Archive for the 'Human Rights Defenders' Category

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New call for applications for human rights defenders at risk for Shelter City Netherlands. 

August 5, 2024

Justice & Peace Netherlands is launching a new call for applications for human rights defenders at risk to participate in Shelter City Netherlands. The deadline for applications is 30 August 2024 CEST ­ Shelter City is a global movement of cities, organizations and people who stand side by side with human rights defenders at risk. Shelter City provides temporary safe and inspiring spaces for human rights defenders at risk where they re-energize, receive tailor-made support and engage with allies. 

From March, June and September 2025 onwards, 14 cities in the Netherlands will receive human rights defenders for a period of three months. At the end of their stay in the Netherlands, participants are expected to return with new tools and energy to carry out their work at home. Journalists’ Safe Haven initiative Justice & Peace aims to promote the safety of journalists, and in particular women journalists, worldwide so that they can build new strategies and continue their important work for freedom of expression in their country of origin. 

With support from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Justice & Peace will be able to provide two additional temporary safe spaces per year in The Hague for journalists at risk and provide them with tailormade support. 

To be eligible for Shelter City Netherlands, human rights defenders should meet the following conditions: They implement a non-violent approach in their work;They are threatened or otherwise under pressure due to their work or activism;They are willing and able to return to their country of origin after 3 months;They are willing to speak publicly about their experience or about human rights in their country to the extent that their security situation allows; They have a conversational level* of English;They have a valid passport (with no less than 18 months of validity at the time of applying) or be willing to carry out the procedures necessary for its issuance. Justice & Peace covers the costs of issuing a passport and / or visa (if applicable);They are not subjected to any measure or judicial prohibition to leave the country;They are willing to begin their stay in the Netherlands around March, June or September 2025.
Please note that only under exceptional circumstances are we able to accept human rights defenders currently residing in a third country.

­ Apply now!

https://7a2pv.r.ag.d.sendibm3.com/mk/mr/sh/SMJz09SDriOHWo9lOH3CCxH3Sm28/qRd0o2XPi-BI

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Bangladesh: Six student human rights defenders arbitrarily detained

August 1, 2024

On the 26th to 28th July 2024, six student human rights defender namely: Nahid Islam, Abu Bakar Majumder, Asif Mahmud, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, and Nusrat Tabassum reportedly have been arbitrarily detained under custody of Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s (DMP) Detective Branch (DB) and coerced to announce the withdrawal of their protest programmes through a video message sent to media from the DB office at around 8:00 PM on 28 July 2024.

Nahid Islam, Abu Bakar Majumder, Asif Mahmud, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, and Nusrat Tabassum are students and dedicated human rights defenders and National Coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination Movement. Nahid Islam is from the Sociology Department, Abu Bakar Majumder from the Geography Department, Asif Mahmud from the Linguistics Department, Sarjis Alam is affiliated with the Zoology Department, Hasnat Abdullah is from the English Department, and Nusrat Tabassum is from the Political Science Department of Dhaka University.

Students Against Discrimination Movement is a student led protest demanding reform of the present quota system in government jobs. A total 56 percent of first and second class government jobs in Bangladesh entailed quotas. 30 percent of the total reserved for the descendants of ‘freedom fighters’. This quota has been widely criticised especially by the students, stating that it create a discriminatory system and allegedly used to recruit students affiliated with the ruling party. Following widespread protests in 2018, the Government of Bangladesh abolished all quotas with an executive order. However, on 5 June 2024, the High Court ordered the Government to reinstate the quota with the power of any adjustment they want to make.

Since 01 July 2024, the protests have escalated in several university campuses.The protests was met with a severe crackdown from the authorities involving ruling party goons, police and paramilitary forces from Rapid Action Battelion (RAB) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB). It has reportedly resulted in the deaths of at least 250 people with thousands more injured. With the internet shutdown for almost a week, suspicion remains about many more killings. Since 18 July 2024, local media reported over 10000 people, including many students been arrested in a mass arrest spree.

On 28 July 2024, at around 5:00 AM, woman human rights defender Nusrat Tabassum from Dhaka University had been reportedly picked up by individuals claiming to be from Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s DB at her cousin’s home in Mirpur.

