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98-616: Within Senegal, the term talibé can be used in a wider context, “for instance to denote a militant adherent of a political party.” The talibé's relationship with his marabout is one of “devotion and strict obedience.” The marabout provides “guidance, protection, and intercession” for the talibé. A talibé's allegiance to his marabout is expressed through economic support or tithes. The views on talibés in Senegalese society are diverse. Some individuals, ethnic groups and religious denominations promote

196-451: A qadi . Marriages are endogamous. The preferred and common form of marriage is the bilateral cross-cousin type, with most preferred marriages are those between a man and the daughter of his mother's brother. Multiple marriages have been common, with many Wolof households featuring two wives. Dowery among the Wolof people is paid in the form of a brideprice . The dower is the property of

294-472: A child for the purpose of exploitation.” Talibés are seldom provided with necessities such as basic shelter and food. Some are punished for failing to meeting their quotas by being refused entry into the daara. This forces the child to sustain even longer hours begging, or to sleep on the streets. Hundreds of talibés are estimated to flee abusive marabouts every year, compounding the issue of street children in urban areas. The fear of punishments for not meeting

392-410: A free category called geer , a castes category called nyeenyo or neeno , and a servile category of slaves called jaam . Caste status has been hereditary, and endogamy among the men and women of a particular caste status has been an enduring feature among the Wolof people, according to Leonardo Villalón, a professor of Political Science and African Studies. The Wolof's caste status, states Villalón,

490-829: A global network of non-governmental organizations that monitor censorship worldwide. It also co-founded the Cluster Munition Coalition , which brought about an international convention banning the weapons. HRW employs more than 275 staff—country experts, lawyers, journalists, and academics—and operates in more than 90 countries around the world. Headquartered in New York City , it has offices in Amsterdam , Beirut , Berlin , Brussels , Chicago , Geneva , Johannesburg , London , Los Angeles , Nairobi , Seoul , Paris , San Francisco , Sydney , Tokyo , Toronto , Washington, D.C. , and Zürich . HRW maintains direct access to

588-531: A mass membership, as AI is, HRW depends on wealthy donors who like to see the organization's reports make headlines. For this reason, according to Foreman, it may be that organizations like HRW "concentrate too much on places that the media already cares about," especially Israel. For the financial year ending June 2008, HRW reported receiving approximately US$ 44 million in public donations. In 2009, HRW said it received almost 75% of its financial support from North America, 25% from Western Europe and less than 1% from

686-561: A minority. However, Wolof language and culture have a disproportionate influence because of their prevalence in Banjul , the Gambian capital, where a majority of the population is Wolof. In Mauritania, about 8% of the population are Wolof. Their total population exceeds 6 million in the three countries. The vast majority of Wolof people are Sunni Muslims . However, religious practice often contains local elements. The complicated relationship had led to

784-445: A part of a ceremonial feast. Some villages in contemporary times share agricultural machinery and sell the peanut harvest as a cooperative. Those Wolof people who are of artisan castes work on metal, weave and dye textiles, produce leather goods, make pottery and baskets, tailor clothes, produce thatch and perform such economic activity. Wolof smiths produce tools for agriculture, while another group works on gold jewelry. Occupation

882-420: A patrilocal male as its head, with a different wife and her children in each hut in polygynous households. A compound traditionally operates a joint kitchen, but if there are internal disputes then each family unit cooks separately. A village is headed by a chief, called the borom dekk . This role belongs to a caste and has been hereditary. The chief has been the tribute (tax) collector and the interface between

980-637: A permanent access to attend the organization's assemblies. Bahrain held the IPU Meeting from 11–15 March 2023. Pursuant to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Human Rights Watch opposes violations of what the UDHR considers basic human rights . This includes capital punishment and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation . HRW advocates freedoms in connection with fundamental human rights, such as freedom of religion and freedom of

1078-562: A report accusing Israel of apartheid and calling on the International Criminal Court to investigate "systematic discrimination" against Palestinians, becoming the first major international rights NGO to do so. In August 2020, the Chinese government sanctioned HRW executive director Kenneth Roth—along with the heads of four other U.S.-based democracy and human rights organizations and six U.S. Republican lawmakers—for supporting

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1176-455: A response to “rampant population growth, intensified poverty, and neoliberal policy.” The framing of the plight of talibés in socio-economic terms is, according to Perry, an intentional strategy of NGOs to “avoid accusations of cultural imperialism.” Daaras have existed for hundreds of years. They grew in significance during the French colonial period . The number of rural daaras declined during

