Reports

JBS and the EU’s Exposure to Human Rights Violations and Illegal Deforestation in Pará, Brazil

The 86-page report “Tainted: JBS and the EU’s Exposure to Human Rights Violations and Illegal Deforestation in Pará, Brazil,” details how cattle ranchers illegally seized land and devastated the livelihoods of lawful residents in the Terra Nossa smallholder settlement and the Cachoeira Seca Indigenous territory, affecting their rights to housing, land, and culture. Human Rights Watch analysis of official sources shows that illegal farms in these areas sold cattle to several JBS direct suppliers.

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  • March 25, 2014

    Telecom and Internet Surveillance in Ethiopia

    The 137 page report details the technologies the Ethiopian government has acquired from several countries and uses to facilitate surveillance of perceived political opponents inside the country and among the diaspora. The government’s surveillance practices violate the rights to freedom of expression, association, and access to information.

  • February 19, 2014

    Human Rights Abuses in Sierra Leone’s Mining Boom

    This 96-page report documents how the government and London-based African Minerals Limited forcibly relocated hundreds of families from verdant slopes to a flat, arid area in Tonkolili District. As a result, residents lost their ability to cultivate crops and engage in income generating activities that once sustained them.

  • February 12, 2014

    Impunity for Killings and Other Abuses in Bajo Aguán, Honduras

    This 72-page repor examines 29 homicides and two abductions in Bajo Aguán since 2009, as well as human rights violations by soldiers and police. Human Rights Watch found that prosecutors and police consistently failed to carry out prompt and thorough investigations into these crimes, a failure that Honduran public prosecutors, police, and military officials acknowledged in interviews.

  • February 5, 2014

    America’s “Offender-Funded” Probation Industry

    This 72-page report describes how more than 1,000 courts in several US states delegate tremendous coercive power to companies that are often subject to little meaningful oversight or regulation. In many cases, the only reason people are put on probation is because they need time to pay off fines and court costs linked to minor crimes.

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  • February 3, 2014

    The Impact of Mining on Human Rights in Karamoja, Uganda

    This 140-page report examines the conduct of three companies in different stages of the mining process: East African Mining, Jan Mangal, and DAO Uganda. Human Rights Watch found that companies have explored for minerals and actively mined on lands owned and occupied by Karamoja’s indigenous people.

  • August 28, 2013

    Child Labor and Mercury Exposure in Tanzania’s Small-Scale Gold Mines

    This 96-page report describes how thousands of children work in licensed and unlicensed small-scale gold mines in Tanzania, Africa’s fourth-largest gold producer. They dig and drill in deep, unstable pits, work underground for shifts of up to 24 hours, and transport and crush heavy bags of gold ore.

  • July 22, 2013

    How the World Bank Should Safeguard Against Human Rights Violations

    This 59-page report draws on Human Rights Watch research from around the globe to document the harm caused to some of the world’s most vulnerable people by bank-financed programs.

  • July 15, 2013

    Human Rights Impacts of Weak Governance in Indonesia’s Forestry Sector

    This 68-page report finds that illegal logging and forest-sector mismanagement resulted in losses to the Indonesian government of more than US$7 billion between 2007 and 2011.

  • May 23, 2013

    Mozambique’s Coal Mining Boom and Resettlements

    This 122-page report examines how serious shortcomings in government policy and mining companies’ implementation uprooted largely self-sufficient farming communities and resettled them to arid land far from rivers and markets. These communities have experienced periods of food insecurity or, when available, dependence on short-term food assistance financed by Vale and Rio Tinto.

  • May 19, 2013

    Human Rights and Responsible Investment in Mobile and the Internet

    This 24-page report outlines steps necessary to promote adequate protections for Internet and mobile phone users in Burma, and ways to foster responsible investment in Burma’s telecom sector. In January 2013, the Burmese government announced plans to open the country’s telecom sector to foreign investment and is scheduled to award two nationwide licenses to companies by June 27.

  • February 6, 2013

    Exploitation of Migrant Workers Ahead of Russia’s 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi

    This 67-page report documents exploitation of migrant workers on key Olympic sites, including the Central Olympic Stadium, the Main Olympic Village, and the Main Media Center.

  • February 4, 2013

    Abusive Impacts of Arkansas's Draconian Evictions Law

    This 44-page report tells the stories of Arkansas tenants who were dragged into criminal court for transgressions that would not be a crime in any other US state. Other tenants who did not violate the law have faced charges because prosecutors acted on specious claims by landlords.

  • January 15, 2013

    Forced Labor and Corporate Responsibility in Eritrea’s Mining Sector

    The 29-page report describes how mining companies working in Eritrea risk involvement with the government’s widespread exploitation of forced labor. It also documents how Nevsun – the first company to develop an operational mine in Eritrea – initially failed to take those risks seriously, and then struggled to address allegations of abuse connected to its operations.

  • October 8, 2012

    The Health Repercussions of Bangladesh’s Hazaribagh Leather

    This report documents an occupational health and safety crisis among tannery workers, both men and women, including skin diseases and respiratory illnesses caused by exposure to tanning chemicals, and limb amputations caused by accidents in dangerous tannery machinery.

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  • September 30, 2012

    Migrant Worker Abuse in Bahrain and the Government Reform Agenda

    This 123-page report documents the many forms of abuse and exploitation suffered by migrant workers in Bahrain and details the government’s efforts to provide redress and strengthen worker protections. Bahraini authorities need to implement labor safeguards and redress mechanisms already in place and prosecute abusive employers, Human Rights Watch said.