Three human rights defenders (from Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Philippines and Ukraine) will visit New York and Washington, D.C. as part of an advocacy tour after being awarded the prestigious Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk. [see: https://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/awards/2E90A0F4-6DFE-497B-8C08-56F4E831B47D]
Apart from engaging in high-level advocacy meetings with U.S. lawmakers and the State Department, the human rights defenders will speak at the Columbia Law School Human Rights Institute, participate in Climate Week NYC and take part in the Global Citizen Festival in New York, among other events.
“From defending environmental rights to supporting civil society during armed conflict, to fighting for the right to education, these courageous human rights defenders represent some of the most at-risk communities of activists around the world today,” said Ana Cutter Patel, U.S. Representative at Front Line Defenders. “We hope this advocacy tour will bring them much-needed additional support and recognition, to energize them in their struggle to ensure human rights are respected in their respective countries.”
The study from Global Witness, a non-profit human rights environmental watchdog, shows that the killings of Indigenous peoples defending their territories and resources represented nearly 34 percent of all lethal attacks despite making up about 5 percent of the world’s population.
“Governments where these violations are happening are not acting properly to create a safe environment for defenders and a civic space proper for them to thrive,” said Gabriella Bianchini, senior advisor for the land and environmental defenders team at Global Witness. “They are not reporting or investigating and seeking accountability for reprisals against defenders. And most importantly, they are not promoting legal accountability in the proper manner.”
Latin America has consistently ranked as the deadliest region for land defenders overall and saw almost 9 in every 10 recorded killings in 2022. More than a third of those fatal attacks took place in Colombia. In 2021, Brazil was named the deadliest country for land defenders by Global Witness and now sits at second; In July, activist Bruno Pereira and journalist Dom Phillips were murdered in the Brazilian Amazon.
Growing tensions from agribusiness, mining, and logging have led to consistent lethal attacks in the region. Between 2011 and 2021, for instance, more than 10,000 conflicts related to land rights and territories were recorded in Latin America alone.
“The worsening climate crisis and the ever-increasing demand for agricultural commodities, fuel, and minerals will only intensify the pressure on the environment — and those who risk their lives to defend it,” wrote the authors.
Earlier this year, Frontline Defenders, an international human rights organization, released a similar report to Global Witness’ with corresponding findings — including that Colombia was the most dangerous country for land defenders. [see:https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2023/04/04/front-line-defenders-just-published-its-global-analysis-2022-new-record-of-over-400-killings-in-one-year/ . While Frontline Defenders reported that there were 186 land defender deaths in Colombia and Global Witness reported 60, Bianchini said differences in statistics are the result of different methodologies, which vary by organization. However, both organizations’ reports were united in findings: Indigenous people make up a disproportionate amount of the deaths among land and environment defenders, Latin America sees the highest rates of violence, and the number of killings is likely underreported.
“I am incredibly grateful and impressed to see the fight of all of these communities who are there living in these areas and who have been acting for thousands of years to protect the array of life,” said Bianchini. “I cannot believe that humanity right now is living in a moment where we are killing those who are protecting their own lands and civil rights.”
The New York Times of 22 September 2023 and other outlets report on the increasing crackdown on dissent: Huang Xueqin, the journalist who gave #MeToo Victims a voice, and Wang Jianbing, a labor activist, have been accused of inciting subversion.
The Chinese journalist Huang Xueqin in Singapore in 2017. She has been in detention in China for two years.Credit…#FreeXueBing, via Associated Press
On 22 September saw the start of their trial after two years of arbitrary detention. A large number of civil society organisations, including the FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) expressed their deep concern about their conditions of detention and called for their immediate and unconditional release.
Huang Xueqin, an independent journalist who was once a prominent voice in China’s #MeToo movement, and her friend Wang Jianbing, the activist, were taken away by the police in September 2021 and later charged with inciting subversion of state power. Their trial was held at the Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court in southern China.
Little is known about the government’s case, but the vaguely worded offence with which the two were charged has long been seen as a tool for muzzling dissent. Since China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, came to power in 2012, the ruling Communist Party has sought to essentially silence people who have fought for free speech and political rights. A steady stream of activists, lawyers, tycoons and intellectuals have been put on trial and sentenced.
