World Report 2001 HOME | SITEMAP | SEARCH | CONTACT | REPORTS | Join the HRW Mailing List 
Contribute to Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
The Latest News
 
Last updated
Thursday, December 28, 2000

Current Events
Focus on Human Rights

Turkey: Focus on Human Rights (Dec 8)

Crisis in Colombia (Nov 30)

Indonesia: Transition and Regional Conflict (Dec 8)

Israel/Palestinian Authority : Abuses During Violent Clashes (Nov 14)

Pakistan: Post-Coup Abuses (Nov 14)

China: Human Rights Deteriorate (Nov 13)

Human Rights Watch Challenge to Candidates (US Elections 2000) (Nov 8)

Sierra Leone: A Call for Justice  (Nov 1)

Race and Human Rights (Oct 30)

EU-Russia Summit (Oct 30)

Kosovo: Focus on Human Rights  (October 23)

Yugoslavia: Justice Imperative (Oct 14)

Cambodia: Focus on Human Rights (Oct 3)

More...

News Archive
Latest Reports from Human Rights Watch

Tunisia: Trial of Professor Condemned
(New York, December 29, 2000) The Tunisian government should cease its ongoing campaign of harassment against a leading human rights defender and professor of public health, Human Rights Watch said today.
Israel, Palestinian Leaders Should Guarantee Right of Return as Part of Comprehensive Refugee Solution
(New York, December 22, 2000) Human Rights Watch today called on Israeli and Palestinian leaders engaged in final-status negotiations to uphold the right of return for Palestinian refugees as part of a comprehensive solution to the Palestinian refugee problem. In letters to Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat, the organization said that a peace agreement between the two sides should allow Palestinians in exile to choose freely among three options: returning to their country of origin, integrating into the country of asylum, or resettling in a third country.
Human Rights Principles for Oil and Mining Companies Welcomed
(New York, December 21, 2000) Human Rights Watch today welcomed the release of the U.S.-U.K. governments' voluntary principles on security and human rights in the extractive industries.
Chile: Pinochet to Undergo Questioning
(New York, December 20, 2000) Human Rights Watch today praised the decision by the Chilean Supreme Court to order Gen. Augusto Pinochet to undergo questioning.
Ivory Coast: Government Involved in Civilian Killings
(New York, December 20, 2000:) The government of the Ivory Coast sponsored violence against civilians in the wake of the October elections, Human Rights Watch charged in a backgrounder released today. The backgrounder includes a sample of testimonies taken from victims and witnesses outlining abuses.
"Appalling" Detention Conditions for Foreigners in Greece Says Rights Group
(New York, December 20, 2000) Undocumented migrants in Greece awaiting deportation face appalling detention conditions, Human Rights Watch charged today. In an urgent memorandum to the Greek government, the group documented conditions at the Attica General Police Directorate detention center for foreigners. It found that detainees lived in conditions of severe overcrowding, and lacked access to fresh air or exercise, adequate sleeping accommodations, adequate food, and adequate access to medical care.
Turkey: Violent Assault on Prison Hunger Strikers
(New York, December 20, 2000) Human Rights Watch condemned Tuesday's violent assault by Turkish security forces on hunger striking prisoners. The prisoners were protesting inmate transfers to a new type of high-security prisons.
Uzbek Police Routinely Torture Detainees
(New York, December 19, 2000) Police routinely torture detainees in Uzbekistan, and reports of deaths in custody have risen during the government's three-year crackdown against Islamic dissidents, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.
Uruguay Signs War Crimes Treaty
(New York, December 19, 2000) Human Rights Watch today applauded Uruguay's signing of the Rome Treaty for the International Criminal Court. With this signature, 121 states have signed the treaty, including almost all of Latin America.
Afghanistan: Ban Weapons To All Warring Factions
(New York, December 15, 2000) In its ongoing focus on combating terrorism, the international community is ignoring the perilous fate of civilians in Afghanistan, Human Rights Watch charged today.
Liberia: Emerging from the Destruction
(New York, December 11, 2000)
President Charles Taylor
Human Rights Watch is writing to express its deep concern over the increasing harassment and intimidation of human rights defenders in Liberia since you took office in 1997. Most recently, on 28 November, 2000, a gang of men armed with knives, hammers, and sticks stormed the offices of the Centre for Democratic Empowerment (CEDE), a nongovernmental organization in Monrovia. Human Rights Watch believes that this recent incident is part of a pattern of attacks against members of the Liberian human rights community and the independent media, intended to silence independent voices in Liberia.
Crackdown in Cuba During Putin Visit
(New York, December 14, 2000) Human Rights Watch today condemned the unjust conviction of two Cuban political dissidents charged with "contempt for authority." The two prisoners, Angel Moya Acosta and Julia Cecilia Delgado, each received one-year sentences after being arrested during a massive crackdown. Acosta was convicted on Tuesday while Delgado was convicted in a separate trial yesterday.
Serbia: Free and Fair Elections Likely
(New York, December 15, 2000) Serbia has an opportunity for the first time to have reasonably free and fair parliamentary elections, Human Rights Watch said today. In a 7-page backgrounder released in advance of the December 23 elections for the Serbian parliament, Human Rights Watch concludes that Serbia's new electoral law significantly limits the possibility for fraud, and that the conditions are in place for the Serbian electorate to make a fairly objective judgment about the candidates.
