ISHR’s 2024 highlights

Looking back at 2024, we reflect on a year during which, despite tremendous challenges around the world, ISHR has continued to believe in and promote dignity and justice for all by supporting those who defend human rights worldwide. Thanks to the support of our partners and donors, we led key activities, from establishing new international standards on the protection of defenders, to building the capacity of thousands of grassroots defenders to drive positive change in their communities and countries.  

Watch our video highlighting ten examples of our impact this year! 

1. Working alongside women human rights defenders from Afghanistan, we were able to secure the adoption of a resolution which sets out a blueprint for further international action to promote justice and accountability and address the root causes of violations and abuses in the country.
   

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2. As part of activities to mark the 25th anniversary of the UN Declaration on human rights defenders, we consulted more than 700 human rights defenders and worked with lawyers and human rights experts to draft the Declaration+25. This document is grounded in international law and considers international jurisprudence over the last 25 years, the evolutions of movements and activism, and defenders’ lived experiences. It supplements the UN Declaration and is meant to be read alongside it. Human rights defenders, legal scholars, civil society organisations, international and regional human rights mechanisms and State authorities are encouraged to use the Declaration+25 as an authoritative document that sets out standards when it comes to protecting the right to defend rights and those who exercise it.
   

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3. We trained and built the capacities of over 1,000 human rights defenders, partnering with them to drive progressive change on the ground. Of the 16 human rights defenders chosen from 434 applicants for our Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme (HRDAP), 100% indicated that they were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with the programme and that it contributed significantly to building their capacity and networks, as well as achieving advocacy objectives at the UN.
   

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4. In partnership and collaboration with the UN Anti-racism Coalition (UNARC), we secured the extension of the mandate of the Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement (EMLER) for a period of 3 years and strengthening of its resources. The extension recognises the value of the mechanism’s work, as well as the need for experts to continue investigating systemic racism in States’ law enforcement practices and their impact on African and Afrodescendant people and communities throughout the world.
   

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5. Our campaign to raise the political costs for perpetrators of reprisals against human rights defenders was a significant success, with States at both the UN Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly using those significant platforms to publicly speak out in solidarity with a number of arbitrarily detained defenders on behalf of whom ISHR campaigned.
   

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6. Working closely with women human rights defenders in Sudan, we succeeded in renewing the mandate of the international Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan, ensuring continued and vital human rights scrutiny of all sides to the conflict engulfing that country. Building on our longstanding partnership with human rights defenders in Venezuela, we were also successful in extending the mandate of the international Fact Finding Mission (FFM) and OHCHR on the country. The FFM has been essential to document and expose the human rights and humanitarian crisis in the country and its work will contribute to ongoing efforts towards accountability for grave violations, including crimes against humanity.
   

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7. Our advocacy in Brussels together with Uyghur human rights defenders led to a landmark EU parliament resolution calling for the release of detained defenders doctor Gulshan Abbas and economist Ilham Tohti, while our intensive advocacy in New York culminated in an important joint statement on the human rights situation in China, including Xinjiang and Tibet.
   

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8. Working in coalition with LGBTQ NGOs at the UN General Assembly, we ensured that 130 member States condemned targeting based on sexual orientation and gender identity in extrajudicial executions. At a time when hateful rhetoric targeted especially at transgender individuals is on the rise, it is particularly important that States agree that extreme violence against all LGBTQ people be investigated and perpetrators brought to justice. The outcome of this vote shows States’ acceptance of the basic and inalienable principle that all human beings have dignity and rights.
   

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9. In March, ISHR marked the 10th anniversary of Chinese woman human rights defender Cao Shunli’s death in police custody, as a victim of reprisals for her engagement with the UN. ISHR unveiled a statue of Cao Shunli to honour her tireless work as well as to demonstrate solidarity with all human rights defenders who believe in and engage with the UN human rights mechanisms based in Geneva despite the grave risks they may face. As a result of our campaign, the City of Geneva announced that they will host a public monument to pay tribute to human rights defenders.
   

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10. Following a concerted campaign led by ISHR together with civil society partners, Saudi Arabia was defeated in its bid to be elected to the UN Human Rights Council. ISHR campaigned against Saudi Arabia based on objective criteria, namely that the State is responsible for international crimes, engages in the widespread repression of civil society, and systematically perpetrates reprisals against those who engage with the UN. 

In 2025, with the support of our partners and donors, ISHR will continue to stand with and serve defenders, enabling them to expose injustice, pursue accountability, seek international solidarity, and help shape community-based solutions to the multiple crises humanity faces.