Bede Sheppard
@bedeonkidrights.bsky.social
Deputy Director for #ChildRights at @hrw.org. Passionate about: children’s right to free education, from pre-primary through secondary; and keeping students safe, even during war. Photography for fun. Xoloitzcuintli fan.
🇳🇿🇪🇺
🇳🇿🇪🇺
Pinned
At the UN's #HumanRights Council, governments are considering a new treaty to make free education, from pre-primary through secondary, *every* child's right.
Listen to why child activists from around the world are supporting it.
#ChildRights #UNHRC
Listen to why child activists from around the world are supporting it.
#ChildRights #UNHRC
Nigeria ends mother-tongue teaching, opting for English-only. Ghana adopts the opposite: mother-tongue instruction from kindergarten to Primary 3, then gradual transition to English. Evidence from @unesco.org suggests Ghana has it right: www.africanews.com/2025/11/14/n... #ChildRights
Nigeria dumps mother-tongue education - just as Ghana embraces it. Who’s it right? | Africanews
Africa’s latest education divide isn’t about budgets, access or even digital transformation, intrestingly, it’s about language, and two West African giants now sit on opposite sides of the debate.
www.africanews.com
November 16, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Nigeria ends mother-tongue teaching, opting for English-only. Ghana adopts the opposite: mother-tongue instruction from kindergarten to Primary 3, then gradual transition to English. Evidence from @unesco.org suggests Ghana has it right: www.africanews.com/2025/11/14/n... #ChildRights
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
🌍 Join us in Nairobi for the Fifth International Conference on the Safe Schools Declaration!
Hosted by the Government of Kenya with support from key partners.
🗓️ 25–26 Nov 2025
👉 Register now: registration.kenyaconferencessd.co.ke
#SafeSchools2025
#SSD10
#NairobiActionPlan
@gcpea.bsky.social
Hosted by the Government of Kenya with support from key partners.
🗓️ 25–26 Nov 2025
👉 Register now: registration.kenyaconferencessd.co.ke
#SafeSchools2025
#SSD10
#NairobiActionPlan
@gcpea.bsky.social
November 13, 2025 at 11:06 AM
🌍 Join us in Nairobi for the Fifth International Conference on the Safe Schools Declaration!
Hosted by the Government of Kenya with support from key partners.
🗓️ 25–26 Nov 2025
👉 Register now: registration.kenyaconferencessd.co.ke
#SafeSchools2025
#SSD10
#NairobiActionPlan
@gcpea.bsky.social
Hosted by the Government of Kenya with support from key partners.
🗓️ 25–26 Nov 2025
👉 Register now: registration.kenyaconferencessd.co.ke
#SafeSchools2025
#SSD10
#NairobiActionPlan
@gcpea.bsky.social
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
Education halted amidst siege to the capital in #Mali. “Even short interruptions might affect students’ education in a country grappling with armed conflict, violence, and displacement.” @hrw
Education in Mali Shuttered Amid Islamist Armed Group’s Siege
Mali’s military junta has temporarily shut down all schools and universities after an Islamist armed group laid siege to the nation’s capital, Bamako, and cut off fuel supplies.
www.hrw.org
November 10, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Education halted amidst siege to the capital in #Mali. “Even short interruptions might affect students’ education in a country grappling with armed conflict, violence, and displacement.” @hrw
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
#Ukraine shows why supporting education in emergencies matters globally. Ukraine's experience of keeping children learning even during an active war shows that it is possible to prioritize education in crisis contexts. @GPforEducation
www.globalpartnership.org
November 3, 2025 at 8:00 PM
#Ukraine shows why supporting education in emergencies matters globally. Ukraine's experience of keeping children learning even during an active war shows that it is possible to prioritize education in crisis contexts. @GPforEducation
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
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 ⤵️
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 ⤵️
October 29, 2025 at 1:58 PM
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 ⤵️
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 ⤵️
Mali’s junta has temporarily shut all schools & universities after an Islamist armed group laid siege to the capital, and cut off fuel supplies used for school transportation. Both sides in Mali’s conflict need to do more to protect the country’s children. www.hrw.org/news/2025/10... #ChildRights
October 29, 2025 at 8:27 AM
Mali’s junta has temporarily shut all schools & universities after an Islamist armed group laid siege to the capital, and cut off fuel supplies used for school transportation. Both sides in Mali’s conflict need to do more to protect the country’s children. www.hrw.org/news/2025/10... #ChildRights
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
#Cameroon
Post-election period marred with violence, with at least 4 killed allegedly by security forces, dozens injured, hundreds arrested.
