• FOLLOW US
  • Americas: Decriminalize Personal Use of Drugs
    Press release
    Jun 4, 2013
    National drug control policies that impose criminal penalties for personal drug use undermine basic human rights. To deter harmful drug use, governments should rely instead on non-penal regulatory and public health policies. The 43rd General Assembly of the Organization of American States, taking place in Antigua, Guatemala from June 4 to 6, 2013, will focus on drug control policy in the Americas.
  • Argentina: On the Death of Jorge Rafael Videla
    Press release
    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
    Press release
    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
    Letter
    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
    Press release
    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
    Press release
    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
    Amicus briefing
    May 13, 2013
  • Guatemala: Rios Montt Convicted of Genocide
    Press release
    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
    Press release
    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
    Press release
    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
    Press release
    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.
  • Obama: Address Human Rights Failures of Joint Counternarcotics Strategy
    Letter
    Apr 29, 2013

     

    I am writing to you to express our concern regarding the negative impact that the public security approach pursued in recent years in Mexico has had upon human rights. When you meet with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto this week in Mexico, public security will be one of the main issues on the agenda. The visit offers a critically important opportunity to evaluate the public security crisis that continues to afflict Mexico, with extremely powerful cartels, endemic corruption of police forces, and virtually zero accountability for those who commit crimes. 

  • Mexico: Abolish “Arraigo” Detention from Constitution
    Press release
    Apr 25, 2013
    Mexico’s congress should reject a proposed constitutional change on preventive detention, Human Rights Watch said today. The proposed change, which would reduce the maximum preventive detention period from 80 days to 40, would not meet international human rights standards. Instead, Mexico’s Congress should move to eliminate the practice, known as “arraigo,” Human Rights Watch said.
  • Argentina: Reject Interference with Judicial Independence
    Press release
    Apr 24, 2013

    The Argentine Congress should reject proposals by the Fernández de Kirchner administration to reform the justice system because they would undermine judicial independence, Human Rights Watch said today.

  • Guatemala: Genocide Trial Suspension
    Press release
    Apr 19, 2013
    The abrupt suspension of the genocide trial of former de facto head of Guatemala, Efraín Ríos Montt, raises serious concerns about victims’ access to justice, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Syria: Allow UN Aid Directly Over Borders
    Written statement
    Apr 19, 2013
    Brazil should respond to the stark new picture of Syria’s humanitarian crisis by working with India and South Africa for improved access to humanitarian aid, including over Syria’s borders.
  • Universal Periodic Review: HRW Submission on Cuba
    Written statement
    Apr 18, 2013
    Cuba remains the only country in Latin America that represses virtually all forms of political dissent. In 2012 the government of Raúl Castro continued to enforce political conformity using short-term detentions, beatings, public acts of repudiation, travel restrictions, and forced exile. During its first UPR review, Cuba rejected all recommendations addressing the arbitrary detentions of political prisoners, the lack of protection of human rights defenders, and restrictions on freedom of expression. Since then, Human Rights Watch has continued documenting cases of serious abuses of these rights.
  • Venezuela: Respect Free Speech and Assembly
    Press release
    Apr 17, 2013

    The government of Venezuela should not limit citizens’ rights to freely express their views and assemble peacefully in response to the disputed presidential election, Human Rights Watch said today. It should respect freedom of the press and all violent incidents should be subject to prompt, thorough, and impartial investigations, Human Rights Watch said.

  • Peru: Reject ‘Terrorism Denial’ Law
    Press release
    Apr 9, 2013
    The Peruvian Congress should reject a legislative proposal that includes overly broad language to criminalize the denial of terrorist crimes, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Is justice gaining a foothold?
    Commentary
    Apr 8, 2013
    Former Guatemalan strongman Efraín Ríos Montt went on trial in Guatemala City late last month on charges of genocide relating to the massacres of indigenous Mayan people during his rule.
  • Uruguay: Marriage Equality Approved
    Press release
    Apr 2, 2013
    The Uruguay Senate, in approving a bill on April 2, 2013, to legalize same-sex marriage, has moved to guarantee marriage equality and diminish discrimination. The vote was 23 to 8. Uruguay would be the 12th country to approve same-sex marriage nationwide.
  • What Are the BRICS Building?
    Commentary
    Mar 30, 2013
    The Chinese call it jin zhuan, or golden brick. The Russians have suggested calling it briuki, an acronym meaning trousers in Russian. And what about the ambiguous S? It originally was just a plural for the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, and China, places where a Goldman Sachs analyst was urging greater investment. Now it stands for South Africa, which joined in 2010 despite having an economy roughly on the order of China’s sixth-largest province.
  • Russia wants BRICS partners to ignore its transgressions
    Commentary
    Mar 26, 2013

    Official communiqués on the BRICS summit in Durban are promising new initiatives on trade, economic development and technical co-operation. But Russia wants more from its partners than just trade. With concern rising in Europe over the worst crackdown on Russian democracy since the Soviet Union collapsed more than 20 years ago, Vladimir Putin is coming to Africa to find supporters of its world view.

