1 in 3 Liberian children never attend school, and only 17% complete grade 9. A big reason why: registration fees. Our new @hrw.org report shows how fees cause children to start school years late, drop out, and resort to child labor. More here: www.hrw.org/news/2026/05...

Great news! Oklahoma just became the 17th US state to ban all child marriage. Previously, the minimum age for marriage was ZERO. Congrats to Unchained at Last and other advocates for this victory! More here: www.unchainedatlast.org/oklahoma-jus...

Toxic lead from a Zambian mine has poisoned generations of children. This week @hrw.org & IHRDA will spotlight the case & call for justice: PANEL: Spotlight on Kabwe 🗓 16 April 09h00 – 10h40 📍 ACERWC CSO Forum, Lesotho With experts, activists & Kabwe residents Join online tinyurl.com/458yy5kd

The number of out-of-school children has risen for 7 years in a row, reaching 273 million. A proposed free education treaty could push countries to act. www.hrw.org/news/2026/04...

For more than 3 years, @hrw.org has been calling on the government of Trinidad and Tobago to bring home its nationals -- mostly women and children -- detained in NE Syria. We renew our call as Trinidadians and other detainees face escalating abuse and attacks. www.hrw.org/news/2026/02...

Recruitment of children by Haitian criminal groups tripled last year. With a near total absence of the state, criminal groups use threats and material incentives to force children into criminal activity, sexual abuse, and sexual slavery www.hrw.org/news/2026/02...

10 years after a landmark US Supreme Court case limiting extreme sentences for children, a new report from ‪@thecfsy.bsky.social‬ assesses progress and gaps. The plaintiff, Henry Montgomery, says, "Men who have done 20, 30, 40 years, it's time for them to come home." cfsy.org/media-resour...

At the end of a rough year, @hrw takes stock of good news for kids from 2025. Countries banned child marriage, prohibited corporal punishment, and expanded free education and protections in armed conflict, showing progress is possible. www.hrw.org/news/2025/12...

Good riddance to rubbish policy. The end to the UK's "two child limit" social security policy has been announced, and it will soon be gone. We @hrw.org welcome the news, as one of many, many, many voices calling for an end to this arbitrary, cruel social security policy.

The International Children's Peace Prize for 2025 was just awarded to 15-year-old Bana Alabed, recognizing her remarkable work to highlight the impact of conflict on the children of Syria. www.kidsrights.org/news/syrian-...

NEW: US state laws requiring healthcare providers to notify a parent about a young person’s abortion decision are causing harm. In a new report, HRW and If/When/How document how state-mandated parental notification laws in six US states threaten young people’s health and safety. Learn more ⤵️

This compelling article highlights Malawi's new free secondary education policy and why it might be "the single most transformative policy the country could ever take for its future." www.nyasatimes.com/opinion-free...

🚩Yesterday Saudi authorities executed Abdullah al-Derazi for alleged crimes committed as a child. Saudi authorities reached two horrific milestones: the 300th execution of 2025 & the 2nd execution of a person accused of committing crimes as a child. @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...

Sri Lanka was once a global leader in education. New @hrw report documents how its ruinous tax policies starved schools of funding and squandered this lead. www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...

On Monday, governments will debate a possible new UN treaty to make education free from preprimary through secondary. More than 8,000 children from 40 countries have weighed in. My colleague @bedeonkidrights.bsky.social shares their views: www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...

Last week the UN reported the highest number ever of grave violations against children in armed conflict. Today, the UN Security Council will discuss how to respond. Tune in live at 10 a.m. ET: webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1s...

Since Myanmar's 2021 military coup, the UN has verified > 1,800 cases of child recruitment, including children as young as 12. The junta is the sole state actor listed on the UN SG's "list of shame" for grave violations against children. More from @hrw.org: www.hrw.org/news/2025/06...

Despite being added to the UN's “list of shame” for violations against children in armed conflict, Israel's and Russia’s abuses have only increased; neither has engaged with the UN to negotiate an action plan to end their violations. My new dispatch: www.hrw.org/news/2025/06...

In armed conflict, violations against children have soared. The UN SG reports more than 41,000 violations -- 25% above last year. My new dispatch on the SG's devastating new report: www.hrw.org/news/2025/06...

Today is the African Union's Day of the African Child. While African governments and leaders have made bold commitments to education, in practice, their investments have fallen short. New analysis from @hrw.org: www.hrw.org/news/2025/06...

New global report from ILO and @unicefmedia.bsky.social finds 20 million fewer children involved in child labor compared to 2020, but 138 million is still far too many. www.ilo.org/resource/new...

Today is the second-ever #InternationalDayofPlay! Learning through play is more than just fun—it builds critical thinking, language, and social skills. Every child should have a guaranteed human right to free preschool, to learn and thrive through play. #ChildRights

Great news! Oregon has become the 15th US state to ban all child marriage. Before 2018, all 50 US states allowed children under the age of 18 to marry. Congratulations to Unchained at Last for its relentless advocacy. www.unchainedatlast.org/another-vict...

New @hrw.org research on 200 asylum seekers, including 81 children, expelled from the US to Costa Rica in February. "It’s reprehensible to dump families in a country they never chose, with no process and no regard for their safety," says @michaelbochenek.bsky.social www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...

A devastating decision from a Florida court would eliminate access to abortion for young people unable to get written, notarized parental consent. www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...

