Indonesia: Obama Should Make a Stand for Human Rights
(Jakarta) – US President Barack Obama’s visit to Indonesia on November 9 through 11, 2010, is an important opportunity to make a stand for free expression, religious freedom, and a rights-respecting, accountable military in Indonesia, Human Rights Wa…Continue Reading
Ben Ali vows more freedom, human rights in Tunisia
TUNIS, Tunisia – Tunisia’s president says he is committed to greater freedom and respect for human rights in the north African country that for years has faced criticism over its rights record.Continue Reading
Cluster Munitions Treaty: Strong Interpretation Crucial
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Lebanon Ratifies Cluster Munitions Ban
(Beirut) – Lebanon ratified the international convention banning cluster munitions on November 5, 2010, just ahead of the opening of the convention’s first formal meeting of its states parties. The ratification is especially significant because Lebanon…Continue Reading
Q&A: Convention on Cluster Munitions
Introduction
The Convention on Cluster Munitions seeks to end the significant humanitarian harm cluster munitions pose to civilians. It prohibits the use, production, stockpiling, and transfer of cluster munitions, as well as assistance with any of th…Continue Reading
Promoting the Prohibitions
Introduction
The Convention on Cluster Munitions, adopted in May 2008, seeks to prevent future civilian harm by establishing absolute prohibitions on a number of activities involving cluster munitions. It bans use of the weapons, which kill and injure…Continue Reading
Morocco: Court Delays Trial of Jailed Sahrawis – Again
(New York) – Morocco should end the delays in bringing three imprisoned Sahrawi activists to trial, Human Rights Watch said today. If the court is unable to proceed, it should release them from pretrial detention or drop the charges against them and th…Continue Reading
Obama Administration Gets Another Scolding — on Human Rights
Human Rights Council drags the U.S. over the coals on torture and other issues, but those criticisms will likely fuel Republican skepticism of the international bodyContinue Reading
NGO Letter to President Obama regarding waivers to the Child Soldiers Prevention Act
Dear President Obama,
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U.S. defends human rights record at U.N.
The United States defended itself against criticism of its human rights record from friend and foe alike on Friday in a United Nations forum that the former Bush administration had boycotted as hypocritical.Continue Reading
Khadr’s Plea Agreement and Sentencing
The Military Commissions Act of 2009, though an improvement over the Bush-era law governing military commission proceedings at Guantanamo, has a number of problematic provisions. A particularly important area is the rules it establishes regarding evide…Continue Reading
US: Status Quo Stance at First UN Rights Review
(New York) – The United States should take concrete steps to address serious failings in its human rights record, Human Rights Watch said today. Many of the issues were raised by UN member countries on November 5, 2010, during the United States’ first …Continue Reading
Syria urged to probe ‘assault’ of jailed rights lawyer
Leading international human rights groups have alleged a Syrian lawyer was assaulted in prison two weeks after he was due to have received an award in Geneva for his record as a rights defender.Continue Reading