In Ms. Huang and Mr. Wang’s cases, the authorities questioned dozens of their friends in the months after their detentions and pressured them to sign testimonies against the two, according to Chinese Human Rights Defenders, an advocacy group that is in close contact with many activists.
In the meantime the Washington Post of 22 September reports that Rahile Dawut, a prominent Uyghur academic who disappeared six years ago at the height of the Chinese government’s crackdown in Xinjiang, has been given a life sentence in prison, according to a human rights group that has worked for years to locate her..
Dui Hua, a California-based group that advocates for political prisoners in China, said in a statement Thursday that the 57-year-old professor — who was convicted in 2018 on charges of endangering state security by promoting “splittism” — had lost an appeal of her sentence in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region High People’s Court.
At a regular press briefing, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning said she was “unaware” of Dawut’s case. “What I can tell you is that China is a law-based country and handles relevant cases in strict accordance with the law.”
“The sentencing of Professor Rahile Dawut to life in prison is a cruel tragedy, a great loss for the Uyghur people, and for all who treasure academic freedom,” said John Kamm, executive director of the Dui Hua Foundation.
Eddy Wax in Politico of 14 September 2023 reported that the far-right political group in the European Parliament nominated tech billionaire Elon Musk for the EU’s top human rights award. The Identity and Democracy (ID) grouping, which includes members of European Parliament tied to France’s Marine Le Pen and Italy’s Matteo Salvini, put Musk’s name forward, according to a document sent to MEPs on September 14 and seen by POLITICO. An ID official confirmed to POLITICO its decision to nominate Musk.
ID cited Musk’s decision to release the so-called Twitter Files, which consisted of selected internal documents over how the social media platform handled requests to remove political posts. This amounts to a defense of the principle of freedom of expression, ID argued.
Musk is highly unlikely to receive the accolade as the President of the Parliament Roberta Metsola and the leaders of all political groups will select the winner together later this year.
The Greens have nominated Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate, while the right-wing ECR group put forward Nino Lomjaria, a public defender in Georgia who stood up to Russian interference. The Left proposed three women’s rights activists.
In a video message posted on X, Khawaja said she was not allowed to board a flight at London’s Heathrow Airport “despite being a Bahraini citizen”.
“I was told I have to speak to Bahraini immigration if I want to get a boarding pass to Bahrain. So effectively we are being denied boarding by British Airways on behalf of the Bahraini government,” she said.
Agnes Callamard, the secretary-general of Amnesty International, was among those accompanying Khawaja and said on X that she had also been denied boarding. “Our human rights delegation members are all denied a boarding pass. We are told that British Airways has been instructed by the Bahrain immigration authorities not to give us a boarding pass,” she posted.
A spokesperson for the British Airways Press Office said: “All airlines are legally obliged to comply with immigration control laws and entry requirements for customers as set by individual countries,” he told Middle East Eye in a statement and a government spokesperson in Bahrain added: “…as with other countries, Bahrain reserves the right to refuse entry, if deemed necessary.”
Sayed Alwadaei, a Bahraini activist, and the director of advocacy at the UK-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD), raised concern over al-Khawaja being denied boarding the flight.
Campaigners and the heads of human rights organisations informed MEE that they are planning to peacefully protest outside the Bahraini embassy in London later today in response to not being allowed to travel to Bahrain.
Responding to the news, Olive Moore, the Executive Director of Frontline Defenders said that the decision not to let her board the flight was “unjustifiable“.
On 14 September 2023 the Cyber Tribunal, Dhaka sentenced to two years imprisonment Odhikar’s Secretary Adilur Rahman Khan and Director ASM Nasiruddin Elan for allegedly breaching Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act 2006. They were charged for releasing a report on extrajudicial killings committed on 5 and 6 May 2013, centering around the Hefazat-e-Islam protests.
Immediately, 39 organizations in a joint call said that Bangladesh should quash their convictions, and end all reprisals against them and other human rights defenders for their legitimate human rights work. The Bangladesh Government has persistently targeted and launched a smear campaign against Khan and Elan, the secretary and director, respectively, of prominent Bangladesh human rights organization Odhikar. Following the 2013 publication of Odhikar’s fact-finding report documenting extrajudicial killings during a protest, both defenders were arbitrarily detained; Khan for 62 and Elan for 25 days. After being released on bail, they continued to face prosecution and judicial harassment on trumped-up allegations that their 2013 report was “fake, distorted, and defamatory.”