On 27 July 2024, two more student human rights defenders Sarjis Alam and Hasnat Abdullah were picked up and brought to the DB office. The Additional Commissioner of the DB claimed in a press conference that the student human rights defenders have been brought to their custody to ensure their safety, however the comissioner did not clear it whether they have been arrested. While the family members were not allowed to even enter into the DB office on 28 July 2024, they were allowed to meet the students on 29 July – only after their video message of withdrawal of their protest program been covered in media.

On 26 July 2024, at around 4:00 PM, human rights defenders Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud and Abu Bakar Majumder were forcefully taken from Gonoshasthaya Kendra Hospital by the police in plainclothes in Dhaka and taken to custody of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s DB. Nahid and Asif were undergoing treatment Gonoshasthaya Kendra Hospital while Abu Bakar was accompanying them. Police also took away their phones.

Front Line Defenders condemns the arbitrary detention and coercion of student human rights defenders Nahid Islam, Abu Bakar Majumder, Asif Mahmud, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, and Nusrat Tabassum by the Dhaka Metropolitan Police in an attempt to repress their human rights work and target legimate students protests in Bangladesh.

Front Line Defenders urges the relevant authorities in Bangladesh to:

  1. Immediately and unconditionally release Nahid Islam, Abu Bakar Majumder, Asif Mahmud, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, and Nusrat Tabassum.
  2. Ensure the physical and psychological safety and well-being of Nahid Islam, Abu Bakar Majumder, Asif Mahmud, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, and Nusrat Tabassum while they remain in custody.
  3. To secure their immediate access to their families, legal representation, and any medical care they may require.
  4. End to all forms of harassment, intimidation, and arbitrary detention of student human rights defenders in Bangladesh. The rights to freedom of expression, assembly, and association must be respected and protected.
  5. Conduct independent and transparent investigation into the arbitrary detention and coercion of these student human rights defenders.

https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/case/six-student-human-rights-defenders-arbitrarily-detained-and-forced-announce-withdrawal-protest

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NGOs say that Chinese Government manipulates human rights (UPR) review

July 31, 2024

4 July 202: China’s government accepted – wholly or partially – 298 of the 428 (70%) recommendations the country received from UN member states during its fourth UPR on 23 January 2024. This represents a 12% drop in the proportion of recommendations the government accepted compared to the previous UPR in 2018.

In a worrying sign of the government’s outright refusal to heed the mounting international concern over key human rights issues, of the 130 recommendations Beijing did not accept, an unprecedented number – 98 – were categorised as “rejected” and 32 were “noted.

China’s government used the United Nations (UN)-backed review of its human rights record to rebuff international concern over serious abuses, issue blanket denials, and make blatantly false statements, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Human Rights in China (HRIC), the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), the Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR), and the Database Center for North Korean Human Rights (NKDB) said after the adoption of the outcome of China’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Despite well-documented evidence to the contrary, the government claimed that many of the recommendations it accepted were being implemented or had already been implemented. Such was the case regarding the accepted recommendations related to human rights in Hong Kong, Tibet, and Xinjiang, and the situation of human rights defenders, lawyers, civil society, media, and journalists. The government also made the false claim that it protected “freedom of speech, association and assembly” and “the lawful rights of all citizens as equals“.

FIDH, HRIC, ICT, TAHR, and NKDB urge China’s government to reverse course and use the fourth UPR to address the concerns voiced by numerous UN member states without delay by implementing all the recommendations that are consistent with its obligations under international human rights law.

Below is an analysis of the government’s response to the UPR recommendations on selected human rights issues.

Human rights situation in Hong Kong, Tibet, and Xinjiang

The government received 57 recommendations on human right issues in Hong Kong, Tibet, and Xinjiang and accepted only 19 (33%) of them. With regard to Hong Kong, the rejected recommendations were overwhelmingly related to the National Security Law and its negative impacts. Rejected recommendations concerning the situation of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang included those that called for the implementation of the 2022 UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) assessment on Xinjiang which China’s government called “illegal“. China rejected 70% of the unprecedented number of Tibet-specific recommendations it received – notably the ones calling for an end of the boarding school system for Tibetan children – often claiming they were based on “false information” despite many verified reports, including by UN experts. Other recommendations concerning the respect of cultural and religious rights in Tibet were listed as “accepted and already implemented” in a blunt misrepresentation of the reality on the ground. Many of the recommendations received by China’s government concerning the situation in Tibet echoed those contained in the joint submission made by FIDH and the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) for China’s fourth UPR.

