Featured stories about Human Rights
Stories about Human Rights
22 May 2020
From counterterrorism to counter-COVID-19, governments use crises to impose continuous states of emergency in the Middle East
Fighting terrorism used to be the umbrella under which states of emergency were justified in the Middle East. Now, COVID 19 serves as a new justification for sweeping powers.
19 May 2020
In Algeria, online repression targets Amazigh protesters active in Hirak movement
In Algeria, the Amazigh people are often associated with France, Algeria's former colonial power. Racial slurs online accuse this group of being separatists who threaten "national unity."
Women in Nigeria face a caustic landmine of political advocacy online
“I’ve grown a really thick skin,” said Fakhriyyah Hashim, co-founder of the #ArewaMeToo movement in northern Nigeria.
18 May 2020
A glimpse at Thailand's digital ID through the biometric profiling of Malay Muslims
"The discriminatory nature of these measures could amount to racial profiling, which subjects Malay Muslims to disproportionate and unnecessary surveillance based on ethnic prejudice rather than objective signs of suspicion."
Cameroon’s 3-year separatist crisis: Online threats, attacks on identity and freedom of expression
Journalists in Cameroon have to be very careful about reporting on atrocities related to the separatist conflict. Appearing to side with separatists or the government can lead to online attacks.
Women journalists in Uganda carry ‘double burden’ with online attacks and harassment
Women journalists in Uganda carry the double burden of gender-based abuse online and potential threats related to political reporting. These threats have led women journalists to withdraw from public discourse.
15 May 2020
In Burundi, four journalists jailed for months await appeal
The four jailed journalists with Iwacu were accused of threatening state security on the basis of a WhatsApp message sent as a dry joke while reporting on a rebel attack.
12 May 2020
In Bangladesh, criticism of government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is risky
"Would it be wrong if someone says that the authorities in Bangladesh, equipped with Digital Security Act, launched a crackdown on those critical to the government?"
11 May 2020
COVID-19: Switching online is not an option in conflict-stricken countries in the Middle East
While the internet provides a lifeline in wealthy countries during COVID-19, this is not the case in conflict-stricken countries in the Middle East.
7 May 2020
After disappearing for 53 days, Bangladeshi journalist is found and sent to jail
Fifty-three days after his abduction in from of his office in Dhaka, Bangladesh, photojournalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol was found alive in Benapole, near the border of Bangladesh with India.
