In a letter addressed to LGBTQ+ campaigner Peter Tatchell, the Metropolitan Police (Met) Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley became the first UK police chief to apologize on Wednesday for the force’s homophobic failings. Rowely accepted that the Met “had systems and processes in place which have led to bias and discrimination in the law we have [...]
Japan’s leadership would be vital in restarting a failing international response to the crisis in Myanmar, a UN-appointed independent rights expert urged Friday. Tom Andrews, UN Special Rapporteur, spoke at the end of a 10-day official visit to Japan, calling on the country to work with global allies to weaken the capacity of Myanmar’s military [...]
A UN committee found Friday that Mexico failed to ensure inclusive education for a woman with an intellectual disability. Selene Militza García Vara brought a claim before the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on the grounds that the Morelense Centre for Art had not appropriately secured inclusive access to tertiary education. The Committee [...]
A Mexican judge Saturday ordered the immigration director of Mexico’s northern border state Chihuahua to stand trial for his failure to manage a deadly fire at an immigration detention centre which caused the death of 40 refugees. Judge Juan José Chávez ordered Salvador González to be detained in prison pending trial over charges of homicide, injury and [...]
Thousands of protesters Friday descended on Westminster to join the biggest protest tackling the climate crisis ever held in the UK. The unprecedented action was co-ordinated by Extinction Rebellion (XR), a UK-based global environmental movement which aims to use mass nonviolent civil disobedience to challenge government inaction over climate change. More than 200 environmental and [...]
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Friday began facilitating the exchange of nearly 900 prisoners detained in Yemen’s long-running war. The exchange is expected to last several days, with only 318 prisoners exchanged and reunited with their families during the first day of the operation. The operation represents the most significant prisoner exchange [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) Thursday criticized the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) decision to block the registration of legal advocacy group Lawyers for Justice. HRW condemned the move as a thinly-veiled attack and part of an attempt to crush the PA’s critics. Lawyers for Justice represents Palestinians detained by the PA in the West Bank through the [...]
The UN’s Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia Wednesday appealed to the UN to support “one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.” Adam Abdelmoula urged Member States in Geneva to avoid the “real risk of complacency” and provide funding as a durable solution to support the country. Nearly half of the population, 8.25 [...]
An advisory body to the UK Parliament Wednesday warned of the risk of “hostile foreign actors” gaining “improper access and influence” to Members of Parliament. The Commons Standard Committee’s latest report warned that if All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) are left unchecked, it could represent “the next great parliamentary scandal.” APPGs are vital to the function [...]
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk Thursday expressed alarm at the continued erosion of the rule of law in Guatemala. Türk condemned the intimidation, harassment and prosecution faced by justice operators who worked for or operated with the UN-backed International Commission against Impunity (CICIG), including former CICIG Commissioner Francisco Dall’Anese. The Guatemala Special [...]
