In August 2020, police committed dreadful abuses during a weeks-long operation in Brazil's Amazon. This was not the work of a few “bad apples.” A community leader said that a military police commander watched as officers tortured him. No one has been held accountable. www.hrw.org/news/2026/08...

Terror in the Amazon

A nightmare for Indigenous people and other communities on the Abacaxis riverbanks in the Brazilian Amazon began on August 3, 2020. That day, three private boats arrived in the town of Nova Olinda do ...

hrw.org

🚨 New from @hrw.org: The US is withholding most of its UN dues & China is paying late. Other states are doing the same. This has forced UN to trim critical human rights & humanitarian work. UN member states took steps to ease funding crisis but only paying in full & on time will end it. More here 👇

Q&A: The UN Funding Crisis and Human Rights Work

The United Nations General Assembly took a crucial step on June 30, 2026, towards easing the world body’s deepening liquidity crisis by amending a longstanding rule that would have required it to refu...

hrw.org

#France's new anti-racism action plan falls short of - tackling systemic racism - tying anti-racism actions to a reparatory justice framework that tackles contemporary inequalities & racism rooted in France's colonial & enslavement legacies. @hrw.org's full commentary www.hrw.org/news/2026/07...

France’s New Anti-Racism Plan Falls Short

The French government announced a new national plan last week aimed at combating racism, antisemitism, and discrimination. Unfortunately, the plan fails to tackle the systemic and institutional nature...

hrw.org

🚨 New from @hrw.org: UN Takes Key Step to Ease Financial Crisis Fueled by US and #China But the Cash Crunch Still Threatens Human Rights, Humanitarian and Peacekeeping Operations Meanwhile, China & #Russia tried again (mostly unsuccessfully) to cut human rights posts from peacekeeping budget.

UN Takes Key Step to Ease Financial Crisis Fueled by US, China

United Nations member countries took an important step last week to protect the world body from financial ruin.

hrw.org

Yes! Parliamentarians like Conrad Sackey, Sierra Leone's education minister, who explained to @ipned.bsky.social that a human rights treaty recognising FREE pre-primary & secondary education as part of #ChildRights to education will expand educational opportunities: www.ipned.org/news-and-vie...

"It's time to strengthen the right to free education" — International Parliamentary Network for Education

Conrad Sackey, Minister of Education in Sierra Leone, wrote in support of a new human rights treaty that would strengthen the right to free pre-primary and secondary education.

ipned.org

NORRAG@norrag.bsky.social · 2mo ago

On #InternationalDayofParliamentarians, we recognise the vital role parliamentarians play in advancing education. They can: 📚 Legislate for inclusive education. 💰 Secure sustainable investment. 🔎 Hold governments accountable. 🗣️ Champion education for all. #EducationForAll

With record-level abuses against children in war, many countries are working together to hold abusers to account. Still a long way to go for an effective crimes against humanity treaty, but growing support to include justice for crimes against children www.hrw.org/news/2026/06...

*New report by @hrw.org, (RE)CLAIM & MCDS* Did you know that French police use fixed penalty fines to harass & evict particularly boys perceived as Black/Arab/North African from public spaces in their neighborhoods & they end up trapped in debt before they turn 18? 👉🏽 www.hrw.org/report/2026/...

Free education is one of the most powerful tools to combat child labor. As we mark #WorldDayAgainstChildLabour, governments should back a new global education treaty that would guarantee free education for every child. My new piece in @passblue.bsky.social: passblue.com/2026/06/10/f...

Free Education Is Crucial to Combating Child Labor - PassBlue

Free Education Is Crucial to Combating Child Labor - PassBlue

passblue.com

🧵1/5 The appalling scenes of xenophobic violence that broke out on June 9 in #Belfast are a frightening reminder of how normalized racism & organized racist violence have become in the UK. A devastating knife attack should never be used to justify more violence. HRW's thoughts are with all victims.

