ARBITRARY DETENTION Opposition leader Reckya Madougou remained in detention despite a statement issued by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in 2022 considering her detention arbitrary. EXCESSIVE USE OF FORCE Martin Hounga, aged 18, was killed during a police operation on the night of 4 September in the city of Hêvié. On 12 September the police announced that the case had been referred to the public prosecutor of the Abomey-Calavi court and to the police technical inspector to conduct a judicial and administrative investigation into the death. WOMEN’S RIGHTS On 12 April, the government adopted a decree laying down the conditions for the implementation of voluntary abortion, which had been expanded by law in December 2021. RIGHT TO HEALTH In May, four women confined to a ward in the Mènontin District Hospital since March for non-payment of hospital fees were released following a visit to the hospital by social services and a delegation from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Affairs.1 FORCED EVICTIONS Several thousand people who had been forcibly evicted in connection with tourism development projects along the coast, between the cities of Cotonou and Ouidah, continued to complain about the lack of adequate compensation. In many cases there were violations of international human rights law and Beninese law before, during and after the evictions, regarding prior notification and prior and fair compensation. 1. “Benin: Women and their babies deprived of their liberty for unpaid hospital bills”, 5 May (French only) BHUTAN Kingdom of Bhutan The poor detention conditions of prisoners convicted in the 1990s on politically motivated charges remained a concern. Press freedom declined and women and girls continued to face challenges to political participation. The National Assembly adopted the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities with four reservations. BACKGROUND In April, the fourth elections for the National Council, the upper house of the bicameral parliament, were held with a voter turnout of 54.64%. Twenty candidates were elected by voters as representatives of the 20 Dzongkhags (districts). Bhutan and China held their 25th round of boundary delineation talks in October. The People’s Democratic Party (PDP), led by former prime minister Tshering Tobgay, and the newly formed Bhutan Tendrel Party (BTP) emerged as the two largest parties in the primary round of the fourth National Assembly elections held in November. The Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa party led by incumbent prime minister Lotay Tshering failed in the first round. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION Civil servants remained barred from sharing information relevant to public interest with the media under Bhutan Civil Service Rules and Regulations 2018 and Section 39 of Bhutan’s 2010 Civil Service Act. Bhutan’s press freedom ranking dropped from 33rd to 90th, according to the 2023 World Press Freedom Index. Journalists experienced challenges in obtaining access to state-held information. DETAINEES’ RIGHTS At least 37 prisoners who were convicted in the 1990s for “offences against the Tsa-WaSum (king, country and people)”, as defined by Bhutanese law, and who were subjected The State of the World’s Human Rights 99