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Dan Simmer

EU: To End Deforestation, Protect Land Rights

(Brussels) – The European Union’s landmark anti-deforestation law should require businesses to respect traditional communities’ rights over their territories or risk failing to deliver on its objectives, more than 191 Indigenous, environmental, and human rights organizations from 62 countries said today in an open letter to EU policymakers. These communities’

Burundi: Account for Dead in Gitega Prison Fire

(Nairobi) – Burundian authorities should credibly investigate and provide a transparent and reliable account of the December 7, 2021, fire at Gitega’s central prison, Human Rights Watch said today.

New Study Underscores Dangerous Levels of Chemical Pollution

Chemical pollution has reached a dangerous level globally.

Dutch University Hit by Chinese Government Funding Scandal

The Vrije Universiteit (Free University) of Amsterdam, which describes itself as “encouraging broader minds,” is the latest academic institution to be embarrassed over problematic funding from the Chinese government.

Congo’s Prison Rape Trial a Missed Opportunity

This week a court in Lubumbashi in southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo found 10 male inmates guilty of rape, arson, and attempted escape during riots at Kasapa central prison in September 2020.

CDC Director: COVID Policies Have Failed and Must Be Abandoned

A Jan. 9 tweet from Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, likely reflects her realization that the pipe dream of zero COVID — eradication of the virus — is dead.

Statins Do More Harm Than Good

Amid the pandemic media storm in January 2021, a study published in the journal Atherosclerosis quietly revealed that people taking statin medications had a higher rate of cardiovascular events than those who were not on statins. 12 In the study, the researchers separated the participants by assigning them a coronary

What Happens When You Exercise With a Mask?

In this 13-minute video from 2020, Peggy Hall from The Healthy American offers evidence that cloth face masks may not be as effective as people believe.

Letter to the UN Ad Hoc Committee on Cybercrime

(New York) - Human Rights Watch together with the Electronic Frontier Foundation and 125 non-governmental organizations and academics sent the following letter, urging Members of the United Nations Ad Hoc Committee on Cybercrime to ensure that its work includes meaningful civil society participation, and that any proposed convention on cybercrime

South Korea: Backtracking on Rights Protections

(New York) – South Korean President Moon Jae-in weakened civil and political liberties and cracked down on North Korean rights activists operating in South Korea in 2021, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2022. Moon’s government also failed to pass a comprehensive anti-discrimination law that would protect