Human Rights | WPN World People News

A Russian court in Crimea on September 27, 2017, convicted a prominent Crimean Tatar leader on bogus separatism charges following an unfair trial, Human Rights Watch said on Sep 27.

Saudi authorities, in ending the ban on women driving, should not impose any additional restrictions that it does not impose on men, Human Rights Watch said on Sep 27. Saudi authorities announced on September 26, 2017, that the government would end the longstanding ban on women driving cars in Saudi Arabia.

Cameroon’s military has carried out a mass forced return of 100,000 Nigerian asylum seekers in an effort to stem the spread of Boko Haram, Human Rights Watch said in a report released on Sep 27. The deportations defy the UN refugee agency’s plea not to return anyone to northeast Nigeria “until the security and human rights situation has improved considerably,” and leaves deportees facing spiralling violence, displacement and destitution.

Guinea should move ahead to deliver justice, truth, and reparation for the grave crimes committed on September 28, 2009, at a Conakry stadium, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the Association of Victims, Parents and Friends of the September 28 Massacre said in advance of the massacre’s eighth anniversary on Sep 27. On that day, security forces massacred more than 150 peaceful protesters, and more than 100 women were raped. Hundreds of injuries and widespread looting were also documented.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein.

Democratic Republic of Congo authorities should immediately and unconditionally release nine Congolese human rights and pro-democracy activists wrongfully detained for their participation in peaceful activities, 45 Congolese and international human rights organizations said on Sep 26. Four activists were arrested on July 14 and 15, 2017 in Mbuji-Mayi and five others on July 31 in Lubumbashi.

Some Saudi state clerics and institutions incite hatred and discrimination against religious minorities, including the country’s Shia Muslim minority, Human Rights Watch said in a report released on Sep 26.

Interpol should address China’s misuse of the “red notice” system during its upcoming meeting in Beijing, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the international police organization on Sep 25. Human Rights Watch also raised concerns about respecting human rights under the leadership of Interpol’s new president, Chinese Vice-Minister for Public Security Meng Hongwei. Interpol’s 86th General Assembly will convene in China’s capital on September 26-29, 2017.

Burmese security forces have laid landmines during attacks on villages and along the Bangladesh border, posing a grave risk to Rohingya Muslims fleeing atrocities, Human Rights Watch said on Sep 23. The Burmese government should immediately stop using antipersonnel landmines and join the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty.

The Indian government did not accept a number of key human rights recommendations on September 21, 2017, at its United Nations review in Geneva, Human Rights Watch said. The government should promptly act on the recommendations raised by UN member countries during the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process.