Latest

On 5 July 2023, Human Rights House Foundation delivered a statement at the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council, urging the Council to renew the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus. HRHF also called for the release of jailed human rights defenders Nasta Loika, Andrei Aliaksandrau & all 1500+ political prisoners in the country.

In June 2023, Human Rights House Foundation spoke to Anar Mammadli, a prominent Azerbaijani human rights defender, former political prisoner, and the founder of the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center (EMDS). We discussed human rights, his experience as a political prisoner, and the situation for his imprisoned colleagues in Belarus.

On 5 July 2023, Human Rights House Foundation hosted a side event at the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council on the human rights situation in Belarus. The event is organised with the financial support of the European Union and is co-sponsored by Belarusian and international civil society organsiations, as well as several state missions to the UN in Geneva.

On 28 June 2023, Human Rights House Foundation delivered a statement at the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council highlighting increasing impunity or lack of accountability for violations of the freedom of assembly and association, citing the situations in Russia, Belarus and Azerbaijan as examples of the growing challenge in the wider Eastern Europe region.

On 26 June 2023 Human Rights House Foundation delivered a statement at HRC53 on the challenges faced by human rights lawyers, particularly in Azerbaijan, as well as raising concerns about the use of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) in Europe. HRHF also asked the Special Rapporteur for recommendations for judges and lawyers that have had to flee their countries including Belarus and Russia.

On May 18, the “Stories from occupied Crimea” photo exhibition opened in the capital cities of Ukraine, Belgium and Lithuania, marking the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Deportation of the Crimean Tatar People. The exhibition sheds light on the renewed repressions of Crimean Tatars since the 2014 occupation of the peninsula by Russia.

Today, marking the Day of the Political Prisoner in Belarus, HRHF and the undersigned organisations, led by Article19 reiterate condemnation of the Lukashenka regime’s ruthless crackdown on civil society and independent media. We continue to stand in solidarity with courageous Belarusians who persist in their fight for freedom. The international community will keep demanding the unconditional release of all political prisoners.

2022 was a year of unprecedented assaults on human rights stemming from Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. More than ever, the Network of Human Rights Houses came together to strengthen and advance human rights. Read our 2022 Annual Report.

On 24 April 2023, Human Rights House Foundation hosted alongside a pre-event on the human rights situation in Belarus at OSCE SHDM II the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands as well as Belarusian and international CSOs. The event was organised with the financial support of the European Union.