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From 9 to 13 June, human rights defenders and civil society actors from across the Network of Human Rights Houses and beyond gathered in Oslo for the 2025 Network meeting. Amidst increasing global challenges faced by civil society, participants came together not only to share but also to build new strategies and forge solidarity.

At the 59th session of the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights House Foundation highlighted the effects of Georgia’s new “foreign agent” law as well as recent legal threats against NGOs and the punitive fining of rights defender Baia Pataraia. HRHF urged repeal of the law and pressed for concrete international support to shield civil society from intensifying state pressure.

At the 59th session of the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights House Foundation condemned state-backed disinformation, legal harassment, and physical attacks targeting journalists and election observers in countries like Belarus, Russia, Azerbaijan, and Serbia. Citing the imprisonment of Anar Mammadli and widespread abuse of “national security” laws, HRHF called for clear benchmarks to hold states accountable during election cycles.

We members of the Network of Human Rights Houses stand in solidarity with our imprisoned colleagues in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus, as well as all political prisoners in the region.

On 2 June 2025 at SHDMIII, HRHF highlighted the systematic steps taken by authorities in Georgia to close civic space, criminalise legitimate human rights work, and to silence civil society and opposition voices. HRHF also highlighted the deteriorating situation in neighbouring Azerbaijan citing the cases of Anar Mammadli and Ulviyya Ali as examples of hundreds of political prisoners in the country.

Human Rights House Foundation invites all Human Rights Houses, their member organisations as well as organisations and actors from outside of the network to apply for funding in collaboration to advance human rights priorities in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Georgia, Serbia, and Ukraine.

From 8 March to 11 April, the Portraits of Strength exhibition was presented in Croatia’s three largest cities: Zagreb, Osijek, and Split. In close collaboration with local civil society, Human Rights House Zagreb organised the exhibitions and panel discussions. The events brought the powerful stories of women human rights defenders from across the Network of Human Rights Houses to a wider Croatian audience, highlighting the crucial role that women play in defending human rights.

From 12 to 16 May 2025, the civil-society led Crimea Week took place in Brussels with a series of advocacy and cultural events gathering policymakers, civil society, and international institutions, providing platforms for sharing testimonies and fostering dialogue. The programme aimed at highlighting the human rights situation in Crimea under Russian occupation.

On 21 May, HRHF, alongside PEN Belarus, published a poem by Tacniana Niadbaj, poet, writer & human rights defender. The publication of the poem marked the Day of Political Prisoners in Belarus.

Women human rights defenders (WHRDs) play a vital role in protecting and promoting human rights—often in the face of discrimination, threats, and violence. A powerful new exhibition by Human Rights House Banja Luka sheds light on the work of 12 such defenders, sharing their stories of resilience, solidarity, and impact.

At HRC58, Human Rights House Foundation (HRHF) continued to amplify the voices of civil society and human rights defenders facing increased repression across Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Balkans. In particular, HRHF worked alongside partners to highlight ongoing human rights violations in Belarus, Georgia, and in the context of continued Russian military aggression against Ukraine.

On 5 May 2025, Human Rights House Foundation hosted a side event at the second OSCE Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting of the year focused on the challenges faced by civil society in Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Republika Srpska