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Cuba: Peaceful Protesters Systematically Detained, Abused
Arbitrary Detention, Ill-Treatment, Abusive Trials Affect Hundreds
(Washington, DC) – The Cuban government has systematically engaged in arbitrary detention, ill-treatment of detainees, and abuse-ridden criminal prosecutions in response to overwhelmingly peaceful anti-government protests in July 2021, Human Rights…
Cuba: Telecommunications Decree Curtails Free Speech
Latin American, US, EU Leaders Should Condemn New Restrictions on Internet
(Washington, DC) – A new decree and accompanying legislation announced by the Cuban government severely restricts freedom of expression online and threatens users’ privacy, Human Rights Watch said today. Governments in Latin America, as well as the…
Written Testimony to the US House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee on Cuba
José Miguel Vivanco
Americas Executive Director, Human Rights Watch
Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Civilian Security, Migration, and International Economic Policy
Historic Protests in Cuba and the Crackdown on Free Expression
July 20…
Letter to the Editor: the Turmoil in Cuba
Just as largely unprecedented mass street protests erupted on the streets in Cuba [“In the streets, Cubans ‘have lost their fear’, ” front page, July 13], the Coast Guard’s interdiction of a boat off the coast of Key West and summary return of Cubans…
Cuba Responds to Landmark Demonstrations with Brutal Repression
Internet Outages as Protesters Are Detained, Held Incommunicado
Since July 11, thousands of Cubans have taken to the streets across the country in landmark demonstrations protesting longstanding restrictions on rights, scarcity of food and medicines, and the government’s poor response to the Covid-19 pandemic.…
Cuba: Clampdown on Artists, Journalists
Arbitrary Detention, Restrictions on Movement, Communications
(Washington, DC) – The Cuban government is committing systematic human rights abuses against independent artists and journalists, Human Rights Watch said today as it released a video on the abuses.
In recent months, Cuban authorities have jailed…
What Cuba doesn't want you to know about its artists and musicians.
(Washington, DC, June 30, 2021) – The Cuban government is committing systematic human rights abuses against independent artists and journalists, Human Rights Watch said today as it released a video on the abuses.
In recent months, Cuban authorities…
Cuba: Covid-19 Rules Used to Intensify Repression
Critics Imprisoned, Fined, Harassed
(Washington, DC) – The Cuban government is using regulations designed to prevent the spread of Covid-19 to harass and imprison critics, Human Rights Watch said today.
On November 26, 2020, Cuban security forces detained 14 government critics in…
Asian Nations Reject UN Vote Against Death Penalty
11 Asia-Pacific Governments Oppose 120 States on Capital Punishment Moratorium
(Bangkok) – Eleven countries from the Asia-Pacific region were among the small minority that voted against a United Nations resolution opposing the death penalty, Human Rights Watch said today. On November 17, 120 UN member states voted in favor of a…
Cuba’s Government Targets Social Media Influencers
YouTubers Have Faced Police Harassment and Death Threats
Cuba’s government has a well-documented history of harassing dissidents, journalists, and opposition party members. Now it has a new target: social media influencers.
On October 14, police arrived at the homes of four Cuban YouTubers about to…
UN: Deny Rights Council Seats to Major Violators
General Assembly Members Should Not Vote for China, Saudi Arabia
(New York) – United Nations member countries should not vote for China and Saudi Arabia, two of the world’s most abusive governments, for seats on the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights Watch said today. Russia’s numerous war crimes in Syria’s…
Cuba’s Government Throws Its Repressive Playbook at a Journalist
Camila Acosta Endures a Year of Harassment, Arrest, and Forced Relocation
The Cuban government’s brutal restrictions on free speech fall particularly hard on journalists. Camila Acosta has learned this from experience. In just the one year since August 2019, when she began working as an independent journalist for the news…
Cuba: Protest Over Police Killing Suppressed
Covid-19 No Excuse for Arbitrary Detention, Communication Restrictions
(Washington, DC) – Cuban authorities committed numerous rights violations in June 2020 against people organizing a protest over police violence, effectively suppressing the demonstration, Human Rights Watch said today.
Many Cubans planned to gather…
Cuba: Repressive Rules for Doctors Working Abroad
Receiving Governments Should Press for Change
The Cuban government imposes draconian rules on doctors deployed in medical missions globally that violate their fundamental rights, Human Rights Watch said today. Governments seeking support from Cuban health workers to respond to the Covid-19…
Letter to Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne
Re: Protecting Human Rights in Australia’s Foreign Policy
Dear Minister Payne,
Congratulations on your reappointment as foreign minister. Human Rights Watch looks forward to working with you to make protection of human rights a strong pillar of Australia’s foreign policy.
We attach a…
Australia: Protect Human Rights in Foreign Policy
Human Rights Council Seat Demands Greater Leadership
(Sydney) – The Australian government should make the protection of human rights a central focus of its foreign policy, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the recently reappointed Foreign Minister Marise Payne that was released today.
…
Brunei: New Report on Abusive Penal Code
Law Retains Death Penalty for Private Consensual Sex
Brunei should immediately repeal its newly enacted penal code, which violates a range of human rights, Human Rights Watch said today in an open letter to the sultan of Brunei and a report, “Brunei’s Pernicious New Penal Code.”
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Brunei’s Pernicious New Penal Code
Brunei’s Syariah Penal Code (2013) went into effect on April 3, 2019.[1] The new code poses grave threats to fundamental human rights and discriminates against the country’s most vulnerable groups, including children, women, and religious and sexual…
Don’t Go Easy on Brunei at UN Rights Review
Death Penalty, Whipping, and Amputation Remain on Statute Books
Brunei will appear before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on May 10 as part of its Universal Periodic Review, slated every four years. The review comes shortly after Brunei put into effect a new Sharia penal code that contains…