After the Government reopened the examination of witnesses and presented additional prosecution witnesses in July and August 2023, the judge convicted Khan and Elan to two years in prison and a fine of 10,000 Bangladeshi Taka (equivalent of USD$91.17).
Human rights defenders should be allowed to conduct their necessary and important work without fear of harassment, intimidation, and reprisals. Instead of prosecuting and punishing those who document and expose human rights violations, the Government should investigate and hold the perpetrators of these violations accountable.
List of signatories:
Advocacy Forum Nepal
Amnesty International
Anti-Death Penalty Asian Network (ADPAN)
Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD)
Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL)
Association of Family Members of the Disappeared, Sri Lanka
Capital Punishment Justice Project, Australia
Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights (NKHR)
CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
Defence for Human Rights Pakistan (DHR)
Desaparecidos – Philippines
Eleos Justice, Monash University, Australia
Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND)
FIDH (International Federation for Human Rights), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
Forum ONG Timor-leste
Free Jonas Burgos Movement
HAK Association, Timor-leste
Human Rights First
Human Rights Hub
Human Rights Watch
Indonesian Association of Families of the Disappeared Families (IKOHI)
International Coalition Against Enforced Disappearances (ICAED)
International Federation of ACATs (FIACAT)
International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)
Karapatan Alliance Philippines (KARAPATAN)
KontraS (the Commission of the Disappeared and Victims of Violence)
Latin American Federation of Associations of Relatives of Disappeared-Detainees (FEDEFAM)
Legal Literacy – Nepal
Liga Guatemalteca de Higiene Mental
Madres de Plaza de Mayo – Linea Fundadora, Argentina
Martin Ennals Foundation
Nonviolence International Canada
Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Sindhi Foundation
The Asian Alliance Against Torture (A3T)
Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition, Washington DC
We Remember-Belarus
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
Odhikar itself denounces the arrest, trial and imprisonment of these two human rights defenders and added that “It believes that justice has not been served. As an organisation Odhikar has drawn the sustained wrath of the establishment for becoming the voice of the victims of human rights violations, including those of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary detention and against the suppression of free expression and assembly; and for its engagement with the United Nations Human Rights Mechanisms. Earlier the government arbitrarily deregistered the organisation. Today’s judgement is likely to have a chilling effect on human rights defenders and civil society organisations around the country.“
The international community must pursue pathways for justice at the international level to address systemic impunity for Iranian officials responsible for hundreds of unlawful killings of protesters and widespread torture, Amnesty International said on 13 September 2023, as Iran marks the one-year anniversary of the “Woman Life Freedom” uprising.
Over the past year, Iranian authorities have committed a litany of crimes under international law to eradicate any challenge to their iron grip on power. These include hundreds of unlawful killings; the arbitrary execution of seven protesters; tens of thousands of arbitrary arrests; widespread torture, including rape of detainees; widespread harassment of victims’ families who call for truth and justice; and reprisals against women and girls who defy discriminatory compulsory veiling laws.
“The anniversary of the ‘Woman Life Freedom’ protests offers a stark reminder for countries around the world of the need to initiate criminal investigations into the heinous crimes committed by the Iranian authorities under universal jurisdiction. Government statements calling on the Iranian authorities to halt the unlawful use of firearms against protesters, stop torturing detainees, and release all individuals detained for peacefully exercising their human rights remain as crucial as ever. These actions show victims they are not alone in their darkest hour.”
The anniversary of the ‘Woman Life Freedom’ protests offers a stark reminder for countries around the world of the need to initiate criminal investigations into the heinous crimes committed by the Iranian authorities under universal jurisdiction. Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa
The Iranian authorities have waged an all-out assault on the human rights of women and girls over the past year. Despite months of protests against Iran’s compulsory veiling laws, triggered by the arbitrary arrest and death in custody of Mahsa/Zhina Amini, the authorities have reinstated “morality” policing and introduced a raft of other measures that deprive women and girls who defy compulsory veiling of their rights.
These include the confiscation of cars and denial of access to employment, education, healthcare, banking services and public transport. Simultaneously, they have prosecuted and sentenced women to imprisonment, fines and degrading punishments, such as washing corpses.
