Passports of human rights defenders, members of the Khartoum Centre for Training and Human Development (TRACKS), have been seized and remain in the possession of the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) in Khartoum. Front Line Defenders calls on the Sudanese authorities to immediately return the passports of staff, trainers, volunteers from TRACKS, as well as visitors to the Centre.
In light of unprecedented attacks on human rights defenders, Andrew Anderson of Front Line Defenders argues for increased direct support to human rights defenders working at the local and national levels, flexibility in funding, and a greater focus on core, multi-year support.
A publication of the Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition, this manual is motivated by the courageous activism of people—and in particular, women—around the world who dare to resist, to fight for what we believe is right, and to put our lives on the line for justice, accountability and fairness.
Global Analysis 2020 details the physical assaults, defamation campaigns, digital security threats, judicial harassment, and gendered attacks faced by HRDs, especially women and gender non-conforming human rights defenders.
In May 2019, seven Zimbabwean human rights defenders went to the Maldives to attend a training on civil engagement with a focus on effective advocacy and communication strategies, organised by the Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS). Upon return, they were arrested at the Robert Mugabe International Airport. George Makoni, Tatenda Mombeyarara, Gamuchirai Mukura and Frank Nyasha Mpahlo were arrested on 20 May 2019, Farirai Gumbonzvanda was arrested the next day, and Stabile Dewa and Rita Nyampinga were arrested on 27 May 2019.
As human rights defenders around the world put their lives on the line to challenge dictators, destructive multi-national corporations, religious conservatives, and oppressive regimes, there pervades a well-resourced and coordinated strategy of defamation, criminalisation and violence depl
Well-being is apparently dangerous in Turkey. When my friend Ozlem Dalkiran attended a training workshop on holistic security she was asked to draw something which represented what she was worried about. It is the sort of well meaning flipchart & post-it note psycho-babble which messes with my stress levels, but Ozlem gamely drew a map of Turkey with icons representing people fleeing war in Iraq & Syria in the East and friends in prison in Istanbul.
As the 2016 Annual Report documents, at least 156 human rights defenders were killed or died in detention in 2015. More than half of those killings, 87, took place in Latin America, with Colombia alone accounting for 54 killings. Outside the Americas one of the starkest figures was the total of 31 targeted killings of HRDs in the Philippines.
As human rights defenders around the world put their lives on the line to challenge dictators, destructive multi-national corporations, religious conservatives, and oppressive regimes, there pervades a well-resourced and coordinated strategy of defamation, criminalisation and violence depl
