• Canada: Investigate Missing, Murdered Indigenous Women
    Dec 17, 2012
    Press release
    Canada’s federal government should establish a national commission of inquiry into the country’s hundreds of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. This recommendation follows today’s release by the British Columbian government of the final report from the provincial Missing Women’s Commission of Inquiry.
  • Philippines: Landmark Law Crucial for Women’s Health
    Dec 16, 2012
    Press release
    The Philippines’ expected passage of a reproductive health law will be a massive step forward to promote women’s health and lives, Human Rights Watch said today. The prime objectives of the Reproductive Health Bill, which is scheduled for a final vote during the week of December 17, 2012, include increasing access to a range of reproductive health services and reducing maternal deaths.
  • Sudan: Civilians Describe Toll of Attacks
    Dec 11, 2012
    Press release
    The Sudanese government’s indiscriminate aerial bombardment and shelling in Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan states has killed and injured scores of civilians since the conflict began more than a year ago, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Government forces have raided villages, burned and looted civilian property, arbitrarily detained people, and assaulted and raped women and girls.
  • Egypt: Protester Killings a Test for Morsy
    Nov 19, 2012
    Press release
    Families of the 45 protesters killed and the hundreds injured when police responded to protests over military rule with excessive force and brutality from November 19 through 24, 2011, are still waiting for justice a year later.
  • Ireland: Death of Woman Denied Abortion Should Spur Reform
    Nov 16, 2012
    Press release
    The tragic death of a woman denied an abortion in Ireland should catalyze the Irish government to fulfill its international human rights obligation to ensure access to safe and legal abortions. Savita Halappanavar, 31, who was 17 weeks pregnant, died from septicemia on October 28, 2012 at a hospital in Galway after she was refused an abortion and miscarried.
  • Morocco: Abuse of Child Domestic Workers
    Nov 15, 2012
    Press release
    Girls as young as 8 endure physical abuse and work long hours for little pay as domestic workers in Morocco.
  • Colombia: Obstacles to Care for Abused, Displaced Women
    Nov 14, 2012
    Press release
    Colombia’s laws on violence against women are not adequately protecting victims displaced by the armed conflict. Approximately two million internally displaced women and girls face high rates of rape and domestic violence. Daunting obstacles impede displaced victims’ access to healthcare, justice, and protection services.
  • Belgium: Abused Migrant Women Fear Deportation
    Nov 8, 2012
    Press release
    The risk of deportation prevents many migrant women who experience domestic violence in Belgium from getting the protection they need, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The report was released in advance of Women’s Day in Belgium, November 11, 2012.
  • Uruguay: New Abortion Law Breaks Ground for Women’s Rights
    Oct 26, 2012
    Press release
    In a historic move this week, Uruguayan President José Mujica has signed into law a bill that waives criminal penalties for abortion in the first 12 weeks of gestation, with certain procedural requirements, and in the first 14 weeks of gestation in the cases of rape.
  • Afghanistan: US Should Articulate Women’s Rights Strategy
    Oct 19, 2012
    Press release
    US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should publicly announce a strategy to protect women's rights in Afghanistan before she leaves office in 2013, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to Clinton today. Women's rights are increasingly at risk in the run-up to the scheduled drawdown of international troops at the end of 2014 and decreasing funding and attention to Afghanistan.