Reuters@reuters.com · 2mo ago

UK minister says violence in Northern Ireland is racist thuggery reut.rs/4olccex

#French President Macron addressed the need for #reparations for France's role in the transatlantic trade of enslaved people. A first step but comprehensive reparatory frameworks need to follow to address past and present harm rooted in enslavement legacies. www.hrw.org/news/2026/05... @hrw.org

France Acknowledges Need for Slavery Reparations

French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the need for reparations in connection with France’s role in the transatlantic slave trade on May 21.

hrw.org

Human Rights Watch en français@hrw-fr.hrw.org · 3mo ago

Le prés. Emmanuel Macron a reconnu la nécessité de réparations liées au rôle de la France dans l'esclavage. Des réparations complètes devraient inclure des mesures pour lutter contre les inégalités systémiques et le racisme enraciné dans l’héritage de l’esclavage.

In Liberia, only 17 percent of children complete grade 9, and 1 in 3 children never attend school at all. In a new report, HRW documents that mandatory fees place a heavy financial burden on families and violate children’s right to education. Read more from HRW: https://bit.ly/4nNJ0MX

Come work with us: HRW is hiring a coordinator in the Middle East and North Africa Division based in Beirut job-boards.greenhouse.io/humanrightsw...

📬 Everyday rights—like housing, health, education, and social security—are fundamental human rights. If you care about dignity, justice, and equality, sign up to our newsletter and stay informed on how to protect these rights for all.

Authorities and security forces in Ethiopia’s contested Western Tigray Zone are arbitrarily detaining ethnic Tigrayans and imposing a discriminatory system that severely restricts their movements, employment, and access to services.

My piece in @opiniojuris.bsky.social on the arrest & charging of Ben Roberts-Smith for 5 #warCrimes of murder. An incredibly significant legal development in #Australia, but also in the general global fight against impunity for international crimes. #intLaw #IHL opiniojuris.org/2026/04/15/a...

Australia’s ‘Most Decorated’ Soldier Charged with Five War Crimes of Murder

[Melanie O’Brien is Professor of International Law and Deputy Head of School (Research) at the University of Western Australia Law School; and visiting scholar with the University of Minnesota Law …

opiniojuris.org

🇭🇹Members of the Kenya-led mission in Haiti were allegedly responsible for sexual violence according to the UN. As the Gang Suppression Force deploys, urgent safeguards, independent investigations, and accountability are essential to prevent further abuse. Read more: www.hrw.org/news/2026/04...

International Force in Haiti Allegedly Responsible for Sexual Violence

A United Nations report has found that members of a UN-authorized force operating in Haiti, the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, were responsible for four cases of sexual violen...

hrw.org

Toxic lead from a Zambian mine has poisoned generations of children. This week @hrw.org & IHRDA will spotlight the case & call for justice: PANEL: Spotlight on Kabwe 🗓 16 April 09h00 – 10h40 📍 ACERWC CSO Forum, Lesotho With experts, activists & Kabwe residents Join online tinyurl.com/458yy5kd

The number of out-of-school children has risen for 7 years in a row, reaching 273 million. A proposed free education treaty could push countries to act. www.hrw.org/news/2026/04...

273 Million Children Out of School

A new United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) report delivers a sobering message: the number of children out of school has risen for the seventh consecutive year, re...

hrw.org

Dozens of child rights experts agree: how the future #CrimesAgainstHumanity treaty can provide justice for children: cahtreatynow.org/justice-for-... Children are mentioned only twice in the treaty's current draft. Countries can fix that. Children deserve justice. @Veroaubert

Justice for Children in the Future Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity – Crimes Against Humanity Treaty Now

Download paper

cahtreatynow.org

Countries are working towards a NEW treaty on #CrimesAgainstHumanity that could criminalize recruitment and use of children. This new paper from @PrincetonLISD explains why they should: lisd.princeton.edu/publications... @JanineMorna @lauraperez1966

2 gaps: 1. recruiting and using children ages 15-17 is not consistently recognized as a war crime 2. Neither is recruitment outside of situations formally classified as armed conflicts. There's an opportunity now to fill those 2 gaps.

