Bill Frelick
@billfrelick.bsky.social
Director, Refugee and Migrant Rights Division, Human Rights Watch
A resurgence of cholera in Haiti’s West department underscores the urgent need for coordinated, long-term action to restore basic water and sanitation systems.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
Haiti: Cholera Resurgence Threatens Vulnerable Communities
A resurgence of cholera in Haiti’s West department underscores the urgent need for coordinated, long-term action to restore basic water and sanitation systems.
www.hrw.org
November 5, 2025 at 5:37 PM
A resurgence of cholera in Haiti’s West department underscores the urgent need for coordinated, long-term action to restore basic water and sanitation systems.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...
Reposted by Bill Frelick
1/ 🚨 New @hrw.org report: Federal agents used excessive force against protesters in Illinois. Here’s what we found. 🧵https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/10/23/united-states-federal-agents-use-excessive-force-in-illinois
October 23, 2025 at 8:49 AM
1/ 🚨 New @hrw.org report: Federal agents used excessive force against protesters in Illinois. Here’s what we found. 🧵https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/10/23/united-states-federal-agents-use-excessive-force-in-illinois
Reposted by Bill Frelick
🚨 NEW: @homelandgov.bsky.social federal agents used excessive force against protesters, medics, legal observers & journalists at numerous protests outside ICE facility in Illinois. This isn’t crowd control—it’s intimidation. Congress must act.
📢 Read the @hrw.org report: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
📢 Read the @hrw.org report: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
October 23, 2025 at 12:41 PM
🚨 NEW: @homelandgov.bsky.social federal agents used excessive force against protesters, medics, legal observers & journalists at numerous protests outside ICE facility in Illinois. This isn’t crowd control—it’s intimidation. Congress must act.
📢 Read the @hrw.org report: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
📢 Read the @hrw.org report: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted by Bill Frelick
"The Trump administration will prioritize the immigration of people who oppose the immigration of other people"!!
@billfrelick.bsky.social @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
@billfrelick.bsky.social @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
For the US, a 180-Degree Turn on Refugees
The Trump administration is poised to mount a two-pronged attack on refugee resettlement.
www.hrw.org
October 22, 2025 at 9:23 AM
"The Trump administration will prioritize the immigration of people who oppose the immigration of other people"!!
@billfrelick.bsky.social @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
@billfrelick.bsky.social @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Malaysian authorities should press Myanmar’s junta to free Thuzar Maung and her family. They should investigate the abduction of Thuzar Maung and her family from their home in Kuala Lumpur, which may amount to transnational repression. @hrw.org @elainepearson.bsky.social
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Malaysia: Abducted Refugee Detained in Myanmar
The Malaysian government should press Myanmar’s junta for the immediate release of a refugee family abducted from Kuala Lumpur in July 2023.
www.hrw.org
October 22, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Malaysian authorities should press Myanmar’s junta to free Thuzar Maung and her family. They should investigate the abduction of Thuzar Maung and her family from their home in Kuala Lumpur, which may amount to transnational repression. @hrw.org @elainepearson.bsky.social
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
"Trump refugee plan seeks 7,000 Afrikaners — and virtually no one else" -- See my commentary on this: hrw.org/news/2025/10...
wapo.st/47BTzMA
wapo.st/47BTzMA
Trump refugee plan seeks 7,000 Afrikaners — and virtually no one else
The Trump administration’s rush to process thousands of White South Africans as refugees coincides with plans for overall admissions set as low as 7,500.
wapo.st
October 21, 2025 at 7:18 PM
"Trump refugee plan seeks 7,000 Afrikaners — and virtually no one else" -- See my commentary on this: hrw.org/news/2025/10...
wapo.st/47BTzMA
wapo.st/47BTzMA
Reposted by Bill Frelick
The #Trump administration signals deep cuts in refugee admissions and prioritizing remaining places for white South Africans & Europeans who oppose immigration. @hrw.org's @billfrelick.bsky.social says this 180° resettlement turn "adds deep insult to even deeper injury."
For the US, a 180-Degree Turn on Refugees
The Trump administration is poised to mount a two-pronged attack on refugee resettlement.
www.hrw.org
October 16, 2025 at 11:28 PM
The #Trump administration signals deep cuts in refugee admissions and prioritizing remaining places for white South Africans & Europeans who oppose immigration. @hrw.org's @billfrelick.bsky.social says this 180° resettlement turn "adds deep insult to even deeper injury."
