Human Rights | WPN World People News

UNICEF on 3 August launches a global sports initiative to engage people in its work for children. Sports enthusiasts worldwide can get involved in the Olympic and Paralympic action for free by signing up to Team UNICEF Get Active for Children, a scheme that unlocks a R$5 corporate donation every time participants complete 5km by foot or wheelchair.

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović at the conference on shaping policies to advance media freedom on the Internet, Vienna, 14 February 2013. (Colin Peters)

Malaysia’s new National Security Council (NSC) Act, which came into force on August 1, 2016, is a tool for repression that should be immediately repealed, Human Rights Watch said on Aug 1. The government should instead revise its laws to incorporate international human rights standards into the effort to counter terrorism.

Morocco’s new law regulating work for domestic workers could help protect thousands of women and girls from exploitation and abuse, Human Rights Watch said on Aug 1. The new law was adopted by the House of Representatives on July 26, 2016, and will go into effect one year after publication in the official gazette.

The Afghan government should prosecute militia members responsible for killings and other abuses against civilians in Afghanistan’s northern Faryab province in late June, 2016, Human Rights Watch said on Jul 31. Human Rights Watch interviewed villagers in the aftermath of the attack.

Sri Lankan authorities have not brought to justice those responsible for the execution-style slaying of 17 aid workers a decade ago this week, Human Right Watch said on JUl 31. On August 4, 2006, gunmen murdered local staff members from the Paris-based Action Contre La Faim (Action Against Hunger, ACF) at their compound in the town of Muttur, in eastern Trincomalee district.

Save the Children has been working with their partner in the region around the clock to keep the bombed maternity hospital in Idlib open. It’s currently operating at a reduced level and only able to support emergency cases and non-surgical deliveries. C-section deliveries cannot be performed because some of the equipment and generators were damaged in the attacks. Repair work is underway.

On July 29, three American Muslim men with no criminal records who were placed or kept on the No Fly List by the FBI in retaliation for their refusal to become informants appealed the dismissal of their lawsuit against the Federal Bureau of Investigation. FBI agents told the men they could get off the No Fly List if they agreed to serve as spies in Muslim communities—not because the government suspected involvement in crime, but simply because the Bureau was interested in collecting information on American Muslims.

Iraqi military commanders should prevent militias with records of serious abuses from taking part in planned military operations for the city of Mosul. The government’s obligation to take all possible measures to protect civilians and ensure respect for the laws of war makes it essential to prevent these groups from participating in the Mosul campaign.