Authorities should immediately instruct security forces to not resort to violence against protesters, @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Post-election period marred with violence, with at least 4 killed allegedly by security forces, dozens injured, hundreds arrested.
Authorities should immediately instruct security forces to not resort to violence against protesters, @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
October 28, 2025 at 6:57 AM
#Cameroon
Post-election period marred with violence, with at least 4 killed allegedly by security forces, dozens injured, hundreds arrested.
Authorities should immediately instruct security forces to not resort to violence against protesters, @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Post-election period marred with violence, with at least 4 killed allegedly by security forces, dozens injured, hundreds arrested.
Authorities should immediately instruct security forces to not resort to violence against protesters, @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
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...
OPINION | Free Secondary Education Is Malawi’s Most Radical Leap Toward Equality - Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi
Malawi breaking news publishing 24 hours a day news about Malawi, Malawi Business, Malawi Tourism, Malawi Politics, Malawi News
www.nyasatimes.com
October 27, 2025 at 4:52 PM
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...
"Young people have rights too. This Bill treats them as problems to be managed rather than rights-holders to be protected"--@rightsaotearoa.bsky.social urges the #NewZealand government to reject a plan to ban under-16s from social media platforms. www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK25... #ChildRights
October 27, 2025 at 6:42 PM
"Young people have rights too. This Bill treats them as problems to be managed rather than rights-holders to be protected"--@rightsaotearoa.bsky.social urges the #NewZealand government to reject a plan to ban under-16s from social media platforms. www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK25... #ChildRights
The 'Heroes of Kharkiv' who saved 48 children from kindergarten hit by Russian drone: www.bbc.com/news/article... #AttacksOnEducation
How 48 Ukrainian children were saved from Kharkiv kindergarten hit by Russian drone
The story of a dramatic and heroic rescue that has captured the public imagination in Ukraine.
www.bbc.com
October 27, 2025 at 9:50 AM
The 'Heroes of Kharkiv' who saved 48 children from kindergarten hit by Russian drone: www.bbc.com/news/article... #AttacksOnEducation
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
Returning colonial-era cultural belongings & ancestral remains is an international human rights & reparations issue. Communities' rights should be at the core. Yet Germany's new guidelines distance themselves from international law.
Returns aren't goodwill gestures.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Returns aren't goodwill gestures.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
New German Guidelines on Colonial Returns Fail Rights Test
Last week, German federal, state, and local authorities adopted Common Guidelines on the handling of cultural assets and human remains from colonial contexts. Despite the welcome efforts to regulate t...
www.hrw.org
October 23, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Returning colonial-era cultural belongings & ancestral remains is an international human rights & reparations issue. Communities' rights should be at the core. Yet Germany's new guidelines distance themselves from international law.
Returns aren't goodwill gestures.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Returns aren't goodwill gestures.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
Russia, using drones, attacked a UN Convoy in Ukraine. The very next day, they posted video evidence of the attack for the world to see, and not for the first time. Latest for @hrw.org:
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Russian Forces Deliberately Attack UN Aid Convoy
On October 14, news broke that Russian forces, using drones, had attacked a United Nations interagency convoy delivering humanitarian aid to Bilozerka in the region of Kherson, southern Ukraine.
www.hrw.org
October 22, 2025 at 7:19 AM
Russia, using drones, attacked a UN Convoy in Ukraine. The very next day, they posted video evidence of the attack for the world to see, and not for the first time. Latest for @hrw.org:
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
"Misogyny is a favorite tool of authoritarians." @heatherbarr.bsky.social @hrw.org
When govts convene this week in Paris to discuss feminist foreign policy, there will be a lot to talk about. The French govt’s description of the event says progress toward gender equality “is not being made fast enough.” That is an epic understatement. www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Feminist Foreign Policy During a Global Backlash
When governments convene this week in Paris for a conference on feminist foreign policy, there will be a lot to talk about.
