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.
At the upcoming 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council, Norway will present a draft resolution on human rights defenders and new and emerging technologies.
ISHR has prepared the attached letter urging States to actively support the adoption of a resolution that recognises updated frameworks to protect human rights defenders in the digital era, addresses the growing risks of cybercrimes, online harassment, surveillance, and the suppression of free expression through censorship and disinformation.
ISHR will be collecting NGO signatories until 7 February 2025. Please sign the letter using this link. Please feel free to circulate the link to sign on the letter to your civil society networks. We will be circulating the final version with signatories for publishing and sending it to Geneva missions on 10 February .
Please note that ISHR is not able to take on comments/edits on this letter. We invite interested NGOs to send their inputs directly to the drafters of the resolution – the Permanent Mission of Norway in Geneva.
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.
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.
The European Parliament’s Sakharov Fellowship is offering up to 14 human rights defenders selected from non-EU countries the opportunity to follow an intensive two-week training in Brussels and at the Global Campus of Human Rights in Venice.
The empowering programme for human rights defenders has been organised annually since 2016, further to an initiative taken by the Sakharov Prize Community at the 25th Anniversary Conference of the Sakharov Prize.
The Brussels programme focuses on EU policies and tools in support of human rights defenders, accessing funding, developing communications skills, and raising awareness of specific security challenges facing human rights defenders. It further includes meetings with Members of Parliament, officials of the EU institutions and Brussels-based NGOs. The Fellows will also have space for individual advocacy and networking activities.
Training at the Global Campus of Human Rights in Venice combines academic teaching on international human rights law, instruments and mechanisms, with case studies, and provides practical tools for improving the work of human rights defenders to effect change on the ground. Lecturers include prominent academics, representatives of leading human rights NGOs, Sakharov Prize laureates and other outstanding human rights practitioners.
The programme will be organised in person in Brussels and Venice.
Candidates should have a proven record in campaigning for human rights in an NGO or other organisation or in an individual capacity. They must have a high level of English, sufficient to follow and contribute to discussion groups and workshops in Brussels and Venice.
The Fellowship covers return travel from the country of origin, accommodation in Brussels and Venice and a daily living allowance.
An independent human rights expert expressed on 15 January 2025 concern about the continued application of anti-terrorism legislation in Egypt to imprison human rights defenders.
“Although there has been some progress with the release of some detainees and the development of a national human rights strategy, Egypt persists in routinely misusing counter-terrorism legislation and recycling criminal charges against human rights defenders,” said Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders.
“What is particularly striking is the continued detention of human rights defenders past their release date by repeatedly charging them with similar, if not identical, terrorism-related accusations, in a practice commonly known as “rotation” or “recycling”,” Lawlor said.
The Special Rapporteur previously raised concerns in this regard in 22 communications sent to the Government of Egypt since May 2020. The practice of “rotation” was also highlighted by the UN Human Rights Committee in its concluding observations on Egypt’s last review in March 2023.
In particular, the Special Rapporteur expressed concern over the use of this practice to detain three human rights defenders for lengthy periods of time.
“It is shocking that instead of being released at the end of her five-year sentence on 1 November 2023, human rights lawyer Ms. Hoda Abdel Moneim was detained again under new charges. And one year later, a third set of charges was brought against her. She is now facing two new trials, with one of the new charges – ‘joining an unnamed terrorist organisation’ – being identical to that for which she had completed her sentence in 2023, in violation of the principle of double jeopardy”, Lawlor said.
In November 2024, the same terrorism-related charge was brought against another woman human rights defender, Aisha al-Shater, who was tried in the same case with Abdel Moneim. This charge is also identical to that for which she is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence.
In a third case, human rights defender and lawyer Ibrahim Metwally has been arbitrarily detained without trial for over four years. He was arrested in 2017 at Cairo Airport, while he was on his way to Geneva to meet with the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. Although the Cairo Criminal Court has ordered his conditional release twice, he was repeatedly charged with new terrorism-related offences, one of which he supposedly committed in prison. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention previously found Metwally’s detention to be arbitrary and noted that it amounts to an act of retaliation for cooperation with the UN.
“It is outrageous that Mr Metwally is facing trial in three cases, including that of ‘conspiring with foreign entities’, which appear to be in relation to his cooperation with the UN and his peaceful human rights work in Egypt prior to his detention,” Lawlor said.
The Special Rapporteur noted that the poor prison conditions in which the three human rights defenders are held were equally alarming. The human rights defenders have had health problems from the start of their arrest and have reportedly been denied adequate medical treatment despite the severity of their conditions, which may amount to physical and psychological ill-treatment.
“It is unacceptable for prison authorities to deny recommended surgery, bar the transfer of a detainee to a hospital, or withhold medical records from the detainee’s family and lawyer,” Lawlor said.
The Special Rapporteur is in contact with the authorities of Egypt on this issue and has urged them to meet their international human rights obligations, by which they must abide.
The first World Congress on Enforced Disappearances will convene from 15 – 16 January in Geneva, marking a pivotal step in the global fight to prevent and eradicate this egregious human rights violation.
This event will bring together governments, victims, civil society organisations, and international bodies to foster dialogue and chart a collective path forward to end enforced disappearances worldwide. Over the course of the two-day event, panel discussions will be held on topics such as international responsibility for the forcibly disappeared, strengthening search procedures, and protecting victims, rights defenders, lawyers and journalists.
Details of the programme are available online. The event will take place at the Geneva International Conference Centre (CICG). Onsite registration is open at the venue.
The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances comprises five independent experts from all regions of the world. The Chair-Rapporteur is Ms. Gabriella Citroni (Italy); and the Vice-Chair is Ms. Grażyna Baranowska (Poland); other members are Aua Balde (Guinea-Bissau); Ms. Ana Lorena Delgadillo Perez (Mexico); and Mr. Mohammed Al-Obaidi (Iraq).
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk highlighted the critical role of human rights defenders in today’s tumultuous global landscape in a speech on 13 January 2025 to Wilton Park, the executive agency of the United Kingdom’s Foreign office.
For many workers, defending human rights is not just a job, but a calling. As he noted, many “work out of a deep sense of service to others, and a desire to make a meaningful impact.”
From conflict zones to post-war societies, they provide crucial support to detainees and victims of torture, deliver emergency relief, document violations and expose the root causes of conflict.
“Human rights defenders are key to conflict resolution. They are the messengers of dignity, justice and peace,” said Mr. Türk.
However, despite their invaluable work, human rights defenders face “unacceptably high” threats, with some attacks amounting to war crimes.
For journalists and humanitarian workers, being killed, kidnapped, harassed or detained has become an increasingly likely reality.
Women are particularly vulnerable, often targeted by sexual violence, online threats and risks to their family.
Mr. Türk cited the criminalisation of dissent, the forceful suppression of peaceful protests and restrictions on non-governmental organisations as alarming developments.
These events often force human rights defenders to operate in exile, exposing them to new forms of persecution and repression, including online surveillance.
“The full impact of digital technologies on the work and safety of human rights defenders is not yet known,” he warned, underlining the urgency of addressing these modern threats.
Mr. Türk urged governments to take decisive action, including establishing well-resourced national protection systems and supporting civil society networks that provide cross-border protection. He also noted the importance of reacting swiftly to emerging threats.
“The risks of this work must not be shouldered by the defenders alone,” he said, emphasising the need to support NGOs at risk and to push back against the labelling of defenders as terrorists, foreign agents or traitors.
“We must do everything we can to make sure [defenders] can operate safely wherever they are,” he concluded.
