On 10 December, we honour both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, and reaffirm the right to defend rights.
Every year, 10 December marks a defining moment for the global human rights movement. While this year the world celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), this day also commemorates the anniversary of a text that lies at the heart of our work: the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. Adopted in 1998, it affirms that everyone has the right, and the responsibility, to defend human rights.
Today, that right is under growing threat. In every region of the world, human rights defenders (HRDs) face criminalisation, surveillance, smear campaigns, enforced disappearance, exile, and violence. Their work is essential to justice, democracy, and accountability, yet the space for defending rights continues to shrink.
Updating the global standard: Declaration +25
In response to the rapidly changing realities faced by defenders, ProtectDefenders.eu joined a broad civil society coalition led by the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) to update and strengthen the HRD framework. The result, Declaration +25, launched in June 2024, builds on international law and supplements the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
The Declaration +25 supplements the original UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, expanding rather than replacing it, and together they form a comprehensive framework to ensure that defenders can work safely and freely. It provides a clearer, more inclusive definition of HRDs as anyone acting peacefully to promote or protect human rights, whether formally recognised or not, and outlines expanded rights and protections in areas the 1998 Declaration did not fully address. These include the obligation of States to publicly recognise defenders and counter their stigmatization and criminalisation; the duty to ensure a safe and enabling environment through protective laws and effective remedies; and the need to address intersectional risks faced by women, LGBTQI+ defenders, Indigenous and environmental defenders, among others. It also emphasises protection for families and communities associated with defenders, strengthens rights in the digital sphere including privacy, encryption and safeguards against surveillance or online attacks, and affirms defenders’ unrestricted access to resources and funding.
Declaration +25 reaffirms core principles while addressing new and emerging challenges faced by HRDs today — including digital repression, gender-based threats, transnational persecution, and attacks on environmental and land rights defenders.
Launching the Activist Guide to the Declaration +25
To support defenders and organisations in using this strengthened framework, we are proud to launch the Activist Guide to the Declaration +25.
The guide aims to:
• explain why Declaration +25 was developed and what gaps it addresses;
• outline its key provisions in accessible language;
• provide concrete, practical ways to use Declaration +25 in advocacy, protection, and legal strategies;
• encourage deeper engagement with international human rights standards.
It is designed for human rights defenders, civil society organisations, community leaders, lawyers, public officials, equality bodies, academics, and all those working to protect or exercise the right to defend rights. The guide offers tools that can be applied across contexts, from grassroots organising to litigation, monitoring, advocacy, and emergency protection.Our goal is for Declaration +25 to become a widely referenced, powerful advocacy resource, strengthening the global defence of those who defend others.
Why this matters
Human rights cannot be protected without the people who work tirelessly, often at great personal risk, to uphold them. As repression intensifies, it is more urgent than ever to ensure that HRDs know their rights and that governments respect and protect them, while international standards evolve to meet new realities.
The anniversary of these two foundational declarations reminds us of a simple truth: human rights depend on defenders, but defenders should never have to stand alone.
