Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research on and advocates for human rights of people around the globe. Every year, the organization produces an annual review of human rights practices around the world. Here are some key findings from its 2020 World Report, which looks back at events from 2019:
- Under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), led by President Xi Jinping, China has expanded the reach of its “Great Firewall” to stifle digital dissent, severely limited press freedoms, and detained millions from the Uighur ethnic minority for forced "re-education" and indoctrination.
- Following the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) landslide victory in the May 2019 election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government revoked the special constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir, failed to adequately investigate mob attacks against religious minorities, and put millions at the risk of statelessness by unveiling a new citizenship verification process.
- During his first year as President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro has put forth bills to excuse extrajudicial killings by police officers, and enabled a huge increase in deforestation by relaxing several regulation and oversight procedures. Illegal mining and logging threaten the lifestyles and homes of Indigenous populations. Bolsonaro has also sought to limit rights for LGBT people.
- The Trump administration failed to adequately address systemic racism or police and has also weakened protections for LGBT people and indeed the environment. Simultaneously, income inequality is at its highest point in five decades and the deportation of asylum seekers and refugees has been fast-tracked. The US also carried out counter-terrorism operations in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and Somalia, bringing civilians into harm’s way on several occasions.
- The humanitarian situation in Syria has only worsened, with the Syrian-Russian military alliance launch “indiscriminate attacks with prohibited weapons”. Close to 12 million civilians in the country require humanitarian and protection assistance. Non-state actors, which comprise of several terror groups, have also committed several crimes against humanity.
- Yemen is now the site of the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have led a coalition of states against the Houthi rebels. However, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have backed different groups, which has precipitated even greater violence and instability. The United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom continue to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia, which are then used in indiscriminate attacks against civilians.
Here is a link to the full copy of the report from the Human Rights Watch website.
Image Source: South China Morning Post