“Every single battlefront, every single country we lose or gain, tips the balance for or against democracy.” In June, Maria Ressa, Nobel Peace Laureate and Chairperson of the Steering Committee of the World Movement for Democracy attended the ZEG Storytelling Festival in Tbilisi, Georgia. Her visit to Tbilisi took place a few weeks after Georgia […]
Read More“The greatest fear of any political prisoner is being forgotten. Family and friends play a vital role in keeping hope alive.” On June 8, 2021, Berta Valle’s husband, Félix Maradiaga, a Nicaraguan democracy leader, was arbitrarily arrested by Daniel Ortega’s regime in Nicaragua. Maradiaga endured 611 days of incarceration under extremely inhumane conditions before being […]
Read MoreOn June 19, 2024, peaceful demonstrations spread through Kenya against the proposed Finance Bill 2024 that would increase the cost of various goods and services. As demonstrations intensified, the Kenyan government deployed law enforcement units to disperse the demonstrators. The latest report of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights indicates that the brutal force deployed by security […]
Read MoreLeading up to the biannual UNHRC resolution on youth and human rights taking place this coming September, the Community of Democracies (CoD) YouthLeads proposes incorporating the advancement of youth political participation as a sub-theme of the resolution. Youth participation in political spaces has increased over the past decades, with more young people promoting change as […]
Read MoreMany governments around the world use counterterrorism and money laundering as a pretext for introducing restrictive measures on civil society groups. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which leads global actions to tackle money laundering, terrorism, and proliferation financing, is welcoming input from practitioners, experts, and stakeholders from the civil society sector and financial institutions to update […]
Read MoreIn this working paper, Sook Jong Lee, Senior Fellow at the East Asia Institute and Steering Committee Member of the World Movement for Democracy, explains that authoritarian regimes use disinformation as a tool to challenge the legitimacy of political opposition or marginalize minority groups. In democracies, false information typically originates from politically polarized sectors to […]
Read MoreOn June 19, 2024, peaceful demonstrations began in Kenya against the proposed Finance Bill 2024 that would increase the cost of various goods and services. For large sectors of Kenyan society, the Finance Bill 2024 represents the latest among many grievances that Kenyans have had since the 2022 elections, including increased corruption, wasteful spending by […]
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Political prisoners often endure deplorable conditions, including torture, isolation, and denial of legal and family contact. An estimated one million political prisoners worldwide face such abuses. According to Freedom House, disappearances, either during transfers or through indefinite incommunicado detentions, increase prisoners’ vulnerability and hinder international advocacy efforts. To combat these practices, Freedom House outlines key […]
Read MoreOn 19 June 2024, the Declaration+25 was launched to supplement the original UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted 25 years ago. The Declaration has been pivotal in affirming the right to defend human rights and outlining the responsibilities of states and society to support and protect human rights defenders. Despite its influence, implementation has […]
Read MoreOn June 18, 2024, human rights groups issued a joint declaration calling on the Tunisian government to cease its crackdown on free expression and association and respect human rights. In May, Tunisia escalated its repression with new arrests and intimidation targeting human rights defenders, journalists, and lawyers. Concurrently, anti-migrant rhetoric intensified, leading to unlawful expulsions […]
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