• FOLLOW US
  • Côte d’Ivoire: Security Force Extortion
    July 1, 2013
    Security forces routinely and openly extort money at roadblocks in the western part of Côte d’Ivoire. The roadblocks, ostensibly in place to address insecurity in the face of cross-border incursions and banditry, have become a lucrative, criminal venture for soldiers and gendarmes, whose abuse threatens economic livelihoods and food prices in a region already devastated by the 2010-2011 post-election crisis.
  • Cameroon: Spate of Attacks on Rights Defenders
    July 1, 2013
    The Cameroonian government should rigorously investigate, denounce, and prosecute suspicious break-ins at three human rights defenders’ offices in June, six Cameroonian and international human rights organizations said today. The organizations – Affirmative Action, Alternatives-Cameroun, the Association for the Defense of Homosexuals (ADEFHO), the Cameroonian Foundation for AIDS (CAMFAIDS), Human Rights Watch, and Humanity First Cameroon – said that those attacked included organizations working with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) community.
  • Iraq/Jordan/Turkey: Syrians Blocked from Fleeing War
    July 1, 2013
    Iraqi, Jordanian, and Turkish border guards are pushing back tens of thousands of people trying to flee Syria. Iraq, Jordan, and Turkey have either closed numerous border crossings entirely or allowed only limited numbers of Syrians to cross, leaving tens of thousands stranded in dangerous conditions in Syria’s conflict-ridden border regions. Only Lebanon has an open border policy for Syrians fleeing the conflict.
  • Indonesia: Ensure Safe Return Home of Evicted Shia Villagers
    June 30, 2013
    Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono should order local authorities to return hundreds of Shia villagers to their home village and to ensure their security, Human Rights Watch said today. Yudhoyono should also publicly order local governments and security forces around the country to protect religious minorities threatened by militants, and enforce the order by dismissing officials who fail to carry it out.
  • Human Rights Watch to Open in Australia
    June 30, 2013
    The Australian government’s decision to list Human Rights Watch’s Australian affiliate, Human Rights Watch Australia (HRWA), as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR), is a welcome step.
  • Senegal: Hissène Habré in Police Custody
    June 30, 2013
    The placing of Hissène Habré, Chad’s former dictator, into police custody in Senegal on June 30 is a milestone in thelong campaign to bring him to justice.
  • Saudi Arabia: 7 Convicted for Facebook Postings About Protests
    June 29, 2013
    Saudi Arabia sentenced seven government critics to prison on June 24, 2013, for allegedly inciting protests and harming public order, largely by using Facebook. The Specialized Criminal Court sentenced the men, all from the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, to prison terms ranging from five to 10 years and barred them from travelling abroad for additional periods.
  • EU/Bahrain: EU Should Demand Release of Activists
    June 28, 2013
    European Union (EU) High Representative Catherine Ashton should pursue with Bahrain the immediate release of 13 high-profile activists and others detained or imprisoned for peacefully exercising their rights. Ashton will attend an EU-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) ministerial meeting in Bahrain on June 30, 2013.
  • Guinea: Minister Charged for Alleged Role in Stadium Massacre
    June 28, 2013
    On June 27, investigative judges overseeing the investigation into the September 2009 killing and rape of opposition members, charged Lieutenant-Colonel Claude Pivi for his role in the crimes. The charges against Pivi, the minister for presidential security, represents a significant step forward for justice in Guinea.
  • Most Popular on Twitter - Top Tweets of the Week
    June 28, 2013
    Human Rights Watch has over 100 staff tweeting human rights developments from around the world. Here are some of their most popular tweets from the last seven days.
  • UK: Provide Clear Answers on Data Surveillance
    June 28, 2013
