Human Rights Watch News

Iranian Authorities Allegedly Sexually Assaulted Journalist

Fri, 29 Nov 2024 10:12:36 -0500

Prison officers allegedly sexually assaulted and harassed Vida Rabbani, an Iranian journalist and activist, during a body search at Evin Prison in Tehran on October 3, an informed source told Human Rights Watch in late November.

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Vida Rabbani.

Security forces arrested Rabbani in September 2022, during the nationwide protests sparked by Mahsa Jina Amini’s death while detained by morality police. In December 2022, Tehran’s revolutionary court sentenced Rabbani to six years in prison on charges of “assembly and collusion against national security” and an additional fifteen months for “propaganda against the state.”

Rabbani had previously been arrested and convicted due to her activism. In another case in 2022, Tehran’s revolutionary court sentenced her to 10 years in prison. Due to a 2023 general amnesty order, part of her sentence was pardoned.

Rabbani, who experienced severe headaches and poor physical health while serving her prison sentence, was temporarily released on medical leave. Upon her return to prison on October 3, she was allegedly sexually assaulted by prison officers during a body search. She reportedly made a complaint about this violation, which resulted in further punishments imposed by the prison disciplinary council, including being denied further leave.

Human Rights Watch previously documented how Iran’s security forces sexually assaulted and harassed people in detention.

In a letter written by Rabbani and published by Iran Wire on November 26, Rabbani highlighted the deteriorating health conditions of human rights defenders Narges Mohammadi and Warisha Moradi, also in Evin prison. She announced that, as of November 18, she and government critic Motahareh Goonei have been on a hunger strike, demanding medical attention for Mohammadi and adequate healthcare for other fellow detainees.

In her letter she wrote: “Our hunger strike, Motahareh’s and mine, is nothing but an act of desperation in the face of injustice. An act we know will harm our bodies, yet we see no other path before us.”

The alleged sexual assault against Rabbani, along with the serial violations of detainees’ rights in Iranian prisons, is appalling and the abuses should be publicly raised and condemned by states engaging with Iran. Targeting women activists is part of a broader effort by Iranian authorities to silence dissent. Iranian authorities should halt such inhumane practices, ensure the safety and rights of all detainees, and release all journalists and human rights defenders unlawfully detained, including Vida Rabbani.

Thailand: Cambodian Refugees Forcibly Returned

Fri, 29 Nov 2024 03:17:23 -0500

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Detainees stand behind cell bars at the police immigration detention center in Bangkok, Thailand, January 21, 2019.

(Bangkok, November 29, 2024) – Thai authorities forcibly returned six Cambodian political opposition activists and a young child on November 25, 2024, putting them at risk of unfair trials and mistreatment in Cambodia, Human Rights Watch said today. Cambodian authorities should immediately drop the politically motivated charges against these refugees and an asylum seeker and unconditionally release them.

On November 24, Thai immigration officials in Pathum Thani province arrested the seven people, including the 5-year-old grandson of one activist. The authorities alleged they were staying in Thailand illegally and forcibly returned them to Cambodia the next day. Cambodian authorities have detained Pen Chan Sangkream, Hong An, Mean Chanthon, Yin Chanthou, Soeung Khunthea, and Vorn Chanratchana in three separate prisons under arrest warrants issued by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court. The 5-year-old boy was released to family members upon returning to Cambodia.

“Thai officials have used immigration charges as a convenient excuse to deport these Cambodian refugees without court review and in blatant disregard for fundamental refugee protection principles,” said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Thai authorities should not be complicit in the Cambodian government’s transnational persecution of political opposition figures.”

Cambodian authorities have charged five of the six detainees with “plotting” under article 453 of the criminal code, which is punishable by up to ten years in prison. The authorities previously brought plotting charges in a criminal case file opened on August 15 regarding the Cambodian government’s crackdown on protests against the trade and cooperation agreement between Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

The six detainees are supporters of the dissolved opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party (CNRP) and its subsequent incarnations. They traveled to Thailand in 2022, where five were recognized as refugees by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The sixth was awaiting a refugee status determination from UNHCR.

In Cambodia, Human Rights Watch has documented systematic harassment and targeting of critics in the political opposition and civil society, including through threats and instigation of violence, arbitrary arrests and detention, unfair trials and baseless prison sentences. Conditions in Cambodian prisons are inhumane, with the United Nations special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia citing in his 2023 report an “overcrowding rate of about 300 percent, with some 40,000 inmates.”

Since the dissolution of the CNRP in 2017, the Cambodian government has pursued former CNRP members – including those living in exile in neighboring Thailand – on politically motivated charges.

In February, Thai police arrested three opposition activists in Bangkok ahead of Prime Minister Hun Manet’s visit to Thailand. Hun Manet expressed his gratitude to then-Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin for his commitment not to allow people to conduct “harmful activities” against neighboring countries. That same month, Thai authorities detained three former Candlelight party members who had fled to Thailand for fear of political persecution.

Human Rights Watch’s recent report, “‘We Thought We Were Safe’: Repression and Refoulement of Refugees in Thailand,” documents a pattern of transnational repression in which Thai authorities helped neighboring governments take unlawful actions against dissidents and activists seeking protection in Thailand. In exchange, Thai authorities were able to target critics of the Thai government living in Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia as part of a “swap mart” of refugees and dissidents.

Refugees in Thailand face ongoing risks of forcible return in violation of their rights and international law, Human Rights Watch said.

Under customary international law and the United Nations Convention against Torture, to which Thailand is a party, Thailand is obligated to respect the international law principle of nonrefoulement, which prohibits countries from returning anyone to a place where they would face a real risk of persecution, torture or other serious ill-treatment, or a threat to life.

In addition, Thailand’s Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearances, which came into effect in February 2023, states that “no government organizations or public officials shall expel, deport, or extradite a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that the person would be in danger of torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, or enforced disappearance.”

By deporting these refugee and asylum seekers, Thailand’s government violated its international legal obligations, Human Rights Watch said.

“Thai and Cambodian authorities continue to collude to repress critics in exile,” Pearson said. “Thailand and Cambodia’s new prime ministers should show they are different from their predecessors and ensure their governments uphold their international human rights obligations.”

Australia Passes Harsh New Anti-Migration Laws

Thu, 28 Nov 2024 19:00:00 -0500

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Activists gather in Brisbane's ANZAC Square to protest the indefinite detention of refugees and asylum seekers in Australian-run and funded facilities on the mainland and on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island, January 19, 2022.

On Thursday night, the Australian government passed new laws that expand the country’s offshore detention regime, further evade international obligations, and allow officials to pursue prison terms for people who resist deportation, including asylum seekers. These laws undermine the core principles of refugee protection and mark an escalation in Australia’s existing mistreatment of refugees, migrants, and asylum seekers.

The legislation was introduced through three bills: the Migration Amendment (Removal and Other Measures) Bill, the Migration Amendment Bill, and the Migration Amendment (Prohibiting Items in Immigration Detention Facilities) Bill.

Under the new laws, the government now has the authority to pay third countries to accept noncitizens, including recognized refugees. Contrary to international standards, the laws do not require these countries to be parties to the Refugee Convention, nor do they include adequate safeguards to protect refugees from harm or detention abroad, or refoulement to countries where they may face persecution.

A recent Senate inquiry into the legislation found that 80,000 noncitizens could be susceptible to deportation under the laws.

The Migration Amendment (Removal and Other Measures) Bill grants authorities the power to seek prison sentences of one to five years for previously recognized refugees whose status has been revoked or for individuals whose asylum claims have been rejected, if they refuse to cooperate with deportation efforts. This effectively treats administrative violations as criminal offenses.

The laws also expand the Australian immigration minister’s existing powers to reverse immigration decisions and strip people of their recognized refugee status. Human Rights Watch and other groups previously raised concerns that the new legislation risks violating the principle of non-refoulement under the Refugee Convention, that is the prohibition on returning people to face threats to their lives or freedom.

The laws also authorize the government to ban visas from countries that do not accept involuntary removals.

Broad powers have also been granted to immigration detention authorities to search detainees and seize their phones under the Migration Amendment (Prohibiting Items in Immigration Detention Facilities) Bill. Australia’s Human Rights Commission has raised concerns that this could allow for blanket phone bans being imposed.

Human Rights Watch has long documented Australia’s mistreatment of refugees. However, these laws mark a new low and risk further undermining the country’s obligations under international law. Rather than reinforcing a system that criminalizes and punishes refugees and asylum seekers, Australia should take a rights-respecting approach, end its offshore detention regime, and invest in detention alternatives.

Zimbabwe Opposition Activists Freed After Five Months

Thu, 28 Nov 2024 09:22:05 -0500

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Activists with the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change party arrive at the Magistrates' courts in Harare, Zimbabwe, June 19, 2024.

On November 27, a Zimbabwean court sentenced Jameson Timba, interim leader of the opposition Citizens’ Coalition for Change (CCC), and 34 others to suspended prison terms, after being convicted earlier in the week for participation in an unlawful gathering. Timba was sentenced to a suspended two-year prison term, while the other activists received lesser suspended prison terms.

The suspended sentences mean that Timba and the other activists will immediately be freed, but the convictions remain.

The defendants have been detained since June following their arrest at Timba’s home in the suburbs of the capital, Harare. The authorities charged over 70 people, who had gathered at his home to commemorate the Day of the African Child, with “gathering with intent to promote public violence and disorderly conduct.” All those arrested were denied bail several times. In September, they were acquitted of disorderly conduct and 40 were released. The rest remained in custody until Wednesday’s sentencing.

Lawyers for the defendants told Human Rights Watch that some of their clients had been left with serious injuries following police beatings. They had been denied the rights to humane treatment, a prompt trial and other basic rights, including access to medical care, adequate food and the right to bail.

One of the defendants, Maureen Dinha, was jailed five months with her year-old child. Tambudzai Makororo, whose leg was fractured during the arrest, lost her son during her detention and was refused permission to attend his funeral.

Zimbabwean authorities are increasingly misusing the law against critics of the government.

Since taking power in a military coup in 2017, the administration of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, which initially promoted itself as a rights-respecting “new dispensation,” has arrested and prosecuted dozens of politicians and activists on baseless charges.

Leading opposition figure Job Sikhala, who was detained in 2022 on charges of incitement to commit public violence, disorderly conduct, and obstruction of justice, was only released in January 2024 after 595 days in custody. Opposition leader Jacob Ngarivhume spent eight months in detention before a court set aside his conviction in December 2023.

Zimbabwe’s Constitution and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Zimbabwe is a party, prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention and protect the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, as well as to a fair trial. Targeting political opponents violates those rights and undermines Zimbabwe’s standing as a rights-respecting country.

Zimbabwe authorities should end the weaponization of the judicial system and its attacks on rights opposition politicians, activists and supporters.

State of Mexico Congress Votes to Decriminalize Abortion

Thu, 28 Nov 2024 01:01:00 -0500

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Green handkerchiefs bearing the slogan "Abortion for All of Mexico" in front of the State of Mexico Congress on September 19, 2024, in Toluca, Mexico.

(Toluca) – The vote by the Congress of the State of Mexico on November 25, 2024, to decriminalize abortion in all cases during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is a significant step forward for reproductive rights in the country’s most populous state, Human Rights Watch said today.

Once enacted, the reform will remove all criminal penalties for abortion within the first trimester. It will align the State of Mexico with 18 other states in the country that have already decriminalized abortion following the landmark 2021 ruling by Mexico’s Supreme Court, which found the absolute criminalization of abortion unconstitutional.

“This decision is a critical victory for women, girls, and pregnant people in the State of Mexico,” said Marea Verde Edomex (Green Wave), the coalition of civil society organizations and activists that pushed for this change. “Decriminalizing abortion is an essential step toward respecting the right of women and girls to gender equality, allowing people to make informed decisions about their bodies, health, and futures.”

