UN Treaty Watch

UN Human Rights Expert Calls on States to Make Reparations for Colonialism and Slavery

October 30, 2019

A UN human rights expert has concluded that reparations for racial discrimination rooted in colonialism and slavery are essential to the fulfillment of human rights.
HRW Communicates with UNOHCHR on Right of Children to a Healthy Environment

October 08, 2019

Human Rights Watch has submitted a report on the right of children to a healthy environment to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
State Department Official Defends US Commission on Unalienable Rights

September 16, 2019

In a Real Clear Politics Op-Ed, Peter Berkowitz, Director of the U.S. State Department's Policy Planning Staff, defends the Department's Commission on Unalienable Rights, calling for a sober and deliberate reflection about the roots of human rights in the American constitutional tradition and their reach in the conduct of America's foreign affairs.
Illinois Small Business Owners Express Concern Over New Human Rights Laws

September 16, 2019

The state of Illinois has expanded its human rights laws to include businesses with fewer than 15 workers and to impose broad requirements for the way alleged human rights claims are processed, decided, litigated, and punished.
UNHCHR Criticizes U.S. Policy on Migrant Child and Family Detentions

September 06, 2019

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, has voiced concern over the Trump Administration's policy to allow migrant children and their families to be detained for extended periods beyond those permitted by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
UN Special Rapporteur Monitors Vancouver Homeless Relocation

August 22, 2019

Leilani Farha, the United Nations' Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, has informed Vancouver, Canada officials that she is closely monitoring potential human rights law violations associated with city attempts to relocate 200 people who, for one year, have been living in tents at Oppenheimer Park.
UN Agents: US Must Take Action on “Hate Speech”

August 09, 2019

According to the New York Daily News, UN human rights mandate holders are demanding that the US government “take swift and decisive action” to limit “hate speech, intolerance, bigotry and racism,” citing their connection to fatal attacks such as the mass shootings that occurred over the past weekend in El Paso and Dayton.
UN Agent Says Man’s Deportation from Israel Would Be “War Crime”

August 07, 2019

The UN Special Rapporteur charged with pointing out alleged human rights violations committed by Israel, Michael Lynk, has accused Israel of attempting to commit a war crime by trying to deport a photojournalist born in Algeria to Jordan using secret evidence related to national security considerations.
UN Agent Demands More Oversight for South Korean Surveillance

August 01, 2019

UN Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy Joseph Cannataci has labeled safeguards against the abuse of surveillance technology in South Korea “seriously inadequate” and has called for the country to create an independent body to perform “spot-checks” of intelligence operations.
UN Officials: Israeli Destruction of Homes Violates Law

July 26, 2019

A statement by three UN officials criticizes as a violation of Israel’s international legal obligations an Israeli Supreme Court decision approving the destruction of homes in the community of Sur Bahir because the buildings were constructed too close to the West Bank security barrier.