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”We can only attain peace, security, dignity and sustainable development if we advance justice, freedom and equality for all, the ultimate goals of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said Alice Mogwe, Director of Ditshwanelo - the Botswana Centre for Human Rights, on behalf of The Human Rights Defenders World Summit.

States are the main perpetrators behind violations against human rights defenders, either directly or in complicity with other powerful non-State actors. They must take urgent action to recognise their essential role, protect those at risk, and take concrete measures to foster a safe and enabling environment for the defence of human rights without discrimination.

“Governments, companies and other powerful figures are harassing, spying on, jailing, torturing and even killing human rights defenders – just for defending the fundamental rights of their communities. These people must be respected, protected and able to live and work in an environment where it is safe to claim human rights.”

Marking the 20th anniversary of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, more than 150 human rights defenders from around the world gathered in Paris earlier this year to plan for the next 20 years of advancing human rights.

The Summit came at a time when, on an almost daily basis, a human rights defender is reported killed, when criminalization and defamation have become standard risks, when illegitimate and abusive restrictions to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly are routinely introduced into law and when governments are failing their commitments made in 1998 to respect and protect these people.

During the summit, the participants adopted an Action Plan to be urgently implemented by States, businesses, financial institutions donors and intergovernmental institutions.   https://hrdworldsummit.org/action-plan/

The Action Plan stresses that it is everyone’s responsibility to create an environment in which it is truly possible and safe to claim our human rights. However, it emphasises that those with power, state and non-state actors, must take the lead in creating a safe and enabling environment for those who defend human rights.

Since the Summit, thousands of people around the world have signed the Summit’s petition urging those in power to Protect Human Rights Defenders Everywhere.

"On issues of women's rights and LGBTQ rights we see a very well organized backlash so that attention can be taken away from corruption and authoritarianism. But that in itself is a sign that there is avancement on these rights", Anderson pointed out, alluding to the current context in which when human rights defenders are increasingly the subject of severe attacks and threats.

ProtectDefenders.eu has participated in the first Paris Peace Forum, showcasing the experience of the international civil society implementing the EU HRD mechanism as a successful example of civil society partnership and taking stock of the achievements and challenges of ProtectDefenders.eu as an essential and consolidated tool for the protection, empowerment and sustainability of human rights defenders and human rights organizations in the places where they are most at risk.

Tasks & General Responsibilities

The Finance Officer will:

Financial Control:

    • Coordinate the financial aspects of the multi-state, multi-year, multi-partner program in line with EU requirements and the grant contract.
    • Process the disbursement of funds in accordance with the agreed schedule.
    • Ensure that financial management systems and records are effective and robust.
    • Consolidate cash flows, reporting templates, financial plans and amendments throughout the project life.
    • Maintain an adequate filing system for all financial and accounting deliverables to ensure ease of access during internal/external audit.
    • Monitor budget burn rates and cash-flow projections.
    • Recommend appropriate action on any significant variances ( +/-10%) and prepare budget amendments where necessary.
    • Prepare the financial accounts for external audit and coordinate audit activities.
    • Follow up on timely implementation of the recommendations to remedy significant variances.

Financial Reporting:

    • Oversee forward planning and preparation for reporting to EU, adherence with consortium requirements and time-lines, and timely submission of reports by the 12 member organisations.
    • Produce integrated financial reports on a timely basis and in line with international accounting standards and EU regulations.
    • Finalize yearly accounts and provides any ad-hoc financial reports that may be required.
    • Ensure that all consortium members submit accurate timesheets.

Financial and administrative management of Secretariat managed activities:

    • Ensure the daily accountancy of the Secretariat
    • Follow up the level of expenditures of the Secretariat's budget in close coordination with the Head of Secretariat
    • Ensure that all Human Resources procedures under Belgian Law are observed and carry out payment of salaries to the Secretariat staff.
    • Ensure financial management of inter-mechanisms meetings, core group meeting, foundation meetings and consortium meetings.