China is legally bound not to send anyone to places where they face a threat of persecution or torture. North Korea makes defection a crime punishable by death. Beijing should stop forced returns of North Koreans, provide them asylum, or permit them to seek resettlement. www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
China: No Letup in Forced Returns to North Korea
Chinese authorities since 2024 have forcibly returned at least 406 people to North Korea, where they are at grave risk of persecution and ill-treatment.
www.hrw.org
October 16, 2025 at 12:26 PM
China is legally bound not to send anyone to places where they face a threat of persecution or torture. North Korea makes defection a crime punishable by death. Beijing should stop forced returns of North Koreans, provide them asylum, or permit them to seek resettlement. www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Alarming: "Along Haiti’s border with the Dominican Republic, communities are facing additional strain as more than 207,000 deported Haitians have returned since January 2025, to a country where gang violence has escalated."
www.iom.int/news/displac...
www.iom.int/news/displac...
Displacement in Haiti Reaches Record High as 1.4 Million People Flee Violence
Geneva/Port-au-Prince, 15 October 2025 – The number of people displaced by violence and instability in Haiti has reached an unprecedented level, with more than 1.4 million people forced from their hom...
www.iom.int
October 15, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Alarming: "Along Haiti’s border with the Dominican Republic, communities are facing additional strain as more than 207,000 deported Haitians have returned since January 2025, to a country where gang violence has escalated."
www.iom.int/news/displac...
www.iom.int/news/displac...
Reposted by Bill Frelick
Italy should revoke its damaging migrant cooperation agreement with Libya, @hrw.org said today. The Italy-Libya Memorandum of Understanding on migration cooperation will renew automatically for three years on November 2, 2025, if neither party revokes it or makes any revisions by that date.
Italy: End Border Control Pact with Libya
Italy should revoke its damaging migrant cooperation agreement with Libya, Human Rights Watch said today. The Italy-Libya Memorandum of Understanding on migration cooperation will renew automatically ...
www.hrw.org
October 13, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Italy should revoke its damaging migrant cooperation agreement with Libya, @hrw.org said today. The Italy-Libya Memorandum of Understanding on migration cooperation will renew automatically for three years on November 2, 2025, if neither party revokes it or makes any revisions by that date.
"Education should never be used as a political pawn & parents should not have to worry from one year to the next if their children will be able to go to school." @michellerandhawa.bsky.social @hrw.org in "How Syrian children are being shut out of Lebanon's classrooms" www.newarab.com/analysis/how...
How Syrian children are being shut out of Lebanon’s classrooms
Government restrictions have effectively barred tens of thousands of Syrian children from school in Lebanon, as NGOs step in to teach those left behind
www.newarab.com
October 7, 2025 at 3:21 PM
"Education should never be used as a political pawn & parents should not have to worry from one year to the next if their children will be able to go to school." @michellerandhawa.bsky.social @hrw.org in "How Syrian children are being shut out of Lebanon's classrooms" www.newarab.com/analysis/how...
Reposted by Bill Frelick
Lebanon's new government has emphasized the importance of quality education. But in a disappointing move, the government recently restricted access to education for many refugees.
All children, regardless of immigration status, have a right to education.
All children, regardless of immigration status, have a right to education.
Lebanon Restricts Education Access for Many Refugees
The new government in Lebanon, formed this February under Prime Minster Nawaf Salam, has emphasized the importance of quality education for students in Lebanon and committed to providing all children ...
www.hrw.org
October 7, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Lebanon's new government has emphasized the importance of quality education. But in a disappointing move, the government recently restricted access to education for many refugees.
All children, regardless of immigration status, have a right to education.
All children, regardless of immigration status, have a right to education.
The domino effect of the US door slam on refugee resettlement: Pakistan sends Afghans awaiting U.S. resettlement back to Taliban persecution. wapo.st/4mOAxH2
Afghans awaited U.S. resettlement. Pakistan sent them back to the Taliban.