1274-506: A result of the Chinese sanctions, with the situation in Hong Kong henceforth to be monitored by HRW's China team. The decision to leave came amid a wider crackdown on civil society groups in Hong Kong. On 8 March 2023, Bahrain canceled two HRW staff members' entry permit visas to attend the 146th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly. The permits were issued on 30 January 2023. Holding a constant observer status with IPU, HRW authorities had

1372-581: A rigid, endogamous social stratification that included nobility, clerics, castes, and slaves. The Wolof were close to the French colonial rulers, became integrated into the colonial administration, and have dominated the culture and economy of Senegal since the country's independence from France on 4 April 1960. They are also referred to as the Wollof , Jolof , Iolof , Whalof , Ialof , Olof , and Volof , among other spellings. The term Wolof also refers to

1470-421: Is a greater barrier to inter-marriage than is either ethnicity or religion in Senegal. The castes have also been hierarchal, with lowest level being those of griots . Their inherited inferiority has been culturally stated to be close to those of slaves ( jaams or kaals ). The castes, states David Gamble, were associated with ideas of relative purity/impurity. The leatherworkers, for example, were considered

1568-658: Is a qualified social worker who has worked with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), Save the Children , and most recently as director of Amnesty International 's Crisis Response Program. Hassan holds honors degrees in social work and law from Australia and a master's degree in international human rights law from Oxford University . Human Rights watch and Amnesty International are both international non-governmental organizations headquartered in

1666-467: Is biased against Israel in its coverage of the Israel–Palestine conflict . In 2014, two Nobel Peace Laureates , Adolfo Pérez Esquivel and Mairead Maguire , wrote a letter signed by 100 other human rights activists and scholars criticizing HRW for its revolving-door hiring practices with the U.S. government, its failure to denounce the U.S. practice of extrajudicial rendition , its endorsement of

1764-399: Is traditionally based on gender and inherited caste. Men of certain caste are smiths, leatherworkers, weavers (now the profession of former slave descendants). Religious and political functions have been the domain of men, while women typically keep the household, bring water from their sources such as wells or nearby rivers. Women also plant, weed, harvest crops and collect firewood. Women of

1862-535: The baadoolo or "lacking power". The chronological origin of social stratification based on castes and slavery is unclear, likely linked. Tal Tamari, an anthropological researcher at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in Paris, suggests that a corollary of the rising slavery system was the development and growth of a caste system among Wolofs by the 15th century, and other ethnic groups of Africa by about

1960-571: The Muridiyya also called the Mouride brotherhood. In the 20th century, Ahmadiyya and Methodist missionaries opened offices in contemporary Senegambia, but very few Wolof have become members of these. The Wolof people's traditional culture and practices have survived the colonial era and are a strong element of the Senegalese culture . Wolof ( / ˈ w ɒ l ɒ f / ) is a language of Senegal ,

2058-540: The Nobel Peace Prize as a founding member of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines . It played a leading role in the 2008 treaty banning cluster munitions . HRW's annual expenses totaled $ 50.6 million in 2011, $ 69.2 million in 2014, and $ 75.5 million in 2017. Human Rights Watch was co-founded by Robert L. Bernstein , Jeri Laber , and Aryeh Neier as a private American NGO in 1978, under

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2156-753: The Rwandan genocide of 1994, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , and the excessive breadth of U.S. sex offender registries and their application to juveniles. In the summer of 2004, the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Columbia University in New York became the depository institution for the Human Rights Watch Archive, an active collection that documents decades of human rights investigations around

2254-464: The Sahel , West Africa, and North Africa was an established institution by then, and slavery created a template for servile relationships and social stratification. According to Victoria B. Coifman, a professor of Afro-American and African studies, historical evidence suggests that the Wolof people were a matrilineal society before the 14th-century. Later politico-religious changes, such as those brought during

2352-587: The West Atlantic branch of the Niger–Congo family of languages. Their early history is unclear. The earliest documented mention of the Wolof is found in the records of 15th-century, Portuguese-financed Italian traveller Alvise Cadamosto , who mentioned well-established Islamic Wolof chiefs advised by Muslim counselors. The Wolof belonged to the medieval-era Wolof Empire of the Senegambia region. Details of

2450-582: The Wolof Empire era, introduced major changes in the social structure among the Wolofs and many other ethnic groups, including a shift to a patrilineal system. The divisions, the endogamy among Wolof castes, social and political groups have persisted into the post-colonial independent Senegal. The Wolof are primarily rural (~75%), living in small villages. According to David Gamble, the historical evidence suggests Wolofs used to live in large settlements priors to

