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On 27 September 2025, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk joined award-winning actor, playwright, and Global Citizen and UN Women Goodwill Ambassador Danai Gurira, along with Global Citizen Prize winners Valeriia Rachynska, Director of Human Rights, Gender and Community Development at 100% Life (Ukraine), and Omowumi Ogunrotimi, Founder and Executive Lead of Gender Mobile Initiative (Nigeria), to announce commitments to protect human rights defenders and share powerful personal stories of impact at Global Citizen Festival in New York City
Human Rights Watch stands with civil society and signed this letter, alongside more than 3700 other organizations, condemning the Trump administration’s attacks. It is a testament to our community’s solidarity.
“We are a coalition of nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations formed to champion causes dear to all Americans. We work in communities across the country to protect our air and water, our right to vote, to worship, and to organize; we fight for consumers, workers, and our children; we advocate for civil and human rights at home and abroad; we have made it safer to drive on our roads, easier to start a business, and healthier to live in our cities. We span the full ideological spectrum. And today, we stand together for our democracy and in solidarity with the nonprofit groups unjustly and illegally targeted by the Trump administration, including in a new September 25 presidential memorandum.
We of course unequivocally reject political violence. But we won’t mince words. No president–Democrat or Republican–should have the power to punish nonprofit organizations simply because he disagrees with them. That is not about protecting Americans or defending the public interest. It is about using unchecked power to silence opposition and voices he disagrees with. That is un-American and flies in the face of the Constitution, including the First Amendment bar on targeting organizations for their advocacy.
Charities perform crucial functions in every community across our country, including providing healthcare, housing, education, religious services, food and water, and so much more. Like other nonprofits, the organizations threatened by President Trump have a mission to serve the public good and are composed of everyday people fighting for dignity, safety, and opportunity.
This attack on nonprofits is not happening in a vacuum, but as a part of a wholesale offensive against organizations and individuals that advocate for ideas or serve communities that the president finds objectionable, and that seek to enforce the rule of law against the federal government. Whether the target is a church, an environmental or good government group, a refugee assistance organization, university, a law firm, or a former or current government official, weaponizing the executive branch to punish their speech or their views is illegal and wrong. It is also an attack on the very notion that government power must serve the people, not those in office.
Charitable organizations serve our communities in various ways, playing a central role in public protection, health, accountability, anti-discrimination, and in creating the moral fabric of our nation. That is, of course, precisely why this administration is targeting them. They know that the organizations they are attacking exist to lift up the voices of everyday Americans and shine the spotlight of accountability on those who seek to abuse power.
Political violence is unacceptable. But efforts by the president of the United States to defund, discredit, and dismantle nonprofit groups he simply disagrees with are reprehensible and dangerous—a violation of a fundamental freedom in America. This Administration is trying to bully people into silence but speaking out is, and has always been, our collective mission. We stand with those wrongly targeted and with each other. No exceptions.”
Marie Louise Baricako, a women’s rights activist from Burundi, in Geneva for the Human Rights Council (Geneva Solutions/Michelle Langrand)
Michelle Langrand in Geneva Solutions of 8 October 2025, talks with Burundian women’s rights defender Marie Louise Baricako – who was In Geneva to attend the Human Rights Council. She warns that her country is sinking deeper into crisis as the region teeters on the brink, urging the international community to push for a national dialogue.
Marie Louise Baricako recalls the Arusha negotiations with a mixture of pride and sorrow. In the late 1990s, she pushed for women to have a seat at the table in the talks aimed at ending Burundi’s inter-ethic civil war – and yet, 25 years on, much of the agreement’s promises remain unfulfilled.
“If women are left out, Burundi will keep losing,” she says. “How can you hope to develop when 52 per cent of your population are left aside?”
Baricako has spent a lifetime trying to empower that 52 per cent. In 1988, she became the first Burundian woman to earn a PhD, studying in Cameroon, and later led the English department at the University of Burundi. Born in Muramvya province, she spent much of her adult life abroad, including in The Gambia, where she joined Femme Africa Solidarité, a feminist network founded in Geneva in 1996 to promote female leadership in peace, security and development……
Fortuné Gaetan Zongo, UN special rapporteur on Burundi since 2021, warns of a “real risk” of regional destabilisation. “If Kinshasa were to fall, Burundi would be deeply affected,” he tells Geneva Solutions. Some 78,000 Congolese refugees fleeing the violence have crossed into Burundi since the beginning of the year, raising questions about how Burundi, already struggling, can cope with their humanitarian needs while the UN aid system is strapped for cash.