Human rights defenders, lawyers, and civil society

The government accepted only 10 of the 25 recommendations it received on human rights defenders, lawyers, and civil society. It rejected recommendations that called on China’s authorities to end the harassment and arbitrary detention of human rights defenders and lawyers and to cease the restrictions on civil society. A submission by HRIC highlights how online rights and internet freedoms in Hong Kong have significantly deteriorated in the post-COVID era, especially after the promulgation of the National Security Law, and that women have been disproportionately affected, as evidenced by the online gender-based violence they experienced.

Media and journalists

The government rejected 10 of the 14 recommendations it received concerning the protection of media and journalists, claiming the authorities protect the right to freedom of speech.

Death penalty

The government rejected all 20 recommendations it received concerning the death penalty. It stated that the death penalty “should be retained with its application strictly and prudently limited” – a statement that clashes with the reality of a country that has consistently ranked as the world’s most prolific executioner.

https://www.fidh.org/en/region/asia/china/china-government-manipulates-human-rights-review

https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/other/ngos-slam-china-for-rejecting-upr-recommendations-at-unhrc-s-56th-session/ar-BB1pu4Wz

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What the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) does

July 30, 2024

Civil society actors across the world frequently operate in challenging or hostile environments in their efforts to defend human rights. The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) supports members of the SOS-Torture network, along with local actors, working to end torture and impunity and to support the rehabilitation of victims. We provide support by:

  • Engaging in joint activities and campaigns.
  • Sharing expertise and capacity-building opportunities.
  • Providing financial support to local actors, individuals, organisations, and initiatives, primarily outside the European Union.

This assistance enables them to carry out their crucial work in defending human rights and ending torture.

Our activities in support of the human rights movement are made possible by the generous contributions of our donors.

United Against Torture

Support to local anti-torture organisations

How to apply

Support to victims of torture

How to apply

Support to victims of torture in Tunisia

How to apply

Protecting Human Rights Defenders

Emergency support for human rights defenders at risk

How to apply

Institutional support for local organisations at risk

How to apply

https://www.omct.org/en/what-we-do/material-support

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CIVICUS on Mandela Day: Global persecution of human rights defenders show shocking growth

July 30, 2024
SAMW 2024
  •  As we mark Nelson Mandela Day and #StandAsMyWitness campaign anniversary, the number of countries to legally harass and put activists behind bars nearly doubled in five years. 
  • José Rubén Zamora is the latest defender featured in the international #StandAsMyWitness campaign calling for the release of 14 leading human rights defenders. 
  • Earlier this week, two featured Eswatini activists, Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube, were brutally sentenced to long prison terms for pushing democratic reforms. 

As we mark Nelson Mandela Day on 18 July and #StandAsMyWitness campaign anniversary, the number of countries abusing laws to harass and put activists behind bars has nearly doubled in five years. At least 66 countries prosecuted activists last year, up from 36 in 2019, according to the CIVICUS Monitor. In 2023, at least 63 countries detained human rights defenders (HRDs), up from 38 five years ago.  

See also:https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2023/08/12/about-the-stand-as-my-witness-campaign-which-advocates-on-behalf-of-imprisoned-human-rights-defenders-around-the-world/

The jarring growth of repression comes as a stark contrast to the vision of President Mandela. #StandAsMyWitness, launched on Nelson Mandela Day four years ago, calls for the release of leading global human rights defenders who languish behind bars for speaking truth to power.  

Guatemalan journalist José Rubén Zamora is now added as the 14th activist in the campaign. “As we add José Rubén Zamora to the #StandAsMyWitness campaign, we grow ever concerned that the world is becoming a more dangerous place for human rights defenders. He is a courageous journalist who has dedicated his life to exposing corruption and defending human rights in Guatemala,” said Isabel Rosales, Latin America advocacy officer at CIVICUS. Zamora has been languishing behind bars for two years and the newspaper he founded, el Periódico, was shut down. 

