Rappler's latest stories on human rights watch
'Do not be fooled:' Groups say panel probing drug war deaths 'damage control'
(UPDATED) International group Human Rights Watch calls the panel 'nothing more than a ruse to shield the country from international scrutiny'
Duterte's violent drug war leaves children traumatized – HRW
(UPDATED) The 'harmful consequences' of the anti-drug campaign go beyond bloody raids, says Human Rights Watch. Children who lose a loved one are left deeply scarred.
Venezuela's official virus data is 'absurd' – HRW and Johns Hopkins
President Nicolas Maduro's government reports 10 COVID-19 deaths out of 1,121 cases in a country of 30 million people
Taken after midnight, cuffed to a chair: The arrest of Cebuana artist Bambi Beltran
Cebu artist Bambi Beltran is detained for 60 hours and faces up to 18 years in prison for a sarcastic Facebook post Mayor Edgar Labella called 'fake news.' He says it's nothing personal.
Rights groups urge Filipinos: Reject Duterte admin's 'tyrannical' moves vs ABS-CBN
(UPDATED) The order to shut down ABS-CBN is the latest in a string of attacks against media in the Philippines under the Duterte administration
Human Rights Watch asks DILG to rein in 'out of control' law enforcers
The rights group says the Department of the Interior and Local Government 'must exercise effective oversight over its personnel, investigate all reports of abuses, and hold officers committing rights violations accountable'
Human rights orgs urge gov’t to drop charges vs Cebu artist Bambi Beltran
They say the government is 'misusing' COVID-19 laws on 'fake news' against critics
Rights groups, lawmakers condemn Calida's motion to gag ABS-CBN
'Why is President Duterte and the Philippines government so scared of independent opinions and a free press?' asks Human Rights Watch
Quo warranto vs ABS-CBN political harassment, vendetta – rights groups
Karapatan says it is not surprising that Solicitor General Jose Calida is 'doing the dirty work of concocting legal offensives against his master’s so-called enemies and critics'
Journalists, advocates call on Filipinos to back ABS-CBN franchise renewal
(UPDATED) NUJP and other groups say the attack on ABS-CBN threatens citizens' right to know
'Big problems' in China response to virus – HRW
Human Rights Watch chief Kenneth Roth points in particular to what he says is the 'suppression' of reports on the virus in China during the early days of the outbreak
After canceled U.S visa, Dela Rosa may face 'far bigger problems' – HRW
Human Rights Watch Asia Advocacy Director John Sifton says Senator Ronald dela Rosa, one of the architects of the government's bloody drug war, 'may still have a date with justice'
China carrying out 'intense' global attack on rights – HRW
Human Rights Watch accuses Chinese president Xi Jin Ping of overseeing 'the most brutal and pervasive oppression that China has seen for decades'
Human Rights Watch chief says he was barred from entering Hong Kong
China's foreign affairs ministry accuses Human Rights Watch and other groups of having a 'great responsibility for the chaotic situation in Hong Kong'
HRW: Use Ampatuan conviction to push for reforms vs culture of impunity
(UPDATED) The conviction of the Ampatuan brothers over the 2009 massacre should signal the end of state support for private armies and political warlordism, says Human Rights Watch
Israel expels Human Rights Watch country director
Israel accuses American citizen Omar Shakir, the New York-based rights group's director for Israel and the Palestinian territories, of supporting a boycott of the Jewish state
HRW: De Lima's persecution shows Duterte's 'increasing authoritarianism'
Karapatan also likens the situation of Senator Leila De Lima with the experience of hundreds of political prisoners facing alleged trumped-up charges under President Rodrigo Duterte
U.S. sanctions threaten Iranians' right to health, says Human Rights Watch
Officially, the US sanctions make exceptions for food, medicine and other humanitarian goods, but most companies are unwilling to do any trade with Iran for fear of repercussions in the world's largest economy
HRW: Blocking access won't stop U.N. report on PH drug war
Human Rights Watch Asia deputy director Phil Robertson says various governments from around the world concerned about the situation here would 'continue to make representations'
Human Rights Watch slams Sotto's fake news bill
The punishable acts will still be liable under the current Cybercrime Law, but the meat of the measure are the added powers of the Department of Justice
Groups hail U.N. resolution vs drug war: 'Crucial step towards justice'
Human rights groups urge the Philippine government to coordinate with the United Nations as rights chief Michelle Bachelet is expected to write a comprehensive report on the country's situation
Publisher, Human Rights Watch founder Robert Bernstein dies at 96 – report
The New York Times cites Robert Bernstein's son Peter as confirming his death at a hospital in New York
Egypt urged to reveal whereabouts of missing deportees
Human Rights Watch says those deported are now 'at serious risk of torture and ill-treatment in Egypt' and 'could face severe torture and unfair trials'
Rights groups call for independent probe into Negros Oriental killings
The killings are 'the handiwork of vicious butchers and men in uniform intoxicated by power,' says Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay
HRW urges Japan to change transgender 'sterilization' law
Applicants who wish to change their official documents are required to be without reproductive capacity, effectively requiring most people to be sterilised to meet criteria
Duterte's withdrawal from ICC an 'act of desperation' – Human Rights Watch
