• Women's Rights Division

    Despite great strides made by the international women’s rights movement over many years, women and girls around the world are still married as children or trafficked into forced labor and sex slavery. They are refused access to education and political participation, and some are trapped in conflicts where rape is perpetrated as a weapon of war. Around the world, deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth are needlessly high, and women are prevented from making deeply personal choices in their private lives. Human Rights Watch is working toward the realization of women’s empowerment and gender equality—protecting the rights and improving the lives of women and girls on the ground.

  • Amal Mohamed B’ayou, an independent candidate in Benghazi, handed out election pamphlets in front of the courthouse on July 6, 2012. “For 42 years men have ruled Libya,” B’ayou said. “Now it’s time for the women to rule.”
    © 2012 Samer Muscati/Human Rights Watch
    Libya: Seize Chance to Protect Women’s Rights
    Libyan authorities should seize a historic opportunity to promote and protect women’s rights as the country transitions from four decades of dictatorship, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.
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Women's Rights

  • Afghanistan: Defend Women’s Rights
    Jun 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.
  • Tanzania's Victims of Torture
    Jun 26, 2013
    On June 26, the world commemorates the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. In Tanzania, however, such commemorations are likely to be muted. Tanzania is among a small minority of countries that have not signed or ratified the Convention against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, a United Nations treaty.
  • Saudi Arabia to Women: “Don't Speak Up, We Know What's Best For You”
    Jun 26, 2013
    With the sentencing of two female activists who tried to help an abused woman, the Kingdom has made it clear that it will not tolerate women who stand up for other women's rights.
  • The Violence against Women Epidemic
    Jun 24, 2013
    “He always hit me in the stomach, chest, and head,” said Amina, an Egyptian mother of four, describing the domestic violence her husband perpetrated for nearly 20 years. “It happened every day. I used to lock myself in a room for a week to stay away from him. He kept yelling. When I opened the door he came in and beat me.”
  • Syria: Detention and Abuse of Female Activists
    Jun 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.
  • Saudi Arabia: 5-Year Sentence for Rights Defender
    Jun 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.
  • Burma’s Bluff on the Two-Child Policy for Rohingyas
    Jun 21, 2013
    This month, hundreds of ethnic Arakanese Buddhist protesters marched through the streets of Sittwe calling on authorities to enforce a two-child limit on Rohingya Muslims—that is, to demand a discriminatory population control regulation that restricts Rohingya from choosing how many children they have.
  • Tanzania: Police Abuse, Torture, Impede HIV Services
    Jun 18, 2013
    Tanzanians who are most at risk of HIV face widespread police abuse and often can’t get help when they are victims of crime, Human Rights Watch and the Wake Up and Step Forward Coalition (WASO) said in a report released today.
  • Saudi Arabia: Activists Convicted for Answering Call for Help
    Jun 17, 2013

    A Saudi court convicted two Saudi women’s rights activists on June 15, 2013, for inciting a woman against her husband. Wajeha al-Huwaider and Fawzia al-Oyouni were each sentenced to 10 months in prison and two-year travel bans.

  • Best Father's Day Gift?
    Jun 16, 2013
    On Father’s Day, we’ll no doubt hear more calls for dads to spend time with their kids. Now it’s time for a national policy on paid family leave to make this feasible.
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