Human Rights | WPN World People News

A 31-year-old Syrian refugee in Lebanon was allegedly detained and tortured in February 2016, apparently on suspicion of being gay, Human Rights Watch said on Dec 21. The man, identified only as Shadi for his protection, told Human Rights Watch that he had been detained by Lebanese Military Intelligence officers, and tortured over a five-day period at Military Intelligence, Ministry of Defense, Military Police, and Internal Security Forces centers.

Housing in Tondo, Manila, Philippines. (file)

A recently formed armed group called “Return, Reclamation, Rehabilitation,” or 3R, has killed civilians, raped, and caused largescale displacement over the past year in northwest Central African Republic. United Nations peacekeepers in the area have been unable to fully protect civilians.

Police in India often bypass arrest procedures and torture suspects in custody to death, Human Rights Watch said in a report released on Dec 19. At least 591 people died in police custody in India between 2010 and 2015, according to official data. Instead of holding police responsible to account, authorities have stalled reforms needed to build a more rights-respecting force.

UN Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, Maria Grazia Giammarinaro.

The deportation of Commander Faryadi Zardad from the UK to Afghanistan on December 14 poses a clear danger for witnesses who testified against the former warlord in his 2005 conviction for torture and hostage taking, Human Rights Watch said on Dec 15. The UK government should take immediate measures to protect witnesses, including by expediting asylum procedures and relocation outside Afghanistan. The Afghan government should impose parole restrictions on Zardad, and the UK and Afghan authorities should scrupulously monitor his compliance in order to protect those witnesses who remain in Afghanistan.

As North Korea prepares to commemorate the fifth anniversary of former North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Il’s death on December 17, the world should redouble pressure for action against North Korea’s legacy of crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch said on Dec 16. The UN General Assembly should act decisively on its opportunity to condemn these most severe rights violations in North Korea by adopting by consensus a resolution on North Korea human rights.

Turkey’s government has all but silenced independent media in an effort to prevent scrutiny or criticism of its ruthless crackdown on perceived enemies, Human Rights Watch said on Dec 15. The assault on critical journalism sharpened in 2014 but accelerated after the failed coup attempt in July 2016, denying Turkey’s population access to a regular flow of independent information from domestic newspapers, radio, and television stations about developments in the country.

Libyan authorities should urgently respond to a new United Nations report documenting a pattern of torture, forced labor, sexual violence, and arbitrary detention of migrants and asylum seekers. Libya’s coast guard intercepts thousands of migrants each year as they try to reach the European Union and returns them to centers operated by the Department for Combatting Illegal Migration (DCIM).

A woman and her children wait for transportation in Aleppo, Syria.