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Human rights

Human rights
Latest news, features and analysis on human rights, with a focus on civil liberties in Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
Nimisha Priya, who travelled to Yemen from Southern India’s Kerala in 2008 to look for a nursing job, was found guilty of murdering her business partner in a clinic, a Yemeni man named Talal Abdo Mahdi, in 2020. Photo: Handout
India

Indian nurse’s death sentence in Yemen spotlights migrant workers’ woes

Nimisha Priya’s claims of passport confiscation among ‘problematic practices’ experienced by migrant workers in the Middle East, analysts say.

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Israel-Gaza war

Poland says won’t arrest Netanyahu if he visits for Auschwitz commemoration

Indonesia

Indonesian court’s ruling on citizens’ religion sparks discrimination fears

Technology

Opinion | How the Global South can defend against Trump’s AI offensive

US removal of AI safeguards risks widening the global divide. Global South must invest in AI regional partnerships, education and infrastructure.

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Attendees are given a sneak peak on January 5 into the latest gadgets at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, where gadgets, robots and vehicles imbued with artificial intelligence will once again vie for attention. Photo: AFP
The Philippines

Filipinos fear US’ anti-ICC bill may impede probe into Duterte’s drug war

The bill slams the ICC’s ‘illegitimate’ charges against Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes related to the Israel-Gaza war.

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Britain

Shein lawyer evades questions on China cotton at UK hearing, angering lawmakers

The fast-fashion giant is accused of forced labour in its supply chains as it reportedly prepares for a US$62 billion listing in London.

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India

Journalist’s body found stuffed inside septic tank in India

Freelance journalist Mukesh Chandrakar had reported widely on corruption and a decades-old Maoist insurgency in central Chhattisgarh state.

Freelance journalist Mukesh Chandrakar, whose battered body was found stuffed inside a septic tank in India’s central Chhattisgarh state on Friday. Photo: X/newt0nlaws
Israel-Gaza war

Hamas official says ready to free 34 Gaza hostages under mooted deal

Israel and Hamas wrangle over the details of a deal to halt fighting in the Gaza Strip and return hostages home.

Israel-Gaza war

UNRWA says 7 babies dead in Gaza from cold weather, lack of shelter

Displaced Palestinians in war-torn Gaza are living in tents with little protection against the elements.

Middle East

Red Cross says determining fate of Syria’s missing ‘huge challenge’

The fate of tens of thousands of missing people remains one of the most harrowing legacies of the conflict that started in 2011.

Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Photo: dpa
United States

Carter’s casket arrives in Atlanta as ex-US president’s state funeral begins

State funeral is on Thursday at Washington National Cathedral followed by invitation-only service in Carter’s hometown of Plains, Georgia.

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The hearse carrying the flag-draped casket of former US president Jimmy Carter pauses outside the State Capitol in Atlanta on Saturday. Photo: AP
Myanmar

Myanmar releases thousands of prisoners to mark Independence Day

The ruling junta released more than 6,000 prisoners as part of a mass amnesty marking the 77th anniversary of independence from Britain.

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Israel-Gaza war

Opinion | The West and the rest: how genocide in Gaza will usher in the end of ‘his-story’

The breach of international laws by the West has led non-Western countries to seek new global historical narratives and tell ‘our-stories’.

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Indonesia

Indonesia’s Widodo slams ‘baseless’ report listing him as corruption enabler

The OCCRP report lists Joko Widodo as the among individuals who have ‘done the most to advance crime and corruption globally’.

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Then-Indonesian President Joko Widodo attends the inauguration of deputy ministers in Jakarta last July. Photo: AFP
India

Why India is unlikely to extradite ousted Bangladesh leader Sheikh Hasina

New Delhi’s muted response to a formal extradition request has sparked tensions as India weighs legal and diplomatic risks.

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Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina checks her watch as she waits for the official opening time to cast her vote in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on January 7, 2024. Photo: AP
E-commerce

UK lawmakers summon Shein and Temu for questioning over labour practices

Both online retailers have faced allegations of poor working practices at product factories in China and of forced labour in supply chains.

Hong Kong workers/labour rights

How Hong Kong-US ties will shift when Trump returns to power in 2025

Experts say human rights will be ‘far less of a concern’ while the city’s financial services could face increased scrutiny from Washington.

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Africa

Zimbabwe abolishes death penalty almost 20 years after its last hanging

New law will commute to jail time the sentences of about 60 prisoners on death row.

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There has been a moratorium on executions in Zimbabwe since 2005. File photo: Shutterstock
Israel-Gaza war

Gaza hospitals turned into ‘death traps’ by Israeli strikes: UN

A UN report details numerous attacks on medical facilities, resulting in significant casualties and damage, leaving Palestinians with limited access to healthcare.

US-China relations

Opinion | How Jimmy Carter opened the door for China – and how Beijing can repay the favour

The Carter era has lessons for a rising China as it frets about a recession and what Trump may bring.

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Indonesia

Indonesia reviews France’s request to transfer death-row convict

Frenchman Serge Atlaoui has spent the past 20 years in prison in Indonesia after being arrested on drug charges.

French drug convict and death-row prisoner Serge Atlaoui (right) looks at his Indonesian lawyer Nancy Yuliana during a court hearing in Tangerang outside Jakarta on April 1, 2015. Photo: AFP
Americas and the Caribbean

Argentine judge orders arrest of Nicaragua’s Ortega over human rights violations

Crimes Daniel Ortega and vice-president wife are accused of include murder, forced disappearances and torture.

Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega and his wife and Vice-President Rosario Murillo. File photo: AP
Fame and celebrity

Who is late US president Jimmy Carter’s grandson, Jason Carter?

From his experience in the Peace Corps in South Africa to his political aspirations in the US state of Georgia, Jason Carter is following in his grandfather’s footsteps.

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Russia

Russian man arrested for organising LGBTQ tours dies in custody

Men Travel agency director Andrei Kotov was charged last month with organising ‘extremist’ activities. Rights group said he died by suicide.

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Israel-Gaza war

Israel targets Gaza City hospital with missile, killing 7: Palestinian officials

Israeli said Al-Wafaa Hospital was not being used at the time of the attack and was instead functioning as a Hamas command centre.

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Damage is seen after an Israeli strike on Al-Wafaa hospital in Gaza City on Sunday. Photo: Reuters
Africa

Sudan government rejects UN-backed famine declaration

The war has reportedly created famine conditions for 638,000 people, with a further 8.1 million on the brink of mass starvation.

A doctor treats a Sudanese child suffering from malnutrition at an MSF clinic in Metche Camp, Chad, near the Sudanese border, on April 6, 2024. Photo: AP
Middle East

Jailed Kurdish leader says ‘ready’ to support Turkey peace drive

Abdullah Ocalan is the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party and has been serving a life sentence since 1999.

European Union

Three die in clandestine Channel crossing attempt

Around 50 people were given emergency help on the beach by government services or NGOs, with many in a state of hypothermia.

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