Fear of legal repercussions has long deterred healthcare providers in the State of Mexico from offering services and deterred patients from seeking abortion care. Under the previous law, abortion was only permitted in cases of rape, a threat to the woman’s life, “negligent abortions,” or “serious fetal anomalies” (sic). After the change goes into effect, abortion will remain criminalized after the first trimester, with the same exceptions.

“Abortion is a public health matter that should not be regulated through criminal law,” said Cristina Quijano Carrasco, women’s rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. “While the decriminalization of abortion during the first 12 weeks of gestation is a major step forward, the State of Mexico should work toward removing abortion entirely from the criminal code.”

The criminalization of abortion has disproportionally affected already marginalized groups, such as those living in conditions of poverty, adolescents, and people with disabilities, who often lack the resources, information, and support networks to navigate complex healthcare systems or legal barriers. These inequalities exacerbate long-standing barriers in access to reproductive health care and deepen existing social and economic disparities.

Healthcare workers interviewed by Human Rights Watch said that decriminalizing abortion will significantly improve access to abortion services by alleviating fears among pregnant people about seeking information or accessing care. It will also mitigate healthcare workers’ concerns about the risk of being criminally prosecuted when providing legal abortion care. If widely disseminated, this reform is also expected to help combat entrenched gender-based biases and societal stigma that often complicate access to reproductive health care.

Even in legally permissible cases, people needing abortion care have often struggled to access it. In an August 2024 report on access to abortion in the State of Mexico, Human Rights Watch found that barriers to abortion access remained widespread, even in cases in which abortion was legally permitted under the law.

Barriers included healthcare providers denying or delaying services, withholding necessary information, and questioning the veracity of sexual violence survivors’ statements. They also have restricted legal capacity for some pregnant people with disabilities, subjected women to mistreatment, and imposed arbitrary requirements for access that contradict existing law and regulations. As a result, many pregnant people still face significant obstacles when seeking reproductive health care.

Abortion services should be widely available, accessible, and provided without discrimination or delay. To expand access to abortion, authorities in the State of Mexico should address gaps in healthcare provider training, improve the dissemination of information about legal abortion services, and eliminate harmful biases and practices within the healthcare system, Human Rights Watch said.

“This landmark achievement would not have been possible without the tireless work of Mexico’s collectives, organizations, and activists,” Quijano Carrasco said. “The State of Mexico should continue to work alongside these groups to ensure that the decriminalization of abortion translates into tangible access to essential healthcare services for all those who need it.”

Kazakhstan: Ensure Journalist Gets Fair Appeal

Thu, 28 Nov 2024 00:00:01 -0500

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Daniyar Adilbekov sitting in the defendants’ box at trial in Astana, Kazakhstan, September 2024.

(Berlin, November 28, 2024) – The authorities in Kazakhstan should ensure a fair appeals process for an investigative journalist who has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison on criminal charges for allegedly disseminating false information, Human Rights Watch said today. The Kazakh authorities should revise such laws to ensure that no other journalists are jailed for exercising their right to free speech.

The Astana City Interdistrict Criminal Court on October 18, 2024, found the journalist, Daniyar Adilbekov, guilty of “disseminating knowingly false information” and making a “knowingly false denunciation” in connection with materials he published on the Telegram channel “Wild Horde.” Adilbekov has been in custody since he was arrested in late March 2024. His appeal hearing in Astana could come up for review in the coming weeks.

“Imprisonment is an inappropriate and disproportionate punishment for reputational harm and is inconsistent with Kazakhstan’s international obligations,” said Mihra Rittmann, senior Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The Kazakh authorities should release Adilbekov, ensure that his appeal hearing is fair, and take steps to abolish criminal penalties for speech offenses that are limited to reputational harm.”

Adilbekov, 35, was arrested on the basis of complaints made by Vice Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov; the Astana Airport board chairman, Yusuf Rashed M. Aljawder; and another journalist, Gulzhan Yergaliyeva.

Prosecutors alleged that Adilbekov, acting with the other defendant in the case, Yerlan Saudegerov, an entrepreneur who provides intermediary services in the oil and gas sector, made a “knowingly false denunciation” against Vice Minister Akkenzhenov in publishing two Telegram posts entitled “Akkenzhenov's Dirty Petrodollars” and “Who are you, Mr. Akkenzhenov?” alleging corruption in the oil industry and at the Energy Ministry.

Gulmira Birzhanova, legal director at the media rights organization Legal Media Center, told Human Rights Watch that this is the first time a journalist in Kazakhstan has been convicted of making a “knowingly false denunciation.” If Adilbekov’s conviction stands, she said, it could have a chilling effect on investigative journalism and reporting on alleged corruption.

While Kazakhstan removed the offense of defamation from its criminal code in June 2020, by preserving the criminal offenses of disseminating false information and making a false denunciation, Kazakhstan still has the option of using serious criminal sanctions for reputational speech offenses that are incompatible with respect for freedom of expression.

Prosecutors also accused Adilbekov of disseminating knowingly false information about Aljawder and Yergalieva in Telegram posts about the management of the Astana airport, in the case of Aljawder, and about reporting on the murder trial of the former Economy Minister Kuandyk Bishimbayev, who was convicted of killing his partner, Saltanat Nukenova, in the case of Yergaliyeva.

The first-instance court found that forensic psychological and philological examinations of the articles, as well as witness testimony, was “sufficient” to determine the defendants’ guilt. Adilbekov rejected the charges, saying that the prosecution did not prove the information in the articles was false and that he and his lawyer had provided the court with evidence that the information in his articles came from open sources.

On October 29, journalists and media workers in Kazakhstan opened for signatures an online petition addressed to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev calling for Adilbekov’s release. In it they say that Adilbekov’s imprisonment is “a disproportionate punishment for offenses that do not pose a public danger.” International media watchdogs have also called for his release.

Under international human rights law, governments have an obligation to respect and protect the right to freedom of expression, including the right to seek, receive, and impart information of all kinds. Governments may only impose restrictions on freedom of speech if those restrictions are provided by law and are strictly necessary and proportionate to achieve a legitimate aim, including the protection of national security, public order, public health or morals, or the rights of others.

The United Nations Human Rights Committee, the independent expert body that monitors compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, states in its general comment on freedom of expression that “imprisonment is never an appropriate penalty” for defamation.

Civil defamation laws are sufficient for the purpose of protecting people’s reputations and can be written and applied in ways that provide appropriate protections for freedom of expression, Human Rights Watch said.

Kazakhstan’s partners should urge the authorities to release Adilbekov and take immediate steps to uphold freedom of expression in Kazakhstan. The European Union, United States, United Kingdom, and other partners with diplomatic representation in Astana should send observers to Adilbekov’s appeal hearing.

“Imprisonment is never an appropriate sentence for speech offenses and will have a chilling effect on independent journalism in Kazakhstan,” Rittmann said. “Adilbekov deserves a fair appeal and should not have to spend another day in prison.”

Indonesian Domestic Workers’ Long Wait for Reform

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 19:00:00 -0500

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Activists during a protest and hunger strike demanding that parliament to pass a bill to protect domestic workers, at the parliament in Jakarta, Indonesia, August 14, 2023.

For over two decades, domestic workers in Indonesia, the vast majority of them women, have been advocating for their rights to no avail. Millions of Indonesian women and girls work in private households as domestic workers, but despite their critical role in the economy, they remain unprotected under Indonesian labor laws. This, along with the fact that these workers are isolated inside the employer’s home, means that many experience horrific psychological, physical, and sexual abuse at the hands of their employers.

Lita Anggraini, national coordinator of Jala PRT, Indonesia’s National Network for Domestic Workers Advocacy, said: “Domestic workers are workers. They provide essential services. But domestic workers are denied access and claim to basic rights and protection. They face some of the harshest working conditions, with many describing their situation as modern slavery. And yet, the state is absent.”

Indonesia's new president, Prabowo Subianto, has the opportunity to take a bold step toward guaranteeing these workers’ rights by getting parliament to pass the Domestic Workers' Protection Bill (PPRT) and ratify both the International Labour Organization’s Domestic Worker’s Convention and the Violence and Harassment Convention.

Discriminatory gender norms often devalue domestic labor as mere “women’s work.” This devaluation is compounded by the fact that many domestic workers enter the profession as children, some as young as 12. The lack of enforcement of a minimum age of 15 for all sectors of work and the lack of legal recognition of domestic workers as workers leave hundreds of thousands of women and girls exposed to exploitation and abuse.

Despite years of advocacy by activists, trade unions, civil society groups, and human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, previous Indonesian governments have not taken steps to bring needed reforms. Jala PRT has spent two decades advocating for parliament to pass the Domestic Workers’ Protection Bill, which contains significant improvements for the recognition of domestic workers’ rights, including protection from violence and exploitation. Yet this bill has been stalled for 20 years in parliament due to a persistent lack of political will.

The Indonesian government should not delay any longer and pass the bill, recognizing the legal protections its millions of domestic workers are entitled but have long been denied.

China State Bank Shouldn’t Back East African Crude Oil Pipeline

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 08:00:00 -0500

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Oil drilling pipes at the Tilenga Industrial Area, which will host the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), in Bulisa, Uganda, October 25, 2023.

“We are now drilling.” Uganda’s energy minister recently confirmed at COP29 that the government was pressing ahead with the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP). The 1,443-kilometer pipeline will connect oilfields in western Uganda with the port of Tanga in eastern Tanzania. Among one of the world’s largest fossil fuel projects currently under development, EACOP poses significant risks to human rights and the environment.

Given the government’s unwavering support, the pipeline’s completion will now rely on whether it can secure the necessary funding.

Several banks, including major African banks, have already declined to support the project. The state-run Import-Export Bank of China (Exim Bank) remains undecided and is expected to make a key decision in December about its financial support for EACOP.

A Human Rights Watch report in 2023 found that land acquisition associated with the project has already devasted thousands of people’s livelihoods in Uganda. The inadequate and delayed compensation for land lost to the project has impacted many communities’ access to food, health, and education. It is estimated that developments in the oilfields will displace as many as 100,000 people across Uganda and Tanzania.

Human Rights Watch has also documented the Ugandan government’s routine harassment and arbitrary arrests of human rights defenders and activists who voice concerns about the pipeline. More than 80 have been arrested since May 2024 for protesting against EACOP.

The Climate Accountability Institute estimated the full lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of the project to be 379 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, more than the annual emissions of Australia.

Human Rights Watch wrote to Exim Bank in October and urged the bank not to support EACOP due to its human rights and environmental risks. Backing EACOP would also be at odds with the bank’s stated aims as outlined in its 2022 White Paper on Green Finance, which highlights cooperation with various international financial institutions in supporting environmental protection and renewable energy. Exim Bank has not responded to the letter.

In a year when global warming is expected to exceed the threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius set by the Paris Agreement, expanding new fossil fuel projects like EACOP would be disastrous. China Exim Bank, or any financial institution, should not support a project that poses grave and significant risks to both human rights and the environment.

Myanmar: ICC Prosecutor Requests Arrest Warrant

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 07:00:00 -0500

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Rohingya refugees walk through rice fields after crossing the border from Myanmar into Palang Khali, Bangladesh, October 19, 2017.

(New York) – The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor’s request for an arrest warrant for Myanmar military commander-in-chief, Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, for alleged crimes against humanity is a major step towards justice for the country’s Rohingya population, Human Rights Watch said today. ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan’s announcement during a visit to Bangladesh on November 27, 2024, opens the door to seeking accountability for the atrocities of 2016-2017, and eroding the impunity fueling the military’s ongoing abuses.

Khan requested the arrest warrant for Min Aung Hlaing, alleging his responsibility for the crimes against humanity of deportation and persecution of the Rohingya committed in Myanmar and in part in Bangladesh between August and December 2017. Min Aung Hlaing led the February 2021 coup and remains head of the State Administration Council junta.

