Zara Alvarez, 39, spent most of her life fighting so that farmers and workers could enjoy their basic rights. A passionate, selfless and dedicated human rights defender and former education director of the Philippines-based human rights organisation Karapatan, she died on 17 August after being shot fatally in Negros. Alvarez is the 13th member of Karapatan to be killed following the election of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Since President Duterte’s election in May 2016, human rights defenders in the Philippines have been subject to increased violence and killings, the criminal justice system is abused and laws, such as the Anti-Terrorism law are being used to grant the Government excessive and unchecked powers to silence and suppress them.
In the prevailing climate of impunity and attacks against human rights defenders, human rights organisations in the country continue to lobby for the passage of a law for the recognition and protection of human rights defenders. That, if passed, would constitute a significant development for their protection.
‘We urge the government of the Philippines to end the targeting of human rights defenders, whose work is crucial to the safeguarding and protection of human rights in the Philippines’, said ISHR’s Tess McEvoy. ‘Together with UN Special Procedures and over 500 human rights advocates we strongly condemn these killings and echo the call for an independent investigation mechanism into the human rights situation in the Philippines.’
Contact: Tess McEvoy, [email protected]
Photo: Cristina Palabay/Facebook
During the 89th ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (‘the African Commission’), ISHR shared concerns about the situation of human rights defenders in Cameroon, Zambia and Guinea, especially in regards to the restrictive legal framework they work in and drew their attention to the state of civic space in Africa.
The public session of the 89th session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) will be held in Dakar, Senegal, from 12 to 21 October. The public session will be preceded by a training session organised jointly by ISHR, Front Line Defenders and Defend Defenders on 6, 7 and 11 October, and the NGO Forum, organised by ACDHRS from 8 to 10 October.
In its annual discussion on the UN Secretary-General’s report on reprisals against individuals seeking to cooperate with the organisation, States heard the specifics of cases that involved countries in all regions – including eight sitting members of the Council.
