• Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez speaks next to Vice President Nicolas Maduro (right) and National assembly president Diosdado Cabello (left) during a national broadcast at Miraflores Palace in Caracas on December 8, 2012.
    © 2012 Reuters
    Venezuela: Chávez’s Authoritarian Legacy

    Hugo Chávez’s presidency (1999-2013) was characterized by a dramatic concentration of power and open disregard for basic human rights guarantees, Human Rights Watch said today.

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Americas

  • Argentina: On the Death of Jorge Rafael Videla
    May 17, 2013
    Jorge Rafael Videla participated in the March 24, 1976 coup d’etat, and acted as de facto president of Argentina until 1981. According to local human rights groups, approximately 30,000 people were “disappeared,” thousands were tortured and arbitrarily detained, and hundreds of babies were stolen and illegally appropriated by other families during the military dictatorship that ended in 1983.
  • El Salvador: Authorize Abortion for Woman at Risk of Dying
    May 14, 2013
    President Mauricio Funes of El Salvador should ensure that a woman who faces substantial risk of death if her pregnancy continues can obtain an abortion without criminal penalty, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to Funes.
  • Letter to President Funes: Authorize Abortion for Woman at Risk of Dying
    May 14, 2013
    We write to you urgently about the case of Salvadoran citizen “Beatriz,” a 22-year-old woman whose life is in grave danger as a result of her pregnancy. We are greatly concerned that the El Salvadoran government has not complied with the precautionary measures granted to Beatriz by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Fifty days after she first sought relief from your government, Beatriz is still awaiting a life-saving medical treatment.
  • Peru: Amicus Brief on Military Court Jurisdiction
    May 13, 2013
    The jurisdiction of Peru’s military courts should be limited to offenses that are strictly military in nature, Human Rights Watch said today in an amicus brief filed before the Constitutional Court of Peru.
  • Human Rights Watch Mourns Death of Cynthia Brown
    May 13, 2013
    Human Rights Watch deeply mourns the death of Cynthia Brown, a colleague, friend and mentor for more than 30 years. She died on May 12, 2013, in New York City, after battling cancer. She was 60 years old.
  • Peru: Process Challenging the Constitutionality of Legislative Decree No. 1095
    May 13, 2013
  • Guatemala: Rios Montt Convicted of Genocide
    May 10, 2013
    The guilty verdict against Efraín Ríos Montt, former leader of Guatemala, for genocide and crimes against humanity is an unprecedented step toward establishing accountability for atrocities during the country’s brutal civil war, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Colombia: Ensure Effective Inquiry Into Attack on Journalist
    May 2, 2013
    Colombia should ensure that the investigation into the attack on a leading investigative journalist thoroughly examines possible motives related to his work and identifies all responsible parties, Human Rights Watch said today. On the evening of May 1, 2013, gunmen opened fire on the car driven by Ricardo Calderón, an editor at Semana magazine, Colombia’s main newsweekly, as it was stopped on a road between Ibagué and Bogotá. Five bullets penetrated the body of the vehicle, but Calderón escaped without injuries.
  • Argentina: Investigate Police Action at Hospital Protest
    May 1, 2013

    Argentina should conduct a prompt, thorough, and impartial investigation into allegations of excessive use of force by the City of Buenos Aires Metropolitan Police to disperse a demonstration at a public psychiatric hospital.

  • Canada: Safety of Indigenous Women Under UN Scrutiny
    Apr 30, 2013
    The United Nations Human Rights Council adopted today the report on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Canada’s human rights record, which included a large set of questions, recommendations, and comments from countries across the world about violence against indigenous women and girls. The attention should spur Canada to take decisive action to address the hundreds of murders and disappearances of indigenous women and girls over the last four decades, Human Rights Watch said today.
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