“The ICC prosecutor’s request for this arrest warrant is a strong warning to Myanmar’s abusive military leaders that they’re not beyond the reach of the law,” said Maria Elena Vignoli, senior international justice counsel at Human Rights Watch. “And it sends the Rohingya community an important message that their struggle for justice has not been forgotten.”

In his announcement, Khan stated that the alleged crimes were committed by “the armed forces of Myanmar, the Tatmadaw, supported by the national police, the border guard police, as well as non-Rohingya civilians.” He also noted that this is the first request by his office for a warrant against a senior Myanmar official, but “more will follow.”

In August 2017, Myanmar security forces began a sweeping campaign of massacres, rape, and arson against Rohingya in northern Rakhine State that forced more than 700,000 to flee to Bangladesh. Human Rights Watch determined that the atrocities amounted to crimes against humanity and acts of genocide.

Although Myanmar is not an ICC member country, in 2019 the ICC prosecutor opened an investigation into alleged grave crimes against the Rohingya population that were committed, at least in part, in Bangladesh or another ICC member country. The ICC can only exercise its jurisdiction over crimes committed by nationals of, or on the territory of a member country, unless the situation is referred to the court by the UN Security Council, or if the nonmember country in question accepts the court’s jurisdiction.

The prosecutor’s request has been submitted to ICC judges, who will determine whether to issue the warrant. No time limit is imposed on the judges’ decision. If the judges issue the warrant, ICC member countries will be under a legal obligation to arrest and transfer Min Aung Hlaing to the court if he enters their territories. The ICC does not permit trials in absentia.

No one has yet been held accountable for the 2016-2017 crimes against the Rohingya, while the international response to the Myanmar crisis has been fragmented and halting. The UN Security Council, which has the authority to issue legally binding resolutions, has remained paralyzed. Council members have yet to follow up on the council’s December 2022 resolution, which denounced the military’s postcoup abuses, with tangible measures. Anticipating vetoes by China and Russia, the deadlocked council has not referred the situation in Myanmar to the ICC, which would expand the court’s jurisdiction to crimes allegedly committed on Myanmar territory.

Emboldened by decades of impunity, Myanmar’s military has committed numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity since the 2021 coup. In the past year, fighting against opposition forces and ethnic armed groups has engulfed much of the country.

Human Rights Watch has found that the junta’s systematic abuses against the Rohingya in Rakhine State amount to the crimes against humanity of apartheid, persecution, and severe deprivation of liberty. Currently, the estimated 630,000 Rohingya remaining in Myanmar are facing the gravest threats since 2017.

The junta has arrested thousands of Rohingya for “unauthorized travel,” and imposed new movement restrictions and aid blockages in Rakhine State. Over the past year, the Myanmar military and the ethnic Arakan Army have committed mass killings, arson, and unlawful recruitment against the Rohingya population. Both the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army have laid landmines along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border while fighting for control of the area.

An estimated 40,000 Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh in recent months to escape ongoing abuses in Myanmar, joining about one million refugees who had fled atrocities in 2016-2017 and earlier. The security situation and living conditions in the refugee camps have deteriorated.

To bring comprehensive accountability, the UN Security Council should expand the ICC’s jurisdiction to address the full scope of criminality by referring the situation in Myanmar to the court, Human Rights Watch said. An ICC referral would broaden the scope of the investigation to include, among others, grave crimes committed by the military against other communities in Myanmar.

The UN-backed Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar – mandated to collect evidence and build case files for criminal prosecution of individuals responsible for serious crimes – reported in July 2024 that it “has accumulated and analysed a diverse range of evidence of serious international crimes committed in Myanmar, including evidence bearing on the criminal responsibility of specific individuals.” The investigators noted that from July 2023 to June 2024, they had shared “an unprecedented volume of evidence and analysis” with the ICC, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and authorities in Argentina who are investigating crimes against the Rohingya under the principle of universal jurisdiction.

The ICJ is currently hearing a case brought by Gambia against Myanmar, supported by seven other countries, for alleged violations of the Genocide Convention. On January 23, 2020, the ICJ imposed provisional measures directing Myanmar to prevent all genocidal acts against the Rohingya, to ensure that the military and other security forces do not commit acts of genocide, and to take steps to preserve evidence related to the case. The military’s escalating abuses underscore its blatant disregard for the ICJ’s provisional measures, Human Rights Watch said. In a June 2024 report, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights found that “actions taken by all parties that endanger the Rohingya appear inconsistent with the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice.”

Security Council members should hold an open meeting to address the deteriorating situation in Myanmar and the military’s violations of the provisional measures, while building momentum for a strong follow-up resolution under Chapter VII of the UN Charter. In addition to referring the country situation to the ICC, such a resolution should institute a global arms embargo, impose targeted sanctions on junta leadership and military-owned companies, and request regular reporting by the UN secretary-general on the situation.

In addition to Bangladesh/Myanmar, the ICC is currently working in 15 other situations across the globe. The court faces renewed threats of sanctions from US legislators following the issuance of arrest warrants, against two senior Israeli leaders as well as a Hamas official on November 21, in the context of the Palestine investigation.

The ICC’s 124 member countries preparing to meet for their annual session in The Hague should stand ready to protect the court against any efforts aimed at undermining its mandate, Human Rights Watch said.

“Addressing the abuses happening today in Myanmar means holding those responsible accountable for the grave crimes that paved the junta’s way,” Vignoli said. “With few other options for justice, the ICC is doing exactly the job it was set up to do. ICC member countries should fully back the court and speak up to support and defend its independent global mandate.”

Chad: No Justice for Post Election Celebratory Shooting

Tue, 26 Nov 2024 22:00:00 -0500

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A resident of the Ridina district in N'Djamena shows the fragments of a projectile, that fell into a house on May 9, 2024, in N'Djamena following the announcement of the provisional results of the Chad presidential elections.

© 2024 JORIS BOLOMEY/AFP via Getty Images Victims and survivors of celebratory shootings by Chad’s security forces, that killed at least 11 people on May 9, 2024, are still awaiting justice six months later.In response to an announcement that the then-transitional president had won the presidential election, his loyal forces opened fire over cities and towns in what some described as threatening rather than celebratory.The government should urgently investigate the events of May 9 and prosecute those found responsible, and the victims should be fully supported medically and financially by the government.

(Nairobi) –Victims and survivors of celebratory shootings by Chad’s security forces, which killed at least 11 people on May 9, 2024, are still awaiting justice six months later, Human Rights Watch and the Observatory for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (Observatoire pour la promotion et la défense des droits humains, OPDH) said today.

Several hundred more were injured as security forces shot into the air to celebrate an announcement that the then-transitional president, Gen. Mahamat Idriss Déby, was the provisional winner of the presidential election. Chadian authorities should take swift action to hold those responsible accountable and to ensure that victims are compensated.

“The transition in Chad came to a tragic end on May 9, when forces from the police and army loyal to the then-transitional president opened fire over cities and towns, terrifying the population, killing innocent people, and maiming hundreds,” said Mahamat Zene Oumar Abdelaziz, the president of the OPDH. “The government of Chad should urgently open an investigation to identify which units participated in the shooting and ensure redress for the injured.”

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Remnants of a projectile that fell on a house in the Ridina district of N'Djamena on May 9, 2024, following the announcement of the provisional results of the Chad presidential elections.

The shootings began around 9 p.m. after the National Election Management Agency (Agence nationale de gestion des élections), citing provisional results, announced that Déby had won the May 6 election. His main challenger, then-Prime Minister Succès Masra, declared himself the winner in a separate announcement on social media.

Human Rights Watch and OPDH interviewed 27 witnesses and survivors between July 29 and August 7, including people injured by stray bullets and family members of those killed. The organizations also interviewed government officials and Chadian civil society activists.

Those injured by the gunfire spoke of terror over cities and towns across Chad after the provisional results were announced over the radio and security services began shooting in celebration. One woman, from the Gassi neighborhood in N’Djamena, the capital, said: “We were listening to the news over the radio at a friend’s house. All of a sudden, there was shooting coming from everywhere.” Bullets from the shooting in N’Djamena injured at least three people, including two children, in Kousseri, Cameroon.

Another person who was injured in Moundou, a town in southern Chad, said : “The soldiers were on every street, at every crossroads and intersection. They were shooting about 500 meters away from me and they were shooting in the air and in any direction they wanted.”

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Remnants of a projectile that fell on a house in Moundou, southern Chad, on May 9, 2024, following the announcement of the provisional results of the Chad presidential elections.

While celebratory gunfire in Chad is common after marriages or other significant events, the shooting on May 9 was different, with large caliber weapons and rockets fired into the air. A civil society activist told Human Rights Watch: “The shooting was not to celebrate but to intimidate. It was a warning for us to not dare to protest, like we had in 2022.”

The organizations spoke with two people whose homes were hit by rockets and visited one of the homes in N’Djamena. People in both homes showed the organizations photos of the rockets that hit their homes. Dozens of witnesses said that the military were firing their weapons, something which the organizations also saw in videos they reviewed, including one posted on May 9, that shows soldiers wearing Chadian military uniforms firing an autocannon mounted in the bed of a truck. While Human Rights Watch was not able to geolocate this video, it was shot in N’Djamena, and they were able to confirm it did not exist before May 9.

The organizations confirmed six cases of killings in N’Djamena and heard reliable accounts of several others who were killed. A government official said at least 11 people were killed and that it could have been more. The mother of a 2-year-old girl, Safia Imam, who was killed in N’Djamena’s Naga neighborhood, said: “We were laying down a mat in the house. I was with my husband, and we had our two kids with us. There was noise all around and suddenly Safia was hit. The bullet came through the house … I lost my daughter. I am still in shock.”

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A photo of 2-year-old Safia who was hit by a stray bullet while in her home in the Naga neighborhood of N’Djamena on May 9, 2024 following the announcement of the provisional results of the Chad presidential elections.

In the hours and days that followed the shooting, hundreds of people across Chad sought hospital care. Dozens of injured said that the health minister had announced over the radio that medical fees would be waived for anyone injured by the celebratory shooting. However, at least 14 people said that they had to pay some or all of their medical bills, in some instances straining an already difficult financial situation. Some still owe hundreds of dollars in medical fees. The government should promptly and adequately reimburse those who paid for medical services and subsequent treatment, the organizations said.

On August 5, Human Rights Watch met with the defense minister, who said that civilians fired the shots and that people, including soldiers, had a right to celebrate. On August 6, the justice minister told Human Rights Watch: “No cases or civil cases have been filed, so what can we do? We don’t know about people killed or injured. The first thing would be for the victims to make a case and then we would investigate. But who would the prosecutor file a complaint against?”

Chadian security forces need to be held fully accountable for these serious violations of the rights to life, bodily integrity, and security of Chadians, among other rights, the organizations said. There was absolutely no justification for the use of weapons that occurred on May 9, and international legal norms are clear on the rules for law enforcement using lethal force, whether military or police, and the obligation to ensure an effective investigation and appropriate punishment for violations and remedy including compensation for victims.

On October 4, Human Rights Watch wrote to the justice and health ministers to share research findings, and seek clarification on the number of people killed or injured and on government actions to support the victims. The same day, Human Rights Watch also sent a separate correspondence to the justice minister asking if an investigation would be opened. Several other officials were copied. There has been no official response to either letter at time of publication.

The Chadian authorities should open an investigation into those responsible for the May 9 killings and provide compensation to victims. The authorities should also ensure that all security forces receive adequate training, appropriate equipment, and oversight, the organizations said. The Chadian government should seek international support to ensure that its security forces abide by regional and international standards on the use of firearms.

