Author: Human Rights Watch

On October 16, police in Zambia’s capital, Lusaka, arrested investigative journalist Thomas Zgambo and detained him without charge for nearly two weeks. Zgambo writes for the online news outlet Zambian Whistleblower, which has exposed alleged corruption, human rights abuses, and abuse of power under President Hakainde Hichilema. A day into his detention, Zgambo, 52, wrote on Facebook that […]

(Istanbul, November 2, 2024) – Türkiye’s parliament should reject a proposed legislative amendment that seeks to expand the definition of espionage in such a vague manner that it could criminalize legitimate work by human rights defenders, journalists, and other civil society actors in the country, Human Rights Watch and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) […]

(Kyiv, October 30, 2024) – Ukraine’s new law banning religious organizations with ties to the Russian Orthodox Church is overly broad and could have far-reaching consequences for Ukrainians’ right to religious freedom, Human Rights Watch said today. The law could effectively ban congregations of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Ukraine’s largest religious body. The law, adopted […]

(Beirut) – Syrians fleeing violence in Lebanon face risks of repression and persecution by the Syrian government upon return, including enforced disappearance, torture, and death in detention, Human Rights Watch said today. Since late September 2024, intensified Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have compelled hundreds of thousands of Syrians to flee back to Syria, with strikes killing at […]

An administrative court in Germany this week ordered the deportation of Dilmurod Ergashev, a Tajik opposition political activist, despite the risk of his detention and torture in Tajikistan. On October 28, a court in the city of Kleve, near Germany’s border with the Netherlands, ordered Ergashev’s deportation in early November. If deported to Tajikistan, whose […]

(Istanbul, November 1, 2024) – Türkiye’s continued unlawful detention of the human rights defender Osman Kavala is a result of prosecutors and courts effectively operating under the political control of the government, three human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, said in a third-party intervention to the European Court of Human Rights regarding his case. The […]

With the United States election one week away, millions of voters have the opportunity to support human rights as they cast their ballots. Ten states have abortion-related measures on the ballot. Most would enshrine abortion rights in state constitutions. The Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to eliminate the constitutional right to abortion has had devastating impacts on health […]

The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo appears to be rejigging a plan to auction off the rights to drill for oil and gas in 30 blocks across the country. On October 11, Congo’s hydrocarbons minister announced he had cancelled the auction of 27 oil blocks, citing late submissions, inappropriate or irregular offers, and a […]

(Bangkok) – The Vietnamese government should annul the politically motivated verdict against the democracy activist Duong Van Thai and release him immediately, Human Rights Watch said today. On October 30, 2024, a Hanoi court convicted Duong Van Thai of issuing propaganda against the state under article 117 of the penal code and sentenced him to 12 […]

(Yerevan, October 31, 2024) – The Armenian government’s bill for the mandatory installation of video surveillance systems with 24-hour police access throughout the capital, Yerevan, is unjustified and interferes with privacy and other rights, Human Rights Watch said today.  The bill, which passed its first parliamentary review in June 2024, requires private entities in Yerevan to […]