This assault on women’s rights is taking place amid a spate of hateful official statements referring to unveiling as a “virus”, “social illness” or “disorder” as well as equating the choice to appear without a headscarf to “sexual depravity.”
The authorities are also working on new legislation that will introduce even more severe penalties for defying compulsory veiling.
Mass arbitrary detentions and summons
During the uprising and in the months that followed, the authorities arbitrarily arrested tens of thousands of men, women and children, including protesters, human rights defenders and minority rights activists. Those arrested include at least 90 journalists and other media workers and 60 lawyers, including those representing families of individuals unlawfully killed. Scores of other lawyers were summoned for interrogations. [see e.g. https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2023/05/11/now-it-is-the-turn-of-the-iranian-journalists-who-reported-on-mahsa-amini/]
Ahead of the anniversary, the authorities have intensified their campaign of arbitrary arrests targeting, among others, family members of those unlawfully killed, and forcing thousands of university students to sign undertakings not to participate in anniversary protests.
Execution of protesters
Over the past year, the authorities have increasingly used the death penalty as a tool of political repression to instil fear among the public, arbitrarily executing seven men in relation to the uprising following grossly unfair sham trials. Some were executed for alleged crimes such as damage to public property and others in relation to the deaths of security forces during the protests. All were executed after Iran’s Supreme Court rubber stamped their unjust convictions and sentences despite a lack of evidence and without carrying out investigations into their allegations of torture. Dozens remain at risk of execution or being sentenced to death in connection with the protests.
A crisis of impunity
The authorities have refused to conduct any thorough, independent and impartial investigations into the human rights violations committed during and in the aftermath of the “Woman Life Freedom” uprising and have failed to take any steps to hold those suspected of criminal responsibility to account.
Instead, authorities have applauded the security forces for suppressing the unrest and shielded officials from accountability, including two officials who admitted raping women protesters in Tehran. They have also dismissed complaints from victims and/or their families, threatening them with death or other harm if they pursued their complaints.
Amnesty International welcomed the establishment of a Fact-Finding Mission on Iran by the UN Human Rights Council in November 2022, yet much more is needed to combat the crisis of impunity for serious crimes in Iran – and to deter further cycles of bloodshed.
Amnesty International urges all states to consider exercising universal and other extraterritorial jurisdiction in relation to crimes under international law and other serious human rights violations committed by Iranian authorities, irrespective of the absence or presence of the accused in their territory. This includes initiating adequately resourced criminal investigations aimed at disclosing the truth about the crimes, identifying those suspected of responsibility, including commanders and other superiors and issuing, when there is sufficient admissible evidence, international arrest warrants. States should also contribute to achieving reparations for the victims.
On 7 September 2023, Maryam Al-Khawaja announced that she would return from exile to Bahrain to try and save her father Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja [see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2023/09/11/maryam-al-khawaja-risks-prison-by-returning-to-bahrain-to-press-for-her-fathers-release/]. Now Front Line’s Interim Director Olive Moore announced that she will accompany Maryam on the trip to Manama this week to press the Bahraini authorities to release him. Other leading human rights figures have announced their participation in the trip, including Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General; Tim Whyte, Action Aid-Denmark’s Secretary General; and Andrew Anderson, former Front Line Defenders Executive Director and Amnesty International staff member.
“Front Line Defenders owes a debt of gratitude to Abdulhadi, both as a former staff member and friend to many in the organisation, but more importantly as a principled and trailblazing human rights defender in Bahrain and the region. We will not rest until the Bahraini authorities free him and the human rights defenders Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace and Naji Fateel, both also unjustly imprisoned for over a decade.” said Moore.
The exact timing of the solidarity trip is not being publicised, but it comes the same week as the Bahraini Crown Prince visits Washington, DC, and more than a dozen human rights organisations, including Front Line Defenders, have also called on President Biden’s administration to demand the release of human rights defenders.
“Now is the moment for the Biden administration to step up to the plate and show solidarity with human rights defenders in Bahrain. In meetings with the Crown Prince this week, the US government must be unequivocal in its calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja and other unjustly imprisoned human rights defenders,” said Olive Moore.