“The government should urgently investigate the events of May 9 and prosecute those found to be responsible,” said Lewis Mudge, Central Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “Out of respect for the victims, the truth should be revealed and those injured who are still suffering the consequences should be fully supported medically and financially by the government.”

For more reporting on the May 9, 2024, shootings, please see below.

Ahead of the Shootings

The period before Chad’s May 6 presidential elections was marred by violence. On February 28, security forces killed Yaya Dillo, the president of the Socialist Party Without Borders (Parti socialiste sans frontières), during an attack on the party’s headquarters in N’Djamena. The state prosecutor, Oumar Mahamat Kedelaye, said at a news conference that Dillo was killed during an exchange of gunfire with security forces.

However, Human Rights Watch reviewed several photos sent by a reliable source close to Dillo, showing him dead with a single bullet wound to his head and a Reuters investigation concluded that he was most likely shot at point blank range.

The presidential elections result was contested by Succès Masra, Gen. Mahamat Idriss Déby’s main opponent. Déby was sworn in on May 23, ending the transition that started in 2021 after his father, then-President Idriss Déby Itno, died fighting against an armed group.

May 9 Shootings

In the hours before the provisional results were announced, soldiers and police were deployed in key positions across the country. A resident of Moundou, southern Chad, said: “The soldiers were on every street, at every crossroads.” A civil society leader in N’Djamena said: “The military started to take their positions around 3 p.m., with their weapons in place. They were at all the major roads, bridges, and crossroads.”

The provisional election results were announced around 9 p.m. over the radio. While many witnesses and victims said that they anticipated shooting, they said this was different from what happened after previous election results’ announcements. Witnesses said the shooting was “intense” and that it “seemed to come from everywhere.” One victim said: “Once it started it was not celebratory shooting but shooting to terrorize.”

Several people died or were injured after being struck. Some bullets landed harmlessly or lodged in roofs or other properties across N’Djamena. However, in neighborhoods with high population densities, bullets hit human beings, often piercing the roof of a home or structure.

The injured described a deep sense of injustice that they were shot in such a senseless and arbitrary fashion. “I was just at my home and was shot by a bullet,” one woman who was injured said. “I had not done anything. I am lucky that I was only injured. It could have been worse, but when the bullets are falling like that how can you protect yourself?”

The husband of 32-year-old Khadidja Douba, who was killed in N’Djamena’s Senegalese neighborhood, said:

My wife was hit with shrapnel in the head and neck. We were all sitting in the living room and a rocket hit the house. We don’t know where the rocket came from, but the shooting was all over and close by to the house. The authorities gave me 950,000 CFA francs (about US$1,550) for the loss, but since then nothing. They asked us our ethnic group and gave us the money, but they did not say they were sorry. The kids ask every day for their mother, even I am traumatized by what happened.

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A photo of Khadidja Douba who was killed by shrapnel from a projectile that fell on her house in the Ridina district of N'Djamena on May 9, 2024, following the announcement of the provisional results of the Chad presidential elections.

A Human Rights Watch researcher visited the man’s home and documented the damage caused by the rocket-propelled grenade.

A witness who was sitting next to a woman named Mantchoko, who was also killed in N’Djamena’s Senegalese neighborhood, said:

I was just outside the house listening to shots when she was shot in the chest just over 10 feet in front of me. Mantchoko was just laying down and talking to her sister on the phone. She died here on the spot, but we later brought her to the hospital. She was buried two days later.

The father of a 3-year-old boy said that his son was killed in the Klemat neighborhood in N’Djamena while asleep outside with his mother and siblings under a mosquito net:

I was washing myself when I was told to come quickly so I ran over. There was a bullet in his back. There was no roof there, so the bullet just hit him. He was hit in the back with two bullets. He was already vomiting blood when I ran up to him. We brought him to the hospital and they said there was no bullet inside him, so we were sent home at midnight with the child. The next day around 9 a.m. we gave him milk, but he wouldn’t take it. He got really hot, so we took him back to the hospital where they gave him oxygen. They said they wanted to do a scan. He stayed in bed and on oxygen until he died. We buried him the same day.

The organizations saw x-rays from six people who had bullets lodged in their bodies. Three of the people had not yet had the bullets removed at the time of interview in August.

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One woman from N’Djamena’s Gassi neighborhood said:

At first a bullet fell right next to me and I thought, ‘What was that?’ Then I was hit. There was so much shooting, it was coming from everywhere. I screamed, ‘I’ve been shot!’ but I had to stay at home because it was too dangerous to go outside. I bled out for an hour. The next day I went to the central hospital.

A 15-year-old girl from Bebedjia, a town in Logone Oriental province, said:

I went into my room because of the shooting. After a few minutes a bullet came through the roof and hit me on the head. It was bleeding a lot … The bullet is still in my head and the doctors say we have to wait. It makes me very scared.

The mother of a 4-year-old boy from Blabline neighborhood in N’Djamena said that she and her son were asleep in a bed when the shooting started. She said that around 10 p.m. she noticed blood on the bed and realized that her son had been struck by a bullet:

When we saw the blood we took him to the hospital, it was around 10:45 p.m. when we arrived. They made us pay 7,000 CFA (about $12) for the x-ray and told us to go home. We had to go back to the hospital four times and had to pay each time. The family is in shock that this could happen. We were scared that he would die … The child won’t sleep in the same room where he was shot. He is traumatized.

The mother of a 13-year-old girl shot in Morsal neighborhood in N’Djamena said that she thought the sounds of bullets piercing her roof were small stones:

I was outside when we heard the noises, but we thought it was a kid just causing trouble. But then [my daughter] screamed. She had been shot in the hip. We got a pharmacist to come to the house because it was bleeding so much, but we could not risk going to the hospital until after midnight because the shooting was too bad.

An 18-year-old woman from Mongo, in eastern Chad, said she was nine months pregnant when she was struck by a bullet while trying to sleep. The bullet when through her roof and struck her in the right lower leg.

Medical Costs

Authorities around Chad unofficially compensated some family members of victims who had been killed. Family members who received compensation said that men in civilian clothes came to their homes and gave them money for “their sacrifice.” The sum for most families was 1,000,000 Central African Francs (CFA), or about US$1,600.

“The life of my son was worth more than 1,000,000 CFA,” the mother of one victim said.

The mother of a 12-month-old baby from Angabo Chateau neighborhood, north of N’Djamena, said: “Even a large sack of money could not make up for the life of my son. I want accountability for my son’s death.”

At least five families received money, however, at least one family did not receive any money.

Those injured from the celebratory gunfire, including those who still have bullets in their bodies, said that they were disappointed by the lack of medical support from the authorities. They said that the health minister announced on several occasions that medical bills were to be waived.

In some instances, those injured have paid a minimal amount for medical services. However, 14 people said they have spent between 5,000 CFA (about $8) and 400,000 CFA (about $660) on treatment. A 25-year-old student who was struck by a bullet outside his home in N’Djamena’s Rue de 30 Mètres neighborhood said:

I had to have surgery to get the bullet out of my arm. I paid for everything, for the X-ray and for the medicine. I paid at least 100,000 CFA (about $165). When I asked at the hospital I was told, “No, you have to pay for the anesthetic, the bandages, everything.”

A 36-year-old woman from the Gassi neighborhood in N’Djamena said she had to return to the hospital after few days because the injury to her side caused by a bullet was too intense:

I asked for some medicine because I was still in pain. A hospital administrator said, ‘No, it is not true that the care is free, you have to pay. We’re not giving you free treatment and you don’t even have a bullet in you anymore, so you don’t need anything. It was removed so you are fine.’ When I said that I was buying medicine, I was told, ‘That’s not my business’ by the administrator so I had to pay myself.

In some cases, those injured are forgoing care to raise enough money to pay for anticipated medical expenses. A 45-year-old woman from N’Djamena, who still has a bullet in her arm, said: “First I need to raise the money for a blood test, then I will have to pay for a surgery.”In some cases, those injured are forgoing care to raise enough money to pay for anticipated medical expenses. A 45-year-old woman from N’Djamena, who still has a bullet in her arm, said: “First I need to raise the money for a blood test, then I will have to pay for a surgery.”

A Cover Up

Efforts to cover up the serious and fatal violations that occurred on May 9 began early on. On May 10, the health ministry issued a communiqué forbidding anyone from publishing statistics relative to the number of people killed or injured during the May 9 shootings. The communiqué also forbade anyone from entering hospitals to ask questions about the shootings or take photos.

In contrast to the response to the May 9 shootings, in response to a June 18 explosion at a military munitions depot in N’Djamena, the Ministry of Social Action, Solidarity, and Humanitarian Affairs issued an in-depth report outlining the number of dead and injured and the location of households that had been affected. Yet, in the final line of the report, the government calls for assistance to those affected by “the explosion … and the celebratory shooting.”

International Standards on Lethal Force

Chad is a party to a number of international human rights treaties including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Its international legal obligations deriving from those treaties and other sources include respect for the rights to life, bodily integrity, to liberty and security of the person, inviolability of the home, and the right to a remedy, among other rights.

Upholding those obligations requires it to implement laws to prevent and deter unlawful use of weapons including by its military and police, and to ensure those deployed for law enforcement, whether drawn from military or police units, are fully trained in and comply with standards on the use of firearms as set out in the United Nations’ Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials.

These standards prohibit the use of firearms unless necessary for self-defense or the defense of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury, when less extreme means are insufficient. When individuals are killed or injured, or property damaged, by law enforcement’s use of firearms, Chad has an obligation to conduct an effective investigation, meaning prompt, independent, public, and capable of identifying wrongdoing and those responsible. It also has an obligation to provide victims with an effective remedy including adequate compensation; and to take steps to prevent reoccurrence including punishing those responsible and implementing other appropriate measures such as improving applicable regulations and providing oversight or training.

UN Report Portrays Afghanistan’s Destroyed Media

Tue, 26 Nov 2024 07:06:20 -0500

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The Taliban flag flies over a National Radio Television of Takhar (RTA) building in Talogan, Afghanistan, on October 15, 2024.

Today’s United Nations report on the state of Afghanistan’s media is devastating.

Since the Taliban took power in August 2021, they have largely destroyed Afghanistan’s media landscape, creating such a climate of fear that Afghan journalists cannot genuinely investigate or report. The Taliban have detained and tortured journalists, severely limited what the media can report, and worked directly in newsrooms to suppress any critical content.

The report, produced by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), documents numerous occasions in which journalists were detained for either trying to report on events or for publishing or airing reports that included criticism of Taliban policies. For example, in August 2023, the Taliban’s intelligence agency arrested at least seven journalists across the country for allegedly providing information to “diaspora media” abroad. The UN documented 256 instances of arbitrary arrest and detention of journalists and media workers since the Taliban takeover.

Additionally, Afghanistan’s media are also required to seek approval from the authorities prior to publishing a report and are subjected to other forms of censorship. Media cannot publish on topics that could “have a negative impact on public opinion or could weaken people’s morale.”

The Reporters Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index lists Afghanistan as one of the worst countries in the world for press freedom and journalist safety. The 2024 index ranks Afghanistan near the very bottom, 178 out of a total 180 countries, with only Syria and Eritrea coming in lower. This represents a significant drop from Afghanistan’s ranking of 118 in 2018.

Before the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan had over 500 media outlets. By November 2021, almost half of those were gone, due to a loss of donor funding, tightening Taliban restrictions, and the flight of many journalists abroad.

Today, men and women must work in segregated workspaces. The report finds that radio stations managed and staffed by women continue to operate, but women are forbidden from calling into radio programs, and in some provinces women’s voices cannot be broadcast. Women journalists are often either not invited or not allowed to attend press conferences, and officials often refuse to be interviewed by women.

The UN report demonstrates the importance of monitoring the conditions for Afghanistan’s media and supporting Afghan journalists, both in-country and abroad, so they can continue their vital work.