www.hrw.org
October 20, 2025 at 2:06 PM
"Misogyny is a favorite tool of authoritarians." @heatherbarr.bsky.social @hrw.org
GOOD NEWS🥳: Malawi's new government announces that secondary education will be free for all from January 2026! mwnation.com/no-more-scho... #ChildRights
October 20, 2025 at 9:48 AM
GOOD NEWS🥳: Malawi's new government announces that secondary education will be free for all from January 2026! mwnation.com/no-more-scho... #ChildRights
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
‘The loss of education is the loss of the future itself’: Gaza’s children and teachers on two years without school
‘The loss of education is the loss of the future itself’: Gaza’s children and teachers on two years without school
With 97% of schools destroyed or damaged, 600,000 children have just begun their third year out of formal education. Three students and a teacher share their stories – and their hopes
www.theguardian.com
October 19, 2025 at 4:14 AM
‘The loss of education is the loss of the future itself’: Gaza’s children and teachers on two years without school
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
172,000 children in England are homeless tonight. And instead of fixing it, Housing Secretary Steve Reed is cutting affordable housing.
How many more families need to suffer before housing is treated as a right?
How many more families need to suffer before housing is treated as a right?
The number of homeless children living in temporary accommodation in England has risen to the highest levels since records began two decades ago.
Number of homeless children in temporary accommodation reaches new record high
www.mirror.co.uk
October 17, 2025 at 5:15 PM
172,000 children in England are homeless tonight. And instead of fixing it, Housing Secretary Steve Reed is cutting affordable housing.
How many more families need to suffer before housing is treated as a right?
How many more families need to suffer before housing is treated as a right?
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
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...
Sri Lanka was once a global leader in education. New @hrw.org report documents how low tax revenues starved schools of funding and squandered this lead www.hrw.org/news/2025/10... #ChildRights
Sri Lanka: Ruinous Tax Policies Stoke Inequality
Sri Lanka’s tax policies played a driving role in the country’s devastating 2022 economic crisis and have contributed to the chronic underfunding of education and other public services.
www.hrw.org
October 15, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Sri Lanka was once a global leader in education. New @hrw.org report documents how low tax revenues starved schools of funding and squandered this lead www.hrw.org/news/2025/10... #ChildRights
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
The latest UN HRC session proved wins are possible: it created an independent body to investigate abuses in Afghanistan, renewed vital UN monitoring on Russia, Sri Lanka, Sudan & Cambodia, & adopted an important resolution to address systemic racism.
Read more: https://bit.ly/494Rqdn
Read more: https://bit.ly/494Rqdn
UN Rights Council Strengthens Crucial Protections
The latest session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, which concluded last week, offers a glimmer of hope in what are dark times for human rights around the world.
www.hrw.org
October 14, 2025 at 5:00 PM
The latest UN HRC session proved wins are possible: it created an independent body to investigate abuses in Afghanistan, renewed vital UN monitoring on Russia, Sri Lanka, Sudan & Cambodia, & adopted an important resolution to address systemic racism.
Read more: https://bit.ly/494Rqdn
Read more: https://bit.ly/494Rqdn
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
Jacob Lawrence, Child labor and a lack of education was one of the other reasons for people wishing to leave their homes, 1940-41
https://botfrens.com/collections/14377/contents/1134632
https://botfrens.com/collections/14377/contents/1134632
October 14, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Jacob Lawrence, Child labor and a lack of education was one of the other reasons for people wishing to leave their homes, 1940-41
https://botfrens.com/collections/14377/contents/1134632
https://botfrens.com/collections/14377/contents/1134632
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
Changes decided today by European MEPs to the EU supply chains law will undermine corporate accountability and human rights.