2548-533: The Wolof language and to their states, cultures, and traditions. Older French publications frequently employ the spelling Ouolof ; up to the 19th century, the spellings Wolluf , Volof , and Olof are also encountered, among rarer variants like Yolof , Dylof , Chelof , Galof , Lolof , and others. In English, Wollof and Woloff are found, particularly in reference to the Gambian Wolof; for English-speakers,

2646-532: The 13th century. However, according to Susan McIntosh, a professor of anthropology specializing in African societies, the emergence of caste systems in West African societies such as the Wolof, Mande, Malinke, Serer, and Soninke was likely older. She places the development and spread of castes in these societies to about the 10th century, because slave capture , slave trade, and slave holding by elite families across

2744-478: The 15th century. The assaults of the 18th and 19th century jihads, states Lapidus, paved the way for massive conversions to Islam, yet not a nearly universal conversion. In the late 19th century, as the French colonial forces launched a war against the Wolof kingdoms, the Wolof people resisted the French and triggered the start of near-universal conversion of the Wolof people in Senegambia to Islam. Wolofs joined

2842-466: The 16th century, Portuguese slave traders started to purchase slaves from Senegambian ports to transport to their American colonies ; these slaves frequently passed through Wolof lands before arriving at the coast. As the European demand for slaves increased during the 17th and 18th centuries, the era saw a corresponding increase in Wolof slave raids with the purpose of acquiring captives to transport to

2940-561: The 18th century, the Wolof were impacted by the violent jihads in West Africa, which triggered internal disagreements about Islam among the Wolof. In the 19th century, as the colonial French forces launched a war against the Wolof kingdoms, the Wolof people resisted the French and converted to Islam. Contemporary Wolofs are predominantly Sufi Muslims belonging to Mouride and Tijaniyyah Islamic brotherhoods. The Wolof people, like other West African ethnic groups, historically maintained

3038-545: The Convention, the State bears responsibility and its officials should be considered as authors, complicit or otherwise responsible under the Convention for consenting to or acquiescing in such impermissible acts. Given the punishments used against talibés, such as stress positions and chaining, HRW argues that this construction of the Convention indicates that instances of torture are occurring against talibés. It has been reported by

Talibe - Misplaced Pages Continue

3136-566: The Gambia , and Mauritania , and the native language of the Wolof people. Like the neighbouring languages Serer and Fula , it belongs to the Senegambian branch of the Niger–Congo language family . Unlike most other languages of Sub-Saharan Africa , Wolof is not a tonal language . Wolof originated as the language of the Lebu people . It is the most widely spoken language in Senegal, spoken natively by

3234-629: The Gambia, such as pre-historic pottery, the 8th-century stones, and 14th-century burial mounds, but, states Gamble, these provide no evidence that links them exclusively to the Wolof ethnic group. Their name as the Wolof first appears in the records of 15th-century Portuguese travelers. With the Arab conquests of West Africa in last centuries of the 1st millennium CE, one theory states that the Wolof people were forced to move into north and east Senegal where over time villages and towns developed into autonomous states such as Baol, Kayor, Saloum, Dimar, Walo, and Sine

3332-462: The HRW archive are not open to researchers or to the public, including the records of the meetings of the board of directors, the executive committee, and the various subcommittees, limiting historians' ability to understand the organization's internal decision-making. HRW has been criticized for perceived bias by the national governments it has investigated for human rights abuses. Some sources allege HRW

3430-562: The Hong Kong pro-democracy movement in the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests . The five organizations' leaders saw the sanctioning, whose details were unspecified, as a tit-for-tat measure in response to the earlier U.S. sanctioning of 11 Hong Kong officials. The latter step had in turn been a reaction to the enactment of the Hong Kong National Security Law in June. In October 2021, The New York Times reported that HRW left Hong Kong as

3528-913: The North Atlantic Anglosphere that report on global human rights violations. The major differences lie in the groups' structures and methods for promoting change. Amnesty International is a mass-membership organization. Mobilization of those members is the organization's central advocacy tool. Human Rights Watch's main products are its crisis-directed research and lengthy reports, whereas Amnesty International lobbies and writes detailed reports but also focuses on mass letter-writing campaigns, adopting individuals as " prisoners of conscience " and lobbying for their release. HRW openly lobbies for specific actions for other governments to take against human rights offenders, including naming specific individuals for arrest, or sanctions to be levied against certain countries, such as calling for punitive sanctions against