EU Should Reaffirm Support for ICC Arrests

Tue, 26 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

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European Union flags wave in the wind as pedestrians walk by EU headquarters in Brussels, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023.

After the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants against Israeli leaders and a Hamas official on November 21, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell immediately made clear that ICC “decisions are binding on all States party to the Rome Statute, which includes all EU Member States.” His response is a reminder of the EU and its member states’ firm policy of supporting the ICC, especially when it comes to enforcing arrest warrants.

Over the years, the EU and its member states have developed several policies and practices building on their obligations to the court to support arrests before the ICC. This includes EU governments affirming their obligation as ICC members to carry out ICC arrests within their borders and supporting other ICC member countries to uphold their obligations.

Despite this, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has already invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is subject to one of the warrants, to visit Hungary and said he will not enforce the arrest warrant. Some other EU countries have not explicitly committed to enforcing the warrant, despite confirming their support for the ICC. This deepens perceptions of double standards in support of justice before the ICC.

To ensure EU member countries stand firm for justice across all the ICC’s cases, we outline the EU’s obligations and policies as they relate to arrest strategies in a new briefing paper. Firm state support can yield progress. Russian President Vladimir Putin, wanted by the ICC on allegations of serious crimes in Ukraine, recently stayed away from the G-20 summit in Brazil, an ICC member. But challenges for ICC arrests will likely remain. While Putin did not go to Brazil, he did visit Mongolia, also an ICC country, without facing arrest. This was rightfully challenged by the EU and before the court’s judges.

Each of the court’s pending warrants poses specific challenges, and failure to execute them breeds a climate of impunity. Recent attempts to undermine the ICC, including by Israel and Russia, and threats of sanctions by US lawmakers risk undoing investments by the EU and its member states in the court.

Ensuring the ICC has the ability to implement arrest warrants will require defending the court against external pressure and coercive measures. That means that right now EU support for arrests should include preparedness to adopt measures to protect the court from possible US sanctions.

The stakes are high, but when the EU takes a prominent role in supporting the court in partnership with justice-supporting governments globally, it can positively impact even the most difficult circumstances.

Sri Lanka: New President Should Reset Course on Rights

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 20:00:00 -0500

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Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (right) and Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya during the swearing-in of the new cabinet members on November 18, 2024, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

(New York) – Sri Lanka’s new president, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, should address the country’s many human rights problems by fulfilling and building upon pledges he made in recent election campaigns, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the president on November 18, 2024. Dissanayake was elected president on September 21, and on November 14 his National People’s Power coalition won a majority of parliamentary seats.

In his election manifesto, Dissanayake pledged to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act, remove abusive provisions of the Online Safety Act, establish an independent Directorate of Public Prosecutions separate from the attorney general’s office, aggressively combat corruption, and revise economic policies to promote equity. However, while his government has announced renewed investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings and other emblematic crimes, it should also reverse the failures of previous administrations to address severe human rights violations committed during the 1983-2009 civil war between the government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

“President Dissanayake faces a daunting list of human rights problems, including enduring discrimination against minority communities, which has long divided the country,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “To live up to its commitments for reform, the new administration should prioritize addressing the entrenched impunity surrounding decades of grave violations, corruption and financial mismanagement, and abusive security force practices severely restricting the rights of Tamils and Muslims.”

Sri Lanka’s economic crisis has had a disastrous impact on millions of people, eroding public services essential to their rights and placing the burden of efforts to quickly raise revenues on those least able to cope. In March 2023, then-President Ranil Wickremesinghe negotiated a US$3 billion bailout with the International Monetary Fund focused on raising government revenues while tackling corruption and improving social protection. However, it shifted the burden of recovery principally onto people with low incomes, while social protection provision is inadequate and new anticorruption legislation has not yet been widely applied.

The Dissanayake government has pledged to implement more progressive tax policies; increase government provision to uphold Sri Lankans’ economic and social rights, such as to health care, education, and social security; and clamp down on corruption.

Previous governments have pledged to end human rights violations and address past crimes, but they have failed to act, instead pursuing repressive policies while shielding those responsible for past violations and denying justice to victims. Successive administrations have harassed and intimidated thousands of families of victims of enforced disappearance, while human rights defenders and journalists have been subject to intrusive government surveillance, threats, and restrictions.

President Dissanayake should act on the evidence on enforced disappearances collected by previous commissions of inquiry, reform or replace the Office of Missing Persons, and ensure instead a body that has the trust of victims’ families and the technical capacity to identify remains discovered in mass graves, Human Rights Watch said.

The new government should also immediately impose a full moratorium on the use of the Prevention of Terrorism Act and release remaining prisoners who were convicted on the basis of confessions obtained under torture. It should ensure fair and thorough investigations of grave crimes, including the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings, as well as emblematic cases that were partially investigated between 2015-19 before those investigations were dropped under then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

To put an end to the repression of civil society groups, the Dissanayake administration should place the National Secretariat for Non-Governmental Organizations under a ministry responsible for supporting social welfare activities, instead of treating independent groups as security risks. It should also direct the police, military, and intelligence agencies to end the intimidation and arbitrary surveillance of human rights defenders and civil society activists.

To protect minority rights, the new government should direct state agencies to end the practice of encroaching upon or denying access to minority religious sites, such as Hindu temples, Human Rights Watch said. It should also adopt reforms to the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act approved by a previous cabinet in 2021. It should repeal laws that are used to criminalize same-sex relationships and to target transgender people, and back a longstanding demand by the women’s rights movement to legalize abortion in the country.

“President Dissanayake and his new government have an opportunity to deliver long-sought-after reforms to governance,” Ganguly said. “Dissanayake should follow through and build upon his rights commitments to set a new course for human rights in Sri Lanka.”

This #16Days, Remember Afghan Women and Girls

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 15:55:04 -0500

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An Afghan woman weaves a carpet at a factory on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, November 11, 2024.

The plight of Afghan women and girls under Taliban rule continues to demand the world’s attention. The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, observed from November 25 to December 10 and using the hashtag #16Days, is a crucial moment to unite.

The violence women and girls in Afghanistan face is structural and systematic. Girls are barred from education beyond grade six, constraining their future solely because of their gender. This has lifelong consequences for them and their country.

Metra Mehran, an Afghan activist campaigning for the recognition of gender apartheid as a crime against humanity, recently wrote: “How many fronts must we fight on? The Taliban? The political manoeuvring of UNSC [United Nations Security Council]? All-male, closed-door meetings of special envoys? Time for the women of Afghanistan, especially protesters leading civil resistance to be present in the room and make decision when we bear the consequences.”

Mehran’s words deeply resonated with me, as she highlighted the multifaceted violence Afghan women endure, from domestic abuse to societal oppression, structural violence by the Taliban, and even marginalization by those who should be allies, such as the United Nations and others in the international community. Mehran was referring to the UN’s exclusion of Afghan women from the June 2024 Doha 3 meeting, which for her exemplified betrayal by those obligated to uphold human rights. Denying half Afghanistan’s population representation erases their voice and agency; their very existence.

Over the past three years, the Taliban have systematically erased women from public life and doubled down on the patriarchal systems that already existed in Afghanistan. They have banned women’s voices outside the home and asserted that only men can make decisions about women’s lives, voice, body, and movement.

Furthermore, the Taliban compels men to enforce these orders. For example, when women protest Taliban rules or disregard Taliban-mandated dress codes, male relatives face punitive consequences. Men are pressured to enforce Taliban orders on “their” women. Even taxi drivers are prohibited from transporting unaccompanied women beyond a set distance. The imposition of male family members as mahrams (chaperones) further curtails women’s freedom of movement, deepening their dependence and isolation.

Despite these crushing abuses, Afghan women and girls are still fighting for their freedom. The Taliban should immediately end their attacks on Afghan women and girls. The UN and concerned governments should hold the Taliban to account for their crimes and prioritize Afghan women participation in all international discussions on Afghanistan’s future.

Lack of Progress at COP29 Puts Rights at Risk

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 15:43:44 -0500

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The COP29 U.N. Climate Summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, November 9, 2024.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29), which wrapped up last weekend, failed to make sufficient progress to maintain global temperatures at 1.5 degrees Celsius and avoid the worst impacts of climate change. COP29 ended with a global climate finance target that developing countries said was inadequate to enable them to tackle climate change.

One of the final texts of the conference did not clearly mention the need to transition away from fossil fuels, as previously agreed upon last year in COP28’s key outcome document. No further progress was made on this crucial topic at COP29.

Frontline communities have long borne the brunt of the impacts of fossil fuel production and it is a human rights imperative to phase out all fossil fuels. Host Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, stated during his opening remarks at the conference that fossil fuels were a “gift of God,” suggesting that fossil fuel-rich countries are entitled to expand production.

COP29 also adopted new carbon market rules intending to allow countries to meet their Paris Agreement commitments through carbon offsetting projects. But the decision ignores a long history of such projects which have violated the land rights of rural communities and vastly overstated their climate benefits.

Azerbaijan’s crackdown on dissent limited meaningful participation of civil society during COP29. In the lead up to the conference, authorities arrested dozens of journalists, human rights defenders, and other government critics on spurious charges. Climate activists were unable to march outside of the official conference venue, as protests are restricted in Azerbaijan, and were instead asked to gather inside a conference room within the UN-run “blue zone.” Chanting wasn’t allowed, so protesters hummed instead. Some participants I spoke to, including human rights defenders, activists, and journalists, acknowledged they censored themselves and avoided publicly criticizing the Azerbaijani government over fears of retaliation.

Such restrictions are unacceptable. Meaningful civil society participation and the respect for basic rights and freedoms should be protected in climate negotiations, as they are essential for ensuring just and ambitious government actions to tackle the climate crisis.

Governments should urgently step up efforts to confront the climate crisis by submitting national emissions reduction targets by 2025 that are consistent with Paris Agreement goals. They should also deliver concrete plans to transition away from coal, oil, and gas within a clear timeline.

UN: Russia Vetoes Sudan Resolution Despite Global Support

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 11:56:56 -0500

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Displaced people gather to receive free breakfast meals at a neighborhood in Omdurman city, Sudan, August 1, 2024.

Tomorrow Russia is scheduled to go before the United Nations General Assembly to explain why it vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on Sudan last week, at a time when civilians are facing an onslaught of unlawful attacks and a man-made famine spreads across the country.

The resolution, co-sponsored by the United Kingdom and Sierra Leone, sought to build on an October report by UN Secretary-General António Guterres on the protection of civilians in Sudan and a June Security Council resolution.

In the days running up to the vote, the text had been watered down to ensure consensus. Its primary request was for the secretary-general to develop an implementation mechanism to ensure compliance with the Jeddah Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan, a commitment both Sudan’s warring parties made last year to respect their obligations according to international humanitarian law. Both parties have since brazenly violated the terms of this declaration.

Russia gave the flimsy justification that its veto was intended to help “our African brothers.” Such arguments are hard to take seriously when all three African council members, Algeria, Mozambique, and Sierra Leone, voted in favor of the draft resolution.

The veto came as Rapid Support Forces (RSF) attacked civilians in Sudan’s breadbasket of Al Gezira state, killing hundreds, raping women and girls, and forcing over 340,000 to flee. The RSF also continues to besiege North Darfur’s capital El Fasher, as heavy fighting between the RSF against the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), joint Darfuri forces and their allies continue to endanger civilians, in defiance of the June UN Security Council resolution.

The SAF and the RSF are both willfully blocking access to aid, including to famine-stricken communities. Many soup kitchens across the country, a lifeline for many civilians, are struggling to feed people faced with limited funding, ongoing harassment and attacks by parties.

Most members of the Security Council have acknowledged the gravity of the situation and the need for urgent action. This resolution has been a long time coming and now is not the time to give up.

