• Press release
    May 17, 2012
    The long awaited national prison rape elimination standards issued on May 17, 2012 by the Justice Department, if fully implemented, may end widespread prison rape in the United States. The standards provide detailed guidance to federal, state, and local officials on how to prevent, detect, and respond to sexual abuse in their confinement facilities.
  • Press release
    May 17, 2012
    The US Congress should move forward with a Senate bill to renew the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and reject the dangerous alternative passed by the House of Representatives.
  • Press release
    May 15, 2012
    Hundreds of thousands of immigrant farmworker women and girls in the United States face a high risk of sexual violence and sexual harassment in their workplaces because US authorities and employers fail to protect them adequately, Human Rights Watch said in its 95-page report, “Cultivating Fear: The Vulnerability of Immigrant Farmworkers in the US to Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment.”
  • Press release
    May 14, 2012
    Indian officials need to immediately open transparent and impartial criminal investigations into recent cases where police have assaulted women. Human Rights Watch called on the government of India to overhaul its policies and response to women, children, and transgender people who experience violence. The Indian authorities should protect victims from police intimidation and discrimination, and prevent police interference in investigations and post-assault medical treatment.
  • Letter
    May 14, 2012
    We the undersigned organizations would like to urgently bring to your notice and reiterate our concerns about the treatment and care given to women and children who experience sexual assault in light of a series of disturbing news reports on this issue.
  • Press release
    May 9, 2012
    The full US House of Representatives should reject a dangerous version of a bill to renew the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), Human Rights Watch said today. The bill would undermine the law and expose immigrant women and families to abuse, Human Rights Watch said. The House Judiciary Committee on May 8, 2012 approved a version that makes multiple changes to VAWA’s existing provisions addressing immigrant victims of domestic and sexual violence.
  • Press release
    Apr 26, 2012
    The US House of Representatives should move quickly to renew the Violence against Women Act (VAWA), Human Rights Watch said today. The US Senate, in a bipartisan vote on April 26, 2012, passed the bill, the primary federal law providing legal protection and services to counter domestic and sexual violence and stalking.
  • Commentary
    Apr 20, 2012
    The bill to renew the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) faces a likely vote in the Senate next week, but its provisions that would assist immigrant women who are victims of violence have drawn some inexplicable opposition. The country’s single most important law for addressing domestic abuse, sexual violence, and stalking has offered life-saving protections to immigrant women since it first passed in 1994.
  • Commentary
    Apr 13, 2012
    Happening every three years, the Summit of the Americas brings together the heads-of-state of the region to talk about pressing concerns. Over the weekend in Cartagena, Colombia, the theme will be “Connecting the Americas: Partners for Prosperity,” but some of the liveliest debates are likely to focus on discussions around decriminalization of personal drug use.
  • Commentary
    Apr 1, 2012
    The Argentine Supreme Court's ruling earlier this month in the case of A.G., a 15-year-old girl who became pregnant after her stepfather raped her, does not decriminalize abortion. But it does humanize the judicial process for rape victims seeking timely medical intervention after suffering unspeakable violence.