ISHR leads joint NGO letter addressed to all UN Member States urging support for consensus renewal of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders at HRC52.
The 52nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, from 27 February – 4 April 2023, will consider issues including the protection of human rights defenders, freedom of religion or belief, protection and promotion of human rights while countering terrorism, the right to food and adequate housing, among others. It will also present an opportunity to address grave human rights situations in States including Nicaragua, Venezuela, China, Syria, South Sudan, Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Myanmar, Eritrea, among many others. Here’s an overview of some of the key issues on the agenda.
As 2023 kicks off, the Geneva Advocacy team at Human Rights Watch shares reflections on the work of the Human Rights Council (HRC) over the past year. Despite alleged ‘polarisation’ and ‘inefficiency’, the HRC is an important space for human rights dialogue and protection and a multi-lateral body that can effectively respond to human rights crises across the world, even when the perpetrators are powerful States, writes Lucy McKernan, Deputy Director of Geneva Advocacy with Human Rights Watch.
14 NGOs that closely follow and engage with the Third Committee have joined together to publish a joint statement on outcomes of this 77th session
ISHR joins dozens of organisations calling on Egypt to immediately release HRDs Alaa Abdel-Fattah, Mohamed el-Baqer and Mohamed “Oxygen” Ibrahim Radwan and all those arrested and detained solely for exercising their rights
High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk took up his mandate on 17 October 2022. We are keen to ensure that his priorities and approach are informed by the expertise and perspectives of human rights defenders and, for this purpose, compiled a collection of views to help shape a human rights defender agenda for his mandate. Read on!
13 organisations share reflections on the key outcomes of the 51st session of the UN Human Rights Council, as well as the missed opportunities to address key issues and situations.
The 51st session of the UN Human Rights Council (12 September - 7 October), will consider issues including intimidation and reprisals, arbitrary detention, systemic racism, enforced disappearances, climate change, water and sanitation, the rights of indigenous peoples and people of African descent, and colonialism, among others. It will also present an opportunity to address grave human rights situations in States including Afghanistan, Burundi, China, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Russia, Syria and Venezuela, among many others. Here's an overview of some of the key issues on the agenda.
The 50th session of the UN Human Rights Council, from 13 June to 8 July 2022, will consider issues including 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, Russia, Sudan, Syria and Venezuela, among many others. Here’s an overview of some of the key issues on the agenda.
Despite their vital work for protecting the environment and fighting climate change, Indigenous peoples as well as land and environmental defenders continue to be attacked. New data shows alarming pattern of violence and harassment as a precursor to lethal attacks against defenders. This needs to change!
