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“Most of all, I miss Ales’ optimism” – Natalia Pinchuk
14 July 2023 marks two years since human rights defender Ales Bialiatski was detained in Belarus alongside his Viasna colleagues Valiantsin Stefanovich and Uladzimir Labkovich. HRHF spoke to Bialiatski’s wife Natalia Pinchuk ahead of the day.
Belarusian youth speaks out for change
“We look at ourselves to see the state we are in as we make our journey to a free Belarus.” RADA, a Belarusian union of 37 youth organisations, has collected and published “Belarus. Youth. Long Live.”, an analysis of the current state of the independent youth sector in the country.
“The most important thing for a political prisoner is to know they are remembered.”
In June 2023, Human Rights House Foundation spoke to prominent human rights lawyer and former political prisoner Intigam Aliyev. We discussed human rights, his experience as a political prisoner, and the situation for his imprisoned colleagues in Belarus.
HRC53: HRHF strongly urges the Council to renew the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on Belarus
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.
“We have to help [political prisoners] understand that what they face right now is temporary. That thousands of people are thinking about them.”
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.
HRC53: Human Rights Situation 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.
HRC53: Impunity or lack of accountability for violations of freedom of assembly and association is a growing challenge in Eastern Europe
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.
HRC53: Statement on Judges and Lawyers
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.
“Stories from occupied Crimea” exhibited in Kyiv, Brussels and Vilnius
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.