Latest Press Releases from Human Rights Watch
(January 29, 1998) --Human Rights Watch today welcomed the decision of the British government to establish a new, independent inquiry into the events of January 30, 1972, commonly known as Bloody Sunday. On that day fourteen unarmed civil rights marchers were killed by British Army forces in Northern
Ireland. The decision comes after a sustained campaign by relatives of Bloody Sunday victims and
at the urging of human rights groups.
(January 23, 1998) -- Foreign ministers of the European Union (EU) should endorse a resolution on China at the
upcoming session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, Human
Rights Watch said today. The ministers are gathering in Brussels for an EU General Affairs
meeting on January 26-27. Both the EU and the U.S. government are engaged in high-level
discussions on whether to push a China motion this year. At the Commission's 1997 session,
China mounted a successful campaign to block consideration of a resolution, threatening trade
retaliation against European and other governments.
(January 23, 1998) -- Human Rights Watch today called on the international community to withhold financial and technical assistance to the Cambodian electoral process until conditions are in place that will be conducive
to the organizing of free and fair national elections. Elections are now scheduled for July 26, 1998. The
minimum conditions, according to Human Rights Watch, should include concrete steps toward the
prosecution of perpetrators of political violence, including those responsible for the killings of opposition
political figures during the July 5-6, 1997 coup; restoration of freedom of the press; full freedom for
opposition parties to engage in political activities without fear of intimidation or violence by government
agents or individuals acting at the government's behest; and an end to the harassment of human rights
workers.
(January 22, 1998) -- Human Rights Watch today called upon the government of
Zimbabwe to refrain from using excessive force against protesters in Harare. The Zimbabwean
military has been deployed to restore order in the capital where protests against the government
turned violent on January 19. Human Rights Watch is concerned that military and police are
using live ammunition and excessive measures against protesters, creating a great risk for the
loss of human life. Human Rights Watch also calls upon the Zimbabwean government to respect
the rights of persons taken into custody over the past few days. Police sources stated on
Wednesday that eight persons had died during the unrest, and press reports indicate that some
were shot by police.
(January 21, 1998) -- As Pope John Paul II is embarking on his mission to Cuba, Human Rights Watch urges
him to address the serious civil and political rights abuses committed by the Cuban government.
While applauding the Catholic church's efforts to expand religious freedoms in Cuba, José
Miguel Vivanco, executive director for the organization's Americas division, calls on the pontiff
"to address a broad range of human rights violations that affect the Cuban population, regardless
of their religion."
(January 15) -- U.S. and Mexican human rights groups today urged the Clinton administration to commit
to seeking a remedy for widespread pregnancy-based sex discrimination in Mexico's maquiladora
(export-processing) sector. The organizations issued their call in response to a report released
this week by the U.S. Department of Labor, which examined the subject pursuant to a complaint
they filed under the labor rights side agreement of the North American Free Trade Agreement
(nafta). Human Rights Watch, the International Labor Rights Fund, and the Mexico-based
National Association of Democratic Lawyers noted that the U.S. Department of Labor clearly
affirmed that employers in Mexico's maquiladora sector systematically oblige women to undergo
pregnancy screening as a condition for employment and that the Mexican government is aware of
this practice. In addition, the groups see as positive the fact that the U.S. Department of Labor
found post-employment mistreatment and firing of pregnant workers to constitute sex
discrimination, in violation of Mexico's labor law. However, the groups expressed concern that
the U.S. Department of Labor stopped short of condemning mandatory hiring-process pregnancy
screening and recommending clear action to remedy it.
(Washington, January 9, 1998) -- In a Brussels press conference this morning, Human Rights Watch called
on Washington and European states to insist that Algeria cooperate with international efforts to
ascertain responsibility for massacres of civilians and to recommend steps to prevent their
recurrence. "The Algerian authorities have failed to initiate or allow any impartial investigation of
the massacres and of the government's failure to protect its citizens," said Kenneth Roth, the group's
executive director in New York. "The scale and duration of the human rights crisis there makes a
mockery of Algeria's insistence that it is strictly an internal matter."
[ Press Releases for December, 1997 ]
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