• Iran: Government Trampling Workers’ Rights
    Apr 30, 2013
    Press release
    The Iranian government is increasingly violating workers’ rights to peaceful assembly and association. Dozens of labor and independent trade union activists are in prison for speaking out in defense of workers.Human Rights Watch called for the government to end the crackdown and free labor rights advocates in anticipation of International Workers’ Day on May 1, as part of a joint campaign by Iranian and international rights groups to highlight the plight of workers.
  • World Bank: Commit to Rights in 2030 Vision
    Apr 19, 2013
    Press release
    The World Bank’s “vision” statement will be undermined if it fails to recognize the importance of human rights, nine organizations warned. The human rights and development groups called on President Jim Kim to make a firm commitment to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights in all of its activities.
  • World Bank: Uphold Rights to End Poverty, Economic Exclusion
    Apr 19, 2013
    Press release
    The World Bank Group should uphold human rights as it works to create a world free of poverty and economic exclusion, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the Group’s president, Dr. Jim Kim.
  • Algeria: Activists Barred from World Social Forum
    Mar 27, 2013
    Press release
    Algerian authorities illegally restricted rights to free movement when they barred 96 Algerian civil society activists from travelling to Tunisia, without giving any reason.
  • UN: Emphasize Rights in Development Agenda
    Mar 25, 2013
    Press release
    The United Nations Post-2015 Development Agenda should be grounded in human rights, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the UN High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda.
  • Cameroon: Rights Abuses in ‘Homosexuality’ Prosecutions
    Mar 21, 2013
    Press release
    Cameroon prosecutes people for consensual same-sex conduct more aggressively than almost any country in the world, four human rights organizations said in a report released today. At least 28 people have been prosecuted for same-sex conduct in Cameroon since 2010. Most cases are marked by grave human rights violations, including torture, forced confessions, denial of access to legal counsel, and discriminatory treatment by law enforcement and judicial officials.
  • World Bank: Investigate ‘Development’ Project Abuses
    Mar 18, 2013
    Press release
    The World Bank’s board should support an internal investigation into allegations of abuse linked to a World Bank project in Ethiopia. The Inspection Panel, the World Bank’s independent accountability mechanism, has recommended an investigation into whether it has violated its policies in a project linked to the Ethiopian government’s resettlement program, known as “villagization.”
  • Egypt: Amend Draft Demonstrations Law
    Feb 25, 2013
    Press release
    The government-proposed draft law in Egypt concerning public demonstrations would severely limit the right to peaceful public assembly and is open to abuse by police, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to the president and the Justice Ministry.
  • Israel/Palestine: New Abuses, No Justice
    Feb 14, 2013
    Press release
    Israel engaged in discriminatory practices and other rights violations against Palestinians during 2012, while Palestinian authorities committed abuses against their own population, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2013.  
  • Iran: Consolidating Power as Elections Near
    Jan 31, 2013
    Press release
    Authorities arrested, detained, and harassed some of Iran’s most celebrated rights lawyers, and stepped up their assault on critical journalists, bloggers, and their families in 2012, HumanRightsWatchsaidtodayinitsWorld Report 2013.The government also prevented reformists and opposition leaders from participating in parliamentary elections, and is holding the opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard under house arrest as Iran prepares for its presidential election in June 2013.