During the debate in the General Assembly tomorrow, states from across the world should urge council members, including the United States which holds the Council presidency in December, to go back to the drawing board and devise a plan for robust civilian protection that includes the deployment of a mission for the protection of civilians. The actions of Sudan’s warring parties make clear why this is essential: without a physical protection presence, large numbers of civilians will continue be killed, raped, and starved while the world watches on in horror.

Confronting South Africa’s Crisis of Gender-Based Violence

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 09:41:20 -0500

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Protesters march against gender-based violence in front of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, South Africa, September 13, 2019.

Gender-based violence (GBV) remains shockingly pervasive across South Africa, according to a new report. Despite the country’s robust legal framework and policies aimed at tackling GBV, the practice is deeply rooted in societal norms and incidents continue to escalate at an alarming rate.

On November 18, South Africa’s Human Sciences Research Council released its first national study on GBV prevalence in the country. The study highlights, among other things, societal attitudes towards gender power dynamics; the prevalence and patterns of GBV experiences among women and the perpetration of violence by men; and presents data underscoring the GBV crisis.

According to the researchers, “the data reveals deeply ingrained gender norms and power dynamics, with strong cultural reinforcement of traditional gender roles and a troubling acceptance of male aggression and dominance.”

The study surveyed a sample of households in 1,000 communities across South Africa’s nine provinces. About 10,000 people, men and women, participated in the survey. Of the women surveyed, more than 1 in 3, 36 percent, said they experienced physical or sexual violence at some point in their lives, while 24 percent reported experiencing violence by an intimate partner.

The study also uncovered disturbing opinions held by men regarding gender roles. Nearly 70 percent said a wife should obey her husband, and 15 percent felt a husband had the right to “punish” his wife for wrongdoings. Almost 23 percent believed a wife may not refuse to have sex with her husband. Nearly 10 percent held the false idea that women are often to blame if they were raped, and 12 percent wrongly believe if a woman does not physically resist it is not rape.

Furthermore, the study highlighted the longstanding issue of violence against women with disabilities, which previously lacked much data. According to responses, 31 percent of women with disabilities have experienced sexual or physical violence in their lifetime.

While often perpetrated behind closed doors GBV is not a private matter, but a serious public crime that denies women and girls the most fundamental of human rights including the rights to be free from violence, discrimination, and to physical integrity. Failure to take effective steps to deter and punish it, is a human rights violation.

The South African government needs to increase its efforts to combat all forms of GBV. This should include implementing the report’s recommendations for holistic approaches to individual, interpersonal, community, and societal-level interventions, and strengthening availability of and access to psychosocial services for GBV survivors. The government should also promptly establish a coordinating body to address GBV as required under the 2024 National Council on GBV and Femicide Act, and ensure full implementation of the 2020 National Strategic Plan on GBV and Femicide.

South African women cannot afford to wait any longer for the comprehensive changes needed to end the country’s shocking rates of gender-based violence.

Lebanon: US Arms Used in Israeli Strike on Journalists

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 00:30:00 -0500

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Two destroyed vehicles and a demolished building where three journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike at the Hasbaya Village Resort, in sourthern Lebanon on October 25, 2024.

(Beirut, November 25, 2024) – An Israeli airstrike in Lebanon on October 25, 2024, that killed three journalists and injured four others was most likely a deliberate attack on civilians and an apparent war crime, Human Rights Watch said today.

Human Rights Watch determined that Israeli forces carried out the attack using an air-dropped bomb equipped with a United States-produced Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) guidance kit. The US government should suspend weapons transfers to Israel because of the military’s repeated, unlawful attacks on civilians, for which US officials may be complicit in war crimes.

“Israel’s use of US arms to unlawfully attack and kill journalists away from any military target is a terrible mark on the United States as well as Israel,” said Richard Weir, senior crisis, conflict and arms researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The Israeli military’s previous deadly attacks on journalists without any consequences give little hope for accountability in this or future violations against the media.”

The attack took place in the early morning at the Hasbaya Village Club Resort in Hasbaya, a town in southern Lebanon, where more than a dozen journalists had been staying for over three weeks. Human Rights Watch found no evidence of fighting, military forces, or military activity in the immediate area at the time of the attack. Information Human Rights Watch reviewed indicates that the Israeli military knew or should have known that journalists were staying in the area and in the targeted building. After initially stating that its forces struck a building where “terrorists were operating,” the Israeli military said hours later that “the incident is under review.”

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A remnant from the site of the October 25, 2024 attack on Hasbaya Village Resort in southern Lebanon that is consistent with the “strake” (a metal cage with protruding ridges to improve aerodynamics) of a 500-lb class general purpose bomb equipped with a JDAM.

Human Rights Watch interviewed eight people who were staying at or near the resort, including three injured journalists and the resort’s owner. Human Rights Watch also visited the site on November 1 and verified 6 videos and 22 photos of the attack and its aftermath, plus satellite images. There has been no response to letters sent to the Israeli military on November 14 with findings and questions and to the Lebanese military on November 5 with questions.

The attack on the building in which the journalists were staying took place just after 3 a.m., based on interviews and CCTV footage with the same time code. Most of the journalists were sleeping. Zakaria Fadel, 25, an assistant cameraman for Lebanon-based ISOL for Broadcast, a Lebanese satellite and broadcast services provider, said he was brushing his teeth when the blast threw him into the air.

A munition struck the single-story building and detonated upon hitting the floor. The blast killed Ghassan Najjar, a journalist and cameraman, and Mohammad Reda, a satellite broadcast engineer, both from Al Mayadeen TV, and Wissam Kassem, a cameraman from the Hezbollah-owned outlet Al Manar TV. Al Mayadeen is a Lebanon-based pan-Arab television station politically allied with Hezbollah and the Syrian government.

Human Rights Watch verified videos taken minutes after the attack which show the targeted building completely destroyed and nearby buildings damaged. The strike collapsed a wall in the adjacent building, seriously injuring Hassan Hoteit, 48, a cameraman for ISOL for Broadcast, and substantially damaged the wall of a small building about 10 meters away, injuring other journalists, including Ali Mortada, 46, a camera operator for Al Jazeera.

Mortada said he woke to the blast and pieces of concrete falling on him, injuring his face and his right arm. When the debris stopped falling, he went to see if his colleagues were okay. He and others found Hoteit injured, and the building struck destroyed. Mortada said he saw the bodies of Kassem and Najjar nearby. They found Reda’s remains further away.

Soon after, the resort’s concierge approached them, saying he had found two human legs in one bedroom. Ehab el-Okdy, a reporter for Al Jazeera who was staying at the resort, said that he also saw the bodies and body parts of the dead reporters. “We saw the bodies,” he said. “We saw Mohammad Reda was shattered all over the place.”

Anoir Ghaida, the resort’s owner, said the journalists had arrived on October 1, following an evacuation order from the Israeli military for an area south of Hasbaya. The journalists had been reporting from Ibl al-Saqi, an area included in the evacuation order.

The journalists said that from October 1 until the day of the attack, they made routine and repeated trips, reporting from the Hasbaya area, frequently doing live television reports from a hilltop that overlooked large parts of southern Lebanon. The journalists and Ghaida said they would leave the resort in the morning and return in the evening, about the same time each day. Most of the vehicles at the resort were marked “Press” or “TV.”

The journalists and Ghaida said they constantly heard the buzzing of aerial drones in the area, indicating it was most likely under Israeli surveillance. Prior to October 25, there had been no attacks on Hasbaya town.

Since the current hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah began on October 8, 2023, the Israeli military has attacked and killed journalists and targeted Al Mayadeen TV. On October 23, Israeli forces attacked and destroyed an office used by Al Mayadeen in Beirut. Al Mayadeen had evacuated their staff from the building.

Israeli strikes killed at least six Lebanese journalists between October 8, 2023, and October 29, 2024, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Human Rights Watch found that the October 13, 2023 attack, which killed the Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah and injured six other journalists, was an apparent war crime. On November 21, 2023, an Israeli strike killed two Lebanese journalists reporting for Al Mayadeen TV, Rabih al-Maamari and Farah Omar, and their driver, Hussein Akil, in Tayr Harfa in southern Lebanon.

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A remnant from the site of the October 25, 2024 attack on Hasbaya Village Resort in southern Lebanon collected by the resort’s owner, Anoir Ghaida. It is consistent with a part of a JDAM guidance kit’s actuation system that moves the fins. The numeric code “81873” is a Commercial and Governmental Entity (CAGE) code that identifies it as having been manufactured by Woodard, a US company that makes components for guidance systems on munitions, including the JDAM.

Human Rights Watch verified a photo and video from Najjar’s funeral that showed his casket wrapped in a Hezbollah flag and buried in a southern Beirut cemetery where Hezbollah fighters are buried, near the grave of al-Maamari. A Hezbollah spokesperson told Human Rights Watch on November 14 that Najjar had asked to be buried near his friend and colleague al-Maamari, but that Najjar “was just a civilian” and “had no involvement whatsoever in any military activities.”

Human Rights Watch found remnants at the attack site and reviewed photographs of remnants collected by the resort owner and determined that they were consistent with a JDAM guidance kit assembled and sold by the US company Boeing. Human Rights Watch identified one remnant as part of the guidance kit’s actuation system that moves the fins. It bore a numerical code identifying it as having been manufactured by Woodard, a US company that makes components for guidance systems on munitions, including the JDAM. The JDAM is affixed to air-dropped bombs and allows them to be guided to a target by using satellite coordinates, making the weapon accurate to within several meters.

Human Rights Watch wrote to Boeing and to Woodard on November 14, but did not receive responses. Companies have responsibilities under the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the OECD Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct, and related guidance to stop, prevent, mitigate, or remediate actual and potential violations of international humanitarian law that they cause, contribute to, or are linked with.

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A remnant from the site of the October 25, 2024 attack on Hasbaya Village Resort in southern Lebanon collected by the resort’s owner, Anoir Ghaida. The remnant is consistent with the tailfin of a US-made Joint Direct Attack Munition Guidance (JDAM) kit.

Given Israel’s record of widespread laws of war violations and lack of accountability, companies should end arms sales, recall already sold weapons wherever possible, and stop all support services for already sold weapons.

Human Rights Watch has previously documented the Israeli military’s unlawful use of US-equipped weapons in a strike in March that killed seven aid workers in southern Lebanon.

International humanitarian law, or the laws of war, prohibits attacks against civilians and civilian objects. Journalists are considered civilians and are immune from attack so long as they are not directly participating in hostilities. Journalists cannot be attacked for their work as journalists, even if the opposing party considers the media biased or being used for propaganda. When carrying out any attack, warring parties must take all feasible precautions to minimize civilian harm and damage to civilian objects. This includes taking all necessary actions to verify that targets are military objectives.

Individuals who commit serious violations of the laws of war with criminal intent—that is, intentionally or recklessly—may be prosecuted for war crimes. Individuals may also be held criminally liable for assisting in, facilitating, aiding, or abetting a war crime.

Lebanon should urgently accept the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction to give the court’s prosecutor a mandate to investigate serious international crimes committed on the country’s territory.

Israel’s key allies—the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Germany—should suspend military assistance and arms sales to Israel, given the real risk that they will be used to commit grave abuses. US policy prohibits arms transfers to states “more likely than not” to use them in violations of international law.

“As evidence mounts of Israel’s unlawful use of US weapons, including in apparent war crimes, US officials need to decide whether they will uphold US and international law by halting arms sales to Israel or risk being found legally complicit in serious violations,” Weir said.

Haiti: Scarce Protection as Sexual Violence Escalates

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

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The emergency room of the General Hospital is empty during a visit by then-Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, July 9, 2024. Haiti's then-prime minister and police chief visited the capital's largest hospital, which had been under the control of criminal groups for at least two months. This occupation significantly disrupted healthcare services, including those for survivors of sexual violence. Authorities announced that police had regained control of the medical institution from armed criminal groups.