Baricako sees how ethnic narratives continue to be exploited by those in power. “This is what our leaders today are nourishing, because in their mind, Tutsi had kept power for so long alone, excluding Hutus. Now, they say ‘we have taken it, we shall not release it, until Jesus comes back’,” she says.
Yet repression is not limited to a group. “When women or human rights defenders dare to speak out on any violation, the next day, either they are in prison or they are killed,” she says…
Despite the bleak prospects, Baricako places hope in ordinary Burundians. “They have had time to believe in these stories of Hutus or Tutsi being the enemy. Now I believe people have realised that it is not about the ethnic group,” she says. “Burundians want a peaceful country, and they are ready to work as hard as they can to rebuild Burundi.”
Baricako stresses that talks would lead to more unfulfilled promises without the participation of those in power. She calls on the African Union and the East African Community to step out of their indifference and pressure Burundi to the table.
Zongo, who has been met with the government’s outright refusal to cooperate with him and other human rights experts, also notes that certain states with good relations with Burundi, like Tanzania, DRC and Cameroon, “can convince Burundi to sit at the table and engage in cooperation.”
For all the setbacks, Baricako remains steadfast. “The support of civil society has been essential in staying strong and not abandoning the fight,” she says. “Peace is our business, whether they want it or not. I will not go to the battlefield with a weapon, but what I have in my heart, I will use it to stand for peace and security of Burundians.”
In a statement delivered before the United Nations Human Rights Council on 2 October 2025 , Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor called to protect human rights defenders in Gaza and to grant international investigators unrestricted access to examine violations committed amid Israel’s ongoing war on the Gaza Strip.
The statement was delivered remotely from Gaza by Maha Hussaini, Head of Media at Euro-Med Monitor, during the Council’s 60th session under Item 8. Hussaini stressed that the continued silence of states and civil society representatives severely undermines international law and enables further violations.
Addressing the Council, Hussaini said: “I speak to you from my last refuge after I was forcibly expelled from my home in Gaza City under relentless Israeli bombardment, though I do not know if by the time you hear these words I will still be alive or buried beneath the rubble.”
She continued: “Gaza is under unprecedented Israeli attacks, and I have been forcibly displaced along with my colleagues at Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor several times now. I’m meant to present this statement as a human rights defender, to document and to advocate. But today I can no longer count the Israeli crimes I witness, because they surround me in every breath and every hour.”
Hussaini further noted: “It is a shame that I had to tear up my business card identifying me as a human rights worker at some point during this genocide to avoid being killed or detained by the Israeli military.”
She concluded: “We demand, not plead, we demand protection for those documenting genocide in Gaza, we demand unhindered access for international investigators, and we demand that perpetrators face justice. Every silence from you, representatives of states and civil society, is another strike of the hammer driving the coffin of international law.”
On 4 October 2025, in its response to a call for input by UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, Al-Haq drew urgent attention to the escalating and systematic efforts to silence Palestinian voices and dismantle the infrastructure of Palestinian civil society. The submission highlights how Israel’s settler-colonial apartheid regime has intensified its campaign to suppress resistance, criminalise advocacy and quash any pursuit of accountability as it pursues Palestinian erasure.
‘Water is to protected. Water is not for sale. Water is to be defended.’
Doris Ramírez is a fisherwoman and a fisherfolk’s union representative from Guatemala’s southern coast. She told ISHR how her late husband’s passing drove her to embrace activism and described her aspirations for the future for her coastal community.
In March 2025, Doris attended the 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council, delivering a statement calling on Guatemala to abide by its obligations to secure the protection of marine biodiversity, the traditional rights of fisherfolk and the protection of those who are protecting the environment.
On 24 September, 2025, the United Nations (UN) Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights (ASG), presented the annual report of the UN Secretary-General (UNSG) on intimidation and reprisals against those cooperating with the UN. The report highlights allegations of acts of intimidation and reprisals committed from May 2024 to April 2025, as well as updates on cases from previous reports.
