Human Rights Watch Australia

03/06/2026

You are warmly invited to join Human Rights Watch and the International Bar Association for a special screening of the documentary “The Veto” by Tim Slade.

The documentary will be followed by a panel discussion and audience Q&A with Ben Saul, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms while Countering Terrorism, Leanne Smith, Chief Executive of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Maria Elena Vignoli, Senior counsel of the International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch, and moderated by Daniela Gavshon, Australia director at Human Rights Watch.

📅Sunday, June 21, 2026
⏰6:30pm
📍Palace Cinemas Moore Park, 122 Lang Rd, Moore Park NSW 2021
🎟 Link in bio

Check out The Veto Palace Cinema Moore Park on FanForce

28/05/2026

📢SYDNEY EVENT: The Veto Film Screening and Panel Discussion

You are warmly invited to join Human Rights Watch and the International Bar Association for a special screening of the documentary “The Veto” by Tim Slade. The documentary will be followed by a panel discussion and audience Q&A with Maria Elena Vignoli, Senior counsel International Justice Program at Human Rights Watch and moderated by Daniela Gavshon, Australia director at Human Rights Watch.

📅Sunday, June 21, 2026
⏰6:30pm
📍Palace Cinemas Moore Park, 122 Lang Rd, Moore Park NSW 2021

🎟

Check out The Veto Palace Cinema Moore Park on FanForce

15/05/2026

The United States government’s abrupt cuts to nearly all US foreign aid in 2025 harmed the global human rights movement and countless people at risk.

“Every Autocrat’s Dream: A Global Snapshot of the Human Rights Harms of US Foreign Aid Cuts” examines the immediate consequences of the aid cuts to the work of human rights defenders around the world. Investigations into abuses were halted, support for victims cut off, and organizations that helped deter violations were forced to scale back or close.

The United States government’s abrupt cuts to nearly all US foreign aid in 2025 harmed the global human rights movement and countless people at risk.

11/05/2026

Australian authorities should ensure that criminal proceedings against three Australian women who were charged on May 7 and 8, 2026, with serious alleged crimes linked to the Islamic State (ISIS) fully respect due process rights. The accused are among thirteen Australians—four women and nine children—who returned to Australia after more than seven years of detention without charge in camps in northeast Syria controlled by the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

The authorities have charged two of the three women with crimes against humanity for alleged enslavement in Syria of female Yazidis, a people ISIS sought to destroy through acts including killings, sexual slavery, enslavement, and torture.

“Crimes against humanity are grave international crimes and it’s important for Australian authorities to handle these cases appropriately right from the start,” said Daniela Gavshon, Australia director at Human Rights Watch. “Governments have an obligation to act on horrific acts like enslavement and to support the victims, but also a duty to uphold the due process rights of the accused and help reintegrate returning nationals.”

Australian authorities should ensure that criminal proceedings against three Australian women who were charged on May 7 and 8, 2026, with serious alleged crimes linked to the Islamic State (ISIS) fully respect due process rights.

05/05/2026

The Chinese government is imposing Chinese-medium education and ideological indoctrination on kindergarten children in its efforts to force Tibetans to assimilate, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

The 72-page report, “Start with the Youngest Children: China Uses Preschools to ‘Integrate’ Tibetans,” documents that a 2021 Ministry of Education directive—the Children’s Speech Harmonization plan—mandates the use of standard Mandarin Chinese for all preschool instruction in ethnic minority areas.

By severely limiting Tibetan-language education in early childhood, and imposing ideological indoctrination on kindergarten children, the Chinese government is speeding up its erasure of Tibetan language and culture.

The Chinese government should end political indoctrination in early childhood and ensure that Tibetan children are able to learn and use Tibetan in kindergartens. Foreign governments should press the Chinese government to free detained advocates of Tibetan language and allow independent access to Tibetan areas.

The 72-page report, “Start with the Youngest Children: China Uses Preschools to ‘Integrate’ Tibetans,” documents that a 2021 Ministry of Education directive—the Children’s Speech Harmonization plan—mandates the use of standard Mandarin Chinese for all preschool instruction in ethnic mi...

23/04/2026

📢MELBOURNE EVENT

See Carine Kaneza Nantulya, Africa Deputy Director at Human Rights Watch, in conversation with the Africa Studies Group.

📅Thursday, April 30
⏰2:30pm - 4pm
📍Chisholm Theatrette, Babel Building (Level Three), The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010

Join us in person for a discussion about Africa and human rights at the University of Melbourne, Parkville - you don’t want to miss!

21/04/2026

TONIGHT!

Join us for an interactive thought experiment where we look at the mechanics of trust - how it makes the world and relationships go round. 

21/04/2026

"Dozens of my family members, including my father, Memet Yaqup, have disappeared into China’s system of mass incarceration over the past decade simply for being Uyghurs. When international attention to our plight surged — through joint statements at the United Nations, extensive media coverage, national parliaments recognising atrocity crimes — I believed there would be enough pressure to secure the release of my loved ones. Yet, eight years into my father’s enforced disappearance, I still have no information about his whereabouts, health or the allegations that led to his imprisonment. Meanwhile, the world’s attention has moved on."

Yalkun Uluyol, China researcher at Human Rights Watch, is participating in a panel discussion of the ethical and legal dilemmas at the heart of international human rights, The Attention Economy of Suffering, presented by The Ethics Centre in partnership with Human Rights Watch, on Tuesday, 21 April 2026.

Buy your tickets to the live stream here: https://ethics.org.au/event/the-attention-economy-of-suffering-in-conversation/

Dozens of my family members, including my father, have disappeared into China’s system of mass incarceration over the past decade simply for being Uyghurs. When international attention to our plight surged, I believed there would be enough pressure to secure the release of my loved ones. Yet, eigh...

21/04/2026

"As the world focuses on the immense civilian toll in the Middle East, other crises continue to unfold with far less attention. They are often described as “forgotten crises”, but that label is misleading. Conflicts across Africa are well documented and analysed, and they affect countless lives. What they lack is sustained action to address them — and the strategic interest needed to drive that action."

Carine Kaneza Nantulya is Africa deputy director at Human Rights Watch. She is participating in a panel discussion of the ethical and legal dilemmas at the heart of international human rights, The Attention Economy of Suffering, presented by The Ethics Centre in partnership with Human Rights Watch, on Tuesday, 21 April 2026.

Book your tickets to the live stream here: https://ethics.org.au/event/the-attention-economy-of-suffering-in-conversation/

Conflicts across Africa are well documented and analyzed, and they affect countless lives. What they lack is sustained action to address them — and the strategic interest needed to drive that action.

09/04/2026

The arrest of Ben Roberts-Smith for alleged war crimes committed in Afghanistan is a significant step towards much needed accountability for Afghan victims. It should also send a powerful message that no one is above the law. It should be backed by continuing efforts to identify and hold to account all those responsible for war crimes.

Daniela Gavshon, Australia director Human Rights Watch, speaks to 9News about the arrest.