As we kick off 2025, a year already fraught with global challenges and political uncertainty, we know that human rights defenders are on the frontlines. They face unprecedented abuses as they fight for justice. Now, more than ever, effective strategies and support are essential to drive change. That’s why we’re excited to announce the launch of our NEW New Tactics in Human Rights website! Available in English and Arabic, newtactics.org is designed to inspire and equip YOU in this critical work.
What’s New? We’ve reimagined your experience to make it easier than ever to find, share, and apply powerful human rights tactics:
🌍 Seamless Navigation: Find what you need quickly with a sleek, mobile-friendly design.
📚 Actionable Tactics: Access over 250 successful human rights tactics, with powerful filters to help you search by tactical aim, action, or region.
💬 A Space to Connect: Listen and learn from human rights defenders globally through our online conversations and perspectives from staff and guests.
The suspension and, in some cases the termination, of US foreign aid is having profound and adverse human rights impacts, threatening the very existence says Phil Lynch of ISHR in his Director’s update: “Impact of US funding freeze on human rights defenders and ISHRe of many human rights defenders, organisations and institutions“.
ISHR is directly affected by the US funding freeze. The suspension of US government funds means we’ve already had to terminate, defer or reduce activities to support human rights defenders working in highly restrictive contexts.
Together with announced and anticipated reductions in support for human rights organisations from some other governments and institutional philanthropy, it has also required that we take a number of significant anticipatory cost-saving measures, reducing our capacity to support human rights defenders globally.
The US funding freeze is also very adversely affecting a number of our national NGO partners, including those supporting human rights defenders in countries such as Afghanistan, China and Venezuela, among others. If you are in any position to support these organisations we would be delighted to connect you.
As I have recently written together with incoming and outgoing ISHR Board Chairs Taaka Awori and Vrinda Grover, we simply can’t afford to give up hope in our shared work for freedom, equality and justice. But we will not win and cannot survive on starvation rations.
We need investors – governments, foundations, corporations and individuals – to join us and create the resources that enable us to be sustainable, innovative and impactful. We particularly need medium and small States to step up investment, not only because it is the right thing to do, but also because their interests are not served by the law of the jungle where might is right.
This investment needs to be made in civil society at the national, regional and international levels, as well as in the international human rights system to which frontline defenders increasingly turn when justice and accountability are denied at the national level. The realisation of human rights will provide an unmatched return on investment.
24 January 2025 was the Day of the Endangered Lawyer. Its purpose is to call attention to threatened human rights lawyers who work to advance the rule of law and promote human rights under governmental harassment and intimidation, often at great personal risk. Each year the focus is on those lawyers working in one designated country.
In 2025, the Day of the Endangered Lawyer spotlights the persecution of lawyers in Belarus. Since 2020, a crackdown by the Belarus government has resulted in the targeting of lawyers and human rights defenders. Legal practitioners face increasing criminal sanctions, arbitrary detention and systemic interference in their abilities to practice law. Constitutional and legislative changes have eroded the independence of the judiciary and professional legal bodies and given the executive branch unwarranted control over the judiciary and legal profession.
Today, the ABA recognizes these human rights lawyers who champion justice and fight for the rule of law.
Although the preferred job location is Bangkok, Thailand (Hybrid), remote work is possible for candidates with the legal right to work in their country, provided the location aligns with the organization’s operational and budgetary considerations.
Start date: March 2025 – Closing date 16 Feb 2025
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) is a worldwide organization of judges and lawyers united in affirming international law and rule of law principles that advance human rights. Its strategic goals for 2021-2025 are: (1) to develop, defend, and strengthen international institutions, instruments, and standards on rule of law and human rights; (2) to improve domestic implementation of, and compliance with, international law and standards; (3) to bolster the effectiveness and independence of judges and lawyers; and (4) to improve access to justice for all and accountability. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, ICJ has a presence in Africa, Latin America, Asia & the Pacific, Europe & Central Asia, and the Middle East.