No Human Rights Progress in Niger Delta
(New York, December 14, 2000) The restoration of civilian rule in Nigeria has not seen a reduction of human rights violations in the country's oil-producing regions, Human Rights Watch said in a backgrounder released today.
Indonesia: Sole Survivor of Attack on Humanitarian Aid Workers Speaks
(New York, December 13, 2000) Human Rights Watch today released an eyewitness account of the December 6 execution-style murders of three humanitarian workers and a villager, all from the Lhokseumawe area of Aceh in Indonesia.
US: Clinton Urged to Impose Moratorium on Executions
(New York, December 12, 2000) Human Rights Watch commended President Clinton for staying the execution of Juan Raul Garza, which had been scheduled for today. The group urged the president to impose a moratorium on federal executions.
EU-ASEAN Summit: Action Needed on Human Rights in Burma
(Brussels, Dec. 12, 2000) The EU and ASEAN should urge the immediate lifting of Aung San Suu Kyi's defacto house arrest, Human Rights Watch asked today as EU/ASEAN talks continue in Vientiane, Laos.
Refugees: Western Europe Weakening Protections
(New York, December 12, 2000) The Western nations that established the international refugee protection system fifty years ago are the same ones weakening it today, Human Rights Watch charged in a background document released today.
Chilean Appellate Court Ruling on Pinochet Criticized
(New York, December 11, 2000 ) Human Rights Watch today expressed dismay over the Santiago appellate court ruling in favor of General Augusto Pinochet, which dismissed criminal charges filed against Pinochet on December 1.
Paraguay: Stroessner Extradition Effort Hailed
(New York, December 11, 2000 ) Human Rights Watch today welcomed the judicial order of detention issued against former Paraguayan strongman Alfredo Stroessner. The detention order, issued on Saturday by a judge in Paraguay, calls for General Stroessner's arrest and extradition from Brazil, as well as the arrest and extradition from Honduras of a former high official in Stroessner's government.
US: Renewed Abuse of Inmates Denounced at Virginia Supermax
(New York, December 11, 2000) Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore should denounce the abusive use of five point restraints at Red Onion State Prison, the state's first super-maximum security prison, Human Rights Watch said today.
Germany Commended on International Court
(New York, December 11, 2000) Human Rights Watch today praised Germany's ratification of the Rome Treaty for the International Criminal Court (ICC), and said the move would help achieve the court's early establishment.
Indonesia: Aid Workers Executed in Aceh
(New York, December 8, 2000) In a joint statement today, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International condemned Wednesday's execution-style killings by Indonesian police of three humanitarian aid volunteers and a torture victim in Aceh. The two leading global rights monitors called for the immediate arrest and prosecution of the security officers responsible for the killings.
Turkey: Guarantee Humane Prison Conditions
(New York, December 8, 2000) Human Rights Watch today called on the Turkish government to guarantee that its new prisons will meet international standards. The group expressed dismay that the government's response to a report published yesterday by the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) did little to allay fears that the new facilities will result in the isolation and ill-treatment of prisoners.
Global Protection Needed for Human Rights
(Washington, D.C., December 7, 2000) The scope of today's global human rights problems far exceeds the capacity of global institutions to address them, Human Rights Watch charged today. In its annual survey of human rights conditions around the world, the organization called for a "reinforced global architecture" to meet these challenges.
Cambodia: Unlawful Arrests and Detention Condemned
(December 6, 2000) In the aftermath of the most serious outbreak of violence in Phnom Penh since a coup in 1997, followed by widespread arrests throughout the countryside, Human Rights Watch today called for heightened international monitoring of the human rights situation in Cambodia.
Pinochet Arrest Hailed
(New York, December 1, 2000) Human Rights Watch hailed Friday's decision by a Chilean judge to arrest and try former dictator Augusto Pinochet.
New Evidence of Atrocities in Sierra Leone
(New York, November 30, 2000) As the United Nations Secretary-General prepares to visit Sierra Leone, Human Rights Watch today released fresh evidence that civilian suffering continues unabated in the civil war there. In addition to providing details of ongoing atrocities by the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF), Human Rights Watch also documented how armed factions fighting on behalf of the Sierra Leonean government have also attacked civilians in recent months.
Colombia: Guerrillas Must Release Civilian Hostages
(New York, November 29, 2000) Human Rights Watch today called for the immediate release of all civilian hostages in Colombia. In a letter to Manuel Marulanda, commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Human Rights Watch drew special attention to Henry A. Grosch-Garces, a Buenaventura man who is believed to be seriously ill.
Colombia: Protect Threatened Judge
(New York, November 28, 2000) Human Rights Watch today urged the Colombian government not to withdraw the security protection for a former judge who ordered the arrest of Pablo Escobar in 1988. In a letter to President Andrés Pastrana, Human Rights Watch warned that the life of Judge Consuelo Sánchez Durán will be in danger after the withdrawal of her security, scheduled for today, Tuesday, November 28.

More...
Recent Publications
HOME | SITEMAP | SEARCH | CONTACT | REPORTS | PRESS ARCHIVES