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February 26, 2024

“Russian military aggression followed by the full-scale invasion is all due to impunity, which began with Crimea… we still don’t know where it might lead in the end.”

On 26 February Ukraine marks the Day of Resistance to Occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol. Ten years ago on that day thousands of Crimean activists gathered outside the Crimean Parliament to show resistance against Russian occupation and in support of Ukraine’s territorial integrity. This resistance still continues today in different forms. In this interview, HRHF asked four prominent Crimean human rights defenders and representatives of Human Rights House Crimea member organisations, to reflect on the situation in Crimea over the past decade and share their perspectives about the future.

February 22, 2024

“The perpetrators of human rights violations and war crimes must be held accountable… we won’t stop [until then].”

Ahead of the second anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, HRHF spoke with Ukrainian human rights defender Liudmyla Yankina about the main challenges facing civil society, and the situation for human rights in Ukraine. We also discussed what has changed over the last two years through the prism of her work protecting representatives of civil society.

February 5, 2024

Human rights in Republika Srpska are at a “crucial point”

Authorities in Republika Srpska, one of the two entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, aim to introduce Russian-style “foreign-agent” legislation, amidst an alarming deterioration in the situation for human rights in the region. In this interview with HRHF, human rights defender Tanja Boromisa, discusses what these developments mean for Republika Srpska, the wider region, and more.

January 17, 2024

Leanid Sudalenka: “Who will be responsible for the death of Ales Pushkin? What will we do if one morning we find out that Nobel laureate Ales Bialiatski has passed away [in prison]?”

On 21 July 2023, prominent human rights defender Leanid Sudalenka was released following two and a half years behind bars in Belarus. In this interview with Human Rights House Foundation, marking six months since his release, Sudalenka shares his experiences from unjust imprisonment to forced exile and discusses the dependence of Lukashenka’s regime on continuous repressions against Belarusian civil society.

December 23, 2023

Oleksandr Larin: A house by the sea, 17 checkpoints and volunteering to rebuild Ukrainian homes

Oleksandr Larin is a pensioner from Mariupol, Ukraine. In this interview, originally published in Ukrainian by Educational Human Rights House Chernihiv, Larin discusses fleeing his home following the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as volunteering to help provide humanitarian aid to people whose homes were damaged/destroyed.

December 12, 2023

Коли я спілкуюся з [політичними в’язнями] та їхніми родичами, я кажу, що [юридичні заходи] не вплинуть суттєво на їхню ситуацію, але це необхідно робити.

24 лютого 2022 року адвокат прав людини Сергій Заєць та його сім’я стали внутрішньо переміщеними особами (ВПО) вдруге в результаті повномасштабного російського вторгнення. Вони евакуювалися з Ірпеня на захід України, де живуть досі. Проживаючи в Криму до 2014 року, Сергію та його сім’ї довелося переїхати з півострова після російської окупації. У цьому інтерв’ю для Фонду Домів прав людини, Сергій розповів про свою боротьбу за права людини українських політичних в’язнів, що знаходяться у російському ув’язненні, вибудові стратегічних справ та особливості життя та роботи під час війни.

December 8, 2023

Why we continue to defend human rights

Ahead of International Human Rights Day 2023, HRHF has spoken to several human rights defenders from around the Network of Human Rights Houses to ask them about the state of human rights in their countries and why they find it important to continue their work.

November 28, 2023

Olha Skrypnyk on HRDs recommendations for the upcoming UN Resolution on Crimea

In December 2023, the UN General Assembly will vote for the eighth resolution on the situation of human rights in the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. Human Rights House Crimea (HRH Crimea) member organisations have submitted recommendations to the resolution. This year, their emphasis is on new trends emerging amid the full-scale Russian aggression. In this interview originally published by HRH Crimea, Olha Skrypnyk, head of the Crimean Human Rights Group and co-coordinator of the Expert Network of the Crimean Platform, gives insight into these proposals and highlights the significance of this resolution and international advocacy efforts.

November 16, 2023

Shelling and disguises: a human rights defender’s life under Russian occupation

Oksana Tropina is a human rights defender from Kherson. She remained in the city during the Russian occupation from February to November 2022. In this interview, she discusses life and human rights under occupation as well as evacuation.