Reprisals are acts of intimidation, harassment or retaliation against individuals or groups for cooperating with the UN. The annual report includes both newly documented cases from the reporting period and follow-up information on situations previously highlighted, such as changes in detention conditions, judicial or administrative measures, or recurring patterns of intimidation. see also: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140603192912-22083774–crime-should-not-pay-in-the-area-of-international-human-rights
The UNSG report warns that “more than half of the States reviewed continue to enforce or adopt laws on civil society, counter-terrorism and national security that have the effect of deterring or obstructing cooperation with the United Nations”. In some cases, new or amended legislation has further tightened restrictions on NGOs, complicating their registration and operations, and creating additional obstacles to meaningful civil society engagement with the UN. This trend is particularly pronounced in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where more than 6 out of 10 cases of reprisals are linked to counter-terrorism or security measures.
The death of a female Iranian political prisoner in hospital following a series of seizures has sparked outrage from Iran’s two Nobel laureates and right groups who have labeled her death a state-sponsored murder. Somayeh Rashididied after several days in hospital following her transfer from Qarchak Prison near Tehran, Iran’s judiciary-affiliated Mizan news agency reported on Thursday.
Rashidi, born in 1983, was detained in April for allegedly writing anti-government graffiti slogans in Tehran’s Javadieh district.
Nobel Peace laureates Narges Mohammadi condemned her death in custody, describing it as part of a pattern of abuse in detention. “This devastating loss of Somayeh Rashidi is not an accident but the result of a systematic policy of neglect and cruelty inside Iranian prisons,” Mohammadi said in a post on X.
Rights groups and activists including Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi had previously raised alarm about Rashidi’s deteriorating condition, highlighting her urgent need for medical attention.
Iran International reported earlier this month that Rashidi’s condition had severely declined, with doctors holding little hope for her recovery.
Human rights groups including the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) have publicly called for the closure of Qarchak, describing it as “one of the darkest symbols of systematic human rights violations in the Islamic Republic.” Rashidi death comes less than a week after another prisoner, Maryam Shahraki, died in Qarchak last Friday. According to Norway-based rights group Hengaw Organizattion, three women have already died in this facility this year due to lack of adequate medical care — Jamileh Azizi on September 19, Shahraki on September 13, and Farzaneh Bijanipour on Januar
The thirteenth Václav Havel Human Rights Prize – which honours outstanding civil society action in defence of human rights – has been awarded to Ukrainian journalist and human rights defender Maksym Butkevych. The prize was presented at a special ceremony on the opening day of the autumn plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg on 29 September 2025
Mr Butkevych is a co-founder of the Zmina Human Rights Centre and of Hromadske Radio. Despite his lifelong pacifism, he volunteered for the Ukrainian Armed Forces at the start of the 2022 Russian invasion and became a platoon commander. Captured and sentenced to 13 years in prison by Russian forces, he endured over two years of harsh imprisonment before being released in a prisoner exchange in October 2024. He remains a powerful symbol of courage and resilience in defence of justice and freedom.
The two runners-up for the 2025 Prize are Georgian journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli and Azerbaijani journalist Ulvi Hasanli. Both of them are currently detained in their home countries.
Opening the ceremony, PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos said it was no coincidence that all three shortlisted candidates this year were journalists. Urging the immediate release of Ms Amaghlobeli and Mr Hasanli, he said: “Your voice may be silenced, but your testimony is heard loud and clear.” The President – himself a former journalist – also thanked all three candidates for their courage in opposing authoritarianism and for acting as role-models for a whole generation of journalists and human rights defenders: “Governments should not be afraid of the truth,” he declared.
IPS at this occasion published a post critical of the lack of follow up to free the laureates:
The Václav Havel Prize is an important international recognition for those who stand up for human rights and against autocracy, but while recognition through such awards and solidarity matters deeply, it is not enough. The Council of Europe must match its willingness to recognise the courage of human rights defenders with efforts to stand courageously up to autocrats and dictators, even and especially those within its own membership ranks.
For PACE leadership and members, the recognition given to human rights defenders through the Václav Havel Prize must be matched with tireless, persistent and coordinated action to put pressure on the other political bodies of the Council of Europe. This includes adopting resolutions demanding the release of imprisoned laureates; organising visibility campaigns within PACE through side events, exhibitions and public initiatives; building stronger connections and networks with families of prisoners; and consistently deploying all available diplomatic tools to keep political prisoners at the forefront of European media and diplomacy.
At the same time, CoE leaders, including the Secretary General and Commissioner for Human Rights (currently Alain Berset and Michael O’Flaherty, respectively), must put the release of political prisoners at the top of the organisation’s priority list. These leaders have important public platforms that must consistently and relentlessly raise the profile of human rights defenders at risk. Leaders must work to mobilise member states to apply pressure for the release of political prisoners.
