
Egypt: Reform unjust vice laws, guarantee open civic space
During Egypt's UPR adoption at HRC59, Nora Noralla delivered a joint statement on behalf of ISHR, Cairo 52 and Middle East Democracy Center. Watch and read the full statement below.
Credit: ISHR
ISHR delivered a statement on the situation of human rights defenders in Africa during the 71st session of the African Commission. It highlights significant progress made on the continent on the protection of defenders but equally that violations of their rights remain deplorable in some countries.
On 23 April 2022, ISHR delivered its statement under item 3 on the situation of human rights in Africa, with a particular focus on some positive developments on the African continent regarding the protection and promotion of the rights of defenders and the continued dire human rights situation in Egypt.
In her statement, ISHR’s Africa programme advocate Stéphanie Wamba welcomed the establishment by Côte d’Ivoire of a national mechanism that will be responsible for the protection of defenders and more broadly for the implementation of law no. 2014-388 of 20 June 2014 on the protection of defenders’ rights. However, she regrets that defenders are not part of the mechanism. To be effective, the mechanism must work closely with defenders.
The statement was also an opportunity to congratulate the government of Niger for the recent adoption in the Council of Ministers of the draft law establishing the rights and duties of human rights defenders; and the government of Madagascar for the progress made in the process of adopting the draft law on defenders.
In addition, the statement highlighted the restrictions on fundamental freedoms, including the right to peaceful assembly, that continue to limit civil society action. Indeed, some African countries are yet to withdraw restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. We recall that these restrictions were intended to protect the population from the spread of the virus and cannot be maintained with the purpose of silencing civil societies in Africa.
“The situation of human rights and human rights defenders in Egypt remains worrying. Indeed, although the Egyptian government has officially launched its first national human rights strategy in September 2021, which it presented as a key step towards improving human rights in the country, the reality is quite different. Through this strategy, the government continues to deny the depth of the human rights crisis in the country and uses it to divert the attention of the international community rather than actually addressing the crisis,” Wamba concluded.
During Egypt's UPR adoption at HRC59, Nora Noralla delivered a joint statement on behalf of ISHR, Cairo 52 and Middle East Democracy Center. Watch and read the full statement below.
The 59th session of the UN Human Rights Council (16 June to 9 July 2025) will consider issues including civil society space, climate change, sexual orientation and gender identity, violence and discrimination against women and girls, poverty, peaceful assembly and association, and freedom of expression, among others. It will also present an opportunity to address grave human rights situations including in Afghanistan, Belarus, China, Eritrea, Israel and oPt, Sudan, Syria and Venezuela, among many others. Here’s an overview of some of the key issues on the agenda.
On 8 May 2025, during the 83rd ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), ISHR delivered a statement under Item 5, which focused on the activity report of the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders. The statement reaffirmed ISHR’s strong commitment to the protection and empowerment of defenders across Africa.