Capacity Building:

    • Be available to partners to clarify EU financial rules and check compliance of reporting.
    • Put forward recommendations when appropriate.
    • If needed, undertake support visit to consortium members.
    • Participate in consortium meetings to foster compliance and to address any financial issues.
    • Ensure that internal audit recommendations for grant-funded projects are adhered to.
    • Share lessons learned with consortium members throughout the project's implementation.

General administrative and logistic support:

    • Support in the logistical and administrative organisation of meetings when necessary.
    • Ensure supply of stationery and necessary equipment for the Secretariat in coordination with other staff members.
    • Perform other administrative tasks if needed.

Ensures timely communication with the Head of Secretariat regarding eventual problems and possible solutions.

Experience/knowledge:

    • Masters Degree in Finance or Accounting or professional accounting qualification
    • Minimum of five years of experience in a finance/accounting role preferably with an international NGO.
    • Demonstrated experience in developing and managing large budgets, with preference for previous experience working in a consortium or a network.
    • Demonstrated experience with accounting in Belgium.
    • Considerable experience of successfully managing the implementation of complex projects.
    • Experience in working on projects funded by major international donors, with preference for previous experience with EU.
    • Strong coordination/negotiation skills specifically with the ability to effectively coordinate among  partner organisations.
    • Understanding of the security and protection of human rights defenders around the world.

Skills:

    • Excellent oral and written English and French language skills
    • Strong financial management skills
    • Ability to work towards tight reporting deadlines
    • Strong analytical, interpersonal, communication and organisation skills.

The Finance Officer should have the necessary permit to work in the EU. The Finance Officer will be based in ProtectDefenders.eu secretariat in Brussels. The gross annual salary for the position is €45 080 (full-time).

Applications comprising a CV with at least two references and a cover letter should be sent by email to recruit@protectdefenders.eu by November 26. Interview will take place on November 29 (in person or by Skype). The successful candidate will be expected to start working in December if possible. The initial contract will be up to End of January 2020. The position is expected to be full-time, although a contract at 80% can be discussed.

Weighing up the situation for human rights defenders over the past 20 years of the promotion of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights Defenders, we reiterate that we undertake our work in increasingly hostile contexts and we confront risks such as criminalization and the repression of social protest, the increase in killings and the increase in social conflictivity particularly due to the imposition of economic projects and religious fundamentalism.

Against this adverse scenario, we wanted to reflect on our achievements and we recognize, for example, that human rights defense movements have increased and strengthened in the countries where PBI maintains projects.  We also highlight the historic sentences from the Inter-American Court as well as in certain States such as the sentence for genocide in Guatemala.  In this vein, we consider that we have a greater amplitude of space in which to act and participate as human rights defenders.  In certain countries, judicial insturments have progressively been adopted that strengthen the rule of law, such as the Kenyan Constitution in 2010. These successes have pushed for necessary changes so that societies may become fairer and more democratic and prove the importance of continuing to support and protect human rights defenders.

The delegation of 13 human rights defenders from Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya, Nepal and Indonesia had several meetings with the human rights and geographical departments of the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the political attachées of members of the European Parliament.  These political actors from the European Union had the opportunity to listen to the analysis and findings of the previous sessions and direct testimony from the human rights defenders, lawyers, defenders of women's rights, LGBTI rights, economic, social and cultural rights and others who daily confront violence.  Similarly, they shared recommendations directed at recognizing the work of human rights defenders, improving their protection from a holistic perspective and reverting the situation of generalized impunity.

Concluding the event in Brussels, PBI joined the Permanent Representation of Austria in organizing a conference between human rights defenders, international experts from the UN, representatives from the EEAS and the General Trade Direction of the European Commission, permanent representatives of the member states and international human rights organizations.  In the event the importance of good communication was highlighted as an empowering tool and protection through visibility, but also emphasis was put on the need to increase funds, promote and support networks and support the creation of legislation in favor of the protection of human rights defenders.  The civil society representatives insisted on the need to promote binding legislation in the EU that regulates due diligence of companies and establishes effective mechanisms for access to justice with the participation of human rights defenders.

