French authorities arrested Félicien Kabuga, a leading figure in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, on Saturday in Paris. A release from the UN said Kabuga, 84, “was indicted by the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 1997 on seven counts of genocide, complicity in genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, attempt to [...]
The U.S. Senate passed a bill on Thursday in support of the Uyghur Muslim minority in China. The bill would require the president to make a report to Congress regarding China’s crackdown on the Uyghurs and other minorities in the region. The report would identify persons responsible for the crackdown, whether they are officials with [...]
The El Salvador Legislative Assembly extended its COVID-19 state of emergency law Sunday by a 68-12 vote despite human rights concerns. The extension is effective until April 16. The state of emergency law allows the El Salvador government to detain those who violate lockdown orders. This provision has concerned human rights groups. According to the [...]
The UN released a summary Monday of an inquiry into 2019 attacks and bombings on Syrian hospitals, schools and refugee camps, stopping short of blaming Russia. Many of the attacks were targeted airstrikes on locations providing humanitarian aid to those affected by the Syria conflict. The report heavily implicated the government of Syria and its [...]
China released Wang Quanzhang, a human rights lawyer, from jail Sunday according to BBC reports. Wang defended political activists, religious minorities, and victims of land seizure from Chinese prosecution. Though authorities released Wang from jail, he is placed on a mandatory quarantine in the city of Jinan for fourteen days. Chinese officials contend that the [...]
Amnesty International and Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) shared concerns Tuesday on overcrowded Pakistani prisons amid the COVID-19 outbreak. The report specifically mentioned a prisoner that tested positive for COVID-19 after being arrested in Italy. Italy deported the prisoner to Pakistan, and Pakistan placed the prisoner among 3,500 uninfected inmates in a jail barracks. Authorities eventually [...]
The Department of Justice (DOJ) asked Congress to grant the US Attorney General emergency powers to ask federal judges to pause court proceedings during the COVID-19 pandemic according to a POLITICO report Saturday. Federal judges already have the power to pause court proceedings in their individual courts during emergencies. However, the DOJ contends that this [...]
The president of Uzbekistan signed legislation on Friday granting citizenship to some stateless persons within its borders. There are over 97,000 stateless persons residing in Uzbekistan, the majority of whom were left stateless by the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The new citizenship bill signed by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev would grant citizenship to [...]
A group of UN experts condemned Thammakaset, a Thai poultry producer, for alleged targeting of human rights defenders Thursday. In 2019, Thammakaset allegedly used Thai defamation laws to sue and have prosecuted ten individuals who criticized Thammakaset’s labor practices for human rights abuses. The UN experts called upon Thailand to reform defamation laws based on [...]
UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee urged the Myanmar Government Tuesday to embrace human rights and democracy during her last Human Rights Council report in Geneva. In her report Lee called on Myanmar to amend its constitution, change citizenship and land laws, and overturn laws that violate fundamental human rights. “… t is not too late [...]
