Category: Human Rights

(New York) – Thailand’s election scheduled for May 14, 2023, will be held under political, constitutional, and legal frameworks that make a free and fair process nearly impossible, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch and over 50 Thai and international civil society groups highlighted these issues in joint letters to 25 of Thailand’s […]

Speakers at a recent climate and health summit in Abu Dhabi were advised by the conference organizers not to “criticize Islam, the government, corporations or individuals” or protest while in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to a recent investigation by the Financial Times. A chilling message given the UAE is set to host COP28, […]

Special Rapporteur Margaret Satterthwaite expressed grave concern over interference in the investigation, including threats against Judge Tarek Bitar, who has been leading the process since February 2021.  “Judges should never be threatened or subjected to criminal or disciplinary action simply for doing their job,” she said.  Justice delayed  More than 200 people died as a […]

The Hindu festival of Ram Navami in India, which this year coincided with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, was marred by violence sparked when Hindus in processions passed through Muslim neighborhoods brandishing weapons and shouting anti-Muslim slogans. On March 30 and 31, communal violence was reported in several states. In Bihar, a mob reportedly […]

(Istanbul) – Law enforcement officials sent to police the region devastated by Turkey’s February 6, 2023 earthquakes have beaten, tortured, and otherwise ill-treated people they suspect of theft and looting, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today. One person died in custody after being tortured. In some instances, law enforcement officials have also failed […]

Yesterday, Escola Mais, an educational Brazilian company, took steps to protect its students’ data privacy. The change comes after media attention to Human Rights Watch’s report, which found that the website owned by Escola Mais, along with seven other educational websites for Brazilian students, covertly surveilled children and harvested their personal data. While Escola Mais […]

Tonight, thousands of migrant agricultural workers in Italy will sleep in overcrowded, unsanitary, and degrading conditions. In most of the informal settlements where they live, migrants have no access to running water, functioning toilets, gas, heating, or electricity. At least 14 people have died in settlements since 2016 due to the precarious conditions. In addition […]

Next December, member countries of the International Criminal Court (ICC) will elect six new judges to the court’s bench. Today, to assist that election, a confidential channel opened to receive allegations of misconduct against candidates. The channel is part of a “due diligence” process that ICC member states adopted in February, building on previous ad […]

The appeal comes in the latest report by the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances, which visited the country in November.  The report examines five “waves of disappearance” in Iraq, including enforced disappearance. It covers the period starting with the Ba’ath era from 1968-2003 – characterized by the authoritarian rule of Saddam Hussein – through to […]