Finally, Council of Europe member states – signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights – need to recognise that the continued detention of human rights defenders poses a great risk to the long-term credibility of the institutions. Member states – on their own and through the organisation’s powerful Committee of Ministers – have to use all tools at their disposal to address the rising cases of political prisoners and crackdowns against civil society across the broader region. The Committee of Ministers needs to put enhanced enforcement pressure on member states regarding the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on fundamental freedoms. These judgements, after all, often affect the fate of political prisoners.[https://www.ips-journal.eu/topics/democracy-and-society/prizes-without-freedom-risk-becoming-trophies-of-hypocrisy-8573/]
On 17 September 2025 Global Witness published its annual report , documenting killings and long-term disappearances of land and environmental defenders. 2024 shows continuing bad news.
Julia Francisco Martínez stands at the graveside of her husband Juan, a Honduran Indigenous defender who was found murdered in 2015. Giles Clarke / Global Witness
Every year, Global Witness works with partners to gather evidence, verify and document every time a land and environmental defender is killed or disappeared. Our methodology follows robust criteria, yet undocumented cases pose challenges when it comes to analysing data
Global Witness documents killings and long-term disappearances of land and environmental defenders globally. In partnership with over 30 local, national and regional organisations in more than 20 countries, we produce an annual report containing these figures, and we have done so since 2012.
Our methodology involves a year-long process of cross-referencing data from different sources to ensure its credibility. Over 2,200 killings or long-term disappearances of defenders appear in our database since 2012 – with 146 cases documented in 2024.
Every year, we maintain a database to keep a record of these crimes and create a comprehensive global picture of the systematic violence defenders face.
The data provides a snapshot of the underlying drivers behind reprisals and indicates how some defenders and their communities face increased risks. Exposing these trends is the first of many steps to ensure that defenders and their communities are protected and can exercise their rights without fearing for their lives.
Killings and disappearances documented between 2012 and 2024
2,253 defenders have been killed or disappeared since 2012 Global Witness
146 of these attacks occurred in 2024 Global Witness
The accompanying press release goes into considerable detail on the methodology used.
Columbia University has officially opened the application process for the 2026–2027 Human Rights Advocates Program (HRAP), a globally recognized initiative that supports human rights defenders from around the world.
The program provides a unique opportunity for experienced human rights advocates to enhance their knowledge, strengthen their networks, and build critical skills through academic and professional development in New York City.
A Legacy of Supporting Human Rights Defenders
Established in 1989, the Human Rights Advocates Program has a long-standing history of empowering frontline activists. Over the years, HRAP has become a vital platform for practitioners working in some of the most challenging and marginalized communities worldwide.
By leveraging the vast academic and institutional resources available at Columbia University and within New York City—home to a dense network of international organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs)—HRAP provides advocates with a transformative experience that amplifies their voices and accelerates the impact of their work.
Program Structure and Opportunities
Participants in HRAP engage in a comprehensive program that combines academic study, skill-building workshops, mentoring, and networking. The curriculum is designed to be both rigorous and practical, offering a space for reflection and growth.
Advocates attend seminars specifically tailored to the challenges and strategies of the human rights field. They also have the opportunity to enroll in courses across Columbia University’s schools and departments, further enriching their understanding of legal, political, social, and economic issues related to their advocacy work.
One of the key features of the program is the series of workshops led by staff from leading human rights organizations. These sessions cover topics such as advocacy strategies, digital security, media engagement, organizational development, and fundraising. Participants also attend meetings with policymakers, funders, academics, and fellow advocates, fostering long-term professional relationships and collaborative opportunities. Mentoring is another cornerstone of the program, offering one-on-one guidance from experienced professionals who help participants refine their goals and campaign strategies.
Since its inception, more than 350 human rights advocates from over 100 countries have completed the program.
Application Process and Deadline
Applicants interested in joining the 2026–2027 cohort are encouraged to visit the official HRAP Admissions page for detailed information on eligibility criteria, application requirements, and program expectations.
The selection process is competitive and seeks individuals with a strong track record of human rights advocacy, demonstrated leadership potential, and a clear vision for how participation in HRAP will advance their work.
The deadline to apply is Monday, December 1, 2025. Late applications will not be considered, so prospective participants are advised to begin the process early to ensure all required materials are submitted on time.
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 