Permanent Peoples' Tribunal


The Permanent Peoples' Tribunal is an international human rights organization founded in Bologna, Italy, on June 24, 1979, at the initiative of Senator Lelio Basso. It was established during the final session of the Russell Tribunal with the aim of condemning Latin American dictatorships. The court is composed of a president, four vice-presidents, a secretary-general and 66 international members. Since its establishment, the Tribunal conducted 46 sessions.
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History

The Permanent Peoples' Tribunal began in Bologna in 1979, continuing the work of the Russell Tribunal II on Latin American dictatorships. It was founded by Lelio Basso to denounce the crimes committed by military regimes in the region. The PPT aims to encourage action in judicial courts based on intergovernmental treaties, such as the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice.
The PPT's work is based on the principles of the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Peoples, proclaimed in Algiers in 1976, and on the main international instruments protecting human rights. The historical and geographical context of the Declaration, known as the Charter of Algiers, links its general principles with liberation struggles, which Resolution 1514 (XV) of the United Nations General Assembly of December 14, 1960 had already placed under the protection of international law, as the right to self-determination remained unfulfilled, and it was not related to the process of decolonization.

Structure

The court is composed of a president, four vice-presidents, a secretary general, a coordination officer, and 58 members from 26 countries, from different disciplines such as law, economy, sociology, arts, and literature.
Number of membersCountries
1Australia, Belgium, Cambodia, Chile, Haiti, Ireland, Mexico, Nicaragua, Norway, Palestine, Peru, Portugal, Senegal, Thailand, United Kingdom
2Ecuador, Germany, The Netherlands, Tunisia
3Colombia, India
4Spain
5France
6Argentina, United States
8Italy

Sessions

As of 2016, the Tribunal has held 46 sessions on numerous cases of human rights violations. The judgments of the Tribunale Permanente dei Popoli rely on sources of existing international law.

List of sessions

  1. Western Sahara
  2. Argentina
  3. Eritrea
  4. The Philippines and the Bangsamoro people
  5. El Salvador
  6. Afghanistan I
  7. Afghanistan Il
  8. Timor Orientale
  9. Zaire
  10. Guatemala
  11. Armenian Genocide
  12. The interventions of the United States in Nicaragua
  13. The policies of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank I
  14. The policies of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank II
  15. Puerto Rico
  16. Brazilian Amazon
  17. Impunity for crimes against humanity in Latin America
  18. The conquest of and international law
  19. Tibet
  20. Industrial risks and human rights I
  21. Industrial risks and human rights II
  22. Asylum right in Europe
  23. Crimes against humanity in the former Yugoslavia I
  24. Crimes against humanity in the former Yugoslavia II
  25. Violations of the fundamental rights of children and minors
  26. Chernobyl: environment, health and human rights
  27. The rights of workers and consumers in the garment industry
  28. Violations of the fundamental rights of children and adolescents in Brazil
  29. Elf-Aquitaine
  30. Global multinationals and "human distorted"
  31. International Law and the new wars
  32. Human rights violations in Algeria, 1992–2004
  33. The European Union and transnational corporations in Latin America: policies, instruments and actors complicity in the violation of peoples' rights
  34. The Philippines II
  35. Transnational corporations and the rights of peoples in Colombia
  36. Sri Lanka and the Tamil People I
  37. Session on agrochemical transnational corporations
  38. Free trade, violence, impunity and people's rights in Mexico
  39. Sri Lanka and the Tamil People II
  40. Session on the Canadian mining transnational corporations
  41. Fundamental rights, local community participation and infrastructure projects
  42. Living wage for Asian garment workers as fundamental human right
  43. Myanmar's crimes against the Rohingya and Kachin Peoples I
  44. Permanent Peoples Tribunal on Human Rights of Migrant and Refugee Peoples
  45. Session on the violation of human rights of migrants and refugee people
  46. Session on Alleged violations of international law and international humanitarian law by the Turkish Republic and its officials against the Kurdish people and their organizations