Attacks on Medical Care in Ethiopia’s Amhara Conflict
The 66-page report, “‘If the Soldier Dies, It’s On You’: Attacks on Medical Care in Ethiopia’s Amhara Conflict,” documents how Ethiopian federal forces and a government-affiliated militia have attacked medical workers, healthcare facilities, and transports in at least 13 towns since the outbreak of fighting between Ethiopian federal forces and Amhara militia known as Fano in August 2023. Ethiopia’s international partners should call for accountability and an end to attacks on healthcare and should resume increased scrutiny of the rights situation in the country.
In 1954 Turkey signed the 1953 European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Since that time, Turkish citizens who believe that the state has violated their rights guaranteed under the Convention and who have not been able to find domestic legal redress can bring suit against their own government under Article 25.
On October 31, 1992, fighting erupted between Ingush militias and North Ossetian security forces and paramilitaries supported by the Russian Interior Ministry and Army troops in the Prigorodnyi region of North Ossetia, a republic located in the North Caucasus of the Russian Federation.
In December 1995, some 1,200 political prisoners in Syria were released pursuant to an amnesty marking the 25th anniversary of the rule of Pres. Asad. It was widely reported that most, if not all, of the released prisoners were members or supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood.
The publication of Death By Default on January 7, 1996 was followed by several weeks of intense coverage of the report by the international news media.
The Dayton accord offered the promise of a lasting peace because it incorporated both military enforcement and strong mechanisms to protect human rights and ensure accountability for past abuses, including the High Representative, the International Police Task Force, the OSCE's human rights and election monitoring mission, and the Office of the Ombudsperson.
For decades Albania was eastern Europe's most closed and repressive state. During his 40-year reign, former communist leader Enver Hoxha banned religion, forbade travel and outlawed private property. Any resistance to his rule was met with brutal retribution, including internal exile, long-term imprisonment or execution.
Human Rights and Parliamentary Elections in the Islamic Republic of Iran
Iranians voted on March 8, 1996, to elect 270 members of the parliament, or Majles, in an election process that severely limited citizen participation. Parliamentary elections could represent a real contest for power in Iran’s political system—but only if arbitrary bans on candidates and other constraints on political life are lifted.
Political repression in Tibet has increased sharply since 1994, and there are now more political prisoners in custody there than at any time since 1990.
In February 1995, Pres. Zedillo ordered a crackdown on the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN). As the Mexican army fought to regain territory in which the Zapatistas had operated since January 1994, federal and state police worked in tandem to arrest men and women accused of leading or supporting the Zapatistas.
Arms Trade and Human Rights Abuses since the Lusaka Protocol
In updating our 1994 report, Arms Trade & Violations of the Laws of War in Angola, we found that despite the signing of the Lusaka Protocol between the Angolan government and UNITA that led to a cease-fire, sporadic fighting continued in 1995.
Areas of northwestern Bosnia under Bosnian Serb control were the site of a brutal endgame of “ethnic cleansing,” murder, and rape, even as a cease-fire and the Dayton accord were negotiated. In the fall of 1995, more than 6,000 non-Serbs were systematically and brutally driven from their homes.
A Policy of Fatal Neglect in China’s State Orphanages
China’s claim to guarantee the “right to subsistence” conceals a secret world of starvation, disease, and unnatural death a world into which thousands of Chinese citizens disappear each year.
Tens of thousands of Guatemalans fled systematic army repression between 1980 and 1983, flooding southern Mexico with refugees. Hundreds of thousands more were estimated to be displaced internally. Recent cases of state violence against returning refugees cast serious doubts on the Guatemalan government's commitment to ensure safe repatriation and foster the rule of law in rural areas.
Human Rights Abuse and Criminality in Rio de Janeiro
The homicide rate in Rio de Janeiro tripled in the last 15 years and public concern grew apace. The press, prominent civic leaders, and politicians focused particularly on violence related to criminal gangs and drug trafficking. Unfortu-nately, law enforcement efforts to control crime relied on flagrant and numerous human rights abuses.
Throughout the world, thousands of children are used as soldiers in armed conflicts. Although international law forbids recruiting children under fifteen as soldiers, such young children may be found in government armies and, more commonly, in armed rebel groups.