Zambia resumes election vote count after disruptions
14/8/2026: Vote counting has resumed in Zambia after it was suspended amid reports of violence against officials and the theft of ballot papers. Around 8 million voters are choosing members of parliament and local councillors at more than 13,500 polling stations. European Union observers are monitoring the election.
Source: DW
How Tunisia’s democracy was undermined
6/8/2026: Thousands of Tunisian demonstrators have called for an end to what they describe as the increasingly authoritarian regime of President Kais Saied. The roots of the crisis reach back more than sixty years when the founders of the Republic placed the presidency, rather than a balance of powers, at the centre of the Tunisian state.
Source: African Arguments
Call for authorities in Pakistan to restore Imran Khan’s rights
4/8/2026: Amnesty International has urged the Pakistani authorities to unconditionally restore the right of Imran Khan and his wife to see their family and lawyers, and to be given access to adequate medical care. These rights have been denied for three years.
Source: Amnesty International
Taliban assault on rights deepens 5 years on
3/8/2026: Afghanistan’s Taliban have entrenched one of the world’s worst human rights crises and systematically dismantled the rights of women and girls since taking power five years ago. Human Rights Watch calls on governments to provide resources for the UN investigation into rights abuses in Afghanistan.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Uganda: crackdown on fundamental freedoms
30/7/2026: The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has denounced the crackdown on dissent in Uganda. Since the general elections on 15 January 2026, repression has increased against all those perceived to oppose the Government, through enforced disappearance, torture and ill-treatment, and arbitrary arrest or detention.
Source: UN Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights
Nicaragua continues to weaken political freedoms, UN warns
22/7/2026: The UN human rights chief has condemned new threats from Nicaragua’s co-president Daniel Ortega to hinder civil rights. The government has recently revoked lawyers’ credentials with no explanation and detained 46 individuals arbitrarily for political reasons. Elections scheduled for next year may be cancelled.
Source: UN News
Ugandan military seizing government critics
16/7/2026: Since mid-June 2026, Ugandan security forces have unlawfully seized at least five critics of President Yoweri Museveni and his son. The army has also forced the country’s largest independent media company to cease operations because of negative coverage of the president
Source: Human Rights Watch
Burkina Faso forces closure of UN human rights office
2/7/2026: The UN has announced that it will permanently close its human rights operations in Burkina Faso, ending its ability to monitor, document, and report on abuses at a time when conflict continues and violations are rampant. The government accuses international organisations of overstepping the country’s sovereignty.
Source: Human Rights Watch
US Democracy at risk on 250th anniversary
25/6/2026: Human Rights Watch has warned that current US policies threaten the exercise of human rights that are essential to democracy and consistent with national celebration. The administration has substantively undermined the rule of law, free speech and expression, and the right to vote.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Challenges for the Human Rights Council as it turns 20
19/6/2026: It is 20 years since the UN Human Rights Council began its work as the world’s principal forum tasked with promoting and defending fundamental rights everywhere. The current UN-wide funding crisis represents an existential challenge to the Council's human rights investigators who are mandated to monitor situations of concern and encourage action.
Source: UN News