To lead the implementation of the ICJ’s work on human rights in the digital space at the global and regional levels, we are seeking a full-time Legal Adviser. Key requirements for this role include expertise and working experience related to human rights in the digital space, excellent legal skills and sound political judgment, and proven ability to develop and carry out legal advocacy strategies.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Reporting directly to the Senior Director, Legal and Policy Office, the Legal Adviser is expected to:
• Provide leadership and contribute to the design and implementation of ICJ work related to human rights in the digital space, including the work at the country, regional and global levels;
• Lead and implement work on a global project aimed at developing policy and legal action on protecting human rights in the digital civic space;
• Implement the programme work on human rights in digital space in a way that advances the strategic directions of the ICJ.
REQUIREMENTS
University degree in law with advanced studies in international human rights law.
Proven experience working in the area of international human rights law.
Expertise and working experience related to human rights in the digital space, including in the areas of freedom of expression, right to privacy, non-discrimination and equality, sexual and gender-based violence, and human rights and businesses enterprises.
Excellent legal skills and sound political judgment and proven ability to develop and carry out legal advocacy strategies.
Advanced expertise in general international human rights law
Practical legal and advocacy experience on the implementation of international human rights standards; litigation experience desirable.
English native speaker level; knowledge of Spanish, French, and/or Arabic an asset.
Demonstrated analytic and writing ability, including substantial report-writing experience;
Excellent written and oral communication skills;
Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work as part of a multi-cultural team;
Demonstrated commitment to human rights and the rule of law;
Availability to start in March 2025 is required.
How to apply
Interested applicants should provide the materials outlined below to recruitment@icj.org by 16 February 2025, midnight Central European Time (CET). Early applications are encouraged as they will be reviewed on a rolling basis, the ICJ reserves the right to close this vacancy earlier if a sufficient number of quality applications has been received.
The fourth anniversary of the military coup in Myanmar is a time to mourn the loss of thousands of innocent lives at the hands of a brutal 2025military regime while celebrating the heroism of those who continue to stand up for human rights in a country under siege, a UN expert said on30januaary
“It is also a time for the international community to provide the people of Myanmar a genuine partnership to help end this nightmare,” said Tom Andrews, Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar.
Andrews said four years of military oppression, violence and incompetence have cast Myanmar into an abyss.
“Junta forces have slaughtered thousands of civilians, bombed and burned villages, and displaced millions of people. More than 20,000 political prisoners remain behind bars. The economy and public services have collapsed. Famine and starvation loom over large parts of the population,” the Special Rapporteur said.
“The junta’s plans, including holding sham elections this year in a backdrop of escalating armed conflict and human rights violations, are a path to ruin,” Andrews said.
He said it was not possible to hold a legitimate election while arresting, detaining, torturing and executing leaders of the opposition and when it is illegal for journalists or citizens to criticise the junta.
“Governments should dismiss these plans for what they are – a fraud,” Andrews said.
He lauded pro-democracy activists, journalists, doctors, human rights defenders and citizens from all walks of life who have risked their lives to fight for Myanmar’s future.
“The resilience and courage of Myanmar’s people continue to amaze and inspire others around the world. I am heartened by the courageous efforts of those documenting the junta’s crimes, caring for those injured by the attacks, providing food and shelter to those displaced, and teaching children whose education was upended by the coup. These heroic efforts are compelling indicators that Myanmar’s best days lie ahead,” the expert said.
Andrews said action by member states including targeted sanctions and a crackdown on the arms trade by Singapore have contributed to a one-third drop in the volume of weapons and military supplies the junta has been able to purchase through the formal banking system since the year ending March 2023.
“When governments muster the political will, they help save lives and support freedom in Myanmar,” the Special Rapporteur said, calling for stronger action from the international community. “The failure of the Security Council to take action requires that UN Member States who support human rights coordinate strong, sustained actions that can deny the junta the means to continue its brutality against the people of Myanmar.”
