Information out Africa

Equatorial Guinea: Opposition Figure Pardoned
JUN 6, 2012
The pardon by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea of Dr. Wenceslao Mansogo Alo, the prominent political opponent and human rights defender, is a positive step. The country’s judicial system, however, which pursued the unjust and politically motivated charges against Dr. Mansogo, is riddled with problems that need to be addressed.

Liberia: Ivorian Government Foes Wage, Plot Attacks
JUN 6, 2012
Armed militants hostile to the Ivorian government have recruited Liberian children and carried out deadly cross-border raids on Ivorian villages in recent months, Human Rights Watch said today. Liberian authorities have failed to investigate and prosecute dozens of Liberian and Ivorian nationals who crossed into Liberia after committing war crimes during Côte d’Ivoire’s 2010-2011 post-election crisis, some of whom have been implicated in the recent attacks, Human Rights Watch said.

Zimbabwe: Diamond Abuses Show Need for Reforms
JUN 4, 2012
Members of the international diamond monitoring body known as the Kimberley Process (KP) should press Zimbabwe to address human rights abuses in its diamond fields. They should also reform the KP certification scheme to address human rights violations. The Kimberley Process, which is currently chaired by the United States, will meet in Washington, DC from June 4 to 7, 2012 for its annual meeting to discuss the mining and trading of conflict diamonds.

DR Congo: Rwanda Should Stop Aiding War Crimes Suspect
JUN 3, 2012
Rwandan military officials have been arming and supporting the mutiny in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) of Gen. Bosco Ntaganda, who is wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

ICC: Pursue Case Against Rwandan Rebel Leader
JUN 1, 2012
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) should urgently submit information sought by the court in the case against a Rwandan rebel leader whose forces are still committing atrocities in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Human Rights Watch said today. On May 31, 2012, the ICC judges unanimously found that the request for an arrest warrant against Sylvestre Mudacumura lacked clarity and specificity, but did not rule on the merits of the case.

Protecting Children From Lead Poisoning
MAY 31, 2012
Amina Murtala is only 20, but she has already lost three children to lead poisoning – a deadly consequence of small-scale gold mining in her home state of Zamfara in Nigeria.

Last week President Goodluck Jonathan agreed to release 650 million Naira (roughly US$4 million) for environmental remediation and to put in place safer mining practices in Zamfara state. This clean-up could give Amina's newest baby a better chance at a healthy life.



Sudan: Ban Death by Stoning
MAY 31, 2012
The sentencing of a young Sudanese woman to death by stoning for adultery presents numerous grave violations of domestic and international law. The sentence also underscores the urgent need for Sudan to reform its legal system in accordance with its human rights obligations.

Sierra Leone: 50-Year Sentence for Charles Taylor
MAY 30, 2012
The sentencing of Charles Taylor to 50 years in prison on May 30, 2012 by the Special Court for Sierra Leone is a landmark in ensuring justice for the victims of Sierra Leone's brutal armed conflict, Human Rights Watch said today.
The traditional courts bill threatens LGBT South Africans

MAY 29, 2012
Since the end of apartheid in South Africa, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities have made unprecedented legal gains under the rubric of the bill of rights. In 2004, 10 years after South Africa's transition to democracy, I undertook a year-long research project on the impact of the 1996 constitution on the lives of sexual and gender minorities living outside urban centres. Existing discriminatory laws had been scrapped, and new legislation put into effect. The question, though, was what the constitution actually meant to LGBT communities in small towns and rural areas.

Burundi govt should promote, not stifle, debate about roots of political violence
MAY 28, 2012


The Paradox of Losing Life While Giving Life in Africa
Commentary MAY 25, 2012
Giving life is a leading cause of death of women and girls in Africa. And in the last 20 years, few African countries, especially those in sub-Saharan Africa, have made enough progress in bringing down the number of maternal deaths.

Equatorial Guinea: End Harassment of Jailed Opponent, Lawyers
Press release MAY 25, 2012
Authorities in Equatorial Guinea should cease all harassment of a jailed political opponent and those close to him. Dr. Wenceslao Mansogo Alo, a medical doctor, human rights defender and leading member of the political opposition who was convicted and sentenced on May 7, 2012, to three years in prison following a politically motivated trial, was transferred on May 18 without explanation to a filthy, isolated cell in Bata central prison.


Sudan: Cluster Bomb Found in Conflict Zone
Press release MAY 24, 2012
The Sudanese government should investigate the discovery of a cluster bomb in Southern Kordofan, a conflict zone hit by government bombing

Burundi: Verdict in Activist's Killing Fails to Deliver Justice
Press release MAY 23, 2012
The verdict on May 22, 2012, in the trial of those accused of killing Ernest Manirumva, a Burundian anti-corruption activist, has been a missed opportunity to deliver justice, 20 Burundian and international nongovernmental organizations said today in a joint statement. The outcome was a grave disappointment to those who have campaigned for his killers to be held to account, as potentially important evidence in the case was not pursued.

Kenya: Refugees Describe Abuse by Police
Press release MAY 23, 2012
Kenyan police arbitrarily arrested, detained, and beat refugees following the discovery of explosives and an attack on a police vehicle in the Dadaab refugee camps in mid-May 2012. Senior officials visiting the camps on May 23 should ensure a full and speedy investigation leading to the identification and disciplinary measures against any officer responsible for abuse and the compensation of victims.

Angola: Stop Rape, Abuse of Congolese Migrants
Press release MAY 21, 2012
Angolan security forces frequently abuse irregular migrants during expulsions from Angola, including sexual violence and other degrading and inhuman treatment, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.
The Ethiopian Enigma
Commentary MAY 18, 2012
Mariam was painfully thin. Several of her 13 children peered out from behind her with hollow eyes. "I am trying to save my children. We are not living. We are subhuman," she told me. Food aid was available in her village in Southern Ethiopia. But not for her children. Her husband belonged to the wrong political party.

Ethiopia: Letter to President Obama Regarding the Invitation of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi to the G-8 Summit
Letter MAY 18, 2012
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International write to express their concern about President Obama's invitation to Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi to attend a meeting on food security during the G-8 summit at Camp David on May 19.

Sudan: Repression Intensifies after Border Violence
Press release MAY 17, 2012
Sudan has stepped up harassment of journalists, censorship, and arrests of political opponents in the wake of recent fighting with South Sudan.

DR Congo: Bosco Ntaganda Recruits Children by Force
Press release MAY 15, 2012
Gen. Bosco Ntaganda, who mutinied against the Democratic Republic of Congo in early April 2012, has forcibly recruited at least 149 boys and young men into his forces since April 19. Ntaganda, a former rebel leader turned army general, is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on charges of war crimes for previous recruitment and use of child soldiers.

Bron : Human Rights Watch