China rejects the UN's response to its human rights record and allegations of ill-treatment of a million Uyghur Muslims

The 40th Human Rights Council session in Geneva, that lasted a month, concluded on March 22, 2019, with China taking exception to the criticism of its human rights record with its treatment of Turkic Muslims in the Xinjiang region. A letter from the Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China was sent to Geneva on 7th March 2019. It was in response to the US planning to sponsor a … Read more →

40th session of Human Rights Council concludes: “Syria is far from returning to normal”

The 40th regular session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) ended on Friday 22nd March after a month of high-level discussions in Geneva. The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body that is a part of the UN consisting of 47 states whose responsibility and role are to highlight the protection of human rights on a global scale. This year’s focus, amongst many other items, ranged from media … Read more →

At least 170 civilians killed in the last six months in Cameroon

Government forces in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions have killed at least 170 civilians, used indiscriminate force and torched hundreds of homes over the past six months, Human Rights Watch said in new research released today. Armed separatists have also assaulted and kidnapped dozens of people during the same period, executing at least two men, amid intensifying violence. “Cameroon’s authorities have an obligation to respond lawfully and to protect people’s rights during … Read more →

Human Rights Groups Oppose UN Plans to Relocate Rohingya Refugees to Isolated Island

The United Nations is making plans to help Bangladesh relocate thousands of Rohingya refugees from Bangladeshi camps to a barren, flood-prone island in the Bay of Bengal, a move opposed by many refugees and that some human rights experts fear could spark a new crisis. A document drawn up by the World Food Programme (WFP), the UN’s food aid arm, shows the agency has supplied the Bangladesh government with detailed … Read more →

Saudi Women’s Rights Defenders face charges

On 13 March 2019 a group of Saudi women’s rights activists stood trial for the first time since their arrest in May 2018. Loujain al-Hathloul, Aziza al-Yousef, Eman al-Nafjan and Hatoon Al-Fassi are four of 10 women that appeared at the Criminal Court in Saudi’s capital city, Riyadh. Court president Ibrahim Al-Sayari spoke to the world’s press outside the court, as reporters and diplomats were not authorised to enter the … Read more →