    Reports that the United Kingdom’s intelligence agency has intercepted and collected vast amounts of Internet and phone data raise serious concerns that the government has breached the privacy rights of millions of people in the UK and elsewhere.
  • Afghanistan: Defend Women’s Rights
    June 28, 2013
    The Afghan government should adopt strong measures to protect women’s rights in advance of the deadline at the end of 2014 for withdrawal of international combat forces, Human Rights Watch said today. On July 10, 2013, Afghanistan will for the first time appear before the United Nations committee that will review its compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
  • Croatia: No Let Up on Rights Abuses
    June 28, 2013
    Croatia’s European Union (EU) accession on July 1 is an opportunity for the government to show its commitment to safeguard human rights and to properly address outstanding abuses in the country, Human Rights Watch said today in an open letter to the Croatian prime minister, Zoran Milanović.
  • Thailand: Traffickers Access Government-run ‘Shelter’
    June 27, 2013
    The Thai government should immediately investigate the rape of a Rohingya woman, who was taken out of a government-run shelter in Phang Nga province by human traffickers.
  • US: Immigration Reform Clears Major Hurdle
    June 27, 2013
    A landmark immigration reform bill that grants legal status to millions of people and reduces their vulnerability to human rights abuses has passed an important hurdle. The US Senate approved the bill by a vote of 68-32 on the afternoon on June 27, 2013.
  • Senegal: Obama Backs Hissène Habré Court
    June 27, 2013
    President Barack Obama’s endorsement of Senegal’sefforts to bring to book the former Chadiandictator Hissène Habré is a recognition of the case’s importance for African justice.
  • Central African Republic: Seleka Forces Kill Scores, Burn Villages
    June 27, 2013
    Members of the Seleka rebel coalition, which overthrew President François Bozizé of the Central African Republic on March 24, 2013, have targeted and killed at least 40 civilians, and intentionally destroyed 34 villages or towns since February. Human Rights Watch researchers in early June found extensive evidence of rampant abuses in largely rural areas outside the capital, Bangui.
  • Burma: Telecom Winners Should Safeguard Users
    June 27, 2013
    Burma’s new telecom license winners should make a public commitment to strong human rights policies and broad transparency measures, Human Rights Watch said. Firms should say how they plan to protect users from illegal surveillance and censorship, given the current lack of legal human rights protections in Burmese telecommunications law.
  • Libya: Displaced People from Tawergha Barred From Return
    June 27, 2013
    Libyan authorities should allow displaced residents of the city of Tawergha to return to their homes safely. Local authorities in Ajdabiya turned back a group of Tawerghans on June 25, 2013. Some had left Benghazi in a convoy of about 40 cars for Tawergha, 750 kilometers west, only to be barred passage in Ajdabiya, 150 kilometers from Benghazi.
  • Egypt: Lynching of Shia Follows Months of Hate Speech
    June 27, 2013
    The lynching of four Shia by a mob apparently led by Salafi sheikhs in the village of Abu Musallim in Greater Cairo on June 23, 2013, came after months of anti-Shia hate speech at times involving the ruling Muslim Brotherhood and its political party.
  • UAE: Reports of Systematic Torture in Jails
    June 27, 2013
    United Arab Emirates (UAE) state security officers have subjected detainees to systematic mistreatment, including torture, say hand-written letters from detainees smuggled out of jails. The groups obtained 22 statements written by some of the 94 people on trial for allegedly plotting to overthrow the government. The mistreatment described in the letters is consistent with other allegations of torture at UAE state security facilities, and indicates that torture is a systematic practice at these facilities.
  • China: End Involuntary Rehousing, Relocation of Tibetans
    June 27, 2013
    The Chinese government is subjecting millions of Tibetans to a policy of mass rehousing and relocation that radically changes their way of life, and about which they have no say.
  • India: Stop Misuse of Counterterrorism Laws
    June 26, 2013

