Hello Friends, Since August 2024, I’ve had the privilege of participating in two missions to Somalia aimed at assessing the current landscape for human rights defenders (HRDs). The primary objective of these missions was to revitalise the National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders Somalia by supporting the establishment of new leadership and an active board capable of addressing the evolving challenges HRDs face in the country.
“I came to know DefendDefenders during the second half of 2009. In November that year, they supported my evacuation and temporary relocation abroad. It was a very difficult period for FORSC and for me. This organisation taught me, and many other HRDs in Burundi, the very concept of a human rights defender, and everything related to their physical and digital security.”
In a joint letter released ahead of the UN Human
Since August 2024, and under the leadership of Hassan Shire, Executive Director of DefendDefenders and Chairperson of AfricanDefenders, two missions have been deployed to Somalia to evaluate the current landscape for human rights defenders (HRDs), 10 years after the launch of the report titled Between the Rock and the Hard Place.
Today, we join the rest of the world in commemorating World Press Freedom Day 2025 under the theme “Reporting in the Brave New World: The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media.”
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NGO Forum preceeding the 83rd ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to provide an update on the status of democracy, rule of law and human rights in East and Horn of Africaa over the last six months for the period October 2024 to May 2025.
We are pleased to convey our heartfelt congratulations and best wishes for health and happiness to Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander, Sovereign of the Netherlands, and Queen Máxima on the occasion of the Dutch national unity celebrations and King’s Day.
Dr. Zahara Nampewo is a prominent Ugandan human rights lawyer, academic, and gender justice advocate with over two decades of experience in legal education, public interest litigation, and social justice. She currently serves as the Deputy Principal at the School of Law, Makerere University, and has been the Treasurer on the Board of DefendDefenders since 2019.
Hello Friends, In the just concluded 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council Session (HRC58), our advocacy efforts focused on the extension of the mandate of the existing investigative mechanism, the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan (CHRSS). During the session,the CHRSS presented its report. On the 2 April, a strong resolution in line with civil society expectations was passed at the initiative of core group (UK, Norway, Albania, Ireland.
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