He urged governments to back efforts to hold perpetrators of grave human rights violations accountable, including in the International Criminal Court (ICC), and by supporting the democratic movement and civil society as they build the foundation for a strong justice system and transitional justice processes.
“Impunity has enabled a decades-long cycle of violence and oppression in Myanmar. Ultimately, this sad chapter of Myanmar’s history must end with junta leaders being prosecuted for their crimes,” Andrews said.
On 30 January 2025 Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, said that Algeria continues to restrict and harass human rights defenders for their peaceful activities, an independent human rights expert said today.
“More than a year after I visited Algeria – at the end of 2023 – I am deeply disappointed to see that human rights defenders in different fields of work, some of whom I met, are still being arbitrarily arrested, judicially harassed, intimidated and criminalised for their peaceful activities under vaguely worded provisions, such as ‘harming the security of the State’,” said Mary Lawlor. [https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2023/12/07/mary-lawlor-returns-from-algeria-visit/]
“The case of Mr. Merzoug Touati, an independent journalist and human rights defender who has been subjected for years to trials on spurious charges, is among the most alarming cases I have recently examined,” Lawlor said.
“Since 2024, he has been detained three times. During his latest arrest, in August 2024, his family was reportedly subjected to ill-treatment. He was then allegedly physically and psychologically tortured while in police custody for five days. He continues to be judicially harassed even after his release,” the expert said.
“No less concerning is the arrest of three human rights lawyers and a young whistleblower between February and July 2024,” Lawlor said, highlighting the cases of Toufik Belala, Soufiane Ouali and Omar Boussag.
Belala was summoned for interrogation three times since April 2024 and finally accused of publishing false information that may threaten the security of the State, before being freed under judicial control.
The human rights lawyer Soufiane Ouali was taken from his home during a violent dawn raid by police in July 2024, and placed in custody along with 14 others, including the young whistleblower Yuba Manguellet. They were charged under Article 87bis of the Penal Code, a vaguely worded counter-terrorism provision that is often misused to crackdown on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.
Other restrictive articles of the Penal Code have been used to accuse human rights lawyer Omar Boussag of ‘incitement of an unarmed gathering’ and ‘contempt of an official body’ following the publication of his posts on Facebook.
“These are not the only cases,” Lawlor said. “The environmental rights defender Karim Khima has been pursued for years in court for organising protests against a housing development on land with historical remains and for the protection of the ecosystem around Lake Mezaia, which is threatened by the planned construction of an amusement park. Fortunately, he was finally acquitted.”
Lawlor also drew attention to the case of the ‘Collectif des Familles de Disparus,’ an organisation set up during the Algerian Civil War in the 1990s to seek answers to the forcible disappearance of persons. This year, the organisation has repeatedly been prevented from holding events by huge contingents of police forces surrounding its office in Algiers. Its female lawyer and members, many of whom are mothers of disappeared persons, have been manhandled and forced to leave the location on these occasions.
“I want to repeat that I met nearly all of these human rights defenders,” the Special Rapporteur said. “Not one of them was in any way pursuing violent acts. They all must be treated in accordance with international human rights law, which Algeria is bound to respect.”
She said that during her visit to Algeria, she also met with many public officials in an atmosphere of constructive exchange. “I am therefore doubly disappointed to see that restrictions against human rights defenders are continuing,” Lawlor said.
A screening of the feature documentary “Dissidents” will take place on Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. EST. The event location is Firehouse Cinema, 87 Lafayette Street, New York. “Dissidents” tells the story of three Chinese dissidents who continue to fight for democracy against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) through art, protest, and grassroots organizing despite being exiled from their own home and despite the CCP’s transnational attempts to threaten them with violence, criminal charges, and arson. The film features Juntao Wang, a primary organizer of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests; Weiming Chen, a human rights artist whose sculpture criticizing Xi Jinping was burnt down; and asylum seeker Chunyan Wang, who was arrested for attempting to deliver a petition letter to Chinese vice premiers during the US-China trade talks.