The Summit discussed calls on Governments, corporations, international financial institutions, donors and others, including the adoption of national governmental action plans, implementation of legislation to legally uphold the UN declaration, protecting defenders as a priority in foreign policy and prioritizing the protection and work of women human rights defenders, LGBT+, indigenous rights defenders and other marginalized defenders.

Kumi Naidoo, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said: “The level of danger facing activists worldwide has reached crisis point. Every day ordinary people are threatened, tortured, imprisoned and killed for what they fight for or simply for who they are. Now is the time to act and tackle the global surge in repression of human rights defenders.”

The closing ceremony took place at the Palais de Chaillot, where the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed 70 years ago. The 150 defenders gathered together to set out the Action Plan and pay tribute to the men and women who work tirelessly to defend human rights around the world.

Among those in attendance over the last three days were Alice Mogwe, Secretary General of FIDH and the Director of Botswana Ditshwanelo; Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Matthew Caruana Galizia, who is calling for justice after his mother, Daphne Caruana Galizia, was assassinated one year ago in Malta; Anielle Franco, who is bravely campaigning on behalf of her sister, Marielle Franco, a Brazilian activist and elected councillor who was shot dead in her car seven months ago.

Hina Jilani, President of OMCT, founder of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, and the first UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders said: “States have never given us space. It is because of human rights defenders that there is space for civil society. Seeing you all here engaged in defending human rights, I am not too pessimistic. As a movement, we have never been as global as we are now. But we have to be clear to states: you need to live up to the challenge and speak out for defenders. Human rights don’t come for free.”

The 1998 UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders

In 1998, governments adopted the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders to acknowledge the key role of human rights defenders. Despite progress in some areas, many governments are continuing to fall short of their commitments 20 years on from the first Summit and the global context in which human rights defenders operate in has become increasingly challenging. Democratic values are under threat and systemic corruption, extreme inequality and discrimination, religious fundamentalism and extremist policies are all on the rise. Alongside this, we have seen a concerted effort to undermine, discredit and kill human rights defenders. In 2017, at least 312 human rights defenders were assassinated, twice as many as in 2015, almost all with impunity for the perpetrators. The Action Plan hopes to tackle these injustices and support Human Rights Defenders to continue their critical work in a safe environment.

A human rights defender is somebody who demands justice and dignity for us all. Some expose corruption and call for those in power to face justice. Some demand basic services, such as health, education, housing to be widely available. Some defend the right for anyone to live according to their own gender and sexual orientation. Some are women who defend the right of every woman to choose their own life freely, without being forced into marriage or maternity. Some are farmers and communities that want to protect their land from pollution and from businesses that bleed the land dry of precious resources like water and forests. They are brave - but regular -  people. And they’re under attack.

Those in power, such as governments and large companies, are trying to silence human rights defenders – unfairly branding them as criminals, terrorists or “foreign agents”. Human rights defenders are locked up for speaking up. They are threatened, attacked and even murdered in horrifying numbers.

Enough is enough. It’s time  we do something so bold that the governments can’t ignore us.

20 years ago, governments around the world signed a declaration, promising they would protect human rights defenders. This December, those governments will hold a special meeting at the UN to discuss the situation.

With your help, we can show that the world is watching the outcome of this meeting. Human rights defenders will hand in all your signatures and demand real protection, not just lip service.

Sign your name now, and call on governments to:

    • Celebrate and protect human rights defenders, especially those who are marginalized and under attack because of their gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity and race, religion, status, ability, age, class.
    • Stop attacking, smearing and stigmatizing those who fight for  human rights to become a reality for every person in the world.

For this global call, we all need to join forces. Together, and with your support, our voices can be louder than ever.

Through relevant examples from the field and the experience and highlights of ProtectDefenders.eu, this session discussed how to respond to the specific challenges when supporting the work of women human rights defenders, and how to improve the design of rapid-response programmes and advocacy initiatives that focus their needs and specificities.

