UNITED NATIONS (AP) 鈥 People鈥檚 rights are being suppressed and threatened everywhere in the world, from wars to selective government outrage about some abuses and silence about others because of 鈥減olitical expediency,鈥 a leading human rights group said Thursday.
鈥淲e only have to look at the human rights challenges of 2023 to tell us what we need to do differently in 2024,鈥 Human Rights Watch said in its .
Armed conflicts have mushroomed, leading with the Israel-Hamas war, and the issue is how governments respond to them, Tirana Hassan, the New York-based watchdog's executive director, told a news conference. "It needs to be an end to double standards.鈥
As an example, she said many governments quickly and justifiably condemned the 鈥渦nlawful鈥 killings and atrocities by the Palestinian militant , killing hundreds and taking hostages. After the attacks, Israel 鈥渦nlawfully blocked鈥 aid to Gaza residents and its ongoing offensive in the territory has killed more than 23,000 people, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, while reducing entire neighborhoods to rubble.
鈥淵et many of the governments that condemned Hamas鈥 war crimes have been muted in responding to the war crimes committed by the Israeli government,鈥 Hassan said.
She said such selective outrage sends a dangerous message that some people鈥檚 lives matter more than others and shakes the legitimacy of the international rules that protect everyone鈥檚 human rights, she said.
Human Rights Watch praised on in a landmark case that began Thursday. Hassan said other countries including the United States should support South Africa鈥檚 action 鈥渁nd ensure that Israel complies with the court鈥檚 decision.鈥
The HRW report said tradeoffs on human rights in the name of politics are also clear. It cited the failure of many governments to speak out about the Chinese government鈥檚 repression and control over civil society, the internet and media.
鈥淐hinese authorities鈥 cultural persecution and arbitrary detention of a million Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims amount to crimes against humanity,鈥 it said. 鈥淵et many governments, including in predominantly Muslim countries, stay silent.鈥
The report described the United States and European Union as ignoring their human rights obligations in favor of politically expedient solutions.
鈥淯.S. President Joe Biden has shown little appetite to hold responsible human rights abusers who are key to his domestic agenda or are seen as bulwarks to China,鈥 it said.
鈥淯.S. allies like Saudi Arabia, India, and Egypt violate the rights of their people on a massive scale yet have not had to overcome hurdles to deepen their ties with the U.S.,鈥 the report said. 鈥淰ietnam, the Philippines, India, and other nations the U.S. wants as counters to China have been without regard for their human rights abuses at home.鈥
Also, HRW said the EU circumvents its human rights obligations to asylum seekers and migrants, 鈥渆specially those from Africa and the Middle East, striking deals with abusive governments like Libya, Turkey and Tunisia to keep migrants outside of the European bloc.鈥
Several national leaders were named as examples of worrying trends. India's 鈥渄emocracy has slid toward autocracy" under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has weakened the judiciary and has used mass detention as an ostensible solution for fighting crime, the report said.
The group cited as a bright spot for the year the International Criminal Court鈥檚 and his children鈥檚 rights commissioner alleging war crimes related to the forced transfer of Ukrainian children Russian-occupied areas, and their deportation to Russia.
In Pakistan, authorities last year 鈥渦sed threats, abuse, and detention to coerce Afghans without legal status to return鈥 to Afghanistan, now ruled by the Taliban 鈥 forcing even refugees and asylum seekers to go back, the annual report said.
Since the government in Islamabad launched the crackdown, saying it was aimed at foreigners living in Pakistan illegally, nearly half a million Afghans have gone back or been expelled.
Hassan also pointed to the movement toward marriage equality in places like Nepal but especially to the determination of Afghan girls and women who took to the streets to oppose the Taliban bans on work and education and have found alternative ways to learn.
鈥淚f the people at the center whose human rights are being abused are still prepared to fight then human rights matter,鈥 she said.
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Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.
