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Indonesia: Drop Charges, Release Peaceful Papuan Activist

Ensure Counterinsurgency Operations Are Not Abusive

(Jakarta) – Indonesian authorities should drop politically motivated treason charges and unconditionally release an activist detained for peacefully advocating Papuan independence, Human Rights Watch said today. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo should…
Supporters of West Papua shout slogans during a rally in Jakarta, Indonesia on December 1, 2020. 
News

Uganda: First ICC Conviction of an LRA Leader

Dominic Ongwen Guilty of War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity

(The Hague) – The conviction of Dominic Ongwen on February 4, 2021 is a major step for justice for widespread atrocities committed by the brutal Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Uganda, Human Rights Watch said today. The guilty verdict at the…
Dominic Ongwen at his confirmation of charges hearing in ICC courtroom I on 21 January 2016 © ICC-CPI.
News

ICC to Rule on Lord’s Resistance Army Leader

Verdict in Dominic Ongwen Case Set for February 4

(The Hague) – The International Criminal Court’s trial of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) leader Dominic Ongwen, in which a verdict is due on February 4, 2021, has been a significant step toward justice for atrocities committed by the group in…
Dominic Ongwen, a Ugandan commander in the Lord’s Resistance Army, waits for the judge to arrive as he made his first appearance at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, Monday, Jan. 26, 2015.
News

Indonesia: Investigate Environmental Lawyer’s Death

Golfrid Siregar Helped to Protect Sumatra’s Rainforests, Villagers

(Jakarta) – Indonesian authorities should immediately and impartially investigate the death of an environmental lawyer, Golfrid Siregar, in Medan, North Sumatra, Human Rights Watch said today. After midnight on October 3, 2019, a pedicab…
Golfrid Siregar (left), an environmental lawyer, died on October 6, 2019 three days after his unconscious body was found in Medan, North Sumatra.
News

Indonesia: Free Three Papuan Activists

Arrests for Peaceful Protest Highlights Police Abuse of Treason Laws

Update: On February 6, 2019, Ruben Saija, a Moluccan political prisoner, was released from Ambon prison after President Joko Widodo issued him a pardon. Five political prisoners remain incarcerated in Ambon prison.  (Jakarta…
Yanto Awerkion (far left) detained in the Timika police station in September 2017 for his role in organizing a petition calling on the UN to organize a referendum in Papua.
News

Indonesia: Papuan Militants Kill 17

Police Should Investigate Worksite Killings; Military Should Show Restraint

(Jakarta) – Indonesian police should investigate a Papuan armed group’s killing of at least 17 people, including a soldier, at a construction area in Nduga in Papua’s densely forested Central Highlands on December 2, 2018, Human Rights Watch said…
Cartoonist's depiction of Indonesian government restrictions on media freedom and rights monitoring in Papua.
News

Indonesia: Pre-Asian Games Police Killing Spree

Jakarta ‘Anti-Crime Campaign’ Kills 11 People in 10 Days

(Jakarta) – Indonesia’s government should promptly and impartially investigate a surge of killings of criminal suspects by the Jakarta police, Human Rights Watch said today. Jakarta police data indicates that police killed 11 suspects and wounded…
A parade marks the arrival of the Asian Games torch from India ahead of the 18th Asian Games, in Sleman, Yogyakarta, Indonesia July 17, 2018.
News

ICC Prosecutor Can Spur National Justice

Case Studies of Colombia, United Kingdom, Georgia, Guinea

(The Hague) – The prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has important leverage to encourage countries to investigate and prosecute grave international crimes, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.…
Relatives hold pictures of their beloved during a March 6, 2009 march in Bogota against the “false positive” killings and enforced disappearances.
News

Indonesia: US Documents Released on 1965-66 Massacres

Justice Demands Full Disclosure of Classified Materials on Mass Killings

(New York) – Newly released US government documents on the mass killings in Indonesia in 1965-66 underscore the need for the US and Indonesian governments to fully disclose all related classified materials, Human Rights Watch said today. Those…
201710Asia_Indonesia_1065
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ICC: Support Victims in Choosing Counsel

Lord’s Resistance Army Case Highlights Problems

(Amsterdam) – The International Criminal Court (ICC) should prioritize victims’ views and wishes when it comes to choosing lawyers to represent them in the courtroom, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. …
A community member in Lukodi stands next to a memorial of a May 19, 2004 massacre, one of the atrocities for which Dominic Ongwen is facing charges before the International Criminal Court. Over 4,000 victims are participating in the trial. ©2016 G. GT.
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ICC: First Lord’s Resistance Army Trial Begins

Thousands of Victims Participating in Case

(Brussels) – The opening of the International Criminal Court trial of a Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commander is an important new chapter in holding the rebel group accountable for its brutal crimes in northern Uganda, Human Rights Watch said today.…
Ongwen at the ICC, January 21, 2016
News

ICC: First Major Hearing on LRA Crimes

Brutal, Elusive Group Terrorized African Region

(Brussels) – The first major International Criminal Court (ICC) hearing for a Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) leader is an important step for accountability for grave crimes committed in northern Uganda, Human Rights Watch said today. The confirmation…
News

Indonesia/US: Rights Should Top Jokowi-Obama Summit

Address Virginity Tests, Women’s Rights, and Religious Freedom Rollback

(Washington, DC) – United States President Barack Obama and Indonesian President Joko Widodo should address increasing threats to women’s rights and religious freedom in Indonesia when they meet in Washington, DC, on October 26, 2015, Human Rights Watch…
News

ICC: LRA Transfer Advances Chance for Justice

Ongwen First Lord’s Resistance Army Suspect to Appear in The Hague

(Brussels) – The transfer of a Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commander to the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an important opportunity to achieve a measure of justice for crimes committed by the rebel group, Human Rights Watch said today. Dominic…
News

Colombia: Make Victims’ Rights Central to Peace Talks

Peace Without Justice Not Sustainable

Colombia will only achieve sustainable peace by protecting victims’ right to justice, Human Rights Watch said today in advance of peace talks between the Colombian government and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas. The talks will…
News

Justice in Congo

A Victory for Congo's Children

Yesterday in The Hague, the International Criminal Court (ICC) found the Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga guilty of recruiting and using child soldiers under age 15 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, making him the ICC’s first convicted war criminal.…
News

Uganda: War Crimes Trials Face Challenges

Local Effort May Offer Insights for Other Countries

(Cape Town) – Legal and organizational issues that have emerged during Uganda’s first war crimes prosecution pose challenges for Uganda in seeking to ensure justice for victims of the most serious crimes, Human Rights Watch said in a briefing paper…
News

Obama Sends Military Support to Help Combat LRA Rebels

In October, 2011, the Obama administration said it would send 100 US military advisers to central Africa to help the region’s armies combat the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a vicious Ugandan rebel group. Human Rights Watch has pressed the US government…
News

Colombia: FARC’s Killing of Captives a War Crime

(Washington, DC) – The killing of four captive members of the Colombian security forces by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) shows the guerrilla group’s blatant disregard for human life and the laws of war, Human Rights Watch said today.…
News

Uganda: End Trials of Civilians in Military Courts

Release Defendants or Send for Retrial to Protect Basic Rights

(Kampala) – The Ugandan government should stop prosecuting civilians in unfair military courts, effective immediately, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Military and civilian prosecutors should work together to resolve pending cases…

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