Author: Human Rights Watch

An asylum regulation announced by the administration of United States President Joe Biden yesterday is flat-out contrary to both US and international law and is likely to bring immeasurable harm to people seeking asylum at the US-Mexico border. The regulation, effective immediately, extends from 7 to 28 the number of days in which the average amount […]

To mark International Wrongful Conviction Day, the “End ‘Hostage Justice’ in Japan” project, co-sponsored by Human Rights Watch and Innocence Project Japan, has placed a newspaper advertisement to raise awareness of Japan’s abusive “hostage justice” system, which severely violates human rights and continues to result in countless wrongful convictions across the country. The ad states […]

(Berlin, October 2, 2024) – Kyrgyzstan’s government has proposed problematic amendments to the criminal code and other legislative acts that would restore criminal charges for the mere possession of materials deemed “extremist,” Human Rights Watch said today. This move threatens to undo crucial progress made in 2019 when authorities decriminalized possession without intent to distribute […]

(Geneva) – The Egyptian parliament must reject a proposed draft law that would replace the 1950 Criminal Procedure Code (CPC), Amnesty International, Dignity, Human Rights Watch, and the International Commission of Jurists said today. If enacted, the draft legislation would undermine Egypt’s already weakened fair trial rights protections and further empower abusive law enforcement officials. “Instead of seizing the […]

(Geneva) – The United Nations Human Rights Council should adopt a resolution on Sri Lanka to enable continued UN monitoring, reporting, and evidence collection of rights violations for future prosecutions, Human Rights Watch said today. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who was elected on September 21, 2024, should reverse the policies of his predecessors by cooperating with the UN’s investigation […]

(Beirut) – A Kurdish youth group in northeast Syria with links to the de facto authorities is recruiting children apparently for eventual transfer to armed groups, Human Rights Watch said today. Child recruitment robs children of their childhood, exposes them to extreme violence, and can cause lasting physical and psychological trauma.  The Revolutionary Youth Movement of […]

The United States will hold federal elections on November 5. But as people prepare to head to the polls, both voters and election administrators face threats and intimidation from those trying to subvert the democratic process. US election officials should be able to do their jobs in safety. Nevertheless, election administrators in Colorado and Arizona […]

(Beirut) – A Tunisian judge has detained a prominent activist and former president of the Truth and Dignity Commission, Sihem Bensedrine, apparently in retaliation for her work on accountability for decades of human rights abuses, Human Rights Watch said today. Tunisian authorities should immediately release her. An investigative judge of a Tunis court ordered Bensedrine detained […]

(Nairobi) – A new Niger government ordinance creating a database of people suspected of terrorism undermines fundamental rights enshrined in national and international law, Human Rights Watch said today. The ordinance sets out overbroad criteria for inclusion in the database, deprives those listed of due process and an adequate redress mechanism, and puts protection of personal […]

(Washington, DC) – Guatemala’s Congress should ensure a transparent, merit-based selection process for Supreme Court and appellate court judges, Human Rights Watch said today. On September 23, 2024, nominating commissions submitted to Congress a list of candidates for all 13 Supreme Court and 156 Court of Appeals positions for the 2024-2029 term. Under Guatemalan law, Congress must elect […]