Human Rights Watch stated on 11 September: “If Maryam al-Khawaja can have the courage to risk her life for democracy and human rights in Bahrain, the least the Biden Administration can do is show the political strength to use its leverage to call on its allied government to free its political prisoners.“
The same day Human Rights First’s Brain Dooley blogged about two prisoners (among the hundreds on hunger strike) that have told him about the daily reality of the protest.
With Tajikistan marking its Independence Day on 9 September 2023, CIVICUS and the Brussels-based International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) called on 7 September 2023 on Tajikistan’s authorities to immediately release imprisoned human rights defender Manuchehr Kholiqnazarov, and other activists and journalists detained for their human rights activities.
“Manuchehr Kholiqnazarov is a peaceful human rights lawyer and activist who has sat in jail for far too long on trumped-up charges,” said Mandeep Tiwana, CIVICUS Chief Programmes Officer. “As Tajikistan celebrates its national day, the authorities must free him and others unjustly imprisoned without hesitation.”
Authorities arrested Manuchehr on 28 May 2022 while he was a member of “Commission 44,” an official body investigating a November 2021 extrajudicial killing which sparked mass protests in Tajikistan’s Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO). Prosecutors falsely charged Manuchehr with participating in a criminal association and publicly calling for violent change of the constitutional order. After a closed trial which failed to meet international fairness standards, Tajikistan’s Supreme Court sentenced him to 16 years’ imprisonment in December 2022.
“It is completely absurd that the government appointed someone to a commission to investigate and report on human rights violations and then charged that same person for doing the work they were commissioned to do,” said IPHR director Brigitte Dufour. “Manuchehr should be released immediately.”
Manuchehr’s continued detention is symptomatic of the ongoing civic space restrictions in Tajikistan, which is one of the world’s most repressed countries. Tajikistan authorities have repeatedly levelled trumped-up charges of “extremism” and “terrorism” against journalists, bloggers and activists who criticise the government. CIVICUS Monitor, which assesses civic space worldwide, rates Tajikistan as “closed,” its worst possible ranking.
CIVICUS and IPHR recognise Manuchehr as part of the Stand As My Witness campaign, which advocates for the release of jailed activists and human rights defenders worldwide.
On 11 September 2023 the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, Human Rights Watch, Freedom for Eurasia, and Freedom Now demanded that he Tajik authorities drop trumped up charges against Nizomiddin Nasriddinov and immediately release him. Nasriddinov, a political activist, was recently extradited from Belarus at the request of the Tajik government.
The European Parliament’s Sakharov Fellowship is a two-week training experience for human rights defenders from non-EU countries. Since its inception in 2016, this program has empowered individuals to champion human rights across the globe, thanks to the initiative of the Sakharov Prize Community at the 25th Anniversary Conference.
What We Offer:
Training in Brussels and Venice: Immerse yourself in a comprehensive program that delves into EU and international human rights frameworks, policies, and mechanisms. Equip yourself with the skills to advocate for positive change and protect human rights.
Networking Opportunities: Join an expanding network of Sakharov Fellows to share best practices and disseminate knowledge. Forge lasting connections with the European Parliament and EU Delegations in your home country.
Bespoke Curriculum: In Brussels, focus on EU policies, funding opportunities, communication skills, and security challenges facing human rights defenders. Engage with EU decision-makers, Members of Parliament, and NGOs. Enjoy opportunities for individual advocacy and networking.
Venice Experience: At the Global Campus of Human Rights, benefit from academic expertise in international human rights law, practical tools, and case studies. Learn from distinguished academics, human rights leaders, and Sakharov Prize laureates.
In-Person and Online: Our program will be held in person in Brussels and Venice, with the flexibility to switch to an online format if necessary due to health concerns.
Who Should Apply:
If you have a proven track record in advocating for human rights in an NGO, organization, or individually, this fellowship is for you. Proficiency in English, enabling active participation in discussions and workshops, is essential. We aim to ensure diversity in terms of gender, geography, and human rights focus in our selection process.
Benefits:
The Sakharov Fellowship covers return travel from your home country, accommodation in Brussels and Venice, and a daily living allowance.
Application Deadline: Midnight, October 8, 2023 (CET)
Confirmation Emails: Successful candidates will receive confirmation by November 17, 2023. Regrettably, we will not be able to provide feedback to unsuccessful applicants.
For more information and to apply, go to the website.
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 