After the film, there will be a panel discussion featuring: Yaqiu Wang, research director for China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan at Freedom House Joey Siu, Hong Kong activist and executive council member at the World Liberty Congress Weiming Chen, human rights artist known for the Liberty Sculpture Park in CaliforniaYi Chen, director of “Dissidents” at C35 FilmsPema Doma, Executive Director, Students For a Free Tibet The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Please be sure to RSVP on Eventbrite as soon as possible, as reservations are granted on a first come, first serve basis.
Human Rights First announced on 24 January 2025 that climate rights activist and lawyer Dang Dinh Bach, jailed in Vietnam since June 2021, is the winner of the 2024 Roger N. Baldwin Medal of Liberty. The Baldwin Medal will be presented at an event in the United States later this year to someone on Bach’s behalf, unless he is freed from prison and able to travel to receive the award in person.
Bach is the co-founder and former Executive Director of the Law and Policy of Sustainable Development Research Center (LPSD), a public interest law firm advising communities on cases of environmental harm, including industrial pollution, involuntary displacement due to hydropower construction, and pollution from coal plants.
Taken from his home in June 2021, he was held in pretrial detention for seven months, with limited contact with his family or his lawyers, and the LPSD was shut down by authorities following his arrest. The UN Human Rights Council’s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has found Bach’s imprisonment to be arbitrary and in “violation of international law,” and called for his immediate release. United Nations Special Procedures experts have noted reports of his being attacked and beaten in prison.
“I’d like to express honor and gratitude for this recognition of Bach’s life and work,” said Tran Phuong Thao, his wife. “The Baldwin Award represents the critical importance of human rights and rule of law in building a just and sustainable world – values my husband has fought for both outside and inside of prison. It is through solidarity and support from the international community that the movement he has helped to build continues to grow and inspire others.”Press
The Carr Center’s Global LGBTQI+ Human Rights Program is excited to announce the launch of the Global LGBTQI+ Changemakers Network, which will serve as a hub for learning, research, and collaboration on global LGBTQI+ challenges.
The global network is a community of activists and professionals dedicated to advancing LGBTQI+ rights in 142 countries around the world, with the goal to create a vibrant space where ideas, knowledge, and opportunities are shared to strengthen and support one another in this crucial work at such a critical time.
The network will offer educational opportunities, including exclusive online and in-person webinars and workshops to highlight cutting-edge research and global success stories; research collaborations that will partner participants with Harvard students, faculty, and fellow advocates on impactful research projects; and creative partnerships with affiliates of the Carr Center’s Global LGBTQI+ Human Rights Program. The three core parts of the network’s offerings include:
The Global LGBTQI+ Changemakers Network: As referenced above, members of this network will receive access to a regular series of online trainings on a broad range of topics of interest to the movement. These will be available exclusively to this network, and by invitation, to a broader audience.
Foundational Curriculum Track: Sixty participants, selected by application, will take part in a series of in-depth, interactive online courses running from February to August 2025. This program is designed to work in tandem with the other offerings in this network.
The Global LGBTQI+ Changemakers Network is launched by the team at the Carr Center’s Global LGBTQI+ Human Rights Program, including:
Diego Garcia Blum, Program Director;
Timothy Patrick McCarthy, Program Faculty Chair; and
Jean Freedberg, Founding Practitioner Affiliate
The first Changemakers Network event will take place on Thursday, January 30, 2025. This webinar, “Illiberal Playbooks: Preparing for Attacks on LGBTQI+ Rights in the U.S.,” will explore lessons learned from Hungary, Poland, and Bulgaria on the Illiberal Playbook, and how these tactics may be employed in the United States. Registration is still open for the event by clicking the link. For members of the Changemakers Network, a follow-up workshop and discussion session in the style of classes at Harvard will follow, and Changemakers will be notified how to attend.
