How the Taliban are ‘eliminating women’ in Afghanistan
9/5/2022: The Taliban have further curbed women's rights with their latest veil compulsion decree. Stricter rules are announced almost every day. With the West currently dealing with the Ukraine war, Afghan civil society has been left on its own to confront the Taliban's harsh decrees.
Source: DW
A free press in Africa is essential for democratic rule
7/5/2022: In Africa, the press freedom picture has become complicated, with a vast swathe of grey territory in which seemingly progressive democracies are getting away with media repression. The outcome is a chilling effect which prevents media from effectively playing their watchdog role.
Source: The East African
Russian censorship denounced on World Press Freedom Day
3/5/2022: The World Press Freedom Index reveals the dangers that journalists endure in reporting world events, in the face of increasing authoritarianism. Russia stands out over the Kremlin's wartime censorship of the Ukraine conflict.
Source: DW
World press freedom faces a perfect storm
29/4/2022: The Senior Vice President of Inter Press Service reflects on the decline in the 2021 World Press Freedom Index, recently released by Reporters Without Borders.
Source: Inter Press Service
Kenneth Roth to step down at Human Rights Watch
26/4/2022: Human Rights Watch Executive Director Kenneth Roth has announced plans to step down at the end of August 2022. Roth has led the organization since 1993, transforming it from a small group of regional “watch committees” to a major international human rights organization with global influence.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Turkish rights activist Osman Kavala handed life sentence
25/4/2022: Turkish philanthropist Osman Kavala has been found guilty of attempting to overthrow the government by an Istanbul court. International rights groups have condemned the process as a crackdown on critics of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Source: DW
Hong Kong journalists suspend human rights award
25/4/2022: Citing legal concerns, the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondent's Club has suspended the 26th edition of its human rights reporting award. Hong Kong's national security laws have stifled free press in the former bastion of democracy.
Source: DW
Myanmar: ASEAN’s Failed ‘5-Point Consensus’ a Year On
22/4/2022: Despite adopting a “five-point consensus” on the crisis a year ago, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has failed to fulfill its pledges or take meaningful steps toward pressing Myanmar’s abusive junta to end its human rights violations.
Source: Human Rights Watch
China ratifies international forced labor conventions
20/4/2022: China will ratify two different conventions on forced labor amid Western pressure and criticism over Beijing's treatment of minorities in the Xinjiang region. A European Union bilateral investment agreement fell through in 2020 due to human rights concerns.
Source: DW
Russia shuts down Human Rights Watch office
8/4/2022: Russia has cancelled the registration of Human Rights Watch, along with Amnesty International and 13 other offices of foreign NGOs. Russia has also adopted laws that criminalize independent war reporting, the latest in 10 years of repressive measures aimed to decimate civil society.
Source: Human Rights Watch