© 2024 AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph Criminal groups in Haiti are subjecting girls and women to horrific sexual abuse, and survivors have little access to protection and care services because of insufficient resources and difficulties reaching those that exist.Criminal groups have often used sexual violence to instill fear in rival territories. As fighting between criminal groups has decreased, they have expanded the use of sexual violence, which is now widespread.The transitional government should make justice, aid, and reparations for survivors a priority, and the international community should urgently increase funding to restore rule of law, provide basic security, and rebuild the health and justice systems.

(Washington, DC, November 25, 2024) – Criminal groups in Haiti have intensified attacks against the population in recent weeks, including by subjecting girls and women to horrific sexual abuse, Human Rights Watch said today. The international community should urgently increase funding to support a rights-based security response, and to improve the ability of the transitional government, as well as grassroots and international organizations, to address the needs of survivors, who have little access to protection and care services.

Criminal groups control over 80 percent of the capital and surrounding areas, as the Haitian National Police and the severely under-resourced United Nations-authorized Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission struggle to restore security. Criminal groups have often used sexual violence to instill fear in rival territories. While fighting between these groups has decreased in 2024, attacks on the population, the police, and the country’s key infrastructure have increased, including through the widespread use of sexual violence.

“The rule of law in Haiti is so broken that members of criminal groups rape girls or women without fearing any consequences,” said Nathalye Cotrino, crisis and conflict researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The international community should urgently increase funding for comprehensive programs to support survivors of sexual violence while ensuring that the transitional government and the Multinational Security Support mission have the resources needed to restore the rule of law, provide basic security, and rebuild the health and justice systems.”

In July 2024, Human Rights Watch interviewed 58 people in Port-au-Prince, including survivors of sexual violence, human rights and humanitarian workers, transitional government officials, diplomats, and representatives from Haitian civil society and UN agencies. Researchers also conducted remote interviews with 36 people, including the former public health and population minister and healthcare professionals from Haitian and international organizations, and reviewed data and reports from the UN, Haitian, and international groups. Human Rights Watch contacted spokespersons of criminal groups through trusted intermediaries, but the groups’ spokespersons declined to comment.

Between January and October, nearly 4,000 girls and women reported sexual violence, including gang rape, mostly committed by members of criminal groups, according to the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) sub-cluster, which includes grassroots women’s groups, international organizations, and government entities. According to the UN, the increase in cases involving children is 1,000 percent, compared to the same period in 2023. Human rights and humanitarian workers as well as government officials said this is most likely a fraction of the cases, as most go unreported.

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“The bandits don’t care about their age,” an aid worker said. “They rape because they have the power. Sometimes they do it for days or weeks.” Many [survivors] suffer from the effects of physical abuse and mistreatment or end up pregnant, with no access to medical, psychosocial, or legal services, even for those who end up contracting sexually transmitted infections, which affect a large number of survivors, particularly HIV.

Many survivors are reluctant to report sexual violence or seek health care for fear of retaliation, survivors and humanitarian workers said. Many who seek care often cannot do so within the critical 72-hour window to access post-exposure prophylaxis and emergency contraception, either because many public medical facilities are closed due to the violence, or because they do not have the financial resources to go to private health centers, medical workers said.

“These women are extremely vulnerable,” an international healthcare worker said. “They are trapped in poverty and struggle daily to survive. When they [suffer] the violence of rape, they also struggle to access protection and health care.”

Haiti also has a total ban on abortion. “Haitian women and girls facing poverty resort to unsafe abortions, risking their lives,” said Pascale Solages, director of the women’s organization Nègès Mawon. “Unsafe abortions are the third leading cause of maternal mortality.”

“I was raped by four men [in May] while walking down a street in Brooklyn [a neighborhood of the Cité Soleil commune in the capital, Port-au-Prince],” said a 25-year-old mother of four who had been looking for water for her children. “They were Gabriel’s men [from the G-Pèp criminal group]. They didn’t used to do this, but now they do whatever they want to all of us. I couldn’t go to the doctor; I didn’t have money.”

Escalating criminal violence, including attacks on and looting of hospitals, has pushed the health system to the brink of collapse, leaving fewer than 30 percent of health facilities operational in the capital, according to the former public health and population minister. This significantly hinders sexual violence survivors’ access to crucial healthcare services.

Poverty exacerbates the situation, with over 64 percent of Haiti’s population of 11.7 million living on less than US$3.65 per day, according to the World Bank.

“I live on the street with my children,” said a 27-year-old woman who is nine months pregnant and a mother of three. “Sometimes we go three or four days without eating… After they [G9 criminal group members] raped me, I was in very bad shape. I fell sick with a vaginal infection, but I didn’t have money to go to the doctor.”

Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders or MSF), which has provided free emergency care across Port-au-Prince for over 30 years, suspended its activities on November 20. This decision followed attacks by “self-defense” groups on MSF ambulances, patients, and medical personnel, as well as death and rape threats against MSF staff from members of the Haitian National Police. The attacks and threats against MSF stem from allegations by some members of the Haitian police and “self-defense” groups that the organization provides medical support to members of criminal groups, disregarding, as MSF has stated, that the organization “provides care to everyone based solely on medical needs.”

MSF has often been the only option for assistance for victims and survivors in areas controlled by criminal groups. The suspension is set to affect a weekly average of more than 1,100 outpatients, including over 80 survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, who are unable to access public hospitals due to closures or private hospitals, which victims typically find inaccessible or unaffordable.

Grassroots women’s organizations also provide health care, psychological support, temporary shelter, education, and reintegration and legal assistance for survivors of sexual violence, often with the support of UN agencies and other international organizations. These groups have very limited resources and most are only able to operate in government-controlled areas. Many of them have also been affected by the recent escalation of violence, leading them to suspend their activities.

UN experts have warned that Haitian authorities have also undermined and underfunded state institutions responsible for providing essential services and protecting human rights. While the new transitional government has prioritized reopening closed health institutions and ensuring better access to justice for victims, senior government officials said that it lacks adequate financial resources.

Restoring basic security conditions is also essential to combat sexual violence. Haiti’s partners should urgently provide the necessary resources for the MSS mission to operate effectively. The UN had only received 17 percent of the required $16 million needed to strengthen and expand access to essential services for girls and women as of September. The UN’s human rights office in Haiti has been supporting the formation of specialized judicial units to investigate and prosecute those responsible for serious crimes, including sexual violence, but the transitional government should issue an official decree establishing them so they can be fully operational.

“The transitional government should prioritize protection and comprehensive care for survivors of sexual violence,” Cotrino said. “The US, the European Union, Canada, and other concerned governments across Latin America and beyond should provide financial support to help the government and aid groups meet these needs.”

For more details, accounts from victims, and recommendations, please see below.

Survivors of sexual violence are referred to here without full identification or with pseudonyms to protect their privacy.

Impact of Criminal Violence on Girls and Women

According to the United Nations, the expansion of criminal group activity in Haiti has contributed to a sharp rise in gender-based violence, including sexual violence, primarily targeting girls and women. Grassroots and international organizations similarly indicated an alarming rise in the number of reported rapes between April and June 2024, particularly in Carrefour, Cité Soleil, Croix-des-Bouquets, Delmas, Gressier, and Port-au-Prince municipalities—areas largely controlled by criminal groups—where some facilities have reported to the UN receiving up to 40 rape victims per day.

In 2023, criminal groups regularly used rape as a “weapon of terror” to “punish” girls and women from territories controlled by rival groups. Human Rights Watch documented numerous cases of rape, primarily in Brooklyn, Cité Soleil, where there were intense clashes between two major coalitions, the G-Pèp federation, which controlled Brooklyn, and the G9 alliance, which controlled the surrounding neighborhoods and aimed to expand its territory. Members of the G9 frequently gang raped girls and women from Brooklyn to instill fear and punish them for living in the area controlled by the rival group.

By late February, the formation of the “Viv Ansam” alliance of major criminal coalitions, including the G9 and G-Pèp, shifted the dynamics. As clashes between the groups decreased, criminal groups have expanded the use of sexual violence, making it widespread, including against girls and women seeking refuge in informal sites after being displaced.

“Criminal groups abuse anyone [in their territories] for any reason, as they are the authority,” a Haitian security expert said. “Leaders, mid-level members, and rank-and-file members all rape girls and women just because they can, and nobody stops them.”

Girls and women are intercepted in public spaces while on foot or using public transport. Criminal group members take them to nearby locations, usually semi-destroyed and abandoned houses, where they threaten, beat, and rape them. Many are gang raped. Human rights and humanitarian workers have reported cases of women and girls being raped in broad daylight on public buses and in the streets.

“Two months ago, when I was begging for food on the street, three men from Gabriel’s group [G-Pèp] grabbed me ... and threw me face down on the ground. They raped me, and they didn’t care that I was pregnant,” said Aurelie G., 27, a Brooklyn resident. “I was too scared to resist. They all had guns … When they finished, they slammed my face against the pavement and insulted me, saying we are all theirs and they could do whatever they wanted with us.”

Bridget C., a 14-year-old girl from the Croix-des-Bouquets commune, said she was abducted from her home and raped by members of the 400 Mawozo criminal group in late February:

It was near 10 a.m. More than 10 bandits arrived ... Two grabbed me by my arms and dragged me to another house... [There], they took me to a room where there were six [other] girls. They tied me to a chair ... five men raped me that day. They hit me in the head with their fists several times ... I spent five days in that house and every day I was raped by different men ... The other girls were also raped and beaten.

Girls and women who have fled their homes due to violence are also raped in informal sites for internally displaced people “as a deliberate tactic to control women’s access to the scarce humanitarian assistance available,” UN Women said.

Survivors Lack Access to Essential Services

Over the past two decades, the Haitian government has dramatically reduced investment in public health care. When adjusted for inflation and measured on a per capita basis, Haiti is one of only 16 countries that spent less on public health care in 2021 than it did in 2000.

The Ministries of Public Health and Population, the Status of Women and Women's Rights, and Justice and Public Security have a national plan to combat violence against women, including sexual violence, by 2027. This plan is largely supported by the UN and has as the coordination mechanism the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) sub-cluster. However, survivors of sexual violence continue to face limited or no access to essential public services, including protection and health care.

“When a survivor of sexual violence arrives at a public facility, they receive immediate care,” the former public health and population minister said. “A screening process identifies their needs, followed by reactive care to address potential pregnancy risks and referrals for psychological assistance. Hygiene kits are provided when feasible [due to shortages] to support their well-being. These services form a critical package aimed at addressing the complex needs of survivors.”

However, not all victims can access the health system due to significant barriers. The public system suffers from chronic underfunding, resource shortages, and critical staff deficits. Currently, only two of the country’s five public hospitals are operational, and even these struggle with inadequate medical equipment and personnel, as over 40,000 health workers have fled the country due to violence, according to the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH). Most private facilities have closed, and many victims cannot afford their services, human rights and humanitarian workers said.

Many victims reach out to international and local organizations within the GBV sub-cluster to access protection and health services. However, despite members’ efforts, significant obstacles remain in coordinating an effective response. The sub-cluster “produces systematic data on violent incidents, but it does not function effectively … partly due to the rotation of officials serving as focal points, lack of clarity on roles, and uncertainty about available resources,” a humanitarian official said.

In areas controlled by criminal groups, most health centers are inoperative. Before the recent suspension, MSF’s centers were often the only option for victim care, and even all of those were operating intermittently, including in Drouillard, Turgeau, Tabarre, and Carrefour, along with its mobile clinics, including in Cité Soleil. Since the suspension, MSF is only providing care to existing hospitalized patients and will no longer accept new admissions. “MSF is present but we have no other facilities to refer [victims] to for medical attention, much less psychological support,” a worker from Oganizasyon Fanm Vanyan an Aksyon (Brave Women in Action Organization or OFAVA), a Haitian women’s rights organization, said before MSF announced the suspension of its operations.

