Essay: Worldcoin is scanning eyeballs to build a global ID and finance system. Governments are not impressed
Australian-based law professor KATHARINE KEMP looks, in an article first published on The Conversation, at concerns over Worldcoin’s efforts to scan people’s irises in exchange for online identity verification and “free” cryptocurrency…
Essay: Many global corporations will soon have to police up and down their supply chains as EU human rights “due diligence” law nears enactment
RACHEL CHAMBER and DAVID BIRCHALL, in an article first published on The Conversation, look at what the new law means…
UK-based group documents rights abuses since Taliban takeover of Afghanistan with ‘witness map’
Islamabad, PakistanAP A UK-based rights group on Thursday launched an interactive map documenting rampant human rights abuses and violence against civilians since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan nearly two years ago. The documented violations – committed by both the Taliban and militant groups such as the Islamic State group – paint a harrowing picture […]
Jordan ends emergency laws that stifled public freedoms
Amman, Jordan Reuters Jordan on Sunday ended laws enacted at the start of COVID-19 that gave the authorities powers to enforce a state of emergency that rights groups said were used as an excuse to suppress civic and political liberties. A royal decree approved a cabinet decision to annul the state of emergency passed nearly […]
Western countries pile pressure on Mali over Wagner Group role
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Western countries on Tuesday raised concerns over Russian private military contractor Wagner Group’s activities in Mali, including allegations of its role in the killings of civilians, at a UN human rights meeting in Geneva. The United States, Canada, Great Britain and Ukraine were among countries that raised the alleged role of Wagner contractors […]
UN body deplores “grave” rights abuses by Russia in Ukraine
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters A United Nations committee said it was deeply concerned about human rights violations by Russian forces and private military companies in Ukraine, including enforced disappearances, torture, rape and extrajudicial executions. The flags alley is seen outside the United Nations building during the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, on 27th February, 2023. PICTURE: […]
Moscow human rights centre packs up as state tightens “monopoly on memory”
Moscow, RussiaReuters Posters chronicling the end of the Cold War lie discarded near outdoor rubbish containers, and staff inside sift through papers and stack books as over a quarter of a century of Russian human rights work is packed up. With a 2nd May deadline looming, one of Russia’s leading pro-democracy and human rights centres […]
UN rights mission blasts EU on Libya migrant abuses
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters European Union backing for Libyan authorities who stop and detain migrants means the bloc has “aided and abetted” rights violations against migrants, an investigator for a UN mission said on Monday. The EU and member states have supported and trained the Libyan coastguard, which returns migrants stopped at sea to detention centres, […]
Nicaragua’s government committed crimes against humanity: UN experts
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters Nicaragua’s government has committed serious and systematic violations which amount to crimes against humanity, a United Nations-appointed team of human rights experts said on Thursday, calling for international sanctions against the government. The three-person body said the government has committed, and continues to commit, acts of torture, extrajudicial executions, arbitrary detention since […]
Thousands march across Colombia to oppose government reforms
Bogota, ColombiaReuters Thousands of people took to the streets of Colombia’s major cities on Wednesday to protest social and economic reforms that leftist President Gustavo Petro presented to Congress, policies he says will improve access to healthcare and protect people’s rights, but which opponents say will aid criminals. The demonstrations, organised by the opposition right-wing […]