3626-648: The Portuguese merchants on the coast, they had a long tradition of established trading of goods and slaves with the Western Sudanese empires and with Imamate of Futa Toro and other ethnic groups in North Africa. Slavery had been a part of the Wolof culture since their earliest recorded history. Prior to the arrival of Europeans to regions inhabited by the Wolof, slaves there were either born into slavery or enslaved via purchase or capture in warfare. Beginning in

3724-449: The Senegalese non-governmental organisation XALAAT, a leading institution that works to confront the issue in this country, that while the subject being very controversial, in some communities there are conclusive evidences that ill-treatment has always been very common practice in most of the traditional Koranic Schools called Daara . Additionally, this ngo is arguing to have efficiently brought practitioners in this field to connect together

3822-517: The U.S. 2011 military intervention in Libya , and its silence during the 2004 Haitian coup d'état . In 2020, HRW's board of directors discovered that HRW accepted a $ 470,000 donation from Saudi real estate magnate Mohamed Bin Issa Al Jaber , owner of a company HRW "had previously identified as complicit in labor rights abuse", under the condition that the donation not be used to support LGBT advocacy in

3920-458: The Wolof on Islam. Ira Lapidus , a professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic History, states that the early-19th-century Senegambian fighters "swept through Senegambia burning villages, killing pagans and enslaving their enemies," and were responsible for the conversion of substantial numbers of Wolof to Islam. The West African jihads that involved the Wolof and other ethnic groups started early and often inspired by militant reformers such as those of

4018-413: The Wolof people (40% of the population) but also by most other Senegalese as a second language. Wolof dialects vary geographically and between rural and urban areas. "Dakar-Wolof," for instance, is an urban mixture of Wolof, French , and Arabic . The Wolof people have had a rigid, patriarchal, endogamous social stratified society at least since the 15th-century. The social strata have included

Talibe - Misplaced Pages Continue

4116-587: The abuse, or with social workers assisting the victims. Given the ILO's views on forced begging, HRW has argued that marabouts, when transporting talibés with the primary intention of obtaining labour from them, are engaging in child trafficking . Article 3(c) of the Trafficking in Persons Protocol includes in the definition of ‘trafficking in persons,’ the “recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of

4214-402: The actions are carried out by a state official. However, the committee which oversees that treaty issued an opinion stating that: [Where] State authorities…know or have reasonable grounds to believe that acts of torture or ill-treatment are being committed by…private actors and they fail to exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate, prosecute and punish such…private actors consistently with

4312-510: The affected countries, Americas Watch also examined the role played by foreign governments, particularly the United States government , in providing military and political support to abusive regimes. Asia Watch (1985), Africa Watch (1988) and Middle East Watch (1989) were added to what was known as "The Watch Committees". In 1988, these committees united under one umbrella to form Human Rights Watch. In April 2021, Human Rights Watch released

4410-464: The application of electric cables, clubs and canes. In some daaras, an older, senior talibé, or assistant marabout will be responsible for punishing younger talibés who fail to return their daily quota, or are late returning. In other cases, a marabout might not supervise the children living in the daara, leaving the senior talibés to steal from the younger, as well as abuse them physically and sexually. The Convention against Torture only applies where

4508-580: The average sum demanded by a marabout is 373 CFA (US$ 0.79), rising to 445 CFA (US$ 0.94) on holy days when greater almsgiving is customary. World Bank statistics show that just under 30 percent of Senegal's population lives on less than 593 CFA (US$ 1.25) per day, and over 55 percent live on less than 949 CFA (US$ 2.00). This highlights the difficulty talibés have in meeting the quotas requested by marabouts. In addition to financial quotas, some marabouts set quotas for basic foodstuffs such as sugar and rice. The International Labour Organization (ILO) has opined that

4606-596: The basis for drawing international attention to abuses and pressuring governments and international organizations to reform. Researchers conduct fact-finding missions to investigate suspect situations, also using diplomacy, staying in touch with victims, making files about public and individuals, providing required security for them in critical situations, and generating local and international media coverage. Issues HRW raises in its reports include social and gender discrimination , torture , military use of children , political corruption , abuses in criminal justice systems, and

4704-493: The beginning and for many centuries while accepting and relying on Muslim clerics as counselors and administrators. According to David Gamble, the pre-Islamic beliefs of Wolof may be reflected and absorbed in the Sufi beliefs about good and bad spirits ( jinn ), amulets, dances, and other rituals. In and after the 18th century, the Wolofs were impacted by the violent jihads in West Africa, which triggered internal disagreements among