“After I was raped, I got a vaginal infection, but I couldn’t go to the doctor because there were none nearby, and I didn’t have any money,” said Emanuela B., a survivor of sexual violence from Cité Soleil.

Only a quarter of the reported survivors of rape can access health care within the critical 72-hour window for post-rape treatment, according to the UN Population Fund. “It is heartbreaking to see women arriving long after the assault, showing symptoms of sexually transmitted infections such as HIV that could have been effectively treated if they had had prompt access to health services,” a human rights worker said.

“I’m infected with HIV,” said Ellie M., a 29-year-old sexual violence survivor, widow, and mother of four children who lives in Brooklyn. She was abducted and gang raped for five hours by armed members of the G9 criminal coalition. “Afterward, they shot me in the foot,” she said. “[When] I went to the hospital, [the doctors] discovered I was infected … It was too late. Then [I learned] I was pregnant.”

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Ellie M. (pseudonym), a 29-year-old survivor of sexual violence, with her 3-month-old baby during an interview with Human Rights Watch in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, July 23, 2024.

Ellie’s baby was not diagnosed with HIV at birth. Doctors advised her against breastfeeding to prevent infection, but she could not afford formula. When Ellie spoke to Human Rights Watch, the baby, then three months old, had developed red spots on her back, legs, and feet, and Ellie feared she may have contracted HIV. “The doctor gave me a card for monthly medicine, but it’s just for me, not for the baby,” she said.

Survivors of sexual violence have almost no support to deal with the psychological impact of their experience. “[Survivors’] greatest need after medical care is mental health support,” said a psychologist from an international organization. “Women feel hopeless and are mentally affected by unimaginable suffering, horror, and pain … We have patients with PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder] who experience sleep disturbances, anxiety, eating disorders, despair, and suicidal thoughts.”

Although Bridget C., 14, was provided with shelter, psychological support, and health care by a local group, she was suffering from PTSD symptoms when she spoke to Human Rights Watch, five months after criminal group members raped her: “I still have many nightmares about what those men did to me. I wake up in the middle of the night screaming in fear and sweating. Sometimes, I hide under the bed.”

While some local organizations, mainly funded by the UN, operate shelters, they are unable to meet the high demand. “We receive many cases of young female victims of rape who become pregnant,” a representative of a local group said. “[They] often do not have a home or family. We can only provide shelter for them for a short time—one or two months—as we do not have enough resources to do this.”

Survivors of sexual violence who become pregnant have no access to safe abortion services, as abortion remains criminalized, with the transitional government postponing until 2025 a proposal to decriminalize it up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. “Women are doubly victimized,” a humanitarian worker said. “They are raped, abused, left pregnant and ill … They have no access to safe abortion services.”

Justice and reparations remain largely inaccessible for survivors of sexual violence. Criminal violence has also left the judicial system mostly inoperative. While the government has taken some measures to to address the demands of judicial staff who have been on strike, as well as to relocate certain court facilities, the main first-instance courts in Port-au-Prince and Croix-des-Bouquets are not functioning.

Amandine P., a 34-year-old mother of five, was displaced from the Carrefour Feuilles neighborhood in Port-au-Prince following a violent attack in which she was raped and her husband was killed by members of the Grand Ravine criminal group. “I didn’t file a complaint because there’s no reliable or functional judicial system,” she said. “I’m in a really hopeless situation. I want justice, not just for me, but for the other victimized families.”

Several civil society organizations, including the National Human Rights Defense Network (Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains, RNDDH), have documented human rights violations by criminal groups and assisted victims in filing complaints. But they said that progress toward prosecuting the perpetrators has been minimal, with no notable advancements in Port-au-Prince.

Impunity is the norm. The lack of an official record of cases and the lack of a mechanism to assess the progress of investigations makes the situation worse. “Rape and gang rape are spreading across Haiti,” said Rosy Auguste Ducena, program director at RNDDH. “Sexual violence survivors are ignored by the judicial authorities, who fail to enforce accountability for these crimes or deliver justice. In Haiti, girls and women remain in constant danger.”

Recommendations

Haiti requires a comprehensive strategy to protect and ensure access to essential services for survivors of sexual violence, involving both immediate actions and long-term strategies.

Haiti’s donors and other concerned countries should: Provide the financial and human resources needed to enhance the capacity of the Haitian National Police and the Multinational Security Support Mission to fight criminal groups.Urgently mobilize additional international funding to support health and protection programs aimed at providing emergency care, including psychosocial support and emergency contraception, to survivors of sexual violence and their families.Support the efforts of the Gender-Based Violence sub-cluster to establish, expand, and improve internal coordination among networks of support services for survivors of sexual violence, including medical, psychological, and legal assistance, as well as access to emergency contraception and HIV prevention and treatment, and provide the necessary resources, estimated at $16 million.Urge the government to establish a robust system to monitor incidents of sexual violence and ensure they are reported and documented effectively.Support local and international organizations with increased resources and technical expertise so they can strengthen their presence, expand coverage to more victims, and develop activities aimed at providing a comprehensive response to victims’ needs, coordinating with state entities to offer shelter, education, and other services.Provide UN agencies with the resources to provide technical expertise to train judicial officials, including prosecutors and judges, to prevent retraumatization and gender-based discrimination or stigma throughout judicial proceedings, and to handle cases involving child survivors appropriately.Haiti’s transitional government should:Strengthen the Haitian health system, with a short-term focus on the rapid and effective reactivation of health centers and hospitals that have suspended operations and a long-term goal of ensuring that medical facilities, particularly in areas affected by criminal violence, provide comprehensive care and services.Avoid further reductions in funding for health care and set a goal of spending, through domestically-generated public funds, the equivalent of at least 5 percent of GDP or 15 percent of general government expenditures on health care, or an amount that otherwise ensures the maximum available resources for the realization of the right to health. Five percent of GDP and 15 percent of general government expenditures are two commonly used benchmarks drawn from international agreements used to assess the extent to which countries are prioritizing spending on health in line with their human rights obligations.Urgently pursue legislative changes to decriminalize abortion. This should include removing abortion from the criminal code to align with international human rights standards, ensuring that no one faces criminal charges for seeking abortion services.Promote respect for healthcare infrastructure and medical missions by all actors, including the Haitian National Police and criminal groups, allowing local and international medical teams to operate even in areas under the control of criminal groups and ensuring that survivors of sexual violence have swift and safe access to medical care, including emergency contraception, post-exposure prophylaxis, and abortion care.Ensure the prompt initiation of disciplinary and criminal investigations into police officers allegedly implicated in threats and attacks reported by MSF.Ensure that girls and women survivors of sexual violence have access to justice, legal assistance, and reparations. This includes issuing a decree to establish specialized judicial units, with support from the UN Human Rights Office.

Kenya: Justice Overdue for 2023 Protest Abuses

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

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Riot police officers disperse supporters of Kenya's opposition Azimio La Umoja (Declaration of Unity) One Kenya Alliance, during nationwide protests over the cost of living and alleged fraud during the 2022 elections, in Mathare settlement of Nairobi, March 27, 2023.

© 2023 REUTERS/John Muchucha Kenyan authorities have failed to ensure justice for the killing of at least 31 people and other abuses by the police during protests throughout the country from March to July 2023.Over a year later, investigations have not been finalized and not a single police officer or government official has been prosecuted for the killings or other serious rights violations.President Willam Ruto should ensure that the Independent Policing Oversight Authority can work independently and call on the necessary authorities to follow up on its recommendations.

(Nairobi) – Kenyan authorities have failed to ensure justice for the killing of at least 31 people and other abuses by the police during protests throughout the country from March to July 2023, Amnesty International Kenya and Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Over a year later, investigations have not been finalized and not a single police officer or government official has been prosecuted for the killings or other serious rights violations.

The 77-page report, “Unchecked Injustice: Kenya’s Suppression of the 2023 Protests,” documents that the police, under President William Ruto’s administration, committed grave rights abuses in response to largely peaceful opposition-led nationwide protests. The demonstrations were triggered by the high cost of living and alleged electoral malpractices following the August 2022 general elections.

Report: “Unchecked Injustice” Load Report

“Kenyan police brazenly and unlawfully killed, injured, and otherwise abused protesters and bystanders, including many children,” said Otsieno Namwaya, associate Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The government should ensure that the Independent Policing Oversight Authority and public prosecutions authorities are able to work effectively so that victims and their families receive justice for these crimes.”

The report is based on 226 interviews with survivors and witnesses in Nairobi, Kisumu, Nyamira, Machakos, Migori, Kisii, Siaya, Nakuru, Homa Bay, and Makueni counties.

Amnesty International Kenya and Human Rights Watch found that between March and July 2023, police used excessive and unnecessary force against protesters and bystanders, including by using lethal ammunition, kinetic impact projectiles, such as “rubber bullets,” torture and other ill-treatment, arbitrary arrests and unlawful detention, and committed serious abuses against children under the age of 18.

The organizations also found that the Kenyan police disproportionately and indiscriminately used tear gas, notably in and around schools, medical facilities, and residential areas. At least two children died following tear gas exposure in their homes.

During house-to-house searches of suspected protesters in July 2023, police in Kisumu County beat, intimidated, and threatened those they found, including people who were not involved in the protests. They killed three people during the searches, including cousins Brian Oniango’ and William Amulele, who died as a result of injuries from police beatings.

A relative said, “I was in my house when I heard noises outside and voices shouting that the cousins were being killed…. I opened the gate and saw them being beaten. I knelt, pleading with them to leave the boys since they were not part of the [protests], but one officer came and ordered me to get back to the house…. He pushed me with his boots until I fell back, forcing me to step back. They [continued to] beat them.”

The police abuses took physical, mental, and financial tolls on victims and their families. Many interviewed in the ensuing days and months said that their injuries had affected their health and livelihoods. A 50-year-old farmer whose son John was shot dead on July 7, 2023, in Kisii apparently by police, said, “My son supported me in everything. He liked calling me and asking me if I needed any support. He wanted to come home and stay so that he could help me to educate his siblings. John was my eye. The eye has gone…. I don’t know what to do.”

Some survivors and families of victims of abuses reported being turned away from police stations when they attempted to report police abuse. Others said they were not able to or did not make a report to the police because they feared reprisals or believed their report would not lead to tangible action.

The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), which provides civilian oversight of police conduct, informed Amnesty International Kenya and Human Rights Watch in an October 29 response to a letter seeking comment that at least 67 people had been killed during the protests between March and July 2023. The IPOA said that they had recommended an inquest in 6 cases by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, closed 4 cases, and are actively investigating cases involving 57 victims. The IPOA said that they had faced numerous problems including a lack of cooperation from witnesses and a tendency by the police to conceal their identities and use unmarked vehicles, which made it difficult to ascertain responsibility.

President Ruto should ensure that IPOA is able to conduct its work independently and call on the necessary authorities to follow up on IPOA recommendations. He should also establish a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the 2023 abuses and ongoing protest-related abuses, including to determine what units are responsible for abuse, identify implicated officers, and determine the orders given to police officers, the use of nonuniformed and noncommissioned officers at protests, and police officers’ use of disguises, the two organizations said.

Further, the Kenyan government should address the root causes of past and ongoing protests, including the government’s economic policies that deprive people of their economic, social, and cultural rights. This could include enacting or expanding social security measures to ensure the income security of those injured by authorities and unable to work, as well as the surviving dependents of those killed, the two organizations said.

“Kenyan authorities should work hard to regain public faith and demonstrate that they can deliver people-centered and human rights-focused reforms,” said Irungu Houghton, executive director of Amnesty International Kenya. “They could start by ending impunity for police abuses during protests and enacting tangible remedies to address the negative impacts of the government’s economic policies.”