Search Results for: georgia

Azerbaijan is convicting exiled critics in absentia based on online activity, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Wednesday, with sentences reaching up to 16 years in prison. HRW reviewed eight verdicts issued against Azerbaijani nationals living in Europe and the United States by the Baku Courts for Serious Crimes between July 2025 and March 2026. Prosecutors [...]

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed Senate Bill 121 (SB 121) into law on Friday, approving a new congressional map that dismantles a majority-Black district. The new map eliminates Louisiana’s second majority-Black congressional district, reverting the state largely to the configuration it used for the 2022 elections: five safe Republican seats and a single Democratic-leaning seat [...]

The Canadian government is to be commended for its military, economic, and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, including the most recent announcements of $270 million in military assistance and $2.5 billion in economic support. Canada has also assumed an important role in international accountability efforts. Foreign Minister Anita Anand is co-chairing the International Coalition for the [...]

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) warned Thursday that journalists covering the FIFA World Cup 2026 may face hostility from the authorities. The warning comes with a travel advisory and legal rights guide for journalists. The group recorded recent actions taken by US immigration authorities against journalists for their work. Some examples are the deportations [...]

A group of 15 rights organizations sent a joint letter on Sunday to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi concerning her government’s proposed anti-espionage law and foreign agents registration act. The organizations caution the government to ensure the laws are consistent with legal obligations, writing: While we recognize that protecting national security and tackling the unlawful [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday warned that a new bill before Uganda’s parliament could be used to shut down civil society, and compared it to a similar Russian “foreign agents” law. HRW warns that this bill threatens to limit freedom of speech and assembly. Bill 13, the Protection of Sovereignty Bill, was introduced on [...]

Human Rights Watch on Friday condemned the Georgian authorities for their expulsion of an Azerbaijani journalist, Afgan Sadigov, to Azerbaijan, exposing him to a credible risk of politically motivated prosecution and ill-treatment. “Georgian authorities returned Sadigov to a country where he faces a real risk of persecution, without properly assessing that risk, and summary proceedings [...]

The Belarus parliament passed a bill on Thursday criminalizing “propaganda” for LGBTQA+ relationships, sex change, child-free lifestyles, and pedophilia, with punishment including fines, community service, or 15 days detention. Parliament drafted the bill in February 2024. The bill will now go to President Aleksander Lukashenko, who is expected to sign it. Belarus decriminalized homosexuality in [...]

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Thursday released Estefany Rodríguez Flórez, a reporter whose work includes covering ICE for Nashville Noticias, after 16 days in custody on $10,000 bond. The federal government has alleged that Florez illegally overstayed a tourist visa and failed to attend two immigration appointments.  The first happened during a massive winter [...]

Amnesty International on Tuesday criticized the move by Georgian authorities to summon human rights activist Ucha Nanuashvili for questioning, following his contribution to a report by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). In a press release, the rights group described the summoning as “a witch-hunt” designed to deter and suppress those who [...]