4802-481: The beginning of the formation of Senegal as a unified state. By the end of the 15th century, the Wolof states of Jolof, Kayor, Baol, and Walo had become united in a federation with Jolof as the metropolitan power. The position of king was held by the Burba Wolof, and the rulers of the other component states owed loyalty and tribute payments to him. Before the Wolof people became involved in goods and slave trading with

4900-497: The coast. The transatlantic slave trade also led to the Wolof acquiring European firearms , which were commonly bartered for slaves at the West African coast. With these firearms, the intensity and violence of Wolof slave raids (and conflicts with other ethnic groups in general) increased. However, these slave raids eventually began to subside as European and American governments progressively outlawed their nations' involvement in

4998-471: The current edition, World Report 2020 , was released in January 2020, and covers events of 2019. World Report 2020 , HRW's 30th annual review of human rights practices around the globe, includes reviews of human rights practices and trends in nearly 100 countries, and an introductory essay by Executive Director Kenneth Roth, "China's Global Threat to Human Rights". HRW has reported extensively on subjects such as

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5096-435: The daara's supplies when it could not sustain its own demands from the harvests provided by the marabout's fields. The increasing number of daaras in urban settings has stemmed the traditional forms of support that sustained daaras . The prevalence of almsgiving in Senegalese society has made child begging profitable in cities. In the 1970s, some urban daaras ran seasonally, allowing for marabouts to return to their villages for

5194-678: The definition of a practice ‘akin to slavery ’, as defined by the Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery . That convention states that receiving a child “with a view to the exploitation of the child or young person or of his labour,” is a practice akin to slavery which is subject to the convention. Talibés are sometime required by their marabouts to meet a quota of money or basic foods. Failure to meet that quota can result in physical abuse. Human Rights Watch (HRW) documented boys exhibiting scars and welts, usually resulting from

5292-484: The different clusters that have until now ignored while considering the problem. Little research has been done on the extent of sexual abuse of talibés. HRW, however, noted several of instances of rape in daaras by older talibés, or assistant marabouts. Other instances of rape were reported to have taken place outside of the daara against children living on the street who had fled from violence at their daara. These cases were recorded in interviews with talibés who witnessed

5390-484: The dispute. The villagers detained him; he settled among them and became the one who settled disputes and sovereign authority. He was called Ndyadyane Ndyaye , and his descendants were called Ndiayes or Njie , and these led to ruling families of Wolof, Mali according to this mythical legend. The documented history, from 15th-century onwards, is a complex story of the rivalry between powerful families, wars, coups and conquests in Wolof society. The Jolof or Wolof Empire

5488-492: The early 18th-century, all sorts of charges and petty crimes resulted in the accused being punished for the slave strata. Slaves acquired by kidnapping, purchase or as captives of war were called jaam say in the Wolof society. The geer or "freeborn" too had a hierarchical structure. At the top were the royal rulers, below them were the regionally or locally dominant noble lineages who controlled territories and collected tribute, and below them were commoner freeborn called

5586-524: The emergence of Sufi traditions from a historic and dominant Sunni Islam environment. The pre-Islamic religious traditions of Wolof are unknown, and neither written nor oral traditions about their traditional religion are available. The oral traditions of the Wolof have legends that state them to have been adherents of Islam since the founding of their Kingdom of Jolof . However, historical evidence left by Islamic scholars and European travelers suggest that Wolof kings and warriors did not convert to Islam in

5684-437: The harvest. However, it became more economically viable for urban daaras to remain open all year round: Over time, the marabouts started to stay in the cities…Why return to the village, where they had to work the land for long hours, when [in the city] a child comes daily with money, sugar, and rice? Perry warns that the above view can imply that only urban daaras exploit talibés. She contends that urban and rural daaras “are

5782-460: The jihad wars and slave raids. Wolof villages consist of a cluster of compounds . Some clusters are random with no central plaza, and many are clustered around a plaza with a mosque in the center. Each compound has either round or square huts made from adobe-like mud-millet stalk walls and thatched roofs with a conical shape. A compound is sometimes fenced with a hedge made from reeds or millet-stalk. A single compound may have multiple huts, with

5880-456: The kingdom officials and the villagers. Typically, the chief is also a Muslim religious leader, called seriñ ( marabout ). Larger villages have an imam, called the yélimaan , and a hunting or warriors leader called the saltigé . Both have traditionally been hereditary castes. Social relationships within a village are based on hierarchy, while disputes are typically settled with intermediaries and Muslim tribunals headed by an Islamic judge called