    Authorities in India should conduct an independent review of apparent politically motivated terrorism charges filed against performers in a Dalit cultural group.

  • US: Rulings Invalidate Anti-Same-Sex Marriage Laws
    June 26, 2013
    The US Supreme Court’s rulings on June 26, 2013, in two cases – United States v. Windsor and Hollingsworth v. Perry – have invalidated two of the most egregious anti-LGBT initiatives in the country.
  • Lebanon: Police Torturing Vulnerable People
    June 26, 2013
    Lebanese Internal Security Forces threaten, ill-treat, and torture drug users, sex workers, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in their custody. The report was released on the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.
  • Russia: Harsh Toll of ‘Foreign Agents’ Law
    June 25, 2013
    Russian authorities are using a new law that requires some nongovernmental organizations to register as “foreign agents” to curtail a broad range of work by independent organizations. Human Rights Watch reviewed dozens of warnings and violation notices issued under the law from the prosecutor’s office to nongovernmental organizations. These documents reveal an apparent effort to limit advocacy, advisory, and public education activities on a wide spectrum of issues that involve comment on, or interaction with, government authorities.
  • Somalia: Civilians Killed in Kismayo Clashes
    June 25, 2013
    Rival clan militias fighting in Kismayo, Somalia, earlier this month caused an unknown number of civilian casualties in apparently indiscriminate attacks on civilian buildings.
  • Syria: Counterterrorism Court Used to Stifle Dissent
    June 25, 2013
    The Syrian government is using its sweeping Counterterrorism Law and its recently established special court against human rights defenders and other peaceful activists.
  • Lithuania: Reopen Investigation Into Secret CIA Prisons
    June 25, 2013
    As Lithuania takes over the European Union’s rotating presidency it should lead by example, meet its legal obligations, and reopen its investigation into its own complicity in CIA secret prisons, US enforced disappearances, and alleged torture.
  • New York: Assembly Passes Condom Law
    June 25, 2013
    (New York) – The New York State Assembly enacted a bill to end the use of condoms as evidence of prostitution-related offenses on the final day of the 2013 legislative session. Assembly bill 2736 was approved by a vote of 80 to 48 on June 21, 2013, and was delivered to the New York State Senate.
  • Africa: Obama Visit Should Stress Media Freedoms
    June 25, 2013

    United States president Barack Obama should use his visit to Senegal, South Africa, and Tanzania, beginning June 26, 2013, to support besieged media outlets and independent groups across the African continent.

  • EU/China: Overhaul Human Rights Dialogues
    June 24, 2013
    The 32nd round of the European Union (EU)-China Human Rights Dialogue further lowers the bar for effective, principled human rights diplomacy.
  • Indonesia: Children Seeking Refuge Find Abuse, Neglect
    June 24, 2013
    Indonesia detains and neglects migrant and asylum-seeking children. Each year, hundreds are detained in sordid conditions, without access to lawyers, and sometimes beaten. Others are left to fend for themselves, without any assistance with food or shelter.
  • South Sudan: ‘Rough Justice’ in Lakes State
    June 24, 2013
    South Sudanese soldiers have unlawfully detained and ill-treated more than 130 civilians since February 2013 in response to armed violence and inter-communal fighting in Lakes state.
  • Syria: Detention and Abuse of Female Activists
    June 24, 2013
    Syrian military and pro-government forces known as shabiha have arbitrarily detained female opposition activists as well as female relatives and neighbors of pro-opposition activists and fighters, and in a number of cases, subjected them to torture and sexual abuse, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • Russia: Reject Discriminatory Bill
    June 23, 2013
    The Russian parliament’s upper chamber should reject a draft law that would discriminate against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. The bill would make it an administrative offense to expose minors to information about “non-traditional sexuality.” The Federation Council, the Russian parliament’s upper chamber, is scheduled to debate the draft law on June 26, 2013.
  • Saudi Arabia: 5-Year Sentence for Rights Defender
    June 22, 2013
    Saudi Arabia’s Specialized Criminal Court sentenced a prominent human rights activist to five years in prison on June 17, 2013, based on his writings and exposure of human rights abuses. Mikhlif al-Shammari was convicted of “sowing discord” and other offenses and barred from travelling for 10 years.
  • Morocco/Western Sahara: Dubious Confessions, Tainted Trials
    June 21, 2013
    Morocco’s courts are convicting defendants based on confessions they claim were obtained through torture or falsified by police, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The country’s judicial reform agenda needs to include stronger safeguards to ensure that courts discard as evidence any statement made to the police under torture or ill-treatment.
  • New York: Pass Condom Law to Protect Public Health
    June 20, 2013
    (New York) –The New York State Assembly should enact a bill that would prohibit the use of condoms as evidence of prostitution-related offenses. Assembly bill 2736 was voted out of the New York State Assembly Rules Committee on June 20, 2013 and could be passed by the full assembly before the session ends on June 21.
  • Mexico: Conduct Federal Investigation Into Activists’ Killings
    June 20, 2013