Earlier this week, two #StandAsMyWitness Eswatini activists Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube were respectively sentenced to 25 and 18 years in jail. The two pro-democracy parliamentarians were convicted for demanding democratic reforms.  Eswatini is an absolute monarchy where political parties are banned from elections and activists face jail, torture, and death for demanding their rights.   

The 14 human rights defenders featured in the campaign represent a wave of persecution sweeping against civic freedoms and human rights around the world. Abuse of law for the prosecution of activists is ranked among the top ten rights violations according to CIVICUS Monitor.  

Their stories are no different from many other activists who were silenced for standing up for human rights and justice. Among others still languishing behind bars are #StandAsMyWitness icons:  

  • Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, who has received a total of 31 years of prison sentence for standing up for women’s empowerment and promoting the abolition of the death penalty in Iran.
  • Hong Kong Pro-democracy activist Chow Hang-Tung, who was arrested and detained on June 4, 2021, for publishing two social media posts calling on the public to join the peaceful vigil for the 1989 Tiananmen massacre of civilians and protesters in Beijing.
  • Khurram Parvez, voted one of the 100 most influential people by Time magazine in 2022, has dedicated his life to nonviolence in one of the most militarized regions in the world. He remains in jail under charges of terrorism and conspiracy in India. 

This clampdown on defenders paints a bleak picture, with only two percent of the global population living in countries with open civic spaces. A staggering 72% of people in the world lived in authoritarian regimes in 2023. CIVICUS finds a discernible rise in the closure of civic spaces around the world, with the highest number of people living in closed countries since 2019. 

Full list of HRDs featured in the #StandAsMyWitness campaign:  

AFRICA: 

  • Eswatini: Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube – MPs who campaigned for democratic reform 
  • Burundi: Floriane Irangabiye – a journalist serving a 10-year prison sentence for her work 

ASIA: 

  • Hong Kong: Chow Hang-Tung – pro-democracy activist, sentenced for organising unauthorised Tiananmen Square Massacre commemoration vigil 
  • India: Khurram Parvez – Kashmiri rights activist; listed in Time magazine’s 100 ‘Most Influential People 2022

CENTRAL ASIA: 

  • Belarus: Viasna Human Rights Defenders – members of Viasna human rights centre; jailed for exercising their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression 
  • Tajikistan: Buzurgmehr Yorov – human rights lawyer representing members of the opposition; recipient of Homo Homini human rights prize 
  • Tajikistan: Manuchehr Kholiqnazarov – human rights lawyer serving a 16-year-long prison sentence in retaliation for his human rights work. 

LATIN AMERICA: 

  • Mexico: Kenia Hernandez – Indigenous and women’s rights activist; arrested after protest 
  • Guatemala – José Rubén Zamora a journalist and founder of the newspaper elPeriodico. He has been detained since 29 July 2022. 

MIDDLE EAST & NORTH AFRICA: 

  • Algeria: Kamira Nait Sid – Indigenous and women’s rights activist campaigning for the rights of the Amazigh people in Algeria 
  • Bahrain: Abdul-Hadi al-Khawaja – detained after democracy protests in 2011; recipient of the prestigious Martin Ennals Award 2022 for human rights defenders 
  • Egypt: Hoda Abdel Moneim – human rights lawyer and former member of Egypt’s National Council for Human Rights 
  • Iran: Narges Mohammadi – Journalist and human rights activist who received the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2023 
  • United Arab Emirates: Ahmed Mansoor – on the advisory boards for Human Rights Watch and the Gulf Centre for Human Rights; imprisoned for publishing information on social media 

To find out how to get involved, check out CIVICUS’s campaign webpage: Stand As My Witness. 

https://www.civicus.org/index.php/media-resources/media-releases/7172-mandela-day-global-activist-persecutions-show-shocking-growth

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Israeli continues to target human rights defenders in the West Bank

July 29, 2024

The Israeli authorities continue to target human rights defenders in the Occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, through prolonged administrative detention without charge, humiliation and ill treatment, an independent expert said calling for an end to such treatment.

“UN Special Procedures experts, including myself, have raised similar concerns multiple times, and this time I want to bring to the attention of the Israeli government the recent cases of Mr. Bassem Tamimi, Mr. Omar al-Khatib, Ms. Baraa Odeh, Ms. Sumoud Mtair and Ms. Diala Ayesh,” said Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders.

