Civil Society comments on the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy (2015-2019)
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS (HRDs) (Actions 9 and 10) The European External Action Service shared with civil society the 28 April 2015 Joint Communication by the European Commission and the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy for the elaboration of a new Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy for […]
The Women Who Defend Human Rights – Mary Jane Real
PI: Can you tell us a bit about how you have become a woman human rights defender? MJR: Well, I´ve been active in defense of human rights and women´s rights since I was a student. The more I became aware of how gender inequality impacted my personal and professional life, the more I became involved […]
Protection International listed as one of the World’s Top 10 Human Rights Organisations
This February 13, Protection International was listed as one of the World’s Top 10 Human Rights Organisations. The listing published by FUNDSFORNGOS and written by Ambreen Muzaffar highlighted the work done by Amnesty International, Global Rights, Human Rights Watch, International Committee of the Red Cross, International Federation for Human Rights, Norwegian Refugee Council, Refugees International, […]
In pictures: The long struggle for land rights in Las Pavas (Colombia)
Defending territory is one activity that generates risk for human rights defenders in Colombia; during 2013 alone, 37 human rights defenders were murdered, and at least 30% of these deaths were related to land restitution. The majority of these assassinations are the responsibility of paramilitary groups, now named the “anti-land restitution army”, which operate in […]
Quotes from the Platform : DIY*, then we come and assist !
“When I come to countries, I regularly get asked “what can you do for us?” says Maina Kiai, UN Special Rapporteur for the Freedom of Assembly and Association, telling about his encounters with human rights defenders at risk around the world. The Special Rapporteur tells the 7th Front Line’s Dublin Platform for Human Rights Defenders his default answer: “I cannot […]
Protection International Participates in Project to Promote the Protection of Defenders in Osce/odihr Countries
The Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has recently embarked on an ambitious project to promote the effective protection of human rights defenders (HRDs) in its 57 participating States from Europe, Central Asia and North America. Protection International (PI) was invited along with 24 other […]
Salvagente, Sacrifice and Security
“There’s this streak of sacrifice in our culture” says Davide Zaveri, coordinator of the Salvagente project in Italy. “We Italians first focus on helping others in need – and need to overcome this reflex before we start thinking of our own security.” The Salvagente (‘Lifejacket’) project overcomes this reflex. It invited Protection International to Turin […]
Syafii’s struggle for religious minority rights in East Java
With a population of around 250 million characterized by high ethnic and religious diversity, Indonesia has been facing the difficult challenge of maintaining peaceful and harmonious co-existence between followers of different faiths. In some instances, religious minority communities have been chased away from their homes. After a conflict with an anti-Shiite group in August 2012, […]
Geneva: Pi and the United Nations Special Rapporteur
The roundtable provided an opportunity for taking stock of current experiences of human rights defenders (HRDs), governments and international and regional organizations about how national mechanisms for the protection of HRDs work. The event was attended by officials from several European and Latin American Permanent Missions to the United Nations Office at Geneva, regional organizations, […]
DR Congo: Pascal Kabungulu, 7 Years After…
On July 31st, 2005, Pascal Kabungulu Kibembi, a Congolese human rights defender, Executive Secretary of the NGO “Héritiers de la Justice (Heirs of Justice) was shot dead in Bukavu, at his house and in front of his family, by a group of men wearing military clothes. He had denounced severe human rights violations (such as […]