The Zambian government’s decision to postpone RightsCon 2026, effectively canceling the summit, raises concerns about the authorities’ commitment to free expression and assembly and about possible Chinese government interference, Human Rights Watch said today. The 14th edition of RightsCon was scheduled to be held in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital, from May 5 to 8, 2026. In an April 29 statement, the…
47th Ordinary Session This statement was delivered by Human Rights Watch at the 47th Ordinary Session of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in Maseru, Lesotho, on April 17, 2026. Honorable Chairperson, Distinguished Members of the Committee, Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines Human…
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has described reparatory justice for colonialism, enslavement and the trade in enslaved Africans as “key to dismantling systemic racism.” Speaking on Tuesday at the fifth session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, he lauded the advances in racial justice and equality that…
SportyTV, an African-focused streaming platform, said on Monday that it has acquired pay-television rights to show all 104 matches of the 2026 Fifa World Cup in South Africa. The deal, which SportyTV said was struck directly with Fifa, marks a significant escalation for the platform in a market where MultiChoice Group’s SuperSport has held the…
The African Union will on Tuesday, April 7, launch the AU Human Rights Virtual Memorial, which will include a component dedicated to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. The memorial will be unveiled as the continental body joins Rwandans for the 32nd commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi at its headquarters in…
The EU is in the process of creating a new system that will make it easier to return irregularly present migrants to their country of origin. The legislation, known as the Returns Regulation, includes measures that make it possible to detain more people – including children and families – for longer periods of time. This…
West Africa as a region has long had one of the most mobile populations in the world. Since 1979, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) has allowed citizens of its member states to travel freely across borders without visas. This freedom of movement has helped support regional trade, labour mobility and social ties….
Human Rights Watch respectfully seeks leave to submit an amicus curiae to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereafter the Court) in relation to its forthcoming advisory opinion on the human rights obligations of states in the context of the climate change crisis. Our research shows that climate change already negatively affects communities…
Environmental activists in South Africa have been waging legal battles against the state and mining companies for years. This is often on the grounds that communities haven’t been consulted before mines were given permission to start digging and blasting on their land. Environmental justice researcher Mzingaye Brilliant Xaba has tracked the legal cases against mines…
Nairobi — Kenya’s hosting of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is in jeopardy after Sports Principal Secretary Elijah Mwangi revealed that the country is yet to pay Ksh 3.9 billion (USD 30 million) hosting fees to the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Appearing before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Sports and Culture…
