Category: Human Rights

(New York) – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) should help expand social protection to all children in Nepal under its Child Grant program, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the IMF released today. The policy is an effective and affordable measure to protect children’s rights and reduce child poverty and inequality, and it […]

Last month, Sri Lanka’s electricity company cut power to Shanti’s home in a town near Colombo, where she lives with her sixteen-year-old son. Shanthi lost her job last year during a severe economic crisis still roiling the country, and now earns 300 rupees (US$0.95) per day – around half her previous wages – as a […]

(Washington, DC, August 7, 2023) – South Sudan acceded to the international Convention on Cluster Munitions on August 3, 2023, the 112th country to do so, Human Rights Watch said today. “By banning cluster bombs, South Sudan is taking an important step to strengthen international peace and security,” said Mary Wareham, arms acting director at […]

Angolan security forces have carried out more than a dozen unlawful killings and numerous other serious abuses against political activists and peaceful protesters since January 2023. Angolan security forces have for decades committed unlawful killings, used excessive force against protesters, and arbitrarily arrested and detained opposition activists. The Angolan government should adopt meaningful reforms for […]

(Nairobi) – Tanzania authorities have detained or threatened at least 22 people since June 10, 2023, including protesters, after they criticized the Tanzania National Assembly’s ratification of an agreement for management of Tanzania’s ports, Human Rights Watch said today. The agreement would allow a logistics company controlled by the Emirate of Dubai in the United […]

Ms. Mohammed on Friday wrapped up a week of development-focused meetings with Government officials in the vast South American country with a stop in Belém, capital of the northern state of Pará, gateway to Brazil’s lower Amazon region.  During roundtable discussions about the future of the Amazon region with representatives of civil society and the […]

In a message to mark the 78th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Mr. Guterres urged the international community to learn from the “nuclear cataclysm” that befell the Japanese city on 6 August 1945. “The drums of nuclear war are beating once again; mistrust and division are on the rise,” the UN chief said […]

Dramatic scenes of villagers and environmental activists protesting the felling of thousands of trees in order to expand a coal mine have received widespread media coverage in Turkey over the past two weeks. Police used teargas and water cannon against the protesters and numerous were arrested as they attempted to stop the tree felling in […]

(Berlin, August 4, 2023) – A Moscow court’s new sentence for the leading Russian opposition activist Alexey Navalny is in an obvious attempt to ensure that he remains incarcerated and isolated for any foreseeable future, Human Rights Watch said today. Navalny was sentenced to 19 years in a maximum-security prison designed for particularly dangerous recidivists […]

The closure of the office in Kampala follows the recent closure of sub-offices in Gulu and Moroto sub-offices. In February, the Government decided to terminate the mandate of the High Commissioner’s Office, OHCHR, in Uganda. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and human rights defenders denounced the move and had called for its reversal, according to media reports. […]