Reports

Stymied Reforms in the Maldives

The 56-page report, “‘I Could Have Been Next’: Stymied Reforms in the Maldives,” finds that the Solih administration, more than halfway into its five-year term, has not fulfilled election promises to reform the criminal justice system to address threats to free expression. The government has reduced its repression of free speech and the media, so reporters say they no longer fear state censorship or worry about facing criminal cases or fines for doing their jobs. Yet, the government has often relented to pressure from politicians and powerful religious groups, instead of upholding free speech and association

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  • June 24, 2004

    Indefinite Detention Without Trial in the United Kingdom Under Part 4 of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001

    The U.K. government introduced emergency legislation in the wake of the September 11 attacks in the U.S. The resulting Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act became law on December 14, 2001. This briefing paper details how indefinite detention, contained in part 4 of ATCSA, has seriously damaged the mental and physical health of the detainees.
  • June 8, 2004

    This 38-page report examines how the Bush administration adopted a deliberate policy of permitting illegal interrogation techniques – and then spent two years covering up or ignoring reports of torture and other abuse by U.S. troops.

  • June 1, 2004

    June 1, 2004

    Detainees held by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere have been subjected to sleep and sensory deprivation, held in painful stress positions, forced to stand for long periods of time, interrogated while nude, and otherwise mistreated.
  • May 24, 2004

    Counterterrorism and Human Rights Abuses Under Malaysia’s Internal Security Act

    This 60-page report documents a pattern of serious abuses against detainees, including beatings, burning with lit cigarettes, and psychological abuse. In addition to suffering from various forms of physical and psychological abuse, detainees held under the Internal Security Act (ISA) have been denied basic due process rights.
  • April 14, 2004

    Diplomatic Assurances No Safeguard Against Torture

    Individuals suspected of terrorism should never be returned to a country where they risk torture and ill-treatment.
  • January 9, 2004

    U.S. Detentions Undermine the Rule of Law

    Since January 11, 2002, the U.S. government has sent more over 700 people picked up from around the world to Guantanamo. As the detention camp begins its third year, the public still does not know who the detainees are, what they have allegedly done, and whether and when they will be charged with crimes or released.
  • September 21, 2003

    Russian Abuses in Ingushetia

    Russia’s forces are committing abuses against displaced Chechens in Ingushetia as the conflict in Chechnya spills over into this neighboring republic. This 28-page report documents arbitrary arrest and detention, ill-treatment, and looting by Russia’s forces in Ingushetia this summer.
  • June 25, 2003

    The U.S. government is moving closer to convening the military commissions authorized by President Bush in November 2001 to try suspected terrorists. Despite President Bush's oft-repeated insistence that the war on terror is a war to affirm and protect basic human rights, the rules for the proposed commissions fall far short of international due process standards.

  • March 25, 2003

    A Human Rights Watch Briefing Paper for the 59th Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights

    This paper first surveys initiatives taken by U.N., regional, and other intergovernmental bodies in the context of the international campaign against terrorism.
  • March 11, 2003

    There is growing concern in the United States, and a growing belief around the world, that the United States itself has engaged in torture or condoned its use by others as part of its war against terrorism. Newspapers such as the New York Times and the Washington Post have published credible reports, based on interviews with former detainees and unnamed U.S. officials, alleging that U.S.
  • November 14, 2002

    Hate Crimes Against Arabs, Muslims,and Those Perceived to be Arab or Muslim after September 11

    Public officials tried vigorously to contain a wave of hate crimes in the United States after September 11, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Nevertheless, anti-Muslim hate crimes in the United States rose 1700 percent during 2001. The report documents anti-Arab and anti-Muslim violence and the local, state and federal response to it.

    Women hold candles and American flags at a memorial in Dearborn Michigan, September 2001.
  • October 15, 2002

    Suicide Bombing Attacks Against Israeli Civilians

    The people responsible for planning and carrying out suicide bombings that deliberately target civilians are guilty of crimes against humanity and should be brought to justice, Human Rights Watch said in a new report today.