More than 1 million Afghans have been pressured to leave or deported by Pakistan. Many were former U.S. contractors approved for U.S. resettlement, now on hold under Trump.
wapo.st
October 6, 2025 at 3:45 PM
The domino effect of the US door slam on refugee resettlement: Pakistan sends Afghans awaiting U.S. resettlement back to Taliban persecution. wapo.st/4mOAxH2
“The military’s atrocities are well known, but the ArakanArmy now appears 2B imposing its own system of oppression in...Rakhine... No govt shld B pushing 4 premature or coercive returns, which would only set the stage 4 the next devastating exodus.” Shayna Bauchner @hrw.org
tob.news/arakan-armys...
tob.news/arakan-armys...
Arakan Army’s Rohingya genocide
The testimonies follow a grim pattern: executions, sexual violence, looting, villages set ablaze, and bodies disposed of to erase evidence.
tob.news
October 1, 2025 at 1:57 PM
“The military’s atrocities are well known, but the ArakanArmy now appears 2B imposing its own system of oppression in...Rakhine... No govt shld B pushing 4 premature or coercive returns, which would only set the stage 4 the next devastating exodus.” Shayna Bauchner @hrw.org
tob.news/arakan-armys...
tob.news/arakan-armys...
“The situation for Rohingya in Myanmar’s Rakhine State remains dire. UN members should make clear at the conference that forcing Rohingya to return to Myanmar under these conditions would place their lives at risk and violate their rights.” @loucharb.bsky.social @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
UN: Support Protection, Justice for Rohingya
United Nations member states meeting on September 30, 2025, on the plight of Rohingya Muslims should commit to urgent action to protect them from persecution and violence.
www.hrw.org
September 30, 2025 at 4:28 PM
“The situation for Rohingya in Myanmar’s Rakhine State remains dire. UN members should make clear at the conference that forcing Rohingya to return to Myanmar under these conditions would place their lives at risk and violate their rights.” @loucharb.bsky.social @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Reposted by Bill Frelick
“Each state will try to divert responsibilities onto the next” until “there’ll be no space for protection for people whose… govts are persecuting them” - @hrw.org @billfrelick.bsky.social on Trump admin’s calls to decimate asylum system @washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Trump administration calls for radical reform of world’s asylum system
Critics of the plan said they fear it would put vulnerable people at risk of being deported to countries where they could face torture and persecution.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 26, 2025 at 2:06 PM
“Each state will try to divert responsibilities onto the next” until “there’ll be no space for protection for people whose… govts are persecuting them” - @hrw.org @billfrelick.bsky.social on Trump admin’s calls to decimate asylum system @washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
“Time is running out to stop Haiti from falling entirely into the hands of abusive criminal groups,” said Nathalye Cotrino, senior Americas researcher at Human Rights Watch. @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
UN Security Council: Move Urgently to Protect Haitians
The United Nations Security Council should rapidly authorize an international mission to confront escalating violence in Haiti, and ensure it has sufficient funding, personnel, and robust human rights...
www.hrw.org
September 26, 2025 at 5:04 PM
“Time is running out to stop Haiti from falling entirely into the hands of abusive criminal groups,” said Nathalye Cotrino, senior Americas researcher at Human Rights Watch. @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
"States gathering for the General Assembly opening should reject the US invitation to trash the post-World War II global refugee system." My thoughts on a US invitation to a high-level meeting to "fix" the global refugee and asylum system: www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Trump Administration Seeks to Rewrite Global Refugee Rules
The Unitedd States government is inviting government delegations to a high-level meeting on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly in what looks like the first step in a bid to tear down t...
www.hrw.org
September 22, 2025 at 8:30 PM
"States gathering for the General Assembly opening should reject the US invitation to trash the post-World War II global refugee system." My thoughts on a US invitation to a high-level meeting to "fix" the global refugee and asylum system: www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
"The European Commission has noted the narrowing space in Greece for groups working with migrants and asylum seekers. It should now take a stronger stance over the issue and press Greece to stop harassing civil society groups and activists." @evacosse.bsky.social @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Greece’s Latest Assault on Civil Society
Greece’s Migration Minister Thanos Plevris recently announced his intention to adopt new measures to silence criticism of the government’s migration policies.
