Erik-Aimé Semien: Human rights defender from Côte d’Ivoire
Erik-Aimé Semien, chairperson of the Observatoire Ivoirien des Droits de l’Homme, talks to ISHR about his work for the protection of human rights defenders.
Defenders' stories
Here at ISHR we are constantly being inspired by the brave people taking action to defend human rights and want to share some of their stories with you.
Elsa Saade: Human rights defender from the Gulf Centre for Human Rights
Elsa Saade, from the Gulf Centre for Human Rights, talks to ISHR about her work supporting women human rights defenders in the Gulf region.
Alejandro González: Mexican corporate accountability human rights defender
Alejandro González, a human rights specialist with PODER, talks to ISHR about his work to build the capacities of communities affected by corporate abuse and accompanies their accountability campaigns.
Ahlem Beladj: Feminist activist from Tunisia
Ahlem Belhadj talks to ISHR about her experiences as a women human rights defender in Tunisia; a country that was commended by the High Commissioner for Human Rights on 26 May 2015 for its recent progress in terms of respect for democratic voices and civil society.
Alejandra Burgos: Woman defender working on sexual and reproductive rights in El Salvador
Alejandra Burgos is Coordinator of the Salvadoran Network of Women Human Rights Defenders, which aims to articulate efforts for the protection of women defenders and the promotion of women’s rights. She is based in San Salvador, El Salvador.
Pierre Fritznel: Defender of women’s human rights from Haiti
Pierre Fritznel is the Executive Director of Combite pour la Paix et le Développement, an NGO in Haiti focusing on combatting violence against women and ensuring the participation of women in reconstruction efforts.
Lassana Koné: Land and environmental rights defender in the DRC
Lassana Koné is a lawyer in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, working for Forest Peoples Programme, an international NGO working to protect the rights of those who live in the world’s forests.
Gilbert Sendugwa: Human rights defender and freedom of information campaigner from Uganda
Gilbert Sendugwa is Coordinator of Africa Freedom of Information Centre (AFIC), a pan-African network whose secretariat is based in Kampala, Uganda.
Tilder Kumichii: Human Rights Defender from Cameroon
Tilder Kumichii is Programme Coordinator at Gender Empowerment and Development (GeED) based in Cameroon, focusing on gender and human rights issues.
Martin Ennals Award honours courageous human rights defenders from Burma, Guinea and UAE
Three prominent human rights defenders from Burma, Guinea and the United Arab Emirates have been honoured for their courageous work in the face of great personal risk, with the announcement of the Final Nominees for the Martin Ennals Award 2015.
Joseph Bikanda: Coordinator of Pan African Human Rights Defenders Network
While in Geneva for the 28th session of the Human Rights Council, Joseph Bikanda, the coordinator of the Pan African Human Rights Defenders Network, spoke to ISHR about African human rights defender networks and their role in the protection of human rights defenders.