'[President Rodrigo Duterte]'s bald-faced effort to protect himself from the court’s reach looks more like an act of desperation for a man who appears deeply implicated in alleged crimes against humanity,' HRW's Param-Preet Singh says
Human Rights Watch expresses 'deep concern' over red-tagging in Cagayan de Oro
'Dozens of individuals have been targeted for extrajudicial or summary killing in the Philippines after they were labeled as communist,' says Human Rights Watch
Watchdog to PH: Don't lower age of criminal responsibility
Human Rights Watch says such proposal will only expose more Filipino children to a 'broken and debilitating' criminal justice system
Angola decriminalizes homosexuality in landmark reform
"Angola has finally shed the divisive 'vices against nature' provision in its law," Human Rights Watch (HRW) says in a statement
HRW: Excess in autocratic rule in 2018 'fueling' effective resistance
In its latest world report, Human Rights Watch highlights the continuous threats and harassment experienced by activists and other progressive groups
Drop 'politically motivated' criminal charges vs Rappler, Maria Ressa
'This attempt to silence a highly regarded news website is just the latest example of the administration’s contempt for free and vibrant news media,' says Human Rights Watch Asia Director Brad Adams
Media, human rights groups slam latest tax cases vs Rappler
(3rd UPDATE) 'The mounting tax charges against Rappler are a blatant form of legal harassment,' says the Committee to Protect Journalists
Gov't urged to ensure justice for other victims like Kian delos Santos
The Commission on Human Rights says there must be accountability for all of the other deaths under President Rodrigo Duterte's anti-drug campaign
HRW on possible PH-wide Alsa Masa-like network: Another weapon vs rights
Carlos Conde of Human Rights Watch says tapping groups like Alsa Masa for grassroots intelligence gathering 'will worsen the human rights calamity' in the Philippines
Egypt rounds up dozens of human rights defenders – HRW
Human Rights Watch calls on Egyptian authorities to 'immediately reveal all the detainees' whereabouts, release all of those arrested solely for exercising their rights, and bring any others swiftly before a judge to review their detention'
Tax case vs Rappler 'desperate attempt to silence critical voice' – HRW
'This case against Rappler is a clear assault on press freedom in the Philippines and part of the Duterte government’s attempt to evade scrutiny and accountability,' says Human Rights Watch
Murder of 'Mabinay 6' lawyer 'an attack vs human rights movement'
(UPDATED) Human rights groups call on the government to 'act with urgency' in addressing the rising violence against human rights defenders
HRW calls for independent probe into police's role in extrajudicial killings
The New York-based organization made the call after the Central Visayas police chief said hitmen in EJKs might be retired or active cops
North Korea slams sex abuse report
Korean Association for Human Rights Studies says the 'preposterous' report was a part of political scheme fabricated by the hostile forces to 'tarnish the image' of North Korea
North Korean women face rampant sexual abuse by officials – HRW
'Sexual violence in North Korea is an open, unaddressed, and widely tolerated secret,' says Human Rights Watch executive director Kenneth Roth
Thailand immigrant crackdown eyes 'dark-skinned people'
The crackdown 'has swept up refugees and asylum seekers, sent young children into horrid, prison-like conditions, and appears to have clear aspects of racial profiling against South Asians and Africans,' says Human Right Watch Asia Director Brad Adams
Groups on Trillanes arrest: Part of crackdown on gov't critics
The arrest of Senator Antonio Trillanes IV sends a chilling effect among other critics of the Duterte administration, says Human Rights Watch
'Big blow against impunity': Human rights groups welcome Palparan conviction
The court finds the former army general Jovito Palparan, who was nicknamed 'berdugo' (The Butcher), guilty of kidnapping and illegal detention of UP students Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan
Over 100 rights groups urge Bahrain to free activist Nabeel Rajab
The call by 127 non-governmental organizations came after the United Nations denounced Nabeel Rajab's detention as 'arbitrary' and 'discriminatory' earlier this month
Bangladesh court orders hospital for arrested photographer
Shahidul Alam is arrested at his Dhaka residence by plainclothes policemen on Sunday, August 5, after going live with Al Jazeera speaking about the recent student protests rocking the country
Saudi expels Canadian envoy, recalls its own over 'interference'
(UPDATED) Saudi Arabia gives envoy Dennis Horak 24 hours to leave the country, in an abrupt rupture of relations over what it slammed as 'interference' in its internal affairs
Myanmar Reuters reporter says he was hooded, deprived of sleep
'They asked us questions every two hours and we did not have a chance to sleep for 3 days,' reporter Wa Lone explains to the court
Indonesia 'anti-LGBT abuses' fuel HIV cases – Human Rights Watch
Government actions are discouraging some at-risk groups from accessing prevention and treatment services, according to a new Human Rights Watch report
Russia persecutes Jehovah's Witnesses – rights watchdog
'The Jehovah's Witness faith is not an extremist organization,' says Human Rights Watch director Rachel Denber. '(Russian) Authorities should stop this religious persecution of its worshippers now.'
HRW: Anti-tambay policy 'retraumatizes' communities affected by drug war
'The police are again demonstrating their preference for wielding fear, intimidation, and arbitrary arrest to target vulnerable communities rather than respect for the rule of law,' says Phelim Kine of Human Rights Watch
