Human Rights Watch Australia

20/08/2026

The Chinese government is interrogating Uyghur Australians visiting Xinjiang, pressing them to collect information on Uyghurs in Australia. Chinese authorities demand daily reporting while in Xinjiang, and on their return, pressure them to inform on activists, and monitor community events. These interrogations and strict monitoring have a chilling effect emblematic of Beijing’s transnational repression in Australia.

Listen to Yalkun Uluyol, China researcher at Human Rights Watch, talk to ABC News.

16/08/2026

NEW:
The Chinese government is interrogating Uyghur Australians visiting Xinjiang, pressing them to collect information on Uyghurs in Australia, Human Rights Watch said today as its executive director, Philippe Bolopion, visited Australia.

The Chinese government exploits the vulnerability of separated Uyghur families as an opportunity for surveillance and strict monitoring of the Uyghur community in Australia, which has a chilling effect on diaspora activities.

Australia and other governments should respond to Beijing’s intimidation of the Uyghur diaspora with public statements, clear travel advisories, safe reporting channels, criminal investigations, and support for family reunification.

Read the report here: https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/08/16/australia-chinese-government-menaces-uyghur-diaspora

14/08/2026

MELBOURNE EVENT:

What happens when the institutions built to safeguard human dignity begin to falter?

Join us for this important In Conversation with Human Rights Watch Executive Director, Philippe Bolopion, and Australia Director, Daniela Gavshon, as they explore whether democracies and civil society can adapt, innovate, and lead the fight for rights in a rapidly changing world.

Hosted by Melbourne Law School Human Rights Program.

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/do-international-human-rights-still-matter-in-2026-tickets-1996429967776

11/08/2026

Four human rights groups, Human Rights Watch, the American Friends Service Committee, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the Open Society Institute, filed a lawsuit in the Southern District of New York on August 11, 2026, alleging that the Trump administration is illegally sanctioning individuals and organizations affiliated with or assisting the work of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and is criminalizing those who associate with or otherwise support them.

The suit challenges President Donald Trump’s February 6, 2025 executive order authorizing sanctions on ICC officials, judges, and others working with the court to seek justice for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.

Four human rights groups (the American Friends Service Committee, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch, and the Open Society Institute) filed a lawsuit in US federal court challenging the Trump administration’s sanctions against ICC prosecutors and judges, a UN human rights exp...

29/07/2026

South Sudan’s army, opposition forces, and their respective allied militias abused residents and caused much of the population to flee during fighting in 2025 in Nagero County, Western Equatoria. Civilians have returned to Nagero town and the surrounding area, but they continue to live in fear. The government should suspend commanders credibly implicated in abuses, guarantee safe, immediate humanitarian access throughout Nagero County, and facilitate the safe and voluntary return of those displaced.

28/07/2026

Two Israeli settler attacks on Tal village near Nablus in the West Bank on July 24, 2026, resulted in the killing of four Palestinians and two Israelis. The incident triggered a wave of settler reprisal attacks in nearby Palestinian villages, the Israeli government’s announcement of a “major counterterrorism operation,” and Israeli officials calling for the destruction of Palestinian homes and villages. The settler violence against Tal is a reminder that if the violence is not stopped and those responsible are not held to account, escalation and further atrocities are inevitable.

21/07/2026

Security forces in India’s capital Delhi are cracking down on one of the biggest antigovernment protests in recent years. The authorities should order police to exercise restraint, restore mobile internet connectivity near protests, and ensure people can protest peacefully.

14/07/2026

At least four Chinese dissidents detained at the Suan Phlu Immigration Detention Center in Bangkok face possible deportation to China. The Chinese government has increasingly pressured Thai authorities ahead of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s scheduled visit to China from July 16 to 20, 2026.

“Successive Thai governments have found it easy to cast aside Thailand’s international obligations to please Beijing,” said Sunai Phasuk, senior Thailand adviser at Human Rights Watch. “Thailand is damaging its reputation by complying with Chinese government requests to unlawfully deport Chinese dissidents instead of allowing them to travel to safe third countries.”

Read more at the link in bio.

13/07/2026

Bangladesh has been hosting over a million Rohingya refugees for nearly a decade, with expanding families crammed into bamboo and tarp shelters on steep, deforested hillsides that are highly vulnerable during the monsoon season.

As more refugees arrive from Myanmar, the United Nations refugee agency has repeatedly warned of deaths and injuries in the congested camps due to lethal cyclones, floods, and landslides.

Concerned governments need to act instead of waiting for the next landslide to sweep away another Rohingya family.

Read more at the link in our bio.

13/07/2026

A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, Texas on July 7. This is the latest in a string of shooting incidents involving federal immigration agents over the past two years.

Salgado, who had reportedly lived in the United States for nearly 35 years, leaves behind a wife and three children.

Authorities should immediately carry out a comprehensive, transparent investigation into Salgado’s killing and whether ICE officers complied with use-of-force policies.