Human Rights
Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - 07:22
Three years after the revolution, the specter of torture and police abuse still hangs low over the country. While no longer sanctioned by the state, police brutality and torture remain prevalent, according to human rights organizations and Tunisian civil society groups. Scant legal repercussions for these human rights violations have created a sense of impunity within the police force, further encouraging them to exercise authority by violent means. The current anti-terrorism operations that the country is pursuing have added to fears that torture could once more become a systematic tool of the country’s security forces.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - 05:52
The owners of a Kyrgyzstan news portal that has been blocked for showing a video by the Islamic State militant group have said that the government acted illegally in shutting down the site.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014 - 05:42
Government soldiers in Sudan are using sexual violence, including the gang-rape of teenage girls, as a weapon of war against southern rebels, a watchdog has claimed.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014 - 06:45
Videos from Haitian media surfaced over the weekend showing a U.N. soldier firing a handgun in the direction of protesters. The video shows him discharge his weapon multiple times, then aggressively try to prevent a cameraman from filming him.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014 - 06:27
What is Egypt afraid of? A mighty country and its military leadership diminished their credibility when Egypt denied entry to an American scholar on Friday. Michele Dunne, a former U.S. diplomat who had served in Cairo and on the National Security Council, had been invited to a conference by the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs. She was detained for six hours at the Cairo airport and then deported.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014 - 06:22
Kyrgyzstan’s government has de facto blocked a popular and hard-hitting news website with the argument that reporting on terrorism is akin to supporting terrorists. Authorities seem to have pressured the website’s local host to disconnect its servers.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014 - 06:20
Three years ago today — Kazakhstan’s independence day — at least 15 striking oil workers in the western Kazakh city of Zhanaozen were killed by state security forces while they peacefully protested low wages and dangerous working conditions. More than 100 others were left seriously injured, with many more detained and tortured.
Monday, December 15, 2014 - 06:27
Azerbaijani opposition activists and their supporters urged the government to release political prisoners and end repression at a rally in Baku.
Friday, December 12, 2014 - 12:06
Eight members of Honduras’ “elite” U.S.-supported TIGRES special police were implicated in the theft of more than $1 million dollars in cash. DoD announced a new command for the campaign against IS. Kenya’s security forces faced renewed criticisms for alleged human rights abuses carried out by “death squads.” And Assistant Secretary of State’s Nisha Desai Biswal showed support the United States’ continued relationship with Uzbekistan.
Friday, December 12, 2014 - 09:19
The prison system of Kyrgyzstan suffers from a myriad of problems, including extremely poor material conditions, issues in separating and controlling the prison population, acute overcrowding and lack of prison staff training. Not surprisingly, low pay and dangerous working conditions make it hard to attract qualified staff to the service.