Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch is dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world.

Human Rights Watch works to end a broad array of human rights abuses, including summary executions, torture, arbitrary detention, restrictions of the freedoms of expression, association, assembly, and religion, violation of due process and discrimination on racial, gender, ethnic and religious grounds. The standards we use are universal civil and political rights, as embodied in international law and treaties. We also address such war-related abuses as indiscriminate shelling or the use of starvation as a weapon of war.

We stand with victims and activists to bring offenders to justice, to prevent discrimination, to uphold political freedom and to protect people from inhumane conduct in wartime.

We investigate and expose human rights violations and hold abusers accountable.

We challenge governments and those holding power to end abusive practices and respect international human rights law.