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Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there has been a global trend of increased criminal justice powers. In many countries, the police have been given new powers to detain people, control where they can go, and even restrict what they can say. Often, the oversight of policing and detention has been weakened, leaving people vulnerable to police abuse.
The COVID-19 Justice Campaign brings together international partners to resist and rollback unaccountable criminal justice powers.
From March to November 2020, Fair Trials tracked how criminal justice systems and fair trial rights were affected by responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 Justice Project received hundreds of updates from around the world, which can be found on these pages, and which have informed the COVID-19 Justice Campaign.
Court closures, delayed proceedings and increased use of remote justice: COVID-19 has significantly affected the functioning of courts.
COVID-19 measures and restrictions have been having a serious impact on defence rights and have made it much more difficult for defendants to get a fair trial.
The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the structural deficiencies and systemic inequalities in our prison systems, and the urgent need to reform them.
In response to COVID-19, countries around the world have dramatically increased police powers, implemented new criminal laws and established widespread digital surveillance regimes
Organisations across the world have responded to the challenges posed by COVID-19 to criminal justice systems by producing a diverse range of research, toolkits and monitoring activities.
