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The Human Rights and Democracy Network (HRDN) welcomes the European Commission’s renewed commitment, as part of the EU Civil Society Strategy1, to scale up its support to ensure an enabling environment for civil society and human rights defenders across the world2. In this context we urge the European Commission to take a decisive step toward establishing a Directive on the Protection and Mobility of Human Rights Defenders (HRDs), creating a coherent and predictable framework for their protection within the European Union.

Human Rights House Foundation joins Belarusian and international CSOs in urging the Belarusian authorities to revoke “extremist” designations against PEN Belarus, Human Constanta, the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, and other civil society groups, align extremism laws with international human rights standards, and to end the practice of designiating organisations as “extremist” without reasonable and proportional grounds. The organisations also call international civil society to show solidarity with Belarus, and urge international bodies to assess violations, press authorities to meet their obligations, and halt abusive extremist designations.

In 2025, Human Rights House Foundation worked closely with the Network of Human Rights Houses and other civil society partners to defend human rights and support perseverance amidst global uncertainty.

At the 61st session of the Human Rights Council, HRHF warned of accelerating authoritarianism and systemic repression in Georgia, citing credible allegations of the use of chemical agents against protesters, violence against journalists, the dismantling of civil society, and the use of repressive laws to silence dissent both in occupied regions and government-controlled territory.

At HRC61, HRHF highlighted the issues of forced displacement on Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories, as well as documentation from Ukrainian civil society partners on the persecution of journalists, civic activists, and Crimean Tatars.

At the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council, HRHF and Human Rights House Zagreb urged the Croatian authorities to ensure full access peaceful assemblies, introduce robust safeguards against SLAPPs, and strengthen coordination for implementing international human rights recommendations, and ensure meaningful and timely consultation with civil society.

At the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council, HRHF and Belarusian Human Rights House (BHRH) warned that Belarus continues to dismiss fundamental recommendations on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly while maintaining widespread repression. Together, HRHF and BHRH urged Belarus to unconditionally release all political prisoners, end the repression of civil society, and cooperate fully with UN human rights mechanisms.

On 17 March 2026, HRHF and the Netherlands Helsinki Committee hosted a side event at the OSCE SHDMI. The event featured the Moscow Mechanism rapporteur and representatives of Georgian civil society, who discussed opportunities to respond to the report’s findings and recommendations and to propose further next steps for participating States.

After a year marked by large-scale student and civic protests, the authorities in Serbia began introducing more intensive legislative changes aimed at restricting freedoms and further undermining separation of powers and democratic law-making. On 17 March 2026, these issues and more were discussed at an SHDMI side event organised by YUCOM, Human Rights House Belgrade, and Human Rights House Foundation.