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  • Sudan: End Crackdown on Civil Society
    Jan 13, 2013
    Sudan should immediately rescind its decision to shut down four civil society organizations in Khartoum in December 2012. The government should allow independent groups to operate freely and conduct peaceful protests.
    Press release
  • Iran: Activists Fleeing Assault on Civil Society
    Dec 13, 2012
    The space in Iran for civil society has been shrinking since the crackdown following the disputed presidential election in 2009, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Three-and-a-half years after government forces brutally suppressed largely peaceful anti-government demonstrations, hundreds of activists have sought temporary refuge and an uncertain future in neighboring Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan in the face of harassment and detention at home.
    Press release
  • Uzbekistan: Free Political Prisoners on Constitution Day
    Dec 6, 2012
    The Uzbek government should unconditionally release all of its political prisoners on the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the country’s constitution on December 8, 2012, human rights groups said today.
    Press release
  • Central Asia: Ashton Should Urge Release of Activists
    Nov 22, 2012
    European Union High Representative Catherine Ashton should meet with human rights defenders and publicly call for the release of wrongfully imprisoned activists during her upcoming visit to Central Asia.
    Press release
  • UAE: Make Good on Human Rights Commitments
    Nov 16, 2012
    The United Arab Emirates should swiftly end the arbitrary detention and harassment of its critics in line with its obligations as a recently elected member of the United Nations Human Rights Council.
    Press release
  • Bahrain: Free Human Rights Defender
    Nov 6, 2012

    Bahraini authorities should immediately release the human rights activist Sayed Yusuf al-Muhafadha and drop all “illegal gathering” charges against him. On October 30, 2012, the government issued an indefinite ban on public protests.

    Press release
  • Azerbaijan: Shrinking Space for Media Freedom
    Nov 2, 2012
    At least eight journalists and three human rights defenders are in jail, and freedom of expression is severely limited in Azerbaijan, the host of the upcoming United Nations-sponsored Internet Governance Forum.
    Press release
  • Iran: Political Prisoners Denied Visits, Care
    Oct 31, 2012
    Iran’s judiciary and prison authorities should end mistreatment of the prominent rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi and six human rights organizations said today. Ebadi and the rights groups also called on Iran’s authorities to allow all prisoners access to necessary medical care and family visits to which they are entitled under international human rights law.
    Press release
  • Israel: End Arbitrary Restrictions on Rights Group Officials
    Oct 26, 2012
    Israeli authorities should stop harassing members of a Palestinian prisoners’ rights group. Israeli authorities should immediately lift a travel ban on the group’s chairman and release a recently arrested researcher, or present evidence justifying the measures against them.
    Press release
  • Tajikistan: Rights Group Forced to Close
    Oct 25, 2012
    A court’s decision on October 24, 2012 to close a leading human rights organization in Tajikistan is a serious blow to the country’s civil society and should be reconsidered in line with Tajikistan’s international obligations to uphold the freedom of association.
    Press release