    Mexico’s federal prosecutors should conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into the killing of three political activists in Guerrero state, including examining allegations against government officials, Human Rights Watch said today. The government should offer robust protection for survivors of the attack and their families. 

  • Ecuador: Fully Respect Refugee Rights
    June 20, 2013

    Ecuador should ensure that all asylum procedures fully respect the basic rights of refugees under international law, Human Rights Watch said in a letter sent today, World Refugee Day, to President Rafael Correa.

  • Libya: Blasphemy Charges Over Election Posters
    June 20, 2013
    Libyan judicial authorities should immediately drop all criminal charges that violate freedom of speech over election poster cartoons against two Libyan National Party officials. Under the laws being applied in this case, the men could face the death penalty over posters their party displayed during the 2012 election campaign for the General National Congress.
  • Uzbekistan: US Decision Vindicates Forced Labor Victims
    June 20, 2013
    The United States government’s decision to downgrade Uzbekistan in a human trafficking ranking based on its use of forced and child labor sends a powerful message of support to the millions of Uzbeks forced to pick the country’s cotton crop. Moving Uzbekistan to the lowest category is one of the strongest efforts in years to hold Uzbekistan accountable for its atrocious record on forced labor
  • Governments Should Sign, Ratify Mercury Treaty
    June 20, 2013
    (New York)- Governments around the world should sign and ratify the Minamata Convention on Mercury, and take immediate steps to reduce mercury pollution, Human Rights Watch said today in letters to environment ministers around the globe. Human Rights Watch sent its letters to countries with artisanal gold mining and to all others, including donor countries, in advance of a diplomatic conference for countries to sign the international treaty, from October 7 to 11, 2013, in Japan. For the treaty to go into force, at least 50 countries must sign.
  • Bahrain: New Associations Law Spells Repression
    June 20, 2013
    New laws and lengthy jail terms for activists have put freedom of association in Bahrain under severe threat, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Bahraini authorities have left hardly any space for peaceful political dissent. Through a mix of restrictive laws and abusive policies, the government is sending a clear message that it will not tolerate calls for reform that challenge the ruling family’s monopoly on power.
  • Vietnam: Escalating Persecution of Bloggers
    June 19, 2013
    The Vietnamese government should unconditionally release recently arrested bloggers and end physical attacks on critics.
  • US: Reject Extreme Immigration Enforcement Bill
    June 19, 2013
    The United States House of Representatives should reject an expansive immigration enforcement bill that would worsen existing abuses within the US immigration system. House Resolution (HR) 2278, the Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement Act (or “SAFE Act”), passed the House Judiciary Committee on June 18, 2013.
  • Sierra Leone: Investigate Alleged Rebel Arms Supplier
    June 19, 2013

     The Sierra Leone authorities should open a criminal investigation of a suspected arms supplier for his alleged involvement in international crimes during Sierra Leone’s civil war. This would be Sierra Leone’s first purely domestic prosecution in relation to war crimes or crimes against humanity committed during its 11-year armed conflict, which ended in 2002.
     

  • China: ‘Benefit the Masses’ Campaign Surveilling Tibetans
    June 18, 2013
    The Chinese government, under the rationale of a campaign to improve rural living standards, has sent more than 20,000 officials and communist party cadres to Tibetan villages to undertake intrusive surveillance of people, carry out widespread political re-education, and establish partisan security units.
  • Cambodia: Court Upholds Unjust Verdict
    June 18, 2013
    A Cambodian court’s ruling upholding the conviction of a land rights activist on trumped-up charges shows the political use of the country’s legal system to persecute critics of the government, Human Rights Watch said today.