Reports

Digital Metering at the US-Mexico Border

The 68-page report, “We Couldn’t Wait: Digital Metering at the US-Mexico Border,” details how the Biden and López Obrador administrations have made a difficult-to-use US government mobile application, CBP One, all but mandatory for people seeking asylum in the United States. The result is de facto “metering,” a practice formalized early in the Trump administration that limits the number of asylum seekers processed at ports of entry each day, turning others back to Mexico.

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  • December 11, 2012

    Indiscriminate Bombing and Abuses in Sudan’s Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile States

    This 39-page report is based on five research missions to the hard-to-access rebel-held areas in the two states and to refugee camps in South Sudan.

  • November 8, 2012

    Migrant Women’s Access to Protection for Family Violence in Belgium

    This 59-page report found three major protection gaps for migrant women who experience domestic violence in that country. Women who migrate to Belgium to join a husband or partner may face deportation if they report the violence during the period when their status is being confirmed, as do undocumented migrant women.
  • September 30, 2012

    Migrant Worker Abuse in Bahrain and the Government Reform Agenda

    This 123-page report documents the many forms of abuse and exploitation suffered by migrant workers in Bahrain and details the government’s efforts to provide redress and strengthen worker protections. Bahraini authorities need to implement labor safeguards and redress mechanisms already in place and prosecute abusive employers, Human Rights Watch said.

  • September 12, 2012

    Thailand’s Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers

    This 143-page report finds that Thai refugee policies are not grounded in law and cause refugees of all nationalities to be exploited and unnecessarily detained and deported. The report focuses on the plight of Burmese refugees, the largest current refugee group in Thailand.

  • July 31, 2012

    Sectarian Violence and Ensuing Abuses in Burma’s Arakan State

    This report describes how the Burmese authorities failed to take adequate measures to stem rising tensions and the outbreak of sectarian violence in Arakan State.

  • July 18, 2012

    Adult and Child Migrants in Malta

    This report details treatment of migrants, typically from sub-Saharan Africa, who arrive in Malta after treacherous boat journeys across the Mediterranean, in unseaworthy boats, without enough food, water, or fuel. Upon arrival in Malta, virtually all irregular migrants are detained – and the conditions in detention can exacerbate the trauma of the journey.

  • July 10, 2012

    Xenophobic Violence in Greece

    The 99-page report documents the failure of the police and the judiciary to prevent and punish rising attacks on migrants. Despite clear patterns to the violence and evidence that it is increasing, the police have failed to respond effectively to protect victims and hold perpetrators to account, Human Rights Watch found.

  • June 25, 2012

    Kachin Refugees from Burma in China’s Yunnan Province

    This 71-page report describes how at least 7,000 to 10,000 ethnic Kachin refugees have fled war and abuses in Burma since June 2011, seeking refuge in southwestern China. The report is based on more than 100 interviews with refugees, displaced persons in Burma, victims of abuses, relief workers, and others.

  • May 15, 2012

    The Vulnerability of Immigrant Farmworkers in the US to Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment

    This 95-page report describes rape, stalking, unwanted touching, exhibitionism, or vulgar and obscene language by supervisors, employers, and others in positions of power. Most farmworkers interviewed said they had experienced such treatment or knew others who had. And most said they had not reported these or other workplace abuses, fearing reprisals.

  • May 4, 2012

    Kenyan Police and Military Abuses against Ethnic Somalis

    This report provides detailed documentation of human rights abuses by the Kenya Defence Forces and the Kenyan police in apparent response to a series of grenade and improvised explosive device (IED) attacks that targeted both the security forces and civilians in North Eastern province.

  • March 20, 2012

    Wartime Abuses and Forced Displacement in Burma’s Kachin State

    This 83-page report describes how the Burmese army has attacked Kachin villages, razed homes, pillaged properties, and forced the displacement of tens of thousands of people. Soldiers have threatened and tortured civilians during interrogations and raped women. The army has also used antipersonnel mines and conscripted forced laborers, including children as young as 14, on the front lines.

  • December 14, 2011

    Alabama’s Immigrant Law

    This 52-page report documents the effect of the Beason-Hammon Alabama Taxpayer Citizen and Protection Act, commonly known as HB 56, on unauthorized immigrants and their families, as well as the larger Alabama communities in which they live.
  • November 4, 2011

    Labor Abuses in Zambia's Chinese State-owned Copper Mines

    This 122-page report details the persistent abuses in Chinese-run mines, including poor health and safety conditions, regular 12-hour and even 18-hour shifts involving arduous labor, and anti-union activities, all in violation of Zambia’s national laws or international labor standards.

  • October 31, 2011

    Abuse of Cambodian Domestic Workers Migrating to Malaysia

    This report documents Cambodian domestic workers’ experiences during recruitment, work abroad, and upon their return home. It is based on 80 interviews with migrant domestic workers, their families, government officials, nongovernmental organizations, and recruitment agents.
  • September 27, 2011

    How Jordanian Laws, Officials, Employers, and Recruiters Fail Abused Migrant Domestic Workers

    This 111-page report documents abuses against domestic workers and the failure of Jordanian officials to hold employers and the agents who recruited the workers accountable.