In addition, a strong call was made to national and international actors to strengthen their efforts to ensure the protection of defenders working in the most difficult and restrictive contexts, who are subject to threats, harassment and attacks. Finally, ProtectDefenders.eu members warned of the drifting narrative away from the human rights discourses and called on society to put human rights back at the centre of the political and social agenda.

In the context of the peace process in Colombia, which has led to a historic decline in the number of murders, it is of serious concern that the number of killings of human rights defenders has increased at an alarming rate, making Colombia the country with the highest number of killings of defenders in the world.

The Observatory report identified four main factors increasing the vulnerability of human rights defenders and which must be urgently addressed by the authorities:

Firstly, the defence of human rights in Colombia cannot be guaranteed until the continuing operation of paramilitary structures is not publicly acknowledged and all measures necessary to dismantle such groups are not taken, since they are the main source of attacks faced by defenders.

Secondly, the stigmatisation and criminalisation of defenders remain a major concern. The report documents several worrying examples of the stigmatisation of defenders in 2017 via public statements and actions by all branches of the State (executive, legislative and judicial), as well as by the State security forces, which contribute to increasing the risk of attacks even further, within a context of extremely high levels of violence against defenders in Colombia.

Thirdly, despite the move to a post-conflict scenario, the legal environment and public policies continue to stigmatise and criminalise social protest, while State security forces still resort to an excessive use of force during demonstrations.

Finally, the best way to prevent attacks against defenders is through a functioning justice system. While progress has been made to tackle the impunity in attacks against defenders, as demonstrated by the increase of the rate of indictment achieved by the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Observatory emphasises that cases can only be considered as solved when the perpetrators are sentenced, which means that 94.5% of the murders registered by the Prosecutor's Office since 2016 remain in impunity. Moreover, current investigations fail to identify masterminds or planners as well as motives for the killings. Furthermore, other types of attacks such as threats are not sufficiently investigated. Challenges faced by the justice system remain significant.

"During my visit to Colombia exactly one year ago, we noted that the implementation of the peace agreement was far from being an easy task. Nevertheless, in light of the serious incidents detailed in this report, we call upon the international community to condition support for the State upon guarantees of the effective administration of justice ensuring the decrease of rampant impunity that persists in cases of killings and aggressions against defenders in Colombia", declared Dimitris Christopoulos, FIDH President.

The Observatory launches its report today in the city of Buenaventura, where one defender received threats from paramilitary structures simply for having spoken to the Observatory delegation. The city also saw the repression of the Civic Strike in 2017. On the first anniversary of the strike, human rights defenders are facing a particularly critical situation, making Buenaventura an emblematic example of all the risks faced by defenders throughout Colombia.

Once in Kampala, he received DefendDefenders multifaceted emergency protection support in form of a relocation/settlement grant, medical assistance as well as support on initiating the process of asylum seeking with the Office of the Prime Minister and UNHCR. The defender and his family also received counselling given the traumatic experience they underwent following the incident. In addition, they received security tips to help keep them safe while in exile. Charles Bangbe was advised to apply to the ProtectDefenders.eu Temporary Relocation Programme for more sustainable assistance and, with the support of DefendDefenders, he was provided assistance to sustain his family for a period of one year.

Since his temporary relocation began, Charles Bangbe started a small income generating activity for the family as a way of longer sustainability after the funding ends, which is run by the wife in Kampala. He has also been able to fully register all his family members with the Office of the Prime Minister Directorate of Refugees through direct technical advice from DD and began plans to construct a small family house after purchasing land on the outskirts of Kampala so that he could solve the challenge of paying rent after the grant has run out. Moreover, he has reportedly continued his human rights back at home after an assurance that the family is taken care of and out of harm’s way.

