Forced Sterilization in Japan: Daily Brief

Burundi jails kids for doodling; will the new Kazakh president stand for rights?; US drone strikes kill civilians in Somalia; EU should call out China on rights; Hamas cracks down on protestors in Gaza; and decision day for Europe's center-right bloc.

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An outdated law in Japan leads to the forced sterilization of transgender people, and treats gender identity as a mental illness. Transgender persons who want to change their gender have to appeal through a discriminatory process in court before they are 20 years old, and be subjected to several mental health tests.

Burundi continues to crack down on anyone opposing the government. A few years ago, some schoolchildren were arrested, and others expelled from secondary school for insulting the head of state, and more recently, 3 teenagers were jailed for scribbling on the Presidents photo.  

The resignation of Kazakhstan’s president, Nursultan Nazarbaev, this week after 30 years in power could be a chance to improve the country’s human rights record after years of such as the clampdown of free speech and violent breakup of protests. The new president, Kasym-Jomart Tokayev, will serve until the scheduled elections next year.

The US has been accused of killing civilians in Somalia through drone strikes which increased after US President Donald Trump eased restrictions on these attack. The US claims there have been zero casualties documented but Amnesty International documented 14 cases where civilians were killed.

Tajikistan is holding a gravely ill activist Mahmadali Hayit, who says he has been tortured by guards who refused him medicine.

This week the European Union has had a series of high-level meetings discussing relations with China. It’s unfortunate that the EU has not used this opportunity to issue strong statements against China’s appalling rights record.

In Gaza, Hamas has responded to protests over new taxes it introduced by viciously beating demonstrators.

Today, the members of the European People’s Party will meet to decide on whether to expel Hungary’s Fidesz Party from its ranks. The Fidesz government has been undermining fundamental democratic values for years.