Human Rights | WPN World People News

Human Rights Watch mourns the loss of Osman Hummaida, a prominent Sudanese human rights activist, who died on April 17, 2014, in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The EP passed three resolutions on Thursday, supporting the recommendations of the UN Commission of Inquiry into human rights violations in North Korea; expressing deep concern at the increase in sectarian violence and religious intolerance in Pakistan; and condemning the recent attacks against religious and ethnic communities and the suffering of women and children in Syria.

Waleed Abu al-Khair, prominent lawyer and human rights activist, speaks to Human Rights Watch over Skype from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on September 19, 2013.

Nepali legislators should reject problematic provisions of the proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) bill introduced in parliament on April 9, 2014, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the International Commission of Jurists said. Despite a January 2 directive from the Nepali Supreme Court that the law must meet international legal standards, the bill contains provisions for amnesty that violate international law.

The Chinese Education Ministry’s decision to provide Braille or electronic exams for national university entrance will improve access to higher education for candidates who are blind or have visual impairments, Human Rights Watch said. Up to now, students who are blind or partially sighted were effectively barred from mainstream higher education because no provision was made to accommodate their disability.

Millions of girls and boys worldwide are victims of sexual exploitation.

High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay.

The trial of 37 mostly Gaddafi-era officials accused of serious crimes during Libya’s 2011 uprising raises serious due process concerns, Human Rights Watch said. The trial, which began on March 24, 2014, resumed on April 14 in a specially designated courtroom in Al-Hadba Corrections Facility in Tripoli.

France’s steps at the UN Security Council toward an ICC referral for Syria give momentum to international efforts to ensure justice there, Human Rights Watch said.

Kenyan police and other security agencies should stop arbitrary arrests and detentions, extortion, and other abuses against Somalis during security operations, Human Rights Watch said. The government should also halt summary deportations and ensure that any undocumented Somalis are given the opportunity to file asylum claims.