Rwanda’s Abuses in Global Spotlight: Daily Brief
- Kigali hosts Commonwealth meeting;
- US marks Juneteenth, but will Biden act?;
- fighting China's forced labor in the US;
- don’t monkey around with monkeypox;
- World Refugee Day.
As the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) gets underway today in Kigali, the Rwandan capital has been spruced up to look its best… but at what cost? The poorest and most vulnerable have been swept off the streets to improve the country’s image, and Rwanda’s government jails and tortures perceived opponents, including journalists, to try to keep criticism to a minimum. Will any foreign guests at CHOGM speak up about the country’s appalling human rights record? We’re guessing not the UK, which has been trying to institute a shameful policy to send its asylum seekers to Rwanda, despite successful legal challenges blocking the first attempted flight. But perhaps visiting officials from other Commonwealth members will show some decency and respect for the Rwandan government’s victims?
Yesterday, the US marked Juneteenth, the day honoring the declaration abolishing slavery in the country, and a coalition of racial justice and human rights groups has come together to press President Joe Biden to issue an executive order creating a federal commission to study and develop proposals for reparations for enslavement and its legacy. They created a 150 x 50-foot Pan African flag made of flowers and plants on the Ellipse outside of the White House to draw attention to the issue. You can join them by helping us call on President Biden to establish a federal Reparations Commission now.
Tomorrow, June 21, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act goes into effect in the US, giving US authorities increased powers to block the import of goods linked to forced labor in China. Human Rights Watch is calling on the US government to vigorously enforce it to prevent imports linked to forced labor by Uyghurs and other persecuted groups in China.
As hundreds of cases of monkeypox are reported in Europe & North America, health authorities there need to draw on lessons from effective management in Africa and prioritize global availability of vaccines, tests & treatments.
Finally, today is World Refugee Day – and the number of people forcibly displaced around the world has now surpassed 100 million.