A UN human rights expert called Thursday for the Pakistani government to strengthen its protection of individuals with albinism, a marginalized group whose life experiences are deeply shaped by discrimination and a lack of social awareness about their condition. Additionally, severe health vulnerabilities from intense sun exposure are now exacerbated by climate change. In emphasizing [...]

A UN expert on Wednesday called on the Colombian government to urgently address the ostracization faced by individuals suffering from leprosy, a neglected public health challenge that continues to affect thousands of people across the country, exacerbating poverty and social exclusion despite the availability of effective treatment. In remarking on the sheer gravity of the [...]

UN rights experts on Monday condemned Nigerian authorities in response to ongoing reports that mass killings, kidnappings, forced conversion, sexual violence, and enforced disappearances are disproportionately targeting women and girls in Christian and minority religious communities. In commenting on the sheer gravity of the crimes, the experts stated: The deteriorating security situation in northern Nigeria [...]

Human Rights Watch on Sunday demanded that Houthi authorities who have systematically detained more than 70 United Nations employees in Yemen over the course of two years release them immediately, noting that they were captured under baseless accusations of spying for Israel, the US and Saudi Arabia. Emphasizing the seriousness of the crisis, Yemen researcher [...]

Human Rights Watch on Thursday urged acting Rio de Janeiro state governor Ricardo Couto to pass a bill that would establish fully independent forensic services and mandate additional measures to strengthen forensic analysis, citing repeated failures by the civil police, whose current control over forensic work has undermined justice and fueled impunity. Brazil researcher at [...]

Human Rights Watch welcomed Lebanon’s accession to the Mine Ban Treaty on Wednesday. The group described it as a positive development in addressing the severe humanitarian and social crises caused by the existence of anti-personnel landmines, especially during armed conflict. Lebanon’s accession to the Mine Ban Treaty, which was formally ratified in 1999, forbids the [...]

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Friday condemned the forced repatriations of refugees and asylum-seekers to Afghanistan by countries in the name of concerns over national security or economic strains, deeming it a clear violation of international human rights law.  In emphasizing the urgency of the humanitarian crisis affecting this marginalized group, [...]

A UN expert on Friday praised a ruling by Colombia’s Supreme Court upholding a 20-year prison sentence for a man found guilty of offering money to young children in exchange for sexual acts. The ruling officially recognises commercial sexual exploitation as part of the country’s wider system of violence against minors. In commenting on the [...]

The International Independent Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement on Thursday found that racism against individuals of African descent in Colombia is still deeply embedded in the country’s institutions, creating a sense of fear among youth in the community. The findings, which come in a report issued after an eleven-day visit [...]

The UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals in The Hague on Thursday announced that it had dismissed the request from convicted Bosnian war criminal Ratko Mladić, who is currently serving a life sentence for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, for early provisional release due to an advanced deterioration of his health that [...]