www.hrw.org
September 16, 2025 at 1:33 PM
"The European Commission has noted the narrowing space in Greece for groups working with migrants and asylum seekers. It should now take a stronger stance over the issue and press Greece to stop harassing civil society groups and activists." @evacosse.bsky.social @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Pakistan’s govt should provide assistance to at least 4 million people displaced by recent flooding, but also take action to prevent foreseeable harms, including from climate change and extreme weather events. @hrw.org @saroopijaz.bsky.social
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Pakistan Floods Highlight Urgent Need for Reforms
Catastrophic floods from heavy rainfall in Pakistan this past week displaced at least four million people, destroyed thousands of acres of crops, and severely damaged critical infrastructure. At least...
www.hrw.org
September 11, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Pakistan’s govt should provide assistance to at least 4 million people displaced by recent flooding, but also take action to prevent foreseeable harms, including from climate change and extreme weather events. @hrw.org @saroopijaz.bsky.social
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Wage theft against migrant workers remains one of the most widespread abuses in Saudi Arabia. Victims are rarely compensated for their legally owed wages and, even when they are, it can take years to receive them.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Saudi Arabia: Migrant Workers Unpaid for Months
Hundreds of migrant workers employed in Saudi Arabia by the manufacturing and supply company Sendan International did not receive their salaries for up to eight months.
www.hrw.org
September 10, 2025 at 7:36 PM
Wage theft against migrant workers remains one of the most widespread abuses in Saudi Arabia. Victims are rarely compensated for their legally owed wages and, even when they are, it can take years to receive them.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
The Japanese govt should establish support mechanisms so Cambodian exiles being harassed by the Cambodian govt have a place to turn for help and swiftly establish a national system to investigate cases of transnational repression. @teppeikasai.bsky.social @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Japan: Cambodian Authorities Harass Exiled Dissidents
Cambodian authorities are harassing Cambodians living in Japan who are publicly critical of Cambodia’s government, Human Rights Watch said today.
www.hrw.org
September 2, 2025 at 10:29 PM
The Japanese govt should establish support mechanisms so Cambodian exiles being harassed by the Cambodian govt have a place to turn for help and swiftly establish a national system to investigate cases of transnational repression. @teppeikasai.bsky.social @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
I ask: "Will the Red Cross...have to check documents be4 providing food & shelter 2 disaster-displaced people? Out of fear they will lose their jobs & their orgs their funding, will humanitarian workers avoid a darker-skinned person who asks 4 help in a foreign language?" www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
US Barriers to Disaster Aid Challenge Human Rights Principles
The Washington Post reports that the US government is requiring organizations receiving federal funding, including from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), not to “operate any program that...
www.hrw.org
September 2, 2025 at 5:04 PM
I ask: "Will the Red Cross...have to check documents be4 providing food & shelter 2 disaster-displaced people? Out of fear they will lose their jobs & their orgs their funding, will humanitarian workers avoid a darker-skinned person who asks 4 help in a foreign language?" www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
“The Cambodian government is disregarding its international human rights commitments by wielding the threat of citizenship loss as a political weapon,” said Bryony Lau of @HRW.org. “Concerned governments should publicly weigh in w/ the Cambodian government to reverse this latest assault on dissent.”
Cambodia: Revised Law Endangers Citizenship
Cambodia’s National Assembly passed amendments to its citizenship law on August 25, 2025, that allow the government to silence dissent by reworking Cambodian citizenship.
www.hrw.org
September 2, 2025 at 1:22 PM
“The Cambodian government is disregarding its international human rights commitments by wielding the threat of citizenship loss as a political weapon,” said Bryony Lau of @HRW.org. “Concerned governments should publicly weigh in w/ the Cambodian government to reverse this latest assault on dissent.”
A Venezuelan man went 2 a scheduled appointment at an ICE facility in El Paso to apply 4 asylum. However, he was shackled & put on a plane. “After the plane landed, I saw lots of barbed wire & fences. An immigration official said, ‘Welcome to Guantánamo.’ I was in shock.” www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
US: Migrants Face Abuse in Guantánamo
The United States should immediately halt the transfer of immigrant detainees to the Guantánamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, where they face abusive and inhumane detention conditions that may amount to ill...
www.hrw.org
September 2, 2025 at 1:09 PM
A Venezuelan man went 2 a scheduled appointment at an ICE facility in El Paso to apply 4 asylum. However, he was shackled & put on a plane. “After the plane landed, I saw lots of barbed wire & fences. An immigration official said, ‘Welcome to Guantánamo.’ I was in shock.” www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...