However, because of the subjects they defend, some non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for the defence of human rights operate in an ever more unfavorable context, the rights enshrined in the Constitution being less and less respected by the administrative and police authorities. This deterioration accelerated in 2014, following the speech of the Minister of the Interior in Parliament. He accused human rights groups of receiving funds from abroad to carry out actions that undermine the security and image of Morocco.

The report details how three processes are used by the Moroccan authorities to hinder their activities. Barriers in registration procedures (refusal of filing, time limits), including for emblematic human rights organizations in Morocco, prevent them from existing legally, to open a bank account to obtain a place and to sue. In addition, activities (events, public meetings) organized by NGOs are regularly prohibited. Finally, their access to finance is hindered by the lack of registration or final receipt, preventing NGOs from opening a bank account and limiting their access to funding. This access has become even more problematic with the new obligation for international donors to contact the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs before any funding is given to Moroccan associations. While this new mechanism of March 2017 officially aims to fight the financing of terrorist groups, it is feared that it can be used to control the funding of independent NGOs critical of the human rights situation in Morocco.

This gradual smothering of independent associations is taking place as the country faces new social movements since the end of 2016.

" While protests and demonstrations in the Rif are likely to degenerate into further violence, it is essential that the country respect its own Constitution and its international commitments on freedom of expression, association, and assembly. Morocco must also guarantee the safety of members and local human rights NGOs, " said Hafidha Chekhir, vice president of FIDH.

Finally, despite favorable jurisprudence for human rights NGOs, the Moroccan authorities almost systematically prohibit the activities of foreign NGOs or their Moroccan branches. For example, Transparency Morocco, an anti-corruption organization, has seen its activities banned several times since 2013. Several legal experts and international observers have been expelled. For example, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch are no longer allowed to conduct their investigations in the country.

" Government rhetoric voluntarily conflates the work of human rights NGOs with terrorism and religious extremism. The hostility against them, which sometimes takes the form of judicial harassment, must stop immediately " denounced Gerald Staberock, Secretary General of OMCT.

The Observatory calls on the Moroccan authorities to put an end to the obstacles to freedom of association and to respect all the rights guaranteed by the international and regional human rights instruments ratified by Morocco, in particular with regard to freedom of association, assembly, assembly, peaceful protest, and expression.

Directors of the publication: Dimitris Christopoulos, Gerald Staberock
Authors of the report: Marie-Aure Perreaut, Hugo Gabbero
Editing and coordination: Marie-Aure Perreaut, Hugo Gabbero, Juliette Cheanne

Cambodia Daily, the country’s oldest English-language newspaper, suddenly learned on 4 August that the tax department was demanding 6.3 million US dollars (5.3 million euros) in supposed back taxes. If the newspaper couldn’t pay, it would just have to “pack up and go,” Hun Sen said. No audit had been carried out and no document was produced to support the government’s claim. In the absence of any possibility of appeal, Cambodia Daily published its last issue on 4 September.

Harassing independent media

The Cambodian authorities brazenly tried to play innocent by repeatedly insisting that Cambodia Daily’s closure was the result of nothing more than a tax problem. However, it emerged a few days ago that they told Internet service providers on 28 September to block access to Cambodia Daily’s still functioning website and to its Facebook and Twitter pages although they are based outside the country.

This clearly shows, if any proof were needed, that Hun Sen’s government persecutes independent media. A total of 32 radio stations, including Radio Free Asia’s Phnom Penh bureau, were shut down at the end of August. Their common feature was a lack of subservience towards the government. The closures have been accompanied by persecution of journalists. In fact, anything goes in order intimidate the media. This is why RSF has joined other international and Cambodian NGOs in issuing a statement (see attached) demanding the immediate release of Oun Chhin and Yeang Sothearin, who are facing up to 15 years in prison.

Mass media control

The war against independent media has left the field free for media outlets that take their orders from the ruling party. This is clear from the Cambodian Media Ownership Monitor (MOM) carried out jointly by RSF and the Cambodian Centre for Independent Media (CCIM), an updated version of which is published today. It shows that media ownership is largely concentrated in the hands of a small number of leading businessmen linked to the ruling party. This is particularly so with the broadcast media. The four main TV channels, which have 80% of Cambodia’s viewers, are all run by government members or associates.

