NGO Watch®

ICRC Seeks Limits to Autonomy in Weapons

May 15, 2018

In a recent presentation to the Group of Governmental Experts on "Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems," the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) calls for a "human-centred" international approach to limiting the autonomy of weapons and asserts that a fully autonomous weapons system would, by its nature, violate international humanitarian law.
NGO Petitions UN Group on US Land Management

April 25, 2018

Deseret News reports that the nongovernmental organization Utah Dine Bikeyah is calling on the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues to direct US officials to halt the planning process involved in reducing the size of the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, warning of human rights and environmental impacts of the decision.
NGO: Criminalization of "Sexuality" Violates Rights

April 13, 2018

Amnesty International has published a report encouraging human rights activists to wage effective campaigns against the criminalization of "sexuality and reproduction," terms it uses to include abortion and adultery, as a violation of human rights.
NGO Welcomes Latin American Environmental Rights Treaty

March 30, 2018

Amnesty International has issued a press release welcoming the agreement of a treaty among 24 Latin American and Caribbean countries implementing rights of access to information and to justice in matters relating to the environment and codifying the rights of "environmental human rights defenders" to protest alleged abuses by businesses and governments.
NGO Calls for More Aggressive ICC Prosecutions

March 22, 2018

Amnesty International has issued a press release lamenting that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has yet to fulfill its purpose of becoming "a powerful mechanism to hold abuse of power in check," calling for more aggressive prosecutions even in "the most politically challenging investigations and cases" and even against non-state actors.
NGO Identifies Broad State Obligations on Housing

March 22, 2018

Amnesty International has applauded a report of a UN human rights mandate holder containing "practical guidance" to governments on their obligation to ensure that everyone in their territory has access to adequate housing, identifying a positive obligation on countries to prevent homelessness in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
NGO Paints Broad Picture of Environmental Obligations

March 22, 2018

The nongovernmental organization Amnesty International has submitted a statement to the UN Human Rights Council welcoming the release by a UN human rights mandate holder of a set of broad "framework principles" on the right to a healthy environment and warning that countries must not withdraw from any global treaty seeking to protect against environmental harm.
Paper: Trade Deals Can Advance Global Environmental Governance

March 21, 2018

The Centre for International Governance Innovation has published a report encouraging the inclusion of references to multilateral environmental agreements in bilateral trade deals around the world as a way to advance global governance of environmental issues.
NGO Coalition Seeks Autonomous Weapons Treaty

March 19, 2018

Politico reports on efforts by a coalition of nongovernmental organizations (NGO) and military personnel to drive up support at the UN and in other settings for a binding global treaty prohibiting the use of "lethal autonomous weapons" in combat situations as a violation of the global human rights agenda.
HRW Criticizes US for Ignoring Reproductive Rights

March 09, 2018

Human Rights Watch has criticized the US State Department's announcement that it will cut provisions related to "sexual and reproductive health rights" from its annual report on human rights conditions around the globe, arguing that the US is ignoring that international human rights law, as interpreted by UN treaty bodies, recognizes the existence of such rights.