Amnesty International launched its annual report yesterday, the organization’s regular assessment of human rights around the world. It holds some important lessons from 2022.

Now, some readers may wonder why I’m talking about Amnesty International’s work here. Aren’t they Human Rights Watch’s competition?

No, absolutely not, and I’d like to clear up that common misconception quickly here.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch work together on a thousand and one things. We conduct research together. We issue statements together, often with other organizations, as well. We even get kicked out of countries together.

Many of our staff have worked at both organizations – including our new Executive Director, Tirana Hassan – and that long, shared experience is only a benefit to both groups and the human rights movement globally.

So, getting back to the point: “Amnesty International Report 2022/23: The State of the World’s Human Rights” is an important new publication that deserves attention. More than 400 pages long, it has both country-by-country reporting and regional overviews.

But perhaps the most interesting part for me is the global analysis. Amnesty International has looked at the world and is highlighting some important trends. Specifically, it focuses on the “double standards throughout the world on human rights.”

Amnesty International’s annual report notes the contrast between the West’s robust response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its “deplorable lack of meaningful action on grave violations by some of their allies including Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.”

As you’d expect from two groups that often work together, this conclusion meshes well with Human Rights Watch’s own annual assessment in our World Report back in January.

The welcome global reaction to Russia’s war-crimes-fueled invasion of Ukraine in 2022, demonstrated what is possible on things like supporting justice efforts and boosting refugee protection. It showed the world can act when it wants to.

Now, as Amnesty International says, the world needs to address those double standards and act more consistently.

Because if you only care about human rights abuses when your enemies commit them, then you don't really care about human rights abuses, do you?

The Central African Republic has had a horrific decade.

But there are also seeds of hope for those seeking justice for war crimes.

Ten years ago, the rebel Seleka alliance took control of the capital Bangui, promising a new era of peace. Within days, they started killing civilians, looting and destroying neighborhoods and villages, and raping women and girls.

Then, militias known as anti-balaka began to organize counter attacks. They also targeted civilians.

The humanitarian situation rapidly deteriorated. Hundreds of thousands of people fled the country as refugees. Many others were displaced internally.

A national negotiation emerged in 2015, known as the Bangui Forum. Rather than seek amnesties for perpetrators of grave crimes, the Forum instead worked from the idea there can be no peace without justice.

With that thinking, there’s been progress in the judicial sphere many once thought unimaginable.

Following a government referral of the situation to the International Criminal Court (ICC), the court has issued numerous arrest warrants, including for the Seleka’s alleged deputy leader. The ICC has also brought to the dock three anti-balaka leaders and one from the Seleka.

Plus, there’s a new Special Criminal Court in Bangui to try war crimes and crimes against humanity alongside the ICC that has international support. The court has concluded one major trial and, while it has its challenges, it continues to be an effective tool to hold perpetrators accountable. 

Ten years on, the crisis in the Central African Republic remains acute. But ending the cycles of violence is at least possible if the seeds of justice are allowed to grow.

(written by Emily Palomo)

You should care about what you wear. 

That was the basic message at a fashion show at the European Parliament in Brussels yesterday.

The unusual event drew attention to the widespread use of forced labor in the fashion industry. 

Models wearing garments made without forced labor took the floor in the meeting chamber, while experts outlined the problem.

The key point was the use of forced child labor – how some manufacturers prefer children’s small fingers, making them “faster than machines.” They sometimes work 15-hour days for a pittance, living and working in the same dark windowless rooms as other forced laborers. 

China’s labor camps for Uyghurs in Xinjiang was just one example that came up.

Knowing where your clothes come from is important. However, as we’ve noted here before, those certification labels you sometimes see on products are not always what they’re cracked up to be. There’s only a limited amount you can do as an individual consumer.

Hence the need for laws and parliaments to make them – and with a rare fashion show to help push for them.

(compiled by Lisa Maier)

• Health care crisis in Pakistan’s prisons (HRW) 
• Mexico: fire at migrant detention center kills dozens (Wall Street Journal)  
• The missing Ukrainian children of the Russian invasion (El País, international) 
• India: victory over big pharma opens door to cheaper tuberculosis drugs (The Guardian) 

Just over a year ago, El Salvador declared a state of emergency. Since then, more than 66,000 people have been imprisoned, including children, dozens have died in custody, and thousands been subject to legal process violations. 

To discuss the massive abuses over the past twelve months, HRW is holding a Twitter Space discussion today with Tamara Taraciuk Broner, acting director of the Americas division at HRW, and Noah Bullock, executive director of Cristosal, a human rights organization based in El Salvador.

Join us live at 15h00 CEST / 9am EST or listen to the recording here.