My colleague @hderengerve.bsky.social: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
My colleague @hderengerve.bsky.social: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Changes to EU Law Will Undermine Corporate Accountability
Today the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs voted to adopt its position amending the European Union’s landmark corporate accountability law that will seriously curtail efforts to mitiga...
www.hrw.org
October 13, 2025 at 4:53 PM
Changes decided today by European MEPs to the EU supply chains law will undermine corporate accountability and human rights.
My colleague @hderengerve.bsky.social: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
My colleague @hderengerve.bsky.social: www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
30 years after Beijing Declaration, girls’ education has advanced, but the progress is incomplete.
133M girls remain #OutOfSchool. Women hold only 30% of higher-education leadership roles.
➡️ Explore the new #WorldEducationBlog: bit.ly/4n7MzvB
#HerEducationOurFuture
133M girls remain #OutOfSchool. Women hold only 30% of higher-education leadership roles.
➡️ Explore the new #WorldEducationBlog: bit.ly/4n7MzvB
#HerEducationOurFuture
October 13, 2025 at 2:17 PM
30 years after Beijing Declaration, girls’ education has advanced, but the progress is incomplete.
133M girls remain #OutOfSchool. Women hold only 30% of higher-education leadership roles.
➡️ Explore the new #WorldEducationBlog: bit.ly/4n7MzvB
#HerEducationOurFuture
133M girls remain #OutOfSchool. Women hold only 30% of higher-education leadership roles.
➡️ Explore the new #WorldEducationBlog: bit.ly/4n7MzvB
#HerEducationOurFuture
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
🚩On @jimmykimmellive.bsky.social, Aziz Ansari said he would donate part of his Riyadh Comedy Fest fee to @hrw.org
While HRW cannot accept the donation, it's not too late for him to call for the release of detained Saudi activists Manahel al Otaibi & Waleed Abu al Khair
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
While HRW cannot accept the donation, it's not too late for him to call for the release of detained Saudi activists Manahel al Otaibi & Waleed Abu al Khair
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Saudi Arabia: Comedians Silent on Detained Activists
Comedians performing at the Riyadh Comedy Festival did not use their public platform to urge Saudi authorities to free unjustly detained Saudi dissidents, journalists, and human rights activists
www.hrw.org
October 9, 2025 at 9:18 PM
🚩On @jimmykimmellive.bsky.social, Aziz Ansari said he would donate part of his Riyadh Comedy Fest fee to @hrw.org
While HRW cannot accept the donation, it's not too late for him to call for the release of detained Saudi activists Manahel al Otaibi & Waleed Abu al Khair
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
While HRW cannot accept the donation, it's not too late for him to call for the release of detained Saudi activists Manahel al Otaibi & Waleed Abu al Khair
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
The German government's plan for social security "reform" is bad news for #humanrights.
I tried to set out why for @hrw.org here, a couple of weeks back, as we awaited details of these plans:
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
I tried to set out why for @hrw.org here, a couple of weeks back, as we awaited details of these plans:
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
October 9, 2025 at 4:38 PM
The German government's plan for social security "reform" is bad news for #humanrights.
I tried to set out why for @hrw.org here, a couple of weeks back, as we awaited details of these plans:
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
I tried to set out why for @hrw.org here, a couple of weeks back, as we awaited details of these plans:
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Reposted by Bede Sheppard
I am reading reports that the German coalition has agreed the main parts of its welfare "reform" package. Details still emerging.
This shift toward a more punitive logic and harsher sanctions will come at the cost of human rights.
I explain more in this recent piece.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
This shift toward a more punitive logic and harsher sanctions will come at the cost of human rights.
I explain more in this recent piece.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Rights Should Guide Welfare ‘Reform’ Debate in Germany
The partners in Germany’s governing Christian Democrat-Social Democrat coalition have been sparring over the contents of a planned replacement of the Citizen’s Income social security benefit, with a “...
www.hrw.org
October 9, 2025 at 10:03 AM
I am reading reports that the German coalition has agreed the main parts of its welfare "reform" package. Details still emerging.
This shift toward a more punitive logic and harsher sanctions will come at the cost of human rights.
I explain more in this recent piece.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
This shift toward a more punitive logic and harsher sanctions will come at the cost of human rights.
I explain more in this recent piece.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...