Over 50 children from Trinidad and Tobago have been stranded for years in NE Syria. @hrw.org calls on T&T's newly elected prime minister to bring them and other T&T nationals home. www.hrw.org/news/2025/04...

12 US Senators condemn cancellation of $500 million in grants to address child labor and trafficking worldwide. "The only winners here will be the multinational corporations who want cheap labor, and our adversaries that benefit from these practices." www.duckworth.senate.gov/imo/media/do...

Today @hrw.org issued 100 Human Rights Harms in Trump's First 100 Days. Harms to children include cuts to school lunches, food banks, gender-affirming care, restrictions on school curricula, and programs to combat child labor worldwide. See the whole list here: www.hrw.org/feature/2025...

HRW joined 100+ civil society organizations to call on US DOL to restore $500M in funding to combat forced labor & child labor. These funds are essential to protect children and to end human trafficking. These cuts put lives at risk. #ForcedLabor #ChildLabor stopchildlabor.org/civil-societ...

The United Nations has issued a critical call for information to help shape the global understanding of children’s right to education. Take part here: buff.ly/kf3kO80 #UN #EarlyChildhood #ChildrensRights

It's bad enough that Texas has a total abortion ban. Now lawmakers want to make it a crime -- punishable by up to 20 years in prison -- to transport a young person under age 18 out of state for an abortion without their parents' permission. Read more: www.hrw.org/news/2025/04...

Three independent reports within 1 year all urge the Ugandan government to provide free pre-primary education for its children, paving the way for equality and prosperity. My op-ed together with @iseruganda.bsky.social director Angella Kasule Nabwowe: www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/oped/...

Trump cuts have jeopardized efforts to find thousands of Ukrainian children illegally deported to Russia and Belarus, and may have compromised evidence of war crimes by Russian officials. New dispatch from @billvanesveld.bsky.social www.hrw.org/news/2025/03...

On Monday, Congress confirmed Lori Chavez-DeRemer as the new US Secretary of Labor. One of her big challenges: addressing hazardous child labor in the US. More from my colleague Margaret Wurth: www.hrw.org/news/2025/03...

A new op-ed by Jonathan Todres in @cnn.com makes a powerful case for education to curb child trafficking. edition.cnn.com/world/guest-...

If you missed yesterday's terrific webinar on the proposed free education treaty, you can access the recording here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fM8E...

New report out today from Human Rights Watch: A New Jersey law that allows prosecutors to unilaterally decide whether children are tried as adults is causing devastating harm, particularly for children of color. Read about it here: www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...

Looking forward to a great webinar tomorrow on the proposed treaty to guarantee free education for all children, from pre-primary through the end of secondary. Tune in to hear some great speakers! Register: hrworg.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

If you care about education, I hope you'll consider joining this February 11 webinar on the exciting initiative for a new treaty that would guarantee free pre-primary and free secondary education for all children. Registration link: hrworg.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Under President Sisi, Egypt's government has severely undermined the right to education, allocating some of the lowest budgets to public schools in the country's history, and leaving children in underfunded, overcrowded, and poor quality schools. New from HRW: www.hrw.org/news/2025/01...

“Afghan women have felt ignored by the world while the Taliban has systematically stripped their rights away day after day. This step by ICC is a good start. Afghan women/girls are owed full justice for Taliban crimes and an end, now, to Taliban abuses.” www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

On #InternationalDayOfEducation, @hrw.org highlights barriers, stigma faced by pregnant girls and adolescent mothers in #Tanzania, many of whom remain out of school. The government should expedite protections needed to guarantee legal protections for girls 🧾: www.hrw.org/news/2025/01...

Historic: The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor has requested arrest warrants against two senior Taliban leaders for serious abuses against women and girls in Afghanistan, citing gender persecution, a crime against humanity. More here: www.hrw.org/news/2025/01...

Today is the International Day of Education, but 251 million children are still out of school. For many, the issue is cost. The good news: a possible new treaty to guarantee free education for every child. Read more: www.ipsnews.net/2025/01/new-...

"Targeting children for harm is back on the US agenda." My colleague @michaelbochenek.bsky.social writes about President Trump's executive order seeking to restrict US citizenship by birth: www.hrw.org/news/2025/01...

Targeting children for harm is back on the US agenda. Unilateral (and likely illegal) efforts to redefine US citizenship are the product of malice and political calculation. Backsliding on justice and equality damages everybody. My take for @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/01...

Tomorrow is the #internationaldayofeducation, reminding us of the power of education to transform children's lives. This year, governments have the chance to expand free education for millions of children. My piece in @ipsnews.net on why this is so important: www.ipsnews.net/2025/01/new-...

This week's #InternationalDayOfEducation is a perfect opportunity for the UK to re-commit to global leadership on education by supporting the proposed new treaty on a right to free education, from pre-primary through secondary: www.nurseryworld.co.uk/content/opin... #ChildRights

Canada has the chance to help improve the lives of the world's children. Former government ministers Allan Rock and Lloyd Axworthy write in the @hilltimes.com on why Canada should support the proposed free education treaty. www.hilltimes.com/story/2025/0...

The US has signed the Safe Schools Declaration, joining 120 other countries that have committed to protecting schools, teachers and students during times of armed conflict. @zamahrw.bsky.social writes about why it matters: www.hrw.org/news/2025/01...