Human Rights | WPN World People News

Saudi authorities should end the country’s driving ban for women as the “Women2Drive” campaign gathers momentum, Human Rights Watch said.

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea Sheila B. Keetharuth (right) addresses a press conference at UN Headquarters.

“The Arctic 30 are no more hooligans than they were pirates. This is still a wildly disproportionate charge that carries up to seven years in jail. It represents nothing less than an assault on the very principle of peaceful protest. Those brave men and women went to the Arctic armed with nothing more than a desire to shine a light on a reckless business. They should be with their families, not in a prison in Murmansk.

The U.N. Special Rapporteur for assessing the human rights situation in Iran has warned of “the systemic and systematic violations” of a wide range of rights in that country.

European Union heads of state meeting in Brussels on October 24 and 25, 2013, should urgently adopt measures to improve sea rescues of migrants and asylum seekers trying to reach Europe, Human Rights Watch said. The summit should also pledge more measures to facilitate access for refugees from Syria and protect their rights as they increasingly turn to dangerous boat migration.

The trial of three activists who publicly supported a tough anti-corruption measure will be a bellwether of the new Chinese leadership’s attitude toward peaceful activism, Human Rights Watch said.

The Thai government and parliament should reject a proposed blanket amnesty law that would prevent prosecutions of those responsible for serious human rights abuses, Human Rights Watch said.

Other countries should use the upcoming periodic review of Jordan’s human rights record at the United Nations Human Rights Council to press for concrete reforms, Human Rights Watch said. In particular, country representatives gathering in Geneva for the review process on October 24, 2013, should press Jordan to amend its penal code to remove vague charges that limit rights to free expression, assembly, and association.

China’s government should use its appearance before the United Nations Human Rights Council to demonstrate its stated commitment to improving human rights by ending its systematic repression of human rights defenders, Human Rights Watch said. China will be reviewed for the second time under the UN’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) procedure on October 22, 2013.