Category: Human Rights

(Beirut) – The Egyptian authorities should overturn the harsh prison sentences imposed on March 5, 2023, following an unfair mass trial of 29 men and women solely because of their peaceful activism, Human Rights Watch said today. The activists, who belong to the Egyptian Coordination for Rights and Freedoms, an independent human rights organization, received […]

On International Women’s Day, we not only recognize the achievements and progress women’s rights have made, but also the constant threats and backlash they face around the globe. In multiple countries, rights have been rolled back in recent years with anti-feminist rhetoric and policies. According to UN Women, gender disparities are worsening. They believe it […]

(New York) – A criminal court in Thailand sentenced a man to three years in prison for selling satirical calendars that authorities allege defamed the monarchy, further chilling free speech in the country, Human Rights Watch said today. Thai authorities should quash the sentence and promptly release Narathorn Chotmankongsin, 26, who was convicted on March 7, […]

(Beirut) – Thirty-eight countries at the UN Human Rights Council on March 7, 2023, condemned the pervasive obstruction and interference with Lebanon’s domestic investigation into the August 4, 2020 explosion at Beirut’s port, Human Rights Watch and Legal Agenda said today. Lebanese authorities should urgently act to carry out badly needed judicial reforms and remove […]

The latest official data in Germany show inflation reached 8.7 percent in January and February 2023. Energy prices were up 23.1 percent in January, and food prices 21.8 percent in February. These drastic increases leave many households, particularly those with children, unable to afford a decent, dignified standard of living. The day-to-day impact of sharply […]

(Berlin) – Georgia’s parliament should firmly reject the two bills it is debating that would require individuals, civil society organizations, and media outlets to register with the Justice Ministry as “agents of foreign influence” if they receive at least 20 percent of their funds from abroad, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said today. If […]

The first step requires the most courage. After years of abuse and living in the reality of one of the world’s longest conflicts, Sandra* had the courage to take the first step and leave Colombia to save herself and her children’s future. Alone, with no money or safety nets, she crossed into Ecuador and managed […]

(Berlin, March 7, 2023) – Kazakhstan should ensure that draft laws relating to domestic violence provide maximum protection for women from family violence, including by criminalizing domestic violence as a stand-alone offense, Human Rights Watch said today. Three years after a previous draft law on domestic violence was withdrawn, two new draft laws currently under […]

Once again, Ugandan lawmakers are launching a scathing attack against sexual minorities by proposing a new law that could make it illegal to say that you are gay, lesbian, or transgender.   Last Tuesday, following months of hostile rhetoric against sexual and gender minorities by public figures and an intensified government crackdown on human rights groups, […]

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has helped to progress the fight against gender-based violence by recognizing a form of violence many women experience, and yet has been invisible for many years. In January 2023, the court used the concept of “obstetric violence” for the first time in the case of Brítez Arce v. Argentina, […]