Human Rights First published this on 24 February 2025
Human Rights Defender & architect Olga Kleitman from Ukraine turned an empty building into a safe haven for those displaced by war in Kharkiv.
Posts Tagged ‘profile’
Interview with Human Rights Defender Olga Kleitman
February 28, 2025Palestinian human rights defender:Jalal Abukhater
December 13, 2024Jalal Abukhater works as an advocacy manager for 7amleh, a digital rights and human rights organisation based in Palestine.
He spoke to ISHR about what drove him to take action for the digital rights of his fellow Palestinians and about the responsibility of big technology companies and online platforms in the suppression of Palestinian rights and voices.
‘There is a responsibility for big tech companies to uphold human rights to make sure that they are not complicit in the violation of human rights, especially in the context of genocide.’
https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/human-rights-defenders-storyjalal-abukhater-from-palestine
Woman Human Rights Defender Nonhlanhla Dlamini from Eswatini
November 30, 2024On 29 November 2024, OHCHR published this interview in the context of the International Day for Women Human Rights Defenders.
© Kirsty Teichert
Nonhlanhla Dlamini heads SWAGAA – the Swatini Action Group Against Abuse, a local Eswatini organisation whose primary focus is on ending gender-based violence in the country. Since 1990, SWAGAA has provided care, support, prevention, and access to justice for victims and survivors of gender-based violence, by working with community leaders, community members, and the Government, as well as providing counselling for GBV victims. For the International Day for Women Human Rights Defenders, Dlamini answers questions about GBV, her inspirations and why it was necessary for her to become one of the first women elected as a member of parliament in Eswatini.
1. What was that specific inspiring moment or experience that made you decide to focus on gender-based violence?
What actually motivated me was an incident where a relative of mine was raped at the age of six by a stranger. We didn’t find the person. SWAGAA already existed, but I didn’t know anything about them. Then in 1997, I saw an advertisement [for SWAGAA] in the newspaper. And when I learned about what they were doing, I asked myself why I didn’t know about the organization when I had this problem because I had no one to talk to. I had no one to support me. We reported the matter to the police, but nothing ever happened. We’re so frustrated. So, when I saw the position, I just knew this was my job. And my objective was, I want people to know about SWAGAA. I wanted SWAGAA to be a household name.
2. How do you stay motivated and have you ever questioned your journey?
I have several times, particularly when I get hurt, because, you know, sometimes this world can be very cruel. And I ask myself, how could people do such an evil thing? I do get depressed. And when I’m very depressed, I’m like, you know, out of all the jobs that I could be doing, why am I even doing this job? Then I get some motivation with some of the success stories. If I quit, who else is going to do it? I kind of feel I’m compelled to do it because there’s a whole lot of people that are looking up to me for help. So, I continue.
3. You were elected MP back in the early 2000s, the first woman ever for your constituency. What made you decide you had to run?
… The mistake that we make as advocates and women’s rights activists is that we’re always pushing for others to go and make the change that we want to see. So, I made a decision; I was going to stand for the next elections, which were in 2008. I realized that for years, I’ve been part of a vote for a woman campaign, pushing women to stand for elections. But I’ve never thought of myself one day running for elections. I ran the race to Parliament. I was nominated. I was widely supported. I won the primary elections. It was easy for the primary elections, but the secondary elections were not easy. And I was the only woman against seven men. It was very rough. It was very testing. But I pushed with everything that I had. And I won the elections, and I became a member of Parliament. And the first motion that I moved in Parliament, was that the Minister of Justice bring the sexual offenses and domestic violence bill within 30 days. And his response was no. I kept asking, and that is how the bill was finally seen by Parliament.
4. Let’s look to the future. If you could change one thing about the situation of gender-based violence in Eswatini, what would it be?
The most critical thing is prevention. Prevention, prevention, because once it happens, it’s difficult to pick up the pieces. …
5. Do you consider yourself a woman human rights defender? Why?
Of course I do, 100 percent. I consider myself a human rights defender because due to the nature of the work that I’m doing, I am continuously standing up for the rights of women and girls in Eswatini. And I have advocated for better legislation in the country. I have advocated for better services in the country, be it in the police, be it in the hospitals, be it in the justice system. I have done everything that I think needs to be done under the sun to make sure that I stand for the rights of the citizens of this country. And I’m saying this because I also know people believe in me. I’ve done all I possibly can to advocate for the rights of women and children in the country.
Human rights defender’s story: Basma Mostafa, from Egypt
November 30, 2024On 27 November 2024 ISHR shared this profile:
‘The Egyptian authorities must open the civic space for civil society to play its role. They must stop persecuting human rights defenders, political opponents, and journalists simply for doing their jobs. The UN and the international community must maintain pressure on them to comply with human rights standards.’
Basma Mostafa is an Egyptian investigative journalist and co-founder of the Law and Democracy Support Foundation. She began her journalism career amid the Egyptian revolution, focusing on sensitive issues such as torture, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings.
Basma’s commitment to exposing human rights violations in Egypt came at a high personal cost. Over the years, she faced numerous threats and severe reprisals for her work, including being detained three times, forcibly disappeared, and accused of ‘affiliation with a terrorist organisation’ and of ‘spreading false information’. Following a sustained campaign of intimidation, Basma was forced to leave Egypt in 2020.
What happened during the Egyptian revolution strengthened my commitment to the principles of human rights and to defending them.
https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/human-rights-defenders-story-basma-mostafa-from-egypt
Indigenous human rights defender Victoria Maladaeva from Russia
November 6, 2024
‘Indigenous communities must have better political representations to ensure our rights are protected both constitutionally and in practice,‘ says Victoria Maladaeva, and Indigenous peoples’ rights defender from Russia. Victoria was also a participant in ISHR’s Women Rights Advocacy Week this year. She spoke to ISHR about her work and goals.
