Flower offering in front of burnt buildings, woman praying
Commentary
December 6, 2025

The Hong Kong Fire and the High Human Cost of China’s Repression

Images of seven high-rise residential buildings engulfed in flames in Hong Kong in late November shocked the world. The fire, the city’s deadliest in decades, claiming at least 159 lives, is a devastating reminder of what can happen when governments suppress fundamental rights.

How We Work

Investigate: We investigate human rights abuses globally.

Expose: We publish our findings, share the stories of those affected by abuses, and speak out against injustice.

Change: We mobilize the public and press governments to enforce rights-respecting laws, change policy, and deliver justice.

89
nationalities represented
102
countries worked on
14+ million
global audience members
Zero
government funding

Spotlight

Reports

See more 

Our deepest research, for people who want all the facts.

    Videos

    Watch more 
    A woman stands in the forest with her hand on a wire fence.
    Read a text description of this video
    Read a text description of this video

    SOUNDBITES

    Toto Arara

    Every year, the invaders clear more land for cattle. Then they burn it.

     

    SOUNDBITES

    Givanildo dos Santos Lima

    Today, the biggest driver of deforestation in the Amazon region is cattle ranching.

    DATE/PLACE

    February 2025

    Cachoeira Seca Indigenous Territory, Brazil

     

    Powdem Arara

    I don't know why the government doesn't remove the invaders from our land.

     

    Pyjaka Arara

    We, the Arara people, are very afraid of ranchers.

     

    Maria Márcia de Melo

    The landgrabbers made me lose 17 years of work in a matter of minutes. Look! It's all dead.

    DATE/PLACE

    November 2024

    PDS Terra Nossa, Brazil

     

    Maria dos Reis

    We can't say anything, or the land grabbers threaten us.

     

    Cleve Gonçalves da Silva

    And it's very dangerous here in Terra Nossa. They've already killed many people in this settlement.

     

    TITLE

    Invaded

    Watch full video at HRW.org
    Anti-Homosexuality Law Makes Supporting LGBT Loved Ones Dangerous

    More videos

    Quick Takes

      Listen, Run, Hide preview image
      Featured Investigation

      Listen, Run, Hide

      How Russia Uses Quadcopter Drones to Hunt and Kill Civilians in Kherson, Ukraine

      Regions

        Topics

          Children and women run among a cloud of dust at the village of El Gel, in Ethiopia’s Somali region, on January 12, 2023. The last five rainy seasons since the end of 2020 have failed, triggering the worst drought in four decades in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya.

          Defend Rights. Secure Justice.

          Your gift helps support and sustain our global mission.

          Give monthly Make a one-time gift