Tanzania: the international community should act to prevent further violations
5 December 2025
Following the Tanzanian authorities’ brutal response to widespread protests that
Following the Tanzanian authorities’ brutal response to widespread protests that
Our 14-member delegation’s engagement at the session and in the preceding NGO Forum under the African Union’s 2025 theme, “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent through Reparations,” was guided by a commitment to amplify the voices of HRDs across Africa.
In light of the atrocities committed by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid
DefendDefenders’ 20th anniversary celebrations 4-5 November 2025
Protesting is part and parcel of the human experience. Across the world, people protest against injustice, discrimination, and power abuse. They protest for justice, human rights, and accountability. Thinkers such as Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. stressed that everyone carries a moral duty to resist unjust systems and unfair laws. This remains true.
In Africa, as elsewhere, people demonstrate to defend their rights and the rights of others, or to push for change. Since progress can only be achieved if ideas circulate freely, people should be able to express even controversial, non-conformist views. Those holding positions of power should not silence critical voices or prevent them from peacefully assembling and organising themselves. This is particularly important as historically marginalised groups, who have often been excluded from political decision, seek to express grievances and set issues on the political agenda by protesting.
In a letter released today, civil society calls on the
Hello Friends, September was a busy month for us, from advocacy to capacity building. At the start of the month, AfricanDefenders hosted its annual Ubuntu Hub Cities Coordinators Workshop in Durban, South Africa, while there, I found myself revisiting a question: Why must African human rights defenders seek safety outside the continent?
Sulieman Mujuni Baitani – Zanzibar National Coordinator | Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition (THRDC). Sulieman Mujuni Baitani is a committed human rights defender whose portfolio includes writing, political engagement, and civil society work. He has dedicated himself to amplifying marginalized voices and strengthening civic space in Zanzibar.
Sulieman Mujuni Baitani’s entry into civil society work started in 2013, fuelled by a simple yet steady love for writing that began during his university years around 2011.
1.1 The East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (DefendDefenders) is a regional CSO registered and based in Uganda. Established in 2005,
DefendDefenders (the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project) welcomes the opportunity offered by the 85th ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereafter “the Commission”) to highlight the most pressing human rights issues in the East and Horn of Africa sub-region for the period May to October 2025.