5978-505: The latter half of the 20th century in favour of Arab-styled medersas (madrasa). Medersas grew in popularity as they enabled farmers to keep their children working outside of school hours, provided a secular and Quaranic education, and exposed children to fewer hardships. During this time many daaras moved to the cities. In 1992, UNICEF launched a five-year operation to raise awareness about talibés, and sought to work alongside marabouts to improve talibes’ living conditions. In 1997, this work

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6076-491: The legalization of abortion . HRW has documented and reported various violations of the laws of war and international humanitarian law , most recently in Yemen. Human Rights Watch also supports writers worldwide who are persecuted for their work and in need of financial assistance. The Hellman/Hammett grants are financed by the estate of the playwright Lillian Hellman in funds set up in her name and that of her longtime companion,

6174-424: The lowest of the nyenyo because their occupation involving animal skins was considered dirty. Slaves have historically been a separate, endogamous group in the Wolof society. Slaves were either inherited by birth in the Wolof society, or were kidnapped, purchased as children from desperate parents during difficult times such as famine, or slavery was imposed by the village elders as a punishment for offenses. By

6272-511: The majority of countries it reports on. Cuba , North Korea , Sudan , Iran , Israel , Egypt , the United Arab Emirates , Uzbekistan and Venezuela are among the handful of countries that have blocked HRW staff members' access. HRW's former executive director is Kenneth Roth , who held the position from 1993 to 2022. Roth conducted investigations on abuses in Poland after martial law

6370-432: The marabout belongs, and; preparing the child for a career as a marabout. Donna L. Perry disagrees with those who portray parents of talibés as “ignorant traditionalists or economic victims,” and marabouts as being “warped by the stresses of modernity.” Based on interviews with Wolof farmers, she contends that the popularity of raising talibés remains essentially linked to West African values on child-rearing, rather than

6468-487: The marabouts demands also increases instances of thefts by talibés. Living conditions in urban daaras are often characterised by malnourishment, lack of clothing and footwear, exposure to illnesses, and poor medical treatment. In many cases, talibés are still required to beg while ill and to pay for their own treatment. Urban daaras are often sites of overcrowding and poor sanitation, and many lack running water. The poor structures which are sometimes converted into daaras leave

6566-425: The marriage of or among his slaves. The slave owner and his descendants also had a right to have sex with slave women owned by the household. The Wolof people are traditionally settled farmers and artisans. Millet has been the typical staple, while rice a secondary staple when rains are plenty. Cassava is also grown, but it has been a source of income for the Wolof farmers. Since the colonial era, peanuts have been

6664-414: The maximum four as of 2016. The Better Business Bureau said HRW meets its standards for charity accountability. Some notable current and former staff members of Human Rights Watch: Human Rights Watch publishes reports on many different topics and compiles an annual World Report presenting an overview of the worldwide state of human rights. It has been published by Seven Stories Press since 2006;

6762-480: The means of the state to support the primary caregivers. HRW argues that states, parents and marabouts are in breach of CRC in failing to oversee the adequate housing, care and nourishment of talibés. HRW also cites the following as other abuses of talibés which breach CRC. Recent studies show that talibés average just less than 8 hours per day, every day, begging. The exact sums that a talibé must yield each day vary between daaras. A survey of 175 talibes revealed that

6860-651: The most common form of Quranic schools. Some marabouts, instead of teaching their talibés about the Quran, exploit them for labour, typically through forced begging on the streets. The nature of this exploitation exposes such talibés to disease, injury, death, physical abuse and sexual abuse. A 2007 UNICEF study of child begging in Dakar , the capital of Senegal, found that "the large majority of child beggars (90%) are talibés". UNICEF has estimated there to be between 50,000 and 100,000 begging talibés in Senegal. A 2010 report suggests that

6958-526: The name Helsinki Watch , to monitor the then- Soviet Union 's compliance with the Helsinki Accords . Helsinki Watch adopted a practice of publicly " naming and shaming " abusive governments through media coverage and direct exchanges with policymakers. Helsinki Watch says that, by shining the international spotlight on human rights violations in the Soviet Union and its European partners, it contributed to

7056-616: The novelist Dashiell Hammett . In addition to providing financial assistance, the Hellman/Hammett grants help raise international awareness of activists who have been silenced for speaking out in defence of human rights. Each year, Human Rights Watch presents the Human Rights Defenders Award to activists who demonstrate leadership and courage in defending human rights. The award winners work closely with HRW to investigate and expose human rights abuses. Human Rights Watch

