China rallies support over Xinjiang report
14/9/2022: In a statement backed by 20 other countries, China has attacked a UN report on alleged abuses in Xinjiang. The current session of the Human Rights Council is mulling a possible historic motion against China.
Source: CNA
50 million people in modern slavery
12/9/2022: UN agencies report that 50 million people were living in modern slavery in 2021, an increase of 10 million since 2016. More than half of all forced labour and a quarter of all forced marriages can be found in upper-middle income or high-income countries.
Source: UN News
UK government heads to court over refugee expulsion plan
8/9/2022: The UK government is appealing to the Royal Courts of Justice in London to rule that its controversial plan to expel potential refugees to Rwanda should be allowed to proceed. The UK advocacy director at Human Rights Watch is interviewed about the ramifications of the hearing.
Source: Human Rights Watch
UK Prime Minister Truss should end assault on rights
6/9/2022: Human Rights Watch calls on the UK's new Prime Minister to halt the systematic destruction of freedoms engineered by her predecessor. Boris Johnson’s government made Britain a less open, fair, and democratic society.
Source: Human Rights Watch
UN report finds serious human rights violations in Xinjiang
31/8/2022: Michelle Bachelet, the departing UN High Commissioner of Human Rights, has finally published her investigation into treatment of ethnic minorities by the Chinese authorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. It concludes that the extent of arbitrary detentions against Uyghur and others may constitute international crimes, in particular crimes against humanity.
Source: UN News
By failing Afghan women, we are failing women everywhere
24/8/2022: In August 2021 Afghan women leaders were excluded from the peace process and subsequently abandoned to the misogyny of the Taliban. Other oppressive regimes of the world are aware that a year has passed with no meaningful action taken by the international community.
Source: Devex
Rushdie joins call for freedom of expression in India
17/8/2022: International writers have called on the authorities in India to respect human rights and release those imprisoned for dissidence. Since the 2019 general election pressure has increased on the media to toe the line of the Hindu nationalist government. Salman Rushdie signed the letter before the recent attack on him.
Source: Inter Press Service
European envoys praise Kenya’s electoral commission
17/8/2022: Nine ambassadors and high commissioners from European countries and Canada have jointly lauded Kenya's Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission for the way it conducted the August 9 General Election. The ambassadors said the open election has set a standard for the African continent.
Source: The East African
Taliban’s catastrophic year of rule in Afghanistan
11/8/2022: Since taking control of Afghanistan a year ago, Taliban authorities have imposed severe restrictions on women’s and girls’ rights, suppressed the media, and arbitrarily detained, tortured, and executed their perceived opponents. These abuses have imperiled international efforts to address the country’s dire humanitarian situation.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Rwanda: human rights should be priority on Blinken trip
8/8/2022: The US Secretary of State’s forthcoming visit to Rwanda offers an opportunity to raise concerns about a wide range of alleged state-sponsored violations of human rights, both within and across Rwanda’s borders.
Source: Human Rights Watch