The five human rights defenders were arrested between October 2023 and March 2024, either from their home or as they returned from abroad. They were ordered to be held in administrative detention for periods ranging from four to six months, subject to unlimited renewal. Two of them have yet to be released.

Bassem Tamimi, from Ramallah, is an organiser of peaceful protests against the illegal occupation of Palestinian lands; Omar al-Khatib, from Jerusalem, campaigns against the forced eviction of Palestinian families from the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah; Baraa Odeh, from Bethlehem promotes youth rights; Sumoud Mtair, from Hebron, is active in the Palestinian Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign; and Diala Ayesh is a human rights lawyer who documents the detention conditions of Palestinian prisoners detained in Israel. All but al-Khatib and Ayesh were released at the end of their administrative detention periods.

“All five human rights defenders were arrested without warrant. They were not given any reason as to why there were being detained. They were all interrogated without the presence of a lawyer. They were not allowed contact with their families,” Lawlor said.

“Four of them were reportedly slapped, beaten, humiliated, sent from one prison to another in the space of one or two days, and made to sign documents in Hebrew they could not understand. The three women detainees have been held in deplorable conditions, in dirty cells and given insufficient and poor-quality meals.”

https://www.miragenews.com/un-expert-israel-must-halt-targeting-1282213/

https://thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/24/07/2024/un-official-calls-on-israeli-authorities-to-stop-targeting-palestinian-human-rights-defenders

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Oxford Human Rights Hub inviting applications for two paid internships

July 24, 2024

The Oxford Human Rights Hub (OxHRH) brings together academics, practitioners, and policy-makers from across the globe to advance the understanding and protection of human rights and equality. Through the vigorous exchange of ideas and resources, we strive to facilitate a better understanding of human rights principles, to develop new approaches to policy, and to influence the development of human rights law and practice.

The Oxford Human Rights Hub (OxHRH) is currently inviting applications for two paid internships jointly organised with ASSEDEL (Strasbourg).

ASSEDEL (L’Association européenne pour la défense des droits et des libertés) is a non-profit organisation, established to disseminate, promote and defend human rights and fundamental freedoms in the spirit of the European Convention on Human Rights, both within the Council of Europe system and at the local, national and international levels. The organization guides and supports victims of human rights violations.

ASSEDEL works with local and international partners, submits reports to worldwide organizations, informs the public and publishes opinion articles about human rights violations and humanitarian issues such as immigration, women’s rights, discrimination, new technologies, environment, children’s rights, education, freedom of speech, rule of law and democracy.

Tasks include:

  • Analysis of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and publication of articles on these judgments
  • Creating partnerships with the civil society organisations working with the ECtHR
  • Following the implementations of the judgments of the Court
  • Preparing applications to the Court, in particular on Rule 39 cases
  • Creating working relations with relevant structures of the Council of Europe
  • Participating in relevant meetings at the Council of Europe and the ECtHR

Duration and starting dates

Duration: min. 3 months (a longer period can be negotiated)

Start dates: September 2024 or February 2025 (please indicate preference in your application letter)

Requirements

Essential

  • A strong understanding of human rights law, in particular: knowledge about the human rights bodies in Strasbourg
  • Strong editorial skills
  • Good communication skills
  • Strong research skills

Desirable

  • Working knowledge of French
  • Ability to use digital tools

Eligibility

These internships are open to current graduate students in (or recent graduates of) the Law Faculty in the University of Oxford.

Stipend

Each intern will receive a stipend of EUR 700 per month (which should be sufficient to cover living costs in Strasbourg).

How to Apply

Applicants are invited to send:

  1. A cover letter (2 pages max) outlining how they qualify for the role, their availability and experience;
  2. A CV (2 pages max) including their publications;
  3. The names of 2 referees (including your supervisor), to oxfordhumanrightshub@law.ox.ac.uk by noon 9 August 2024.

Enquiries about the project are welcome at: oxfordhumanrightshub@law.ox.ac.uk .

