Reports

“That’s When the Nightmare Started”

UK and US Forced Displacement of the Chagossians and Ongoing Colonial Crimes

The 106-page report, “‘That’s When the Nightmare Started:’ UK and US Forced Displacement of the Chagossians and Ongoing Colonial Crimes,” documents the treatment of the Chagossians, an Indigenous people whom the UK and US forced from their homes in the 1960s and 1970s so that a US military base could be built on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands. The UK, with US support, has prevented the Chagossians from returning home. Even though the UK and Mauritius surprisingly announced negotiations on the future of Chagos in November 2022, there has been no clear commitment to meaningful consultation with the Chagossians and to guarantee their right to reparations, including their right to return, in any settlement.

An archival photo of a boat at sea
Nadia, a Sudanese refugee who has fled the violence in Sudan's Darfur region, hugs her friend Khadidja, beside makeshift shelters near the border between Sudan and Chad in Koufroun, Chad on May 11, 2023. 

World Report 2024

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  • September 24, 2007

    Ten Steps for Darfur

    Indicators for Evaluating Progress in the HRC Group of Experts Process

    On September 24, 2007, the Human Rights Council will consider an interim report by the Group of Experts (GOE) appointed on Darfur. The GOE compiled existing recommendations on Darfur in its June report, and has been working with the government of Sudan to foster their implementation.
  • September 14, 2007

    State of Anarchy

    Rebellion and Abuses against Civilians

    This 108-page report is based on three weeks of on-the-ground research. It documents the human rights abuses and breaches of the laws of war committed in northern CAR by both rebel groups and the government forces, and also documents attacks by banditry groups in the northwest known as zaraguinas, who often kidnap children for ransom.

  • July 24, 2007

    “There Will Be No Trial”

    Police Killings of Detainees and the Imposition of Collective Punishments

    Deaths in police custody have increased in Rwanda, where officers of the National Police have killed at least 20 detainees since November 2006. This 37-page report is based on dozens of interviews with families of victims, eyewitnesses and others.
  • June 28, 2007

    Unfinished Business

    Serbia’s War Crimes Chamber

    This 32-page briefing paper evaluates the progress of the War Crimes Chamber since it was established in 2003 as a complement to the work of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). The Hague-based ICTY will only try a limited number of top-level accused before its mandate ends in 2010.
  • June 22, 2007

    The Poisoned Chalice

    A Human Rights Watch Briefing Paper on the Decision of the Iraqi High Tribunal in the Dujail Case

    The Dujail trial, which concluded on July 27, 2006, concerned crimes that occurred in the aftermath of an assassination attempt against then-President Saddam Hussein in Dujail in July 1982. Saddam Hussein and three others were found guilty of crimes against humanity and executed after the trial chamber’s judgment was affirmed on appeal in December 2006.
  • June 14, 2007

    Better Late Than Never

    Enhancing the Accountability of International Institutions in Kosovo

    This 44-page briefing paper assesses the lack of effective remedies for human rights violations by the current UN-led international administration (UNMIK) and the NATO-led peacekeeping force in Kosovo (KFOR). The paper analyzes the accountability arrangements in the proposed status settlement, including the role of the Ombudsperson Institution and the future Constitutional Court.
  • January 26, 2007

    The Trial of Hissène Habré

    Time is Running Out for the Victims

    In this paper, Human Rights Watch noted that Senegal had not even passed the legislation needed to try Habré. Human Rights Watch called on the African Union to name a special envoy to help Senegal prepare Habré’s trial.

  • November 8, 2006

    UPC Crimes in Ituri (2002 – 2003)

    Summary

    The second Congo war began in 1998 and involved the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) government forces of Laurent Kabila, which were supported by Angola, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, against several rebel movements backed by Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi.
  • October 3, 2006

    Myths and Reality

    An Analysis of the Uzbek Government’s June 30, 2006 Aide-Memoire

    In this 16-page briefing paper, Human Rights Watch analyzes an Uzbek government memorandum from June 2006, which was prepared in response to a December 2005 UN General Assembly resolution that was critical of Uzbekistan’s human rights record.
  • August 14, 2006

    “Genocide in Iraq - The Anfal Campaign Against the Kurds”

    Report Summary

    Human Rights Watch´s comprehensive report “Genocide in Iraq - The Anfal Campaign Against the Kurds,” originally published in July 1993, details the systematic and deliberate murder of at least 50,000 and possibly as many as 100,000 Kurds. The killings occurred between February and September 1988.
  • July 26, 2006

    Genocide, War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity

    A Topical Digest of the Case Law of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

    This unique 861-page book organizes the decisions of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia by topic, including genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, individual criminal responsibility, command responsibility, affirmative defenses, jurisdiction, sentencing, fair trial rights, guilty pleas and appellate review.
  • June 27, 2006

    Universal Jurisdiction in Europe

    The State of the Art

    This 101-page report looks beyond shrill debates about the concept and examines how it is working in practice. Based on interviews with judges, investigators, lawyers and officials in eight European countries, the report describes how some governments, including Britain, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands, have created special war crimes units to conduct investigations across the globe.
  • June 21, 2006

    Trying Charles Taylor in The Hague

    Making Justice Accessible to Those Most Affected

    On March 29, 2006 former Liberian President Charles Taylor was surrendered to the U.N.-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone. Taylor’s surrender for trial provides an extraordinary opportunity for the people of Sierra Leone and West Africa to see justice done for atrocities committed during Sierra Leone’s armed conflict since 1996.
  • June 8, 2006

    Lack of Conviction

    The Special Criminal Court on the Events in Darfur

    This briefing paper examines the first year of the special court's operations, and sets out the major roadblocks to the prosecution of war crimes in Darfur. The courts were established by the Sudanese government to deal with the widespread crimes in Darfur.