During this side event, Black migrants / defenders in Europe will discuss their personal experiences with migration, what is happening more broadly in their region, and what solutions Black communities in Europe are seeking.
Andreza Jorge is a human rights defender and activist working to empower communities in favelas in Brazil. She was also a participant to the 2023 edition of ISHR’s flagship training course, the Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme (HRDAP).
David Yambio is a community advocate and spokesperson at the NGO Refugees in Libya. His own experiences of forced exile inspired him to fight for the human rights and well-being of migrants and refugees on both sides of the Mediterranean.
At the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council, during the adoption of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) report of Benin, ISHR and Changement Social Benin delivered a joint statement encouraging Benin to do more for the protection of defenders in the country.
At the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council, during the adoption of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) report of Zambia, ISHR, the Southern African Centre for Constructive Resolutions of Disputes and the Zambia Human Rights Defenders Network delivered a joint statement calling on Zambia to revise its legal instruments and adopt an adequate legal framework to ensure defenders can work in a safe environment without fear of reprisals.
At a debate with the Special Rapporteur on Racism, ISHR, the UN Antiracism Coalition (UNARC), and Geledés - Black Women's Institute delivered a joint statement on systemic racism rooted in the legacies of colonialism and the transatlantic trade of enslaved Africans.
UN Special Adviser on the prevention of genocide answers questions from governments and NGOs on UN committee’s historical referral of human rights situation of Uyghurs.
Civil society calls for an appropriate response from the Human Rights Council by establishing an independent international monitoring mechanism to undertake a global investigation into deaths, enforced disappearances, torture and other grave human rights violations faced by people in transit across international borders.
At the end of a 12-day-long fact-finding visit to the United States, two UN experts on racial justice concluded that authorities must adopt a human rights-centered approach to addressing systemic racism against Africans and people of African descent. They must redefine the mission and scope of the police, including radically changing the way law enforcement operates and is held accountable when abuses take place.
This virtual event, organised by UNARC, the UN Anti-Racism Coalition, aims at providing the International Independent Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement (EMLER) and OHCHR with a pathway that is grounded in the experiences and perspectives of people on the ground. The event will further bring the discussion about re-imagining policing currently happening in academic and movement spaces, to UN mechanisms that can take action.