7154-437: The number of talibés is on the rise. Other researchers, however, warn that "estimates on the numbers of street children rest upon largely elastic and nebulous definitions." Indeed, there are no official statistics to substantiate these claims. Others respond that the rise of Arabic-maderas is causing the number of talibés to decline. HRW has warned that the social status enjoyed by marabouts has emboldened "those responsible for

7252-483: The organization has to be seen as more international, less an American organization." He continued, "Human Rights Watch is one of the most effective organizations I support. Human rights underpin our greatest aspirations: they're at the heart of open societies." The donation, the largest in HRW's history, increased its operating staff of 300 by 120 people. Charity Navigator gave HRW a three-star rating for 2018. Its financial rating increased from three stars in 2015 to

7350-608: The overall ruling state being that of Jolof who came together voluntarily to form the Jolof Empire. According to Gamble, this migration likely occurred at the end of 11th century when the Ghana Empire fell to the Muslim armies from Sudan. Another oral tradition tells of a legend in Walo, which starts with two villages near a lake in a dispute. A mysterious person arose from the lake to settle

7448-401: The overlooked abuse, exploitation and neglect of thousands of talibé children at traditional Quranic schools. The Senegalese government was accused of neglecting and not doing enough to tackle the widespread and chronic abuse faced by children at the religious schools. The CRC creates rights to adequate living standards for children, with regard to the means of the primary caregivers, as well as

7546-526: The period of colonial rule, continuing even after the decolonization of Africa in the mid-20th century, which saw the Wolof become independent from European colonial rule. The Wolof people are the largest ethnic group in Senegal, particularly concentrated in its northwestern region near the Senegal River and the Gambia River . In the Gambia, about 16% of the population are Wolof. In the Gambia, they are

7644-588: The pottery caste group, also help in steps involved in making pottery. Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch ( HRW ) is an international non-governmental organization , headquartered in New York City that conducts research and advocacy on human rights . The group pressures governments, policymakers, companies, and individual human rights abusers to denounce abuse and respect human rights, and often works on behalf of refugees, children, migrants, and political prisoners. In 1997, Human Rights Watch shared

7742-505: The practice of exploiting talibés for labour also falls within the ambit of the Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour . This is because, its opinion, forced begging is akin to slavery, and because the labour exposes children to a plethora of dangers to their wellbeing. Some NGOs argue that, where a marabout acquires custody over a talibé in order to force the child to beg, this meets

7840-416: The pre-Islamic religious traditions of the Wolof are unknown, and their oral traditions state them to have been adherents of Islam since the founding king of Jolof . However, historical evidence left by Islamic scholars and European travelers suggest that Wolof warriors and rulers did not initially convert to Islam, although accepting and relying on Muslim clerics as counselors and administrators. In and after

7938-561: The press . It seeks to achieve change by publicly pressuring governments and their policymakers to curb human rights abuses, and by convincing more powerful governments to use their influence on governments that violate human rights. Human Rights Watch publishes research reports on violations of international human rights norms as set out by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and what it perceives to be other internationally accepted human-rights norms. These reports are used as

8036-464: The primary cash crop. Wolof society is patrilineal, and agricultural land is inherited by the landowning caste. The typical farmers in a village pay rent ( waref ) to the landowner for the right to crop his land. Wolof farmers raise chickens and goats, and dried or smoked fish purchased, both a part of their diet. Cattle are also raised, not for food, but milk, tilling the land, and as a reserve of wealth. Rural Wolof people eat beef rarely, typically as

8134-522: The proliferation of forced child begging and other abuses committed by the marabouts against talibé children." Perry cautiously agrees that "reverence of marabouts and respect for the talibé institution may be a dominant ideology, but it is not now, nor ever was, totalising or uncontested". Platform for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (PPDH) along with Human Rights Watch , reported in December 2019

8232-411: The raising of talibés while others reject the practice. Among those who support it there is a range of views of the best way to manage a daara. Many theories exist to explain the motivations of parents to send their children to a daara. These include; de facto fostering because of financial difficulties; securing a better future for the child by building a relationship with the Muslim brotherhood to which

8330-412: The region's democratic transformations in the late 1980s. Americas Watch was founded in 1981 while bloody civil wars engulfed Central America. Relying on extensive on-the-ground fact-finding, Americas Watch not only addressed perceived abuses by government forces but also applied international humanitarian law to investigate and expose war crimes by rebel groups. In addition to raising concerns in

8428-419: The resident boys exposed to the elements. Wolof people The Wolof people ( UK : / ˈ w oʊ l ɒ f / ) are a West African ethnic group found in northwestern Senegal , the Gambia , and southwestern coastal Mauritania . In Senegal, the Wolof are the largest ethnic group (~39.7%), while elsewhere they are a minority. They refer to themselves as Wolof and speak the Wolof language , in

