Reports

U.S. Policy on Voting Rights in Global Perspective

The 55-page report, “Out of Step: US Policy on Voting Rights in Global Perspective,” examines the laws of 136 countries around the world with populations of 1.5 million and above and finds that the majority—73 of the 136—never, or rarely, deny a person’s right to vote because of a criminal conviction. In the other 63 countries, the United States sits at the restrictive end of the spectrum, disenfranchising a broader swath of people overall.

People stand in line to vote

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  • May 8, 2006

    The Sudanese government and rebel groups in Darfur are hindering humanitarian agencies from reaching hundreds of thousands of civilians dependent on international aid in many areas of Darfur. Human Rights Watch called on all the warring parties to cease attacks on civilians, including aid workers, and immediately facilitate access of humanitarian assistance to civilians.
  • May 3, 2006

    The North Korean Government’s Control of Food and the Risk of Hunger

    This 34-page report examines recent worrisome developments in North Korea’s food policies, its marginalization of the World Food Programme (WFP), its refusal to allow adequate monitoring of food aid, and the implications of the government’s new policies.
  • May 1, 2006

    Discrimination, Denial, and the Fate of Binational Same-Sex Couples under U.S. Law

    <table cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><img src="http://hrw.org/images/home/2006/100/usdom13290.jpg&quot; align="left" border="0" /></td> <td valign="top">This report documents how U.S immigration law and federal policy discriminate against binational same-sex couples.</td></tr></table>

  • April 25, 2006

    Government Discrimination Against “Non-Indigenes” in Nigeria

    This 64-page report documents the harmful impact of discriminatory policies against those citizens defined as "non-indigenes" in Nigeria. These policies have a harmful impact on the human rights of many Nigerians and are in violation of the Nigerian constitution and international human rights law.
  • April 25, 2006

    Findings of the Detainee Abuse and Accountability Project

    This 27-page report presents findings of the Detainee Abuse and Accountability Project, a joint project of New York University’s Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, Human Rights Watch and Human Rights First. The project is the first comprehensive accounting of credible allegations of torture and abuse in U.S. custody in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantánamo.
  • April 24, 2006

    Options for Hissène Habré to Face Justice

    This paper examines Senegal’s legal obligations as well as the different options for bringing Mr. Habré to justice. It notes that—whatever the outcome of the A.U. review—Senegal is under an obligation to prosecute or to extradite Hissène Habré. It concludes that Mr. Habré’s extradition to Belgium is the most efficient, realistic, and timely option for ensuring that Mr.
  • April 23, 2006

    Lethal Injections in the United States

    This 65-page report reveals the slipshod history of executions by lethal injection, using a protocol created three decades ago with no scientific research, nor modern adaptation, and still unchanged today. As the prisoner lies strapped to a gurney, a series of three drugs is injected into his vein by executioners hidden behind a wall.
  • April 21, 2006

    This briefing paper addresses the need for the U.N. Security Council to authorize the proposed United Nations mission in Darfur to use force as necessary to protect civilians.
  • April 19, 2006

    Police Violence and the Beginnings of Impunity in East Timor

    This 60-page report is based on dozens of interviews with witnesses and victims of police abuse in East Timor. It documents excessive force during arrests, torture and ill-treatment of detainees by the National Police of East Timor (PNTL). Several people interviewed had to be hospitalized because of the severity of their injuries.
  • April 7, 2006

    How It Was Prepared

    The briefing paper draws on previously unpublished documents to lay out the way the extermination system was planned in the months before the genocide was launched, 12 years ago this week.
  • April 4, 2006

    Street Children in the Democratic Republic of Congo

    This 72-page report documents how security officials and other adults routinely abuse the country’s street children. In the past 10 years, armed conflict, HIV/AIDS, prohibitive education fees, and even accusations of sorcery have led to a doubling of the number of street children. With no secure access to shelter, food or other basic needs, these children live in insecurity and fear.
  • April 1, 2006

    Submission to the Committee of Eminent African Jurists

    This paper examines Senegal’s legal obligations as well as the different options for bringing Mr. Habré to justice. It notes that—whatever the outcome of the A.U. review—Senegal is under an obligation to prosecute or to extradite Hissène Habré.

  • March 31, 2006

    Will It Keep Evidence Obtained through Torture or Cruel Treatment out of Commission Trials?

    On March 24, 2006, the General Counsel of the Department of Defense issued Military Commission Instruction No. 10, “Certain Evidentiary Requirements,” in response to growing public concern that evidence acquired through torture might be admissible in military commission proceedings.
  • March 28, 2006

    A Human Rights Watch Briefing Paper (March 2006)

    Since Maoist forces ended their four-month unilateral ceasefire on January 2, 2006, fighting in Nepal’s civil war has engulfed the entire country. Nearly every one of the country’s 75 districts has been affected by the fighting between the Royal Nepali Army (RNA) and the forces of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) (the “Maoists”).