Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Tuesday urged Japan to stop retaliating against a UN committee for women’s rights . The development follows the committee’s recommendation that Japan revise its domestic law to allow female heirs to inherit the throne. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) recommended that Japan revise its [...]

Amnesty International stated Wednesday that Lebanon’s recent Shura Council ruling in actor Ziad Itani’s case signifies a pivotal moment in the battle against torture and impunity. Amnesty said the ruling, announced on December 5, 2024, is not only crucial for recognizing the Lebanese government’s accountability for the torture endured by Itani, but also for requiring [...]

Last month, actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their Santa Fe home. Along with their bodies, one of the couple’s dogs, a 12-year-old Australian kelpie named Zinna, was also found dead. How they died matters, as in all cases of unexplained death. When death appears to be criminal, investigators [...]

Justice for Myanmar (JFM) released a statement calling on the United Nations to investigate possible conflicts of interest with its Special Envoy to Myanmar due to her possible links with Chinese state-owned entities. The Special Envoy, Julie Bishop, served as the Australian minister of foreign affairs from 2013-2018 and was appointed to her position as [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit denied the Trump administration’s motion to stay a preliminary injunction on Tuesday, continuing to block the administration from enforcing an executive order to end birthright citizenship. The plaintiffs constitute 18 US states, including Massachusetts, while the defendants are Trump and other government officials. The district court [...]

A Hong Kong District Court on Tuesday convicted social worker Jackie Chen of “rioting.” Chen mediated between the protesters and the police during the 2019 anti-government protests in Hong Kong, and urged the police not to fire non-lethal bullets. She also called on them to maintain peace. The judgment follows an appeal by the Secretary [...]

A human rights watchdog in the Philippines on Monday declared its “full support” for the passage of a proposed internet safety education bill protecting children from online sexual abuse and exploitation. The Commission on Human Rights (CHR), an independent National Human Rights Institution, expressed its approval of the newly introduced Senate Bill (SB) 2934. The [...]

The Constitutional Court of Romania unanimously decided on Tuesday to deny the candidacy of independent leader Călin Georgescu in the upcoming election. This decision irrevocably rejects Georgescu’s appeal of the nullification of his candidacy by the Central Election Bureau (BEC) two days earlier. The reasoning cited by the court was a failure in his constitutional [...]

A group of US probationary government employees who lost their jobs as part of President Donald Trump’s purge of the federal workforce filed a lawsuit Tuesday, claiming the mass firings were illegal and should be reversed. The lawsuit was filed by employees from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of the Treasury, the Department [...]

The High Court of Australia rejected the Commonwealth of Australia’s appeal in a historic case concerning a native title compensation claim, ruling in favor of the Indigenous Gumatj Clan on Wednesday. The High Court delivered its decision in the Commonwealth of Australia v Yunupingu (on behalf of the Gumatj Clan or Estate Group) & Ors. [...]