Zama Neff
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Zama Neff
@zamahrw.bsky.social
Human Rights Watch's Child Rights Director. Passionate about protecting schools in war, justice for children, the right to education, ending hazardous #childlabor & rights for migrant, refugee, LGBTQI kids @hrw
Our child rights team is hiring! If you're detail oriented and keen to offer administrative and programmatic support as part of a fast-paced, hardworking, upbeat team of child rights professionals, check out the posting. Deadline is October 16.

job-boards.greenhouse.io/humanrightsw...
Associate, Children's Rights Division
New York, New York, United States
job-boards.greenhouse.io
October 1, 2026 at 10:26 PM
South Africa has named the Taliban’s systematic oppression of women and girls for what Afghan women have long called it: gender apartheid. Now it should act, by supporting its inclusion as a crime against humanity in the new treaty.
www.hrw.org/news/2026/08...
South Africa Names Gender Apartheid. Now It Should Act.
At South Africa’s National Women’s Day commemoration on August 9, President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke, among other things, about the Taliban’s systematic oppression of women and girls in Afghanistan. Stan...
www.hrw.org
August 13, 2026 at 7:38 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Liberia has abolished school registration fees from kindergarten through grade 6, removing a significant barrier to schooling for hundreds of thousands of children.
www.hrw.org/news/2026/08...
Liberia Ends Primary School Registration Fees
Liberia’s government announced on August 5 the elimination of all school registration fees from kindergarten through grade 6, beginning with the new school year on September 7.
www.hrw.org
August 7, 2026 at 3:55 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Young women who call Sweden home are being deported to countries where their rights, autonomy, and safety may be at risk.

Sweden should halt these deportations and ensure return decisions comply with its human rights obligations.

More from @hrw.org: www.hrw.org/news/2026/07...
#WomensRights
Sweden: Deportation Decisions Ignore Women’s Rights Risks
Sweden is deporting young women to countries where they could face severe gender-based rights violations, Human Rights Watch said today. Media reported that in 2025, at least 92 young adults were set ...
www.hrw.org
July 8, 2026 at 6:23 AM
With record-level abuses against children in war, many countries are working together to hold abusers to account. Still a long way to go for an effective crimes against humanity treaty, but growing support to include justice for crimes against children
www.hrw.org/news/2026/06...
June 22, 2026 at 1:04 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
In Liberia, only 17 percent of children complete grade 9, and 1 in 3 children never attend school at all.

In a new report, HRW documents that mandatory fees place a heavy financial burden on families and violate children’s right to education.

Read more from HRW: https://bit.ly/4nNJ0MX
May 20, 2026 at 10:31 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
🚨Great news! Today #ICC judges confirmed all the charges against ex-Philippine president #Duterte and sent his case to trial.

This opens the door to long awaited justice for the families of "drug war" victims and is an important acknowledgment of their suffering.

www.hrw.org/news/2026/04...
ICC: Court Sends Duterte Case to Trial
The International Criminal Court (ICC)’s confirmation on April 23, 2026, of all crimes against humanity charges against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is a major step toward justice for t...
www.hrw.org
April 23, 2026 at 12:36 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
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
April 13, 2026 at 11:19 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
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...
273 Million Children Out of School
A new United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) report delivers a sobering message: the number of children out of school has risen for the seventh consecutive year, re...
www.hrw.org
April 8, 2026 at 6:22 PM
173 countries agree via the Child Soldiers Treaty that children should not be conscripted/used in wars. Good progress but more work to do.

Here's why the future #CrimesAgainstHumanity Treaty should criminalize child recruitment and use: hrw.org/news/2026/04... #CAHTreatyNow
April 3, 2026 at 1:56 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Policymakers meeting at the UN for #CSW70 should ensure that girls facing violence are able to access justice. They should pledge to strengthen justice systems, reinforce prevention efforts, and commit the funds to deliver on these promises. Op-ed here: www.moretoherstory.com/stories/at-t...
At the U.N.’s Annual Meeting on Women, the World Should Focus on Justice for Girls — More to Her Story
As governments gather at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, they should prioritize ensuring that girls can access justice.
www.moretoherstory.com
March 13, 2026 at 5:33 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Children near Ethiopia's largest gold mine suffer chronic health conditions, women have miscarriages & stillbirths.

In response, the UN child rights body just urged Ethiopia to tackle the mine's pollution. The govt should do so, promptly:

www.hrw.org/news/2026/03...
UN Urges Ethiopia to Tackle Pollution at Gold Mine
Residents living near Lega Dembi mine, located in Ethiopia’s Oromia region, have complained of serious health impacts for years, including miscarriages, stillbirths, and children born with long-term h...
www.hrw.org
March 12, 2026 at 11:00 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
🇭🇹 Sexual violence by criminal groups in Haiti is widespread. According to a new @msfincanada.bsky.social report, attacks are becoming more intense and brutal, while survivors face increasingly limited access to care.

