Following a clemency order issued by President Pierre Nkurunziza , Burundi’s government began releasing scores of prisoners on Wednesday. Included in those released were prisoners accused of endangering state security. This group of 300 released prisoners is expected to be the first of 2,500. While Burundi has always denied holding political prisoners, some are accusing [...]
Authorities in Kuwait executed seven people on Wednesday, including Kuwaiti prince Faisal Abudallah Al Jaber Al Sabah. These are the first executions in the country since 2013. Al Sabah was convicted for premeditated murder in the death of another Kuwaiti prince in 2010. Most of the other prisoners were also convicted of murder , although [...]
A journalist and a graduate student at MIT filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against eight federal agencies for records on attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions . Jason Leopold and Ryan Shapiro allege the agencies improperly refused to process their Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and denied them rights to appeal. The plaintiffs petition the [...]
UN Special Rapporteur Michel Forst delivered a preliminary report on Tuesday recommending to authorities in Mexico on how to improve the protection of human rights defenders. According to Forst, the growing impunity in Mexico “has become both the cause and the effect of the overall insecurity of human rights defenders.” Forst noted elevated levels of [...]
Two UN human rights experts pressed the Royal Government of Cambodia to release five human rights defenders on Wednesday. The defenders were detained in May over allegations that they assisted a woman accused of making false claims while under pressure from the Anti-Corruption Unit. The charges, which are seen as politically motivated, were ruled “arbitrary” [...]
The US House of Representatives on Tuesday approved legislation that prohibits the use of federal funds on abortions. The act, titled “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2017,” would prohibit the authorization or appropriation of any funds through federal law to any fund that can be expended on abortions [...]
A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated Tuesday that the latest Israeli settlement plans creates an obstacle to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, which is a “great concern to the Secretary-General.” Israel plans to build 2,500 new settlement homes in West Bank. Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric reiterated a statement that she had made [...]
The Federal Court of Canada on Tuesday refused to block the Canadian government from selling arms to Saudi Arabia. The challenge was brought before the court by Professor Daniel Turp who argued he had a public interest standing to ensure the arms deal was not violating the law and did not pose any threat to [...]
The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar Yanghee Lee on Thursday expressed concern for the people of Myanmar who may face reprisal for meeting with her. Lee recently concluded an official visit in the area during which individuals shared accounts of human rights abuses by the government. Some of the [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Wisconsin and Juvenile Law Center filed a class action lawsuit against four Wisconsin state officials on Tuesday. The complaint alleges that solitary confinement and inhumane conditions are being unconstitutionally used against incarcerated youths in correctional facilities. The ACLU claims that the staff at the Lincoln HIlls School for [...]
