Russia's continued assault on human rights both in Ukraine and nationally highlights the importance of ensuring Council scrutiny of country situations not formally on its agenda. We welcome the creation of a Commission of Inquiry on the Ukraine…

Human Rights Watch welcomes the report of the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar. Since the February 1, 2021 coup, Myanmar’s junta has carried out a brutal nationwide crackdown aimed at suppressing the millions of people bravely opposing…

Thank you, Mr. President, Last week’s urgent debate showed that this Council can take action to hold even its most powerful members to account for their international crimes. Now, High Commissioner, it’s past time for you to do the same. I…

We welcome the Council’s decision to proceed with this important dialogue.   Myanmar once again stands at a precipice, threatening to become an international human rights pariah. Since the February 1 coup, the military junta has arbitrarily…

High Commissioner, last session you underlined the importance of an “independent and comprehensive assessment of the rights situation” in Xinjiang, and indicated your Office was assessing reports of “arbitrary detention, ill-treatment and sexual…

This submission is based on Human Rights Watch research on human rights issues impacting older women,[1] including domestic violence, abuse, and neglect in residential institutions for older people, abuses during armed conflict, and health disparities.…

High Commissioner, Your landmark report on the human rights impacts of Covid-19 highlights the indivisibility of rights, and reminds states of the need to address global inequalities in basic rights; reform healthcare systems; ensure equitable…

Myanmar once again stands at a precipice. Hundreds of people including elected political leaders, human rights defenders, activists and members of the business community have been arbitrarily detained. President Win Myint and Aung San Suu Kyi continue…

Thank you, Madam President. This statement is supported by more than 300 NGOs from over 60 countries, from Azerbaijan to Zambia. We join together to call for an international mechanism to address the Chinese government’s human rights violations,…

Thank you Madam President, High Commissioner, Today’s joint statement by Denmark on behalf of 29 countries highlights that Saudi Arabia should heed your call, High Commissioner, for the release of women’s rights defenders. We urge the council to…

Thank you, Madam President. High Commissioner, we share your concerns that Covid-19 has been instrumentalized by states, including China, to “limit people’s rights to speak,” and to threaten and intimidate journalists, bloggers and civic activists…

The Secretary-General’s report on the UN involvement in Myanmar states that it: explores the structural and systemic factors that, notwithstanding the lessons learned in previous cases – notably, in Sri Lanka – appear to have been repeated in…

We welcome the High Commissioner’s release of the database of businesses contributing to illegal Israeli settlements. The report brings a degree of transparency to business activities and helps build pressure on companies to stop contributing to rights…

At the recent June session of the Human Rights Council, 25 states sent a joint letter to the President of the Human Rights Council and to the High Commissioner for Human Rights, expressing deep concern at widespread rights violations against ethnic…

The High Commissioner for Human Rights has requested unfettered access to conduct an independent assessment of the human rights situation in China’s Xinjiang region. While China has professed openness to this request, any such access would need…

We share the High Commissioner’s concerns at the brutal crackdown by security forces on peaceful democracy protesters in Sudan. The High Commissioner has rightly emphasized the Council’s prevention mandate, but expressed regret that the government has not…

Thank you, Mr. President, and congratulations, High Commissioner, on your first annual report. The broad range of human rights concerns you have identified is a sobering reminder of the challenges faced in all regions of the world and the heavy…

Human Rights Watch welcomes the first Interactive Dialogue with the ASG and his latest report. We are deeply concerned about cases of reprisals committed in the reporting period, including by three countries that have appeared in every single report by…

At the opening of this session, High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet highlighted “deeply disturbing allegations of large-scale arbitrary detentions of Uighurs and other Muslim communities, in so-called re-education camps across Xinjiang.” Last…

I have the honour to make this statement on behalf of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. This past year has seen one of the darkest chapters in Myanmar’s recent history. In northern Rakhine State, Myanmar security forces carried out…