Civil Rights

• [New] California's new privacy rules, known as the California Privacy Rights Act, take force in 2023, and will see the regulator share enforcement powers to the local attorneys general.
• [New] Recent studies of approximately 2,000 nursing home facility residents in the United States reported a growing abuse rate of 44% and neglect up to 95%, making elder abuse in nursing homes a growing danger.
• [New] Suga could face a call from Biden to bolster Japan's contributions to defending human rights in Asia, especially over China's treatment of the Muslim Uyghur minority in its far-west Xinjiang region.
• [New] Europe remains the safest place in the world to be a journalist, but the pressures on press freedoms - and the risks - are mounting.
• [New] Identifying differences on the local area level could sharpen the focus on gender inequalities across the UK and strengthen the evidence base for local campaign groups and policy makers.
• [New] Immunising the west but only a fraction of the developing world is already fuelling allegations of vaccine apartheid and will leave Covid-19 spreading, mutating and threatening the lives and livelihoods of us all for years to come.
• [New] Google Ads continues to be controversial, particularly among small businesses that complain they unfairly have to pay Google for rights to their own trademarks and business names, or risk being swamped by ads from larger competitors when a consumer goes searching for them.
• [New] While Africa has so far largely avoided the worst case Covid-19 scenario, the emergence of new variants could potentially create health, social, economic and political emergencies in the coming months and years, especially as vaccine rollouts remain slow.
• [New] The defection of the UK from the European Union will weaken the influence of the Atlantic alliance in Europe and strengthen European moves to normalise relations with Russia.
• [New] China will promote new international norms for technology and human rights, emphasizing state sovereignty and political stability over individual rights.
• [New] China urges the U.S. side to immediately stop its wrongdoing and will take all necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.
• [New] The data protection commissioners from all EU and European Economic Area countries highlight the need to mitigate the risks to fundamental rights of EU citizens and residents that may result from issuing the digital green certificate, including its possible unintended secondary uses.
• [New] India has a responsibility under international law to protect refugees from being forcibly returned to a place where their lives or freedoms are threatened.
• [New] As organizations committed to the defence of human rights, civil liberties, and the eradication of discrimination, we know first-hand that online hate presents a growing threat to people in Canada.
• [New] States have unambiguously agreed that terrorism: is a threat to the dignity and primary security of individuals and groups globally, puts the lives of innocent civilians in danger, creates a fearful environment, endangers fundamental freedoms, and violate human rights and the rule of law.
• [New] Growing geopolitical tension between China and the West threatens to undermine the collaboration needed between major countries on issues from climate change and post-COVID - 19 recovery to human rights and freedom of information.
• [New] A UN Parliamentary Assembly could give a voice at the UN to elected legislators from Member States, promoting democratic legitimacy and helping to further safeguard human rights through UN policies and programming.
• [New] A strengthening U.S. dollar will pull foreign capital investments into U.S. sectors / stocks and likely prompt another melt-up type of trend over the next few weeks and months.
• [New] To further boost consumer confidence, the Civil Aviation Authority will be given additional enforcement powers to act on airlines that have breached consumer rights - with a dedicated consultation on how to use additional tools to enforce consumer rights expected later in 2021.
• [New] Changes to how taxing rights are allocated could redistribute around $100 billion, while the minimum-tax pillar, combined with existing U.S. rules, would boost global revenues for governments by as much as $100 billion a year.
• At a time when only 20% of Americans believe public officials in Washington are capable of doing the right thing, the DOJ has the responsibility and opportunity to set a new standard of accountability in the federal government.
• The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted health inequities, and the shift to a broader acceptance of telemedicine is an opportunity to improve health care in the United States.
• The United States will play a lead role in defending democracy, freedom, and the rule of law, working with U.S. allies and partners abroad to restore and defend democratic institutions globally, and counter malign influence from China, Russia, and other authoritarian states.

Last updated: 18 April 2021