Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday condemned the decision by authorities in Thailand to bring criminal defamation lawsuits against two renowned journalists who reported on a bribery case. HRW cited the importance of safeguarding press freedom as a cornerstone of democratic society. In late February, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suchart Chomklin filed criminal [...]

Human Rights Watch on Tuesday welcomed the recent arrest by Australian police of Ben Roberts-Smith, an Australian soldier accused of committing five counts of war crimes in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012, as a step towards justice for victims. The arrest comes almost six years after release of the Independent Afghanistan Inquiry, or the Brereton [...]

The UN Commission of Inquiry on Wednesday called for international accountability in the midst of the Iran war, which it says has led to an unprecedented increase in human rights violations against civilians residing in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Stressing the severity of the situation in the region, with the rising death tolls as a [...]

Human Rights Watch on Sunday called for the dismissal of charges brought by authorities in Kazakhstan against outspoken feminist and LGBTQ+ rights activist Zhanar Sekerbayeva. Commenting on the difficult circumstances faced by Sekerbayeva, Mihra Rittmann, Central Asia adviser at Human Rights Watch, stated: “The Kazakh authorities should drop the charges against Sekerbayeva and put an [...]

Amnesty International on Thursday called on Tunisian authorities to cease their persecution of judges, especially pointing to the case of Judge Anas Hmedi, who has spoken out against the government of Kais Saied and its attacks on judicial independence in the country. Highlighting the harshness of the situation against judicial figures in Tunisia, Sara Hashash, [...]

UN experts on Thursday urged Venezuela to ensure that the country’s Attorney General and  Ombudsperson are appointed based on merit, stressing that both positions play a crucial role in protecting human rights and upholding the rule of law. The experts further added: We regret that in the past, appointments to these positions were made outside [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday urged national leaders to cease combative rhetoric as conflict continues in the Middle East, warning that further escalation could result in devastating civilian casualties and regional instability. Commenting on the destabilization of the region, Philippe Bolopion, executive director of HRW, stated: As the Middle East conflict has spread and [...]

Amnesty International on Monday condemned the growing use of discriminatory legal frameworks by governments across the Americas to systematically target civil society organizations, a trend it described as regressive and alarming. In a new report, Amnesty noted that practices by governments in Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela imposed excessive restrictions on civil [...]

The UN special rapporteur for Myanmar on Friday called on the UN Human Rights Council to increase human rights safeguards in junta-controlled country, contending that the cost of international inaction is a death sentence for millions. Rapporteur Tom Andrews spoke on continued disruptions to the international order and their repercussions, particularly when addressing human rights [...]

The Bar Council of England and Wales on Tuesday called on the government to reconsider its proposed reforms to trial by jury, which aim to scrap jury trials in cases where a convicted defendant would be imprisoned for up to three years, stating that the measure is an “unpopular, untested and poorly evidenced” change to [...]