People around the world increasingly rely on rechargeable batteries to power their mobile phones, tablets, laptop computers and other portable electronic devices. A key component for lithium-ion rechargeable batteries is cobalt. More than half of the world’s total supply of cobalt comes from the...

The trade in resources – such as gold, diamonds, tantalum, tin, cobalt and coal – perpetuates a cycle of conflict and human rights abuses in many fragile areas of the world. These resources end up in products that we use every day, from aeroplanes and cars to mobile phones and laptops. The EU is...

In the report ‘”This is what we die for”: human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo power the global trade in cobalt’, Amnesty International documents hazardous conditions in which artisanal miners, including thousands of children, mine cobalt in the Democratic Republic of the...

This report documents the hazardous conditions in which artisanal miners, including thousands of children, mine cobalt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It goes on to trace how this cobalt is used to power mobile phones, laptop computers, and other portable electronic devices. Using basic...

Eritrea is one of the biggest refugee producing countries in the world. During the European summer in 2015, headlines, political summits and activism abounded over the refugee crisis. The largest groups among those risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean were Syrians and Afghans, fleeing...

In 2014, Amnesty International recorded and investigated human rights abuses in 160 countries and territories worldwide. While progress is being made in some areas, for many people the human rights situation is getting worse. (Statistics are not exhaustive and refer to 160 countries where Amnesty...

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has some of the world’s most important mineral reserves. For more than a decade the extraction of these resources has been linked to conflict, human rights abuses and corruption. In the southern province of Katanga, people’s lives have been torn apart as a...

Children in southern and central Somalia are under relentless attack. Their lives are in constant danger and their hopes for the future have been shattered by armed conflict and grave human rights abuses. Homes are bombed, families killed, schools destroyed or closed. Much of the violence is...

This open letter, and enclosed petition, expresses concern that domestic workers in Indonesia are not recognized as workers and do not enjoy all the rights provided for workers in Indonesian and international law. The signatories join Amnesty International and Jala-PRT (National Network for...

In this submission, prepared for the UN Universal Periodic Review of Sierra Leone in May 2011, Amnesty International expresses concerns in relation to the overall human rights situation, in particular challenges within the justice sector and the police, violations of children’s rights, gender based...

Fifty years since Nigeria threw off the chains of colonialism it seems the expectations at independence remain largely unfulfilled. Efforts have been made by the Nigerian government to improve the human rights situation since the end of military rule in 1999. The Constitution, which came into force...