External paid internship opportunity: Oxford Human Rights Hub (OxHRH) / ASSEDEL internship (Strasbourg)

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Human rights defender’s profile: Óscar Calles from Venezuela

July 24, 2024

Óscar Calles is a journalist and human rights defender from Venezuela. Since 2019, he has been working for PROVEA, one of the country’s most prominent rights groups.

In an interview with ISHR, he recalled his experience of witnessing and broadcasting mass protests in his country in 2017, and how harshly these were repressed. This, he said, led him to take direct action in the defence of human rights and civil liberties.

Human rights organisations, activists and defenders only exist to ensure that all persons can live with dignity,’ says Oscar Calles. ‘Do not turn your backs on the hundreds of victims who are still awaiting justice to this day,’ he further urges States at the UN Human Rights Council, calling on to renew a key accountability mechanism for Venezuela.

In June 2024, Óscar was also one of 16 defenders who participated in ISHR’s Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme (HRDAP)

https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/human-rights-defenders-story-oscar-calles-from-venezuela

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United Arab Emirates convicts scores of defendants in a mass trial, sentencing 40 to life in prison

July 22, 2024

The Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) sentenced 43 individuals to life in prison in a mass trial on Wednesday 3 July 2024, according to the UAE’s state-run news agency, WAM. The trial, which has been criticized by human rights organizations for allegedly targeting dissidents, involved charges linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, a group designated as a terrorist organization by the UAE government. WAM reported the verdicts shortly after human rights advocates released statements announcing the sentences. Alongside the life sentences, five defendants received 15-year prison terms and another five were sentenced to 10 years. The court dismissed the cases of 24 defendants.

According to WAM, the court ruled that those convicted “have worked to create and replicate violent events in the country, similar to what has occurred in other Arab states—including protests and clashes between the security forces and protesting crowds—that led to deaths and injuries and to the destruction of facilities, as well as the consequent spread of panic and terror among people.”

While WAM did not identify those sentenced by name, and specific details regarding the trial are not clear, Joey Shea, a researcher focusing on the UAE for Human Rights Watch, noted a few prominent figures involved in the case to the Associated Press (AP).

On 10 July 2024, Human Rights First condemned the secret trial and sentencing of dozens of activists in the United Arab Emirates:

“Washington’s ally has again today demonstrated its violent repression,” said Senior Advisor Brian Dooley. “The Biden administration has struck millions of dollars of arms deals with the UAE dictatorship, and failed to sanction its officials responsible for cracking down on peaceful dissent. The message from Washington to the UAE has been clear for many years: Do what you want, there will be no consequences.”

Among those reportedly sentenced to life in prison after a mass trial is prominent legal scholar Nasser bin Ghaith. He graduated with honors from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in Ohio with an LLM in U.S. and Global Legal Studies in 2001. Another of those in the mass sham trial — which included 84 defendants — was Ahmed Mansoor, who received his Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical, Computer, & Energy Engineering and his Master’s in Telecommunications for the University of Colorado, Boulder. Human Rights First is still waiting for confirmation on the outcome of his case in the trial. [see https://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/laureates/074ACCD4-A327-4A21-B056-440C4C378A1A]

Bin Ghaith, Mansoor, and other prominent activists in the trial were already in prison serving long sentences for their peaceful activism.

Washington Enables Violent Repression in the UAE as Dozens of Activists Sentenced in Secret Trial

https://www.amnesty.org.uk/press-releases/uae-scores-convicted-sham-trial-uae84

https://www.newsweek.com/uae-court-sentences-40-people-life-prision-mass-trail-report-1923443

https://apnews.com/article/uae-mass-trial-dissidents-2108263bffe49915a866eecc64d1b605

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/uae-un-experts-shocked-after-dozens-sentenced-life-mass-trial

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Sara Nabil, a human rights defender, from Afghanistan

July 6, 2024

Sara Nabil is a human rights defender and artist from Afghanistan. She spoke to ISHR about her dream of one day seeing a ‘free democratic Afghanistan, where each human being [regardless of which] gender they are, man or woman, neutral or other genders, [would be] treated equally.’

Stand in solidarity with Sara and other women human rights defenders from Afghanistan: join us in our campaign to push for UN experts and States to explicitly and publicly recognise the situation in Afghanistan as a form of gender apartheid and the need for an accountability mechanism to address gross human rights violations against women.

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