A coalition of rights organizations on Wednesday issued a joint statement urging the Maldives to reconsider proposed legislative amendments that would reinstate the death penalty for drug trafficking, citing concerns that the punishment is archaic, inhumane, and runs contrary to international human rights standards. The nine organizations expressed alarm after Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, President of [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday called for the immediate and unconditional release of a former Macao lawmaker following his arrest on “national security” charges. The arrest marked the first time Macao, a Special Administrative Region of China, has invoked its sweeping Law on Safeguarding National Security.  Maya Wang, associate China director at HRW, said, [...]

Amnesty International on Wednesday called for a fully transparent and impartial investigation into the conviction and two-year sentence handed down to Georgian journalist Mzia Amaglobeli, amid serious allegations of ill-treatment and an unfair trial. Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s deputy director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, stated, “Mzia Amaglobeli must receive a fair trial, and [...]

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Wednesday voiced deep concern following a ruling by a court in Duhok, Iraq, that ordered Kurdish journalist Omed Baroshky to remain in prison for an additional six months. In commenting on his predicament, CPJ Levant program coordinator Doja Daoud stated: “Omed Baroshky has already faced retaliation for his [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday released a report on the Russian government’s increasing control over internet infrastructure and digital communication across the country. The report, titled “Disrupted, Throttled, and Blocked: State Censorship, Control, and Increasing Isolation of Internet Users in Russia,” details the widespread and systemic censorship being carried out online. It outlines how [...]

UN human rights experts on Thursday pressured the Pakistani government to implement more proactive measures to prevent “extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and assaults on cemeteries and places of worship” of religious minorities. “We are shocked at reports of increasing violence against vulnerable communities on grounds of their religion or belief,” experts stated. They claimed mass [...]

UN humanitarian officials reported Tuesday that United Nations staff in the Gaza Strip have been collapsing from hunger and extreme exhaustion, underscoring the deepening humanitarian crisis. The increasing physical toll on aid workers has intensified global concerns over the survival of the civilian population in the war-torn enclave, where access to food, water and medical [...]

A group of independent UN experts on Wednesday called for immediate and impartial investigations into the deaths of individuals held in Belarusian custody for exercising their right to political dissent, expressing concern over what they described as a pattern of repression against opposition voices and civil society in the country. In the aftermath of the [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Tuesday commended the decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the case of South African runner Caster Semenya, who challenged regulations imposed by World Athletics, the global track and field governing body, that imposed discriminatory guidelines prohibiting women with Differences of Sex Development (DSD)  from competing in [...]

Amnesty International on Friday condemned a recent amendment to the Cambodian Constitution approved by the National Assembly that permits the revocation of Khmer citizenship, warning that it could be weaponized to silence dissent and leave individuals at risk of statelessness. Amnesty International’s regional research director Montse Ferrer stated: Revoking citizenship often violates human rights, and [...]