The Côte d'Ivoire government should begin formal proceedings against a long-detained Ivorian civil society leader and government critic or order his release. Prolonged pretrial detention violates Côte d'Ivoire's obligations under international law.
Under a new law signed today by US President George W. Bush, leaders of military forces and armed groups who have recruited child soldiers may be arrested and prosecuted in the United States.
The United Nations Security Council should address protection of civilians, justice, and human rights during its upcoming visit to Africa from June 1-10, 2008. Human Rights Watch highlighted critical issues that needed to be addressed at each of the stops on the council’s tour.
The government of Côte d’Ivoire should take immediate steps to end impunity for members of a pro-government student group responsible for numerous acts of violent, criminal behavior, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.
Pro-government and rebel forces in Côte d’Ivoire have subjected thousands of women and girls to rape and other brutal sexual assaults with impunity. Despite recent progress in the peace process, the latest accord fails to address this widespread sexual violence or the need for accountability.
The United Nations Security Council must make protection of civilians its highest priority. The Security Council should exert greater pressure on the Sudanese government to ensure the immediate deployment of the full African Union-United Nations hybrid force in Darfur to help protect civilians, and also to end the government’s abusive policies.
Government forces in Côte d’Ivoire, their allied militias and New Forces rebels alike are committing serious abuses against civilians with impunity. These abuses and the impunity that fuels them raise serious concerns about the potential for violence in the run-up to the October elections.
The Ivorian government must take concrete steps to stop recent attacks on United Nations peacekeepers by pro-government militias. Warning of disastrous human rights consequences for ordinary Ivorians if events spiral out of control, Human Rights Watch called on the United Nations Security Council to increase the number of peacekeepers on the ground.
Côte d’Ivoire’s government security forces, allied militias, and the north-based rebels alike routinely harass, intimidate, and even execute civilians as the country’s political stalemate bolsters impunity.
In anticipation of renewed fighting with rebel forces, the Ivorian government is recruiting Liberian children alongside hundreds of other former combatants in Liberia’s civil war.