The 75-page report, “No Money, No Care: Obstetric Violence in Sierra Leone,” documents cases of verbal abuse, medical neglect, and abandonment of women and girls facing serious obstetric complications, practices that experts interviewed say are common. Many women interviewed said they were shamed and mistreated by healthcare providers for expressing pain, needing help, or for not having enough money to pay fees. Others described humiliating experiences in which healthcare providers treated them brusquely or withheld important health information. Some cases documented constitute obstetric violence, a largely unaddressed form of gender-based violence prevalent across the world.
This 78-page report is based on interviews with more than 160 workers from 44 factories, most of them making garments for retail companies in North America, Europe, and Australia.
The 48-page report documents Sudanese army attacks in which at least 221 women and girls were raped in Tabit over 36 hours beginning on October 30, 2014. The mass rapes would amount to crimes against humanity if found to be part of a widespread or systematic attack on the civilian population.
Women’s Rights under Lebanese Personal Status Laws
This 114-page report found that, across all religions, personal status laws erect greater barriers for women than men who wish to terminate unhappy or abusive marriages, initiate divorce proceedings, ensure their rights concerning their children after divorce, or secure pecuniary rights from a former spouse.
Child Marriage and Human Rights Abuses in Tanzania
This 75-page report documents how child marriage severely curtails girls’ access to education, and exposes them to exploitation and violence – including marital rape and female genital mutilation (FGM) – and reproductive health risks.
Boko Haram Violence against Women and Girls in Northeast Nigeria
This <a href="http://features.hrw.org/features/HRW_2014_report/Those_Terrible_Weeks_i…; is based on interviews with more than 46 witnesses and victims of Boko Haram abductions in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa states, including with girls who escaped the April 2014 abduction of 276 girls from Chibok secondary school.
Abuse and Exploitation of Female Migrant Domestic Workers in the United Arab Emirates
This 79-page report documents how the UAE’s visa sponsorship system, known as kafala, and the lack of labor law protections leave migrant domestic workers exposed to abuse. Domestic workers, most from Asia and Africa, cannot move to a new job before their contracts end without the employer’s consent, trapping many in abusive conditions.
The 78-page report documents sexual violence by both government forces and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) combatants during the conflict, which ended with a peace agreement in 2006. Many of these crimes remain unreported, with survivors isolated and unable to find ways to access justice and redress.
Sexual Exploitation and Abuse by African Union Forces in Somalia
This 71-page report documents the sexual exploitation and abuse of Somali women and girls on two AMISOM bases in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, since 2013. The AU soldiers, relying on Somali intermediaries, have used a range of tactics, including humanitarian aid, to coerce vulnerable women and girls into sexual activity.
This 47-page report profiles 17 Syrian women who are now refugees in Turkey. Through written and photographic portraits, the report documents ways in which the conflict impacts women in particular.
The 58-page report documents the confiscation of passports, confinement to the home, physical and psychological abuse, extremely long working hours with no rest days, and very low wages or non-payment of wages.
This 69-page report documents how child marriage prevents girls and women from participating in all spheres of life. The practice violates the rights to health, to education, to be free from physical, mental, and sexual violence, and to marry only when able and willing to give free and full consent.
A Five-Point Plan to Curtail Sexual Violence in Somalia
This 72-page report provides a roadmap for the government and its international donors to establish a comprehensive strategy to reduce rape, provide survivors with immediate and urgent assistance, and develop a long-term approach to end these abuses.
Lack of Protection from Domestic Violence in Hungary
The 58-page report documents chronic brutal violence against women by their intimate partners and the challenges women face in seeking state protection and services. It documents the gaps in Hungary’s legal and policy framework, despite a recent legal reform, in responding to domestic violence and the failure of the authorities to adequately protect women who experience such violence.
Domestic Workers’ Movements and Global Advances for Labor Reform
This 33-page report, released by IDWN, the ITUC, and Human Rights Watch, charts ratification of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Domestic Workers Convention, national labor law reforms, and the growing influence of emerging domestic workers’ rights movements.
