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At the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights House Foundation raised the case of Azerbaijani human rights defender Anar Mammadli, who was sentenced to 13 years in prison following earlier engagement with UN mechanisms, and called for further UN action to address reprisals against human rights defenders.

At the 63rd session of the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights House Foundation highlighted research and analysis from Human Rights House Crimea and Zmina Human Rights Centre documenting enforced disappearances in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, and called for accountability.

At the 63rd session of the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights House Foundation raised concerns over Russia’s growing use of transnational repression against human rights defenders and critics in exile, including through restrictions on documents, property and finances. HRHF also highlighted the recent “extremist” designations of Memorial-affiliated civil society organisations and OVD-Info.

Ahead of HRC63, HRHF and other INGOs urged UN Human Rights Council Member and Observer states to support the renewal of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation.

At the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, Human Rights House Foundation drew attention to new reporting by Crimean Process, Human Rights House Crimea and the Educational Human Rights House Chernihiv documenting a coordinated pattern of abduction, incommunicado detention and torture in occupied Crimea. HRHF also highlighted the situation for unlawfully detained civilians including Bohdan Ziza.

At the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, HRHF welcomed the Special Rapporteur on the freedom of freedom of opinion and expression’s final report and echoed concerns about the growing use of national security, extremism, and counter-terrorism frameworks, as well as legal harassment such as SLAPPs, to restrict freedom of expression and undermine independent journalism and civil society. HRHF also highlighted the need for stronger protections for journalists working in armed conflict and occupied territories, drawing attention to ongoing risks faced by media workers in Ukraine and calling for the release of imprisoned Crimean civic journalist Iryna Danylovich.

“There is no safe life for LGBTIQ+ people in the North Caucasus, and even private existence can trigger violence, detention, or forced return to families.” This publication is based on the personal testimony of David Isteev, a human rights defender working in exile with North Caucasus SOS (NC SoS). In his testimony, Isteev outlines the situation for LGBTIQ+ people as well as how the organisation continues to coordinate life-saving support from outside the country, relying on volunteers and trusted partners still inside Russia.

At the OSCE’s second Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting of the year, HRHF urged the OSCE Participating States to strengthen legal safeguards against digital threats to civic space, as well as calling for the OSCE to establish a formal mechanism to monitor and report on reprisals against civil society for engaging with the institution. HRHF also called for additional steps to be taken to address rising threats to civic space, including for various stakeholders to review their own digital practices in order to not undermine the security and safety of civil society.

At the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council, HRHF worked closely with partners from the Network of Human Rights Houses and beyond to keep civic space and accountability at the centre of international attention. HRHF cited the reporting and analysis of partners to highlight the human rights situations in multiple countries, renewed calls for scrutiny where repression is entrenched, and used interactive dialogues, UPR adoptions, side events, and various meetings with officials to bring the voice of civil society partners to HRC member and observer states.