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making up 14% of the population in the 

counties reviewed), and that 40% of young 

people in custody were from ethnic minority 

backgrounds.

In August, the UN Committee on the Rights 

of Persons with Disabilities severely criticized 

the UK for failing to ensure the rights of 

people with disabilities with respect to, 

among other things, education, employment, 

and an adequate standard of living and social 

protection.

RIGHT TO LIFE

During the night of 13-14 June, at least 71 

people died and dozens were injured in a fire 

at the Grenfell Tower social housing block in 

London. In September, a public inquiry into 

the cause of the fire, the emergency services’ 

and authorities’ responses, the building’s 

construction and modifications, as well as the 

adequacy of the regulatory framework began. 

The fire raised questions concerning the 

authorities’ and private actors’ compliance 

with their human rights obligations and 

responsibilities including protection of the 

right to life and guaranteeing an adequate 

standard of living, including the right to 

adequate housing.

REFUGEES’ AND MIGRANTS’ RIGHTS

The government continued to extend 

immigration-related controls across public 

and private life, collecting children’s 

nationality and country of birth data from 

schools and widening nationality and 

immigration checks on access to free health 

care.

In July, the government ended its so-called 

“Dubs Amendment” scheme under which 

480 unaccompanied refugee children who 

were already in Europe were to be resettled in 

the UK. No children were resettled in 2017, 

despite 280 local authority places available 

for them. A legal challenge to the 

government’s limited implementation of the 

scheme, brought by the NGO Help Refugees, 

was unsuccessful before the High Court and 

an appeal was lodged.

In September, the government introduced a 

Data Protection Bill that included a provision 

to exclude basic safeguards on taking, 

holding and using personal data for the 

purpose of “effective immigration control”.

In October, the High Court ruled that the 

Home Office’s “Adults at Risk” policy on the 

detention of victims of torture was unlawful.

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS

In June, the Prime Minister announced plans 

for adopting a new Domestic Violence and 

Abuse Bill and appointing a Domestic 

Violence and Abuse Commissioner. The 

government was yet to ratify the Council of 

Europe Convention on Violence against 

Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul 

Convention), which it signed in 2012.

Concerns remained about the impact of 

austerity-led cuts on funding for specialist 

services for women who had experienced 

domestic violence or abuse.

ARMS TRADE

The UK continued to supply arms to Saudi 

Arabia despite ongoing serious violations of 

international humanitarian law by the Saudi 

Arabia-led coalition in Yemen.

UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA

United States of America

Head of state and government: Donald Trump 

(replaced Barack Obama in January)

Executive orders to suspend travel to the 

USA from several Muslim-majority countries 

sparked legal challenges, which continued 

through the year. There were major attacks 

on the rights of women and girls. Eighteen 

detainees were transferred from the US 

naval base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba; 41 

detainees remained at the base and pre-

trial military commission proceedings 

continued. Gun violence remained high. 

Death sentences were handed down and 

executions were carried out.

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BACKGROUND

On 20 January, Donald Trump was sworn in 

as President, following an election campaign 

in which he made comments and promised 

policies that were discriminatory or otherwise 

contradicted international human rights 

principles.

REFUGEES’ AND MIGRANTS’ RIGHTS

A number of executive orders affecting 

migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees were 

signed by President Trump during the year. 

Two orders dated 25 January called for a wall 

to be built along the USA-Mexico border, 

allowed for refoulement (forcible return) and 

the increased detention of asylum-seekers 

and their families, increased the functions 

and number of immigration and customs 

enforcement agents, prioritized deportation of 

migrants, especially those suspected of 

crimes, and cancelled funding for “sanctuary 

cities” that did not co-operate with federal 

authorities in apprehending irregular 

migrants.

A third executive order signed on 27 

January banned entry of foreign nationals 

from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria 

and Yemen for 90 days, suspended the US 

Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) for 

120 days, reduced the number of refugees 

eligible for entry during the 2017 fiscal year 

from 110,000 to 50,000, and imposed an 

indefinite ban on the resettlement of refugees 

from Syria. The order immediately led to 

chaos, protests and legal challenges on the 

basis of discrimination towards Muslims. A 

week later a federal judge issued a 

nationwide temporary injunction, which was 

upheld on appeal. The government issued a 

revised version of the order on 6 March, 

again suspending USRAP for 120 days, 

repeating the limit of 50,000 refugees, and 

imposing a 90-day ban on entry into the USA 

of nationals of six countries (the original 

seven minus Iraq). Federal judges in the 

states of Maryland and Hawaii issued 

nationwide injunctions temporarily blocking 

its implementation. On 26 June, the Supreme 

Court allowed a limited version of the order to 

take effect. The Court also ruled that the ban 

could be applied to refugees being supported 

by resettlement agencies.

A second revision of the order, signed on 24 

September, indefinitely banned immigration 

into the USA by nationals of seven countries: 

Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, 

Syria and Yemen. It also banned the issuance 

of certain types of non-immigrant visas to 

nationals of Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, 

Syria and Yemen, and specifically barred 

visas for Venezuelan officials from certain 

government agencies and their families. On 

17 October, federal judges in Hawaii and 

Maryland again ruled against the measure, 

blocking the government from enforcing it on 

nationals from six of the countries. On 13 

November, a federal appeals court panel 

allowed the third ban to take effect for people 

with no legitimate ties to the USA.

On 24 October, President Trump issued an 

executive order to resume USRAP “with 

enhanced vetting procedures”. On 4 

December the Supreme Court granted the 

administration’s request to temporarily allow 

the latest so-called “Muslim ban” to take full 

effect as the case continued to be litigated.

On 16 August, the federal Department of 

Homeland Security terminated the Central 

American Minors programme. The 

programme had allowed those under 21 

years of age fleeing violence in El Salvador, 

Guatemala and Honduras, whose parents 

had regular status in the USA, to apply for 

refugee resettlement interviews before 

travelling to the USA. Children from those 

three countries who did not qualify for 

refugee status and had no other means of 

reuniting with their parents had also been 

able to apply for entry under the programme.

On 5 September, the government 

announced that it would end the Deferred 

Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) 

programme in six months if Congress did not 

find a legislative solution regarding the 

immigration status of those protected by the 

programme, placing more than 800,000 

individuals at risk of deportation. DACA’s aim 

was to protect from deportation migrant youth 

who came to the USA as children and met 

certain eligibility criteria. Congress introduced 

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