotiations and restore trust in the COP process.” This includes recommendations of new rules around conflicts of interest and transparency standards. These new rules would exclude fossil fuel lobbies from state delegations and all participants would have to publicly declare their affiliations. It also calls for future COP hosts to demonstrate tangible progress towards climate goals, as well as an end to the partnership of the COP Presidency and fossil fuel lobbies.
