Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday protested the targeting of Vitaliy Shabunin, co-founder of the Anti-Corruption Action Center (AntAC), by Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation (SBI). Shabunin, “a prominent anti-corruption activist who has played a key role in exposing allegations of government corruption,” recently criticized the Ministry of Defense and the president over weapon procurement [...]

The Supreme Court of Canada affirmed on Thursday the constitutionality of sex work-related offenses. The court held that the impugned offenses do not infringe the right to security of sex workers under Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The appeal concerned Criminal Code sections 286.2 and 286.3, which prohibit the procurement [...]

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 [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday called upon Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to veto recently approved legislation that would significantly weaken environmental licensing requirements across the country. The group stressed that the bill undermines Brazil’s human rights and environmental obligations by weakening oversight of high-risk activities like fossil fuel production and cattle [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged Niger authorities on Wednesday to immediately release former president Mohamed Bazoum, who remains in detention since being ousted two years ago in a military coup. The organization argued that the continued detention represents a violation of fundamental human rights and democratic principles and emphasized the broader concerns about democratic governance [...]

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Wednesday urged Liberian authorities to ensure justice following the assault and abduction of journalist Alex Seryea Yormie on June 30. Yormie was allegedly taken by members of the Poro Society “traditionalist” group shortly after a broadcast wherein he announced a government directive suspending the group’s activities. He reported [...]

The US Supreme Court on Wednesday granted President Donald Trump’s request to stay a lower court order that would have prevented him from firing three Democratic members of the Consumer Product Safety Commission without cause. The order allows Trump to immediately terminate commissioners Mary Boyle, Alexander Hoehn-Saric, and Richard Trumka Jr., whom he removed in [...]

On July 23, the Hong Kong Legislative Council established a bill committee on the Registration of Same-sex Partnerships Bill. Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau Eric Tsang Kwok-wai submitted to the legislature that the government is dedicated to respecting the judiciary and fulfilling its Bill of Rights obligations. At the same time, Tsang also [...]

The United Nations released a report on Thursday finding that the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have committed human rights violations against Afghan refugees who returned to their home country. The UN condemned these abuses and urged authorities to adhere to Afghanistan’s obligations under international law. The report, conducted by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a block on President Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship order on Wednesday, concluding that plaintiffs are likely to succeed in demonstrating that the executive order is unconstitutional. The Ninth Circuit has now become the first appeals court to weigh in on the birthright citizenship order. The [...]