  • BRICS: Take Concrete Steps to Help Syria’s People
    Press release
    Mar 26, 2013
    The BRICS countries should call for an end to indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian-populated areas in Syria, and insist that cluster munitions and incendiary weapons should not be used. Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa are meeting in Durban for the annual BRICS summit on March 26 and 27, 2013.
  • Time for Brics to stop sitting on the fence over Syria atrocities
    Commentary
    Mar 22, 2013
    Brics should call for the Syrian government to permit the delivery of humanitarian aid across its borders, including from Turkey
  • Guatemala Genocide Trial a Landmark
    Press release
    Mar 19, 2013
    The trial of former de facto head of Guatemala, Efraín Ríos Montt, on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity, is a landmark achievement in the fight for justice in Guatemala.
  • Venezuela: Chávez’s Authoritarian Legacy
    Press release
    Mar 5, 2013

    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.

  • Mexico: Crisis of Enforced Disappearances
    Press release
    Feb 20, 2013

    Mexico’s security forces have participated in widespread enforced disappearances, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Virtually none of the victims have been found or those responsible brought to justice, exacerbating the suffering of families of the disappeared, Human Rights Watch found. 

  • Colombia: Landmark Ruling for Land Restitution
    Press release
    Feb 20, 2013
    A Colombian tribunal’s order to restore stolen land to 32 displaced families is a major step in carrying out the country’s land restitution law, Human Rights Watch said today. Authorities should take vigorous measures to protect the beneficiaries of the ruling in Córdoba department, who have been subject to threats and intimidation.
  • Canada: RCMP Closes Ranks on Abuse
    Press release
    Feb 19, 2013
    Reported comments by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Commissioner Bob Paulson show the need for an independent civilian mechanism to investigate police abuses, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Equatorial Guinea: Visiting Leaders Should Press for Rights
    Press release
    Feb 18, 2013
    Latin American and African officials participating in a cross-regional meeting in Equatorial Guinea should press their host, President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasago, to undertake serious human rights and democratic reforms ahead of planned parliamentary elections in May, 2013. President Dilma Rousseff of Brazil, among other officials, is anticipated to attend the Africa-South America Summit scheduled for February 20-23.
  • Canada: Harper’s Comments Ignore Victims’ Fear of Reprisal
    Press release
    Feb 14, 2013
    Comments by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RMCP) on February 14, 2013, fail to address the core issue of a lack of security that prevents indigenous women and girls from filing complaints of police abuse, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Canada: Abusive Policing, Neglect Along ‘Highway of Tears’
    Press release
    Feb 13, 2013
    The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in northern British Columbia has failed to protect indigenous women and girls from violence, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Women and girls Human Rights Watch interviewed also described abusive treatment by police officers, including excessive use of force, and physical and sexual assault.
  • Venezuela: Investigate Deaths in Prison Crackdown
    Press release
    Feb 1, 2013
    The Venezuelan authorities should investigate the security forces’ use of lethal force during a prison weapons search on January 25, 2013, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should take urgent measures to ensure that such incidents are not repeated.
  • Global: HRW Submission to the CEDAW Committee
    Written statement
    Feb 1, 2013
  • World Report 2013: Challenges for Rights After Arab Spring
    Press release
    Feb 1, 2013
    The euphoria of the Arab Spring has given way to the sobering challenge of creating rights-respecting democracies. The willingness of new governments to respect rights will determine whether those uprisings give birth to genuine democracy or simply spawn authoritarianism in new forms.
  • Guatemala: Ríos Montt Trial a Milestone for Justice
    Press release
    Jan 28, 2013

    A Guatemalan judge’s decision to try the former de facto head of state, Efraín Ríos Montt, for genocide and crimes against humanity is a major step forward for accountability in Guatemala, Human Rights Watch said today.

  • Nothing to celebrate in Mexico
    Commentary
    Jan 25, 2013

    On first read, it might have been a hoax. On International Human Rights Day last month, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, Anthony Wayne, “celebrated” Mexico’s human rights achievements. “The United States recognizes the Mexican government, including officials and institutions,” he wrote in the newspaper El Universal, “for its efforts to promote the defense of human rights in Mexico.”

  • Venezuela: Halt Censorship, Intimidation of Media
    Press release
    Jan 12, 2013
    Venezuela should end censorship and intimidation of media that challenge the official line regarding President Hugo Chávez’s health and inauguration, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Mercury Treaty: Last Chance to Address Health Effects
    Press release
    Jan 10, 2013
    A proposed international treaty to address the damaging effects of mercury should include specific provisions to protect the health of children and other vulnerable populations, Human Rights Watch said today. Governments are to meet in Geneva beginning January 13, 2013, for a fifth and final round of talks for the treaty. Mercury is a toxic metal that attacks the central nervous system and is particularly harmful to children.
  • Brazil: São Paulo Acts to Curb Police Cover-ups
    Press release
    Jan 9, 2013
    A resolution by the São Paulo government on the handling of shooting victims is an important step to safeguard against unlawful killings by state police, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Barack Obama: Dump These 8 Unsavory Allies
    Commentary
    Jan 2, 2013
    If Obama wants to bolster his legacy in his second term, he can and should get tough on some of the United States' most unsavory friends and allies. Here are eight leaders to start with.