Human Rights

Thailand: No Arrests for Assaults on Junta Critics

Investigate Repeated Attacks on Prominent Activists, Police Inaction

Authorities in Thailand should urgently and impartially investigate repeated attacks on prominent pro-democracy activists, Human Rights Watch said on May 29, 2019.

Pakistan: Investigate North Waziristan Deaths

Uphold Rights of Region’s Pashtun Population

Pakistan authorities should impartially investigate the deaths of at least three people during violence between Pashtun activists and the army in North Waziristan on May 26, 2019, Human Rights Watch said on May 30, 2019.

North Koreans trapped in ‘vicious cycle of deprivation, corruption, repression’ and endemic bribery: UN human rights office

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Children in a newly built clinic in Musan County, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), are checked for malnutrition and given vaccines, Vitamin A and deworming tablets.

UN: Focus on Civilians With Disabilities in Wartime

UN, Governments Should Ensure Needed Protections

The inclusion of the need to protect civilians with disabilities in wartime in the United Nations secretary-general’s new report should help spur action by UN agencies and member states, Human Rights Watch said on May 28, 2019.

Egypt: Serious Abuses, War Crimes in North Sinai

Army’s Conduct Crushed, Alienated Local Residents

Egyptian military and police forces in the Sinai Peninsula are committing serious and widespread abuses against civilians, Human Rights Watch said in a report released on May 28, 2019. Some of these abuses, part of an ongoing campaign against members of the local ISIS affiliate, the Sinai Province group, amount to war crimes.

New Health Guidelines Propel Transgender Rights

The World Health Organization (WHO) approved a major change to its global manual of diagnoses on May 25, 2019, that will greatly benefit transgender people around the world, Human Rights Watch said on May 27, 2019. The World Health Assembly, the WHO governing body that represents 194 member states, voted for new diagnostic guidelines that no longer describe gender nonconformity as a “mental disorder.”

Countries Act to Protect Schools in Wartime

87 States Join Safe Schools Declaration

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Students and teachers from around the world call for schools and universities to be protected from military use.

Lebanon: Syrians Summarily Deported from Airport

Forced to Sign “Voluntary” Return Forms; Risk of Serious Harm

Lebanon summarily deported at least 16 Syrians, some of them registered refugees, on April 26, 2019 after they arrived at the Beirut airport, Human Rights Watch, the Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH), Legal Agenda, Frontiers Rights, and the Access Center for Human Rights said on May 24, 2019.

Cameroon: Promised Investigation Should Be Independent

Government Forces on Rampage in North-West Region City

Cameroonian soldiers went on a rampage in the English-speaking North-West region on May 15, 2019, burning over 70 homes in Mankon, Bamenda. Soldiers dragged one man from his house, shooting him dead in the street.

Brunei: New Report on Abusive Penal Code

Law Retains Death Penalty for Private Consensual Sex

Brunei should immediately repeal its newly enacted penal code, which violates a range of human rights, Human Rights Watch said on May 22, 2019 in an open letter to the sultan of Brunei and a report, “Brunei’s Pernicious New Penal Code.”