Through the Changemakers Network, we can learn from each other, sharpen our strategies, and push forward in the fight for dignity and justice. The movement needs all of us, and none of us can do it alone.
Historic examples in countries such as Portugal and Greece show how military defeats can catalyze democratic transitions by exposing the incompetence of authoritarian regimes. After the recent change in Syria, I thought that this piece with its focus on HRDs deserves wider attention:
The Stimson Center published this anonymously on January 9, 2025 as the author is a Tehran-based analyst who has requested anonymity out of legitimate concern. The writer is known to appropriate staff, has a track record of reliable analysis, and is in a position to provide an otherwise unavailable perspective.
While the world focuses on regional turmoil, Iran is undergoing significant transformation domestically, albeit at a slow pace.
At the heart of this evolution is a surprisingly robust society-based reform movement that is actively challenging the existing power structure, leading to a noticeable weakening of the regime. This emerging dynamic holds the potential to produce a system more representative of wishes of the Iranian population than the theocracy/flawed democracy in place for the past 46 years.
Fundamental reform of the existing constitution, along with empowering civil society, can lead to more democracy provided that Iranians do not get caught up in radical movements and wars. The implications of such changes could extend beyond Iran’s borders to neighboring Arab states. Historian Robert D. Kaplan has argued that Iran serves as the Middle East’s geopolitical pivot point, and that nothing could change the region as profoundly as the emergence of a more liberal regime in Iran.
Iranian people have paid a high price in pursuit of democracy. One metric is the number of political prisoners. While it is difficult to give an accurate estimate, human rights organizations have estimated that hundreds of Iranians are being held on vague national security charges and denied due process. Conditions in Iranian prisons are abysmal, with reports of poor healthcare, abuse, and medical neglect. High-profile cases have drawn international condemnation, but the government shows little willingness to address these systematic abuses. The continued detention and mistreatment of political prisoners remains a major concern, reflecting the Islamic Republic’s intolerance of dissent and disregard for fundamental civil liberties.
Yet despite the repression, protests continue and at an accelerated pace. They include the “Bloody November” 2019 protests sparked by fuel price increases, the popular reaction to the U.S. assassination of Gen. Qassem Soleimani in January 2020 and the accidental Iranian downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane that followed, and the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement of 2022 against enforced veiling These developments, coupled with recent military defeats of Iran and its non-state partners, have dampened the Islamic Republic’s regional power while undercutting its domestic legitimacy, which had rested on electoral and ideological pillars.
Since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the devastating Israel response, the region has witnessed repeated and dramatic setbacks for Iran and its partners in Gaza, Lebanon and most recently in Syria. Historic examples in countries such as Portugal and Greece show how military defeats can catalyze democratic transitions by exposing the incompetence of authoritarian regimes. In Iran, the ongoing erosion of both electoral and ideological legitimacy may compel the regime to seek a more democratic approach to governance.
The path toward society-based reform in Iran is centered on strengthening civil society. Other strategies – such as seeking change through foreign intervention as advocated by some in the diaspora – would not produce a better outcome.
The society-based reform movement in Iran encompasses various grassroots efforts aimed at addressing social, political, and economic issues. Reformists emphasize grassroots engagement and building connections with the public. Key aspects include empowering local communities, promoting decentralized decision-making, rebuilding trust between citizens and political entities, and encouraging participatory decision-making. The movement prioritizes social issues and adopts a long-term vision for sustainable development.
The challenges to change remain significant. The regime continues to arrest and otherwise repress activists and economic constraints limit participation. Many Iranians are disillusioned and society is fragmented by cultural barriers. Despite these obstacles, society-based reform aims to facilitate meaningful change by leveraging the strengths and voices of local communities.