8526-526: The rest of the world. According to a 2008 financial assessment, HRW reports that it does not accept any direct or indirect funding from governments and is financed through contributions from private individuals and foundations. Financier George Soros of the Open Society Foundations announced in 2010 his intention to grant US$ 100 million to HRW over ten years to help it expand its efforts internationally: "to be more effective", he said, "I think

8624-432: The same. There is just one difference: the urban talibe’s ‘farm’ is the urban street, and [the] ‘crop’ he harvests is cash, and not peanuts.” The practice of marabouts taking on talibés is seldom subject to state regulation, making it easier for abuse of this relationship to occur. The Senegalese government has recently created state-regulated daaras in order to reduce abuses. However, urban daaras with resident talibés form

8722-541: The slave trade. During the New Imperialism era, the Scramble for Africa saw the majority of African territory, including lands inhabited by the Wolof, fall under European colonial rule . These new colonial regimes moved to outlaw slavery, and by the 1890s the French authorities in West Africa had largely abolished the institution. However, the social distinctions between free-born Wolof and slaves remained present during

8820-640: The spelling Wollof is closer to the native pronunciation of the name. ) The spelling Jolof is also often used, but in particular reference to the Jolof Empire and Jolof Kingdom that existed in central Senegal from the 14th to the 19th centuries. Similarly, a West African rice dish is known in English as Jollof rice . The origins of the Wolof people are obscure, states David Gamble, a professor of anthropology and African studies specializing in Senegambia . Archeological artifacts have been discovered in Senegal and

8918-752: The top leaders in Sudan who oversaw a killing campaign in Darfur . The group also called for human rights activists who had been detained in Sudan to be released. HRW's documentations of human rights abuses often include extensive analyses of conflicts' political and historical backgrounds, some of which have been published in academic journals. AI's reports, on the other hand, tend to contain less analysis, instead focusing on specific abuses of rights. In 2010, Jonathan Foreman wrote that HRW had "all but eclipsed" Amnesty International. According to Foreman, instead of being supported by

9016-407: The various competing Sufi Muslim movements in the 20th century, particularly those belonging to the Mouride and Tijaniyyah Islamic brotherhoods. The Senegalese Sufi Muslim brotherhoods appeared in the Wolof communities in the 19th century and grew in the 20th. The Sufi leaders and marabouts exercise cultural and political influence amongst most Muslim communities, most notably the leader of

9114-451: The woman upon the consummation of the marriage. Divorce is quite common in the Wolof society and according to the Islamic tenets. While slavery is illegal in contemporary African societies, it was common in the history of Wolof people and among the elite castes. The slaves could not marry without the permission of their owner, and it was usually the responsibility of the slave owner to arrange

9212-706: The world. The archive was transferred from the Norlin Library at the University of Colorado, Boulder . It includes administrative files, public relations documents, and case and country files. With some exceptions for security considerations, the Columbia University community and the public have access to field notes, taped and transcribed interviews with alleged victims of human rights violations, video and audiotapes, and other materials documenting HRW's activities since its founding in 1978 as Helsinki Watch. Some parts of

9310-416: Was a medieval West African state that ruled parts of Senegal and the Gambia from approximately 1350 to 1890. While only ever consolidated into a single state structure for part of this time, the tradition of governance, caste, and culture of the Wolof dominate the history of north-central Senegal for much of the last 800 years. Its final demise at the hands of French colonial forces in the 1870s–1890s also marks

9408-459: Was declared 1981. He later focused on Haiti , which had just emerged from the Duvalier dictatorship but continued to be plagued with problems. Roth's awareness of the importance of human rights began with stories his father had told about escaping Nazi Germany in 1938. He graduated from Yale Law School and Brown University . Tirana Hassan became the group's executive director in 2023. Hassan

9506-648: Was one of six international NGOs that founded the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers in 1998. It is also the co-chair of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines , a global coalition of civil society groups that successfully lobbied to introduce the Ottawa Treaty , which prohibits the use of anti-personnel landmines. Human Rights Watch is a founding member of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange ,

9604-414: Was picked up on an ad hoc basis by NGOs. These agencies sought to avoid the shortcomings of UNICEF's model which supplied marabouts with resources which were not always used for the benefit of talibés. Instead, these humanitarian groups worked directly with talibés. Talibés continue to be a topic of discourse in Senegalese society. Begging used to be characterised by the talibé asking for food to supplement

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