• Honduras: Investigate Killing of Four Civilians
    May 17, 2012
    Press release
    (Washington, DC) – Honduran and US authorities should ensure a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation of the alleged killing of four civilians and wounding of four others during a joint counternarcotics operation in the Mosquitia region of Honduras.
  • Peru: Disability Rights in the Voting Booth
    May 15, 2012
    Press release
    Peru should remove significant barriers preventing people with disabilities from exercising their right to vote and other civil rights. The failure to dismantle the obstacles is undermining Peru’s leadership as one of the first countries to ratify, in 2008, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
  • US: Obama Statement for LGBT Rights
    May 9, 2012
    Press release
    US President Barack Obama and Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller should be commended for their statements during their election campaigns on behalf of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) people.
  • Uruguay: First to Ratify Domestic Workers Convention
    May 1, 2012
    Press release
    Uruguay’s move to be the first country to ratify the international Domestic Workers Convention brings long overdue protections closer to reality for millions of women and girls worldwide, Human Rights Watch said today. The treaty, which extends core labor rights to an estimated 50 to 100 million domestic workers, will come into legal force when it is ratified by two countries.
  • Brazil: Major Step for Military-Rule-Era Justice
    Apr 24, 2012
    Press release
    The criminal case filed on April 24, 2012, against a retired army colonel and a civil police precinct chief for grave abuses committed in the 1970s in São Paulo state is an important step for accountability in Brazil.
  • Brazil: Supreme Court Abortion Ruling a Positive Step
    Apr 19, 2012
    Press release
    The ruling by Brazil’s highest court on April 12, 2012, expanding exceptions from criminal penalties for abortion is a positive step toward protecting women’s human rights.
  • Suriname: Revoke Amnesty Legislation
    Apr 18, 2012
    Press release
    Suriname should immediately revoke the amnesty law approved on April 5, 2012, by the National Assembly, and prosecute people accused of committing grave human rights violations, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Chile: Amend and Pass Anti-discrimination Bill
    Apr 9, 2012
    Press release
    Chile’s congress should address significant shortcomings in an anti-discrimination bill currently in the final stages of parliamentary debate.
  • NATO: Clarify Response to Deaths at Sea
    Mar 26, 2012
    Press release
    NATO and its member states should provide information to help clarify the chain of events that led to the death of 63 boat migrants in the Mediterranean a year ago.
  • Chile: Gay Rights Ruling a Leap Forward
    Mar 23, 2012
    Press release
    The Inter-American Court of Human Rights’ ruling that sexual orientation cannot be used to deny custody rights is a landmark case for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people throughout the Americas. The judgment, in Atala Riffo and Daughters v Chile, was issued on February 24, 2012, and made public on March 21.