Read more: www.hrw.org/news/2026/01...
Sexual Violence Survivors in Haiti Left Without Care
Sexual violence by criminal groups is not new in Haiti. However, the intensity and brutality of these attacks are worsening.
www.hrw.org
January 28, 2026 at 10:53 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Children living near Ethiopia's largest gold mine have been exposed to toxic pollution. Next week, the UN Child Rights Committee, at its Ethiopia session, should push for the mine's suspension and an independent assessment.
www.hrw.org/news/2026/01...
Children Affected by Ethiopia Mine Pollution Need Justice
People living near Lega Dembi gold mine in Ethiopia’s Oromia region have for years complained about serious health impacts, including children born with long-term health conditions, miscarriages, and ...
www.hrw.org
January 22, 2026 at 9:51 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
My latest for @hrw.org: - The UN has problems but it’s better than a global Politburo of leaders of abusive governments. Rather than paying billions to join #Trump’s "Board of Peace", states shld strengthen the UN’s ability to uphold human rights.

The Board charter doesn't mention human rights🫤
The World Needs Stronger UN, Not Trump-led ‘Board of Peace’
The United States played a leading role in establishing the UN. Now, US President Donald Trump is undermining and defunding large parts of it.
hrw.org
January 21, 2026 at 10:15 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
new @hrw.org on how spending on education & health care in #Egypt declined to unprecedented levels, while Sisi keeps justifying jailing tens of thousands by inferring that social & economic rights take precedence over political rights. www.hrw.org/news/2026/01...
Egypt: Declining Funding Undermines Education, Health Care
The Egyptian government has severely undermined the rights to education and healthcare by failing to allocate sufficient spending, falling short of constitutional obligations and international benchma...
www.hrw.org
January 7, 2026 at 4:47 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
“It's time to strengthen the right to free education."

On #HumanRightsDay Hon. Conrad Sackey, #SierraLeone's Minister of Education sets out the case for a new human rights treaty on education in Modern Diplomacy. #HumanRightsDay #RightToEducation 👉 go.ipned.org/2tcvil
It’s time to strengthen the right to free education
A new human rights treaty which recognises pre-primary and secondary education as part of the right to education will help accelerate
go.ipned.org
December 10, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Mineral extraction should not happen at the cost of people and planet.

Governments meeting at the UN Environment Assembly this week should support Colombia’s initiative for a binding minerals treaty. #UNEA7
December 8, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
New from HRW: The arrest of an asylum seeker at the Club World Cup final in July 2025 raises serious concerns about the safety of noncitizens attending the #WorldCup2026 in the United States next year.
US: ICE Arrest at FIFA Event Spotlights Dangers for World Cup
The arrest and return of an asylum seeker who took his children to the Club World Cup soccer tournament final on July 13, 2025, raises serious concerns about the safety of noncitizens attending the 20...
www.hrw.org
December 3, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
Starting today, States are meeting in Kenya to negotiate enviro policies ahead of #UNEA7, incl. a key proposal by the Colombian government on environmental protection in mining.

This could open up the path to a new global mining, and bring real change.

www.hrw.org/news/2025/12...
An Opportunity to Address Mining Abuses Globally
When 29-year-old Norbert Amoya went to fetch water from a river in northern Zambia earlier this year, he found large numbers of dead fish and the water had a strange smell. The cause was a major minin...
www.hrw.org
December 1, 2025 at 9:43 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
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.
November 26, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Reposted by Zama Neff
A new quantitative study from National Observatory on Violence Against Educators:

One of the most comprehensive efforts to date to measure the nature and scale of censorship and harassment of educators across Brazil 🇧🇷. www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
New Data on Censorship and Harassment of Brazil’s Educators
A new quantitative study from National Observatory on Violence Against Educators represents one of the most comprehensive efforts to date to measure the nature and scale of censorship and harassment o...
www.hrw.org
November 25, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
In Feb 26, it will be 80 years since the UN selected its first secretary-general, a man. Since then, eight others have had that job, all men. Surely it’s long past time a woman held the post. In these perilous times we cannot afford an all-men’s club at the top of the UN.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
Seventy-Nine Years Without a Woman Leader at the UN
In February 2026, it will be 80 years since the United Nations selected its first secretary-general, a man. Since then, eight other people have had that job, all men.
www.hrw.org
November 24, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
With conflict globally reaching a level not seen since the post-WWII era, better responses to the impact of conflict on women’s rights are urgently important. Conflicts and crises harm women and girls in ways far beyond sexual violence. www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
What Escalating Conflict Means for Women and Girls
Conflicts and crises cause harm based on gender. Because women and girls across the globe experience legal, economic, and cultural discrimination, they also experience the impacts of conflict in disti...
www.hrw.org
November 19, 2025 at 6:13 AM
Reposted by Zama Neff
🚨 The UN Security Council has just adopted a US-drafted resolution to authorize an international stabilization force for #Gaza with 13 votes in favor, 0 against, 2 abstentions (Russia & China). @hrw.org's reaction follows in a short thread. 🧵
November 17, 2025 at 10:07 PM