The reform movement in Iran has deep historical roots, predating the Constitutional Revolution of 1905-1911, which created the first elected parliament in the Middle East. The oil nationalization movement in the early 1950s was another significant turning point, leading to widespread social mobilization and civil society involvement, including the emergence of political organizations, intellectual activism, popular protests, and women’s participation. While then Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh is often credited with initiating nationalization, his true achievement lay in strengthening civil society, establishing an independent Bar Association, labor unions, and implementing reforms that favored peasants and small businesses.
Mossadegh was deposed in 1953 in a CIA-led coup which restored the monarchy and led to severe repression of civil society. The Shah’s regime viewed civil society organizations as threats, leading to political repression, media censorship, and the targeting of student and labor movements. This suppression dismantled the civil society infrastructure, contributing to widespread discontent and ultimately the Iranian Revolution of 1979.
The theocracy ushered in a new era of repression but that eased following the election of reformist President Mohammad Khatami in 1997. Iran’s reform movement split at the time into two factions: society-centered intellectuals and a power-centered left within the regime. Differences in approach emerged during 2001 presidential elections as well as the 2009 Green Movement against the fraud-tainted re-election of then President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Since the 2022 protests, however, reformists who once favored participating in elections and government have shifted toward embracing society-based efforts. Azar Mansouri of the Iran Reform Front noted this change, emphasizing the need for unity among reformists and the importance of community-centered reforms given government-imposed limits on reformist participation in officially sanctioned politics. Former president Khatami and theorist Mahmoud Mir-Lohi have also highlighted that the movement is transitioning from an “election-centered” to a “society-centered” focus, aiming to reconnect with citizens and address societal needs.
This movement is characterized by a range of actors who include those working on:
Human Rights. Numerous organizations and activists, some with external links,are dedicated to promoting freedom of speech, press freedom, and the rights of minorities and marginalized groups as well as opposing arbitrary detention, torture, and the death penalty. The groups include HRANA, the Center for Human Rights in Iran and Defenders of Human Rights in Iran.
Women’s Rights. Women’s rights activists are at the forefront of the reform movement, challenging discriminatory laws and advocating for gender equality. Activists such as Nasrin Sotoudeh, Narges Mohammadi, Parvin Ardalan and Sepideh Gholian promote the right of women to choose whether to wear the hijab and have garnered significant attention and support both domestically and internationally. These activists have paid a high price for their beliefs and many are in prison serving long terms although Mohammadi, a 2023 Nobel peace prize laureate, was recently allowed home for a brief period after undergoing medical treatment.
Student Activism. Iranian students have a long history of political activism, often taking a leading role in protests and reform movements. Student organizations suchas the Independent Student Union advocate for educational reform, political freedom, and social justice.
Labor Movements. Workers’ rights groups have organized to demand better working conditions, fair wages, and labor protections. During the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom movement, 14 unions formed a coalition to push for new labor laws as part of a broader reform agenda. The Haft-Tappeh Sugar Cane Company union succeeded in ousting the director of the company, returning laid-off workers and encouraging formation of more independent unions.
Environmental Activism. Civil society groups are increasingly focused on environmental issues, advocating for sustainable development and government accountability regarding natural resource management and combating water scarcity and pollution.
Social Media and Digital Activism. Social media has empowered activists to organize, share information, and mobilize more effectively despite government attempts to suppress or filter access to the internet.
Various other initiatives promote civic awareness and participation. One such entity, www.karzar.net has initiated hundreds of big and small campaigns on a wide range of issues, most recently opposing a new law meant to enforce veiling. In reaction to widespread public rejection of the law, the government of President Masoud Pezeshkian paused its implementation in December.
Despite facing significant challenges, the society-based reform movement remains a vital factor in Iran’s political landscape. The example set by the fall of the repressive Assad regime in Syria may embolden the Iranian public to demand reforms and increase international pressure on Iran to embrace democratic changes.
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 