Hello Victoria, thanks for accepting to tell us your story. Can you briefly introduce yourself and your work?
Sure! I’m a Buryat anti-war decolonial activist, co-founder of the Indigenous of Russia Foundation.
What inspired you to become involved in the defence of human rights?
Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Indigenous peoples, particularly Buryat, have been hit the hardest. I wanted to help my people, fight the Russian propaganda and raise awareness about systemic colonial oppression and discrimination faced by Indigenous people and ethnic minorities in the Russian Federation.
What would Russia and your community look like in the future if you achieved your goals, if the future you are fighting for became a reality?
The country needs a large-scale transformation— political, economic, and cultural. Indigenous communities must have better political representations to ensure our rights are protected both constitutionally and in practice. Genuine democratic reforms involve fundamental rights for self-determination and autonomy where Indigenous peoples gain control of their land and resources. Putin’s constitution’s amendments to national Republics must be reversed, our languages must be mandatory in all schools, universities, and institutions where Indigenous communities live.
How do you think your work is helping make that future come true?
I’m advocating for the rights of Indigenous peoples with international stakeholders and institutions to raise awareness about issues faced by our communities and spreading awareness, producing documentaries, and mobilising diasporas.
Have you been the target of threats or attempts at reprisals because of your work?
Unfortunately, yes. There have been threats because of my anti-war activism and for shedding light on the disproportionate mobilisation in the Republic of Buryatia. For some reason, my colleagues and I were denied participation in the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. I would like to believe this was a mistake and that there was no influence from the Russian delegation at the UN.
Do you have a message for the UN and the international community?
Russia needs decolonisation and de-imperialisation. Without revising the past and acknowledging colonial wars (not only in Ukraine) and discrimination, there can be no bright future for Russia—free and democratic. The international and anti-imperialist community should acknowledge that the Russian government is not for any anti-colonial movement. Stand in solidarity with independent Indigenous activists!
https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/human-rights-defenders-story-victoria-maladaeva-from-russia
Human rights defender’s profile: Óscar Calles from Venezuela
July 24, 2024Óscar Calles is a journalist and human rights defender from Venezuela. Since 2019, he has been working for PROVEA, one of the country’s most prominent rights groups.
In an interview with ISHR, he recalled his experience of witnessing and broadcasting mass protests in his country in 2017, and how harshly these were repressed. This, he said, led him to take direct action in the defence of human rights and civil liberties.
Human rights organisations, activists and defenders only exist to ensure that all persons can live with dignity,’ says Oscar Calles. ‘Do not turn your backs on the hundreds of victims who are still awaiting justice to this day,’ he further urges States at the UN Human Rights Council, calling on to renew a key accountability mechanism for Venezuela.
In June 2024, Óscar was also one of 16 defenders who participated in ISHR’s Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme (HRDAP)
https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/human-rights-defenders-story-oscar-calles-from-venezuela
Sara Nabil, a human rights defender, from Afghanistan
July 6, 2024Sara Nabil is a human rights defender and artist from Afghanistan. She spoke to ISHR about her dream of one day seeing a ‘free democratic Afghanistan, where each human being [regardless of which] gender they are, man or woman, neutral or other genders, [would be] treated equally.’
Stand in solidarity with Sara and other women human rights defenders from Afghanistan: join us in our campaign to push for UN experts and States to explicitly and publicly recognise the situation in Afghanistan as a form of gender apartheid and the need for an accountability mechanism to address gross human rights violations against women.
Human rights defender’s profile: Sayed Ahmed AlWadaei from Bahrain
June 18, 2024Sayed Ahmed AlWadaei is a human rights defender from Bahrain and the director of advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD).
‘All we are asking for are the most basic rights. We hope to see Bahrain healing from over a decade of ordeal, of repression, of imprisonment, of torture, into a State where individuals can challenge their State without fear.’
He spoke to ISHR about how the 2011 Arab Spring uprising in Bahrain led him into activism and shared his hopes for a free, democratic future for his country despite the regime’s efforts to silence him and all those it perceives as opponents.
Learn more about Sayed and other human rights defenders like him here: https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/
Human rights defender’s profile: Elham Kohistani, from Afghanistan
June 5, 2024
On 3 June 2024, ISHR published Human rights defender’s story: Elham Kohistani, from Afghanistan
Elham Kohistani is a human rights defender from Afghanistan. Having witnessed successive governments trample human rights in her country since her childhood, she has dedicated her life to fighting for the basic rights of women and girls.
In an interview with ISHR, Elham spoke about her hopes for the future of Afghanistan, urging the international community to continue supporting human rights defenders in the long term to achieve peace and prosperity.
Stand in solidarity with Elham and other women human rights defenders (WHRDs) from Afghanistan: join us in our campaign to push for UN experts and States to explicitly and publicly recognise the situation in Afghanistan as a form of gender apartheid and the need for an accountability mechanism to address gross human rights violations against women.
https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/human-rights-defenders-story-elham-kohistani-from-afghanistan
Human rights defender profile: Sara Nabil from Afghanistan
May 28, 2024Sara Nabil is a human rights defender and artist from Afghanistan, forced into exile. She spoke to ISHR about her dream of one day seeing a ‘free democratic Afghanistan, where each human being [regardless of which] gender they are, man or woman, neutral or other genders, [would be] treated equally.’
‘Since the Taliban came to power, Afghanistan [has become] the only country where we see that women don’t have any kind of rights.’
Learn more about Sara and other human rights defenders like her: https://ishr.ch/defender-stories/
see also: https://www.dw.com/en/art-in-exile-afghan-sara-nabil-fights-for-womens-rights/a-61732508
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 