Reflecting on the Right to Self-Determination as the Primary Ground for Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and Initial Contact
From 21 April to 2 May 2025, the UN Headquarters in New York hosted the 24th session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) which endorsed the...
The Internationally Recognised Right to Conscientious Objection Under Real Risk in Ukraine
Going into the fourth year of resistance of the Ukrainian nation to Russian aggression, a lack of soldiers is one of the main problems of Ukrainian reality. The Ukrainian government...
Courting the Heat: India’s Legal Reckoning with Climate-Driven Heatwaves
As India suffers through yet another year of scorching summers, heatwaves have turned into a recurring and lethal aspect of the climate crisis. Statistics capture only a fraction of a...
Reopening Finality: Capital Punishment on Trial (Again)
Capital punishment has been the subject of considerable judicial discourse in India, a significant part of which has focused on isolating the right to life from sweeping judicial discretion in...
Does Excluding Refugee Claimants from Subsidized Childcare Violate the Right to Equality? Supreme Court of Canada Considers Appeal in Quebec v Kanyinda
Refugee claimants – and women refugee claimants in particular – are among the most vulnerable members of society. Does excluding them from access to subsidized childcare amount to discrimination based...
Unearthing Justice: The Human Rights and Environmental Toll of Mining in Ghana
Ghana, Africa’s biggest gold-producing country and the world’s sixth biggest, relies heavily on mining for its economic growth. The sector contributes significantly to GDP, jobs, and foreign exchange, with a...
Judicial Activism in Protecting the Right to Equality in Bangladesh: Reflections on High Court Division’s verdict on Redefining Parental Identity in Student Information Forms
The case of BLAST and others vs. Bangladesh and others (Writ Petition No. 5343 0f 2009) challenged the mandatory requirement for students to provide their father’s name in examination registration...
Finding the Essence of Non-Retrogression: A Path to Stronger Social Rights Accountability
Time and again, States have been warned by courts, UN bodies, and NGOs against taking retrogressive steps in economic and social rights. For instance, cuts to essential healthcare funding or...
Digital Control vs. Digital Rights: Critiquing Bangladesh’s Approach to Internet Shutdown
Internet shutdowns obstruct universal access to internet, hindering freedom of expression, the right to information and right to peaceful assembly, economic security, education and health services for the citizens. Nonstop...
A Critical Analysis of the Indian Supreme Court’s Ruling on Same-Sex Marriage
On October 17, 2024, the Supreme Court’s five-judge Constitution Bench ruled that same-sex couples do not have an unconditional right to marry, stating it is a matter for Parliament, and...
The Global Gag Rule as a Human Rights Crisis: Restricting Autonomy and Healthcare Access
In January 2025, the newly inaugurated Trump administration reaffirmed and broadened the so-called Global Gag Rule (GGR), a policy preventing foreign NGOs receiving US funding from providing or even discussing...
India’s Fight Against Sexual Harassment: SHe-Box’s Big Promises Leaves Bigger Gaps
SHe-Box (Sexual Harassment electronic-Box), launched in 2017 under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 (“PoSH Act”), was envisioned as a centralized platform to...