173 countries agree via the Child Soldiers Treaty that children should not be conscripted/used in wars. Good progress but more work to do. Here's why the future #CrimesAgainstHumanity Treaty should criminalize child recruitment and use: hrw.org/news/2026/04... #CAHTreatyNow

#BurkinaFaso: new @hrw.org report documents the impact on civilians of the conflict. Military+VDPs and JNIM have killed, forcibly displaced thousands. These atrocities, including the gvt’s ethnic cleansing of Fulani civilians, amount to war crimes+crimes against humanity. www.hrw.org/news/2026/04...

Burkina Faso: Crimes Against Humanity by All Sides

The Burkina Faso military with its allied militias and an Al Qaeda-linked armed group have killed more than 1,800 civilians and forcibly displaced tens of thousands since 2023.

hrw.org

A global majority adopted a landmark UN resolution to advance reparations for injustices linked to enslavement legacies. Who didn't vote in favor of the resolution? Many Global North countries facing calls for reparatory justice. The time for action is now. www.hrw.org/news/2026/03... @hrw.org

Landmark UN Resolution on the Slave Trade

Commemorating the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, the United Nations General Assembly passed a landmark resolution on March 25.

hrw.org

A care system without sufficient funding is an empty promise. The proposal in Mexico City recognizes rights, but keeps key gaps that could limit implementation and real autonomy. hrw.org/news/2026/03...

Want to hear rare good news? A Belgian court opened a criminal trial against a former Belgian official for his alleged involvement in the killings of Lumumba, the DRC's first PM, & two senior officials during decolonization. Justice delayed shouldn't be justice denied. www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

Landmark Trial for Belgian Colonial Crimes to Go Ahead

A Belgian court ruling on March 17 has paved the way for the last surviving former Belgian official, Étienne Davignon, to face a criminal trial for alleged involvement in the killing of Patrice Émery ...

hrw.org

ECCHR - European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights@ecchr.bsky.social · 5mo ago

A historic moment in the quest for justice for the assassination of Lumumba, first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo: After decades of impunity, the Belgian judiciary has decided to open trial against former diplomat Davignon for his role in the murder. www.ecchr.eu/en/press-rel...

Goodbye, two child limit. GOOD RIDDANCE TO BAD RUBBISH. www.gov.uk/government/n...

Two-child limit scrapped as historic Bill to lift 450,000 children out of poverty becomes law

Historic legislation to end the two-child limit has become law, putting 450,000 children on a pathway out of poverty in the final year of this Parliament.

gov.uk

🚨 New from @hrw.org! 🌍On this new round of discussions on Vanuatu's UN General Assembly resolution on @ICJ_org Advisory Opinion on #ClimateChange, we call on UN members to support it to translate the #ICJ’s findings into action. UN member states should 🧵

Governments Should Support Vanuatu’s UN Climate Resolution

The world’s highest court has spoken: tackling climate change is not a choice: it’s a legal obligation. Now it’s up to the United Nations General Assembly to speak up and urge its 193 member countries...

tinyurl.com

Policymakers meeting at the UN for #CSW70 should ensure that girls facing violence are able to access justice. They should pledge to strengthen justice systems, reinforce prevention efforts, and commit the funds to deliver on these promises. Op-ed here: www.moretoherstory.com/stories/at-t...

At the U.N.’s Annual Meeting on Women, the World Should Focus on Justice for Girls — More to Her Story

As governments gather at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, they should prioritize ensuring that girls can access justice.

moretoherstory.com

Children near Ethiopia's largest gold mine suffer chronic health conditions, women have miscarriages & stillbirths. In response, the UN child rights body just urged Ethiopia to tackle the mine's pollution. The govt should do so, promptly: www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...

UN Urges Ethiopia to Tackle Pollution at Gold Mine

Residents living near Lega Dembi mine, located in Ethiopia’s Oromia region, have complained of serious health impacts for years, including miscarriages, stillbirths, and children born with long-term h...

hrw.org