An independent regulator should be in charge of issuing licences to broadcast media and press cards to journalists but the information ministry is responsible for these functions in Cambodia, executing them in a completely opaque manner.

New information vehicles

When the traditional media are so closely controlled, the only hope lies with the Internet and citizen-journalists. Internet and social media use is exploding within Cambodia’s young and connected population. In 2017, 40% of Cambodians got their news primarily from Facebook. However, Facebook included Cambodia in the six countries where it began trialling a new set-up in October in which the independent news content is hived off to a secondary location called the Explore feed. The effect has been drastic. In a matter of days, the Phnom Penh Post’s Khmer-language Facebook page lost 45% of its readers and traffic fell 35%.

Meanwhile, a survey showed that the prime minister’s Facebook page received 58 million clicks in 2017, putting him third in the click ranking of the world’s politicians, just behind Donald Trump and India’s Narendra Modi. But many are sceptical, to the point that a former opposition leader recently filed a legal suit against Facebook in a US federal court in San Francisco, demanding that it hand over any information indicating that Hun Sen bought millions of “likes” from foreign “click farms” in order to boost the appearance of invincibility ahead of July’s parliamentary elections.

Pursuing the fight

There can be no democracy without independent media but media independence is in greater danger now in Cambodia than at any other time in its recent history, which still bears the deep scars of the Khmer Rouge era. The fight for the freedom to inform in Cambodia must, therefore, be pursued at all costs.

Ranked 132nd out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press Freedom Index, Cambodia is likely to fall in the 2018 index.

Saudi Arabia is well known for the severe limits it imposes on women’s rights – the legal status of the woman being inferior to that of the man – in all fields, even in the simplest acts of daily life. Nonetheless, because of the economic necessity to end total dependence on oil, and because of the aspirations of young people who are taking over much of the social media, the authorities have announced that they would gradually make some concessions.

Yet, since 2016, the country has been experiencing unprecedented mobilisation by women standing up for their most basic rights, especially since they can now do it through social networks. There are now thousands of cyber-activists on the networks, most of them using accounts anonymously out of fear of reprisal.

Although in recent years the government has given indications of more openness, especially since the arrival of a ‘new generation’ of leaders, represented by the Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, women are still exposed to a double vulnerability.

One is their status. The maintenance of the ‘male guardian’ status perpetuates gender inequality and condemns women to a minority status for their whole life. The Royal Circular of April 18, 2017 reforming this status raised great hope among women defenders, but little has changed. Women still must have the authorisation from a male guardian to travel abroad or to obtain a passport. And some women fear that nothing will ever change. Going beyond the texts, which are often unclear, the police and legal authorities can be especially brutal and discriminating, especially in the case of domestic violence.

The other area concerns the promises of the Saudi authorities to introduce reforms, which is still countered by the reality of the situation of human rights in a country that continues to repress all dissenting views, especially those of human rights defenders who are calling for far-reaching societal reforms.

The law still does not guarantee respect for basic rights such as freedoms of association, expression and peaceful assembly. Any attempt to set up a movement or an association is brutally crushed. Saudi law is not only rife with vague concepts that leave great leeway for the judges, but the laws meant to fight criminality and terrorism are deflected to criminalise the legal expression of any dissenting opinion. Dozens of defenders, bloggers, lawyers, and activists have been accused of ‘apostasy’, ‘atheism’, ‘insulting religion’, ‘terrorism’, ‘destabilising the State’, ‘attempting to influence public opinion’, or even ‘creating an illegal organisation’, and are now spending long years in prison.

The report published by the Observatory today speaks of the fight for the emancipation of women in Saudi Arabia in a tightly circumscribed human rights environment.

It traces the symbolic path of some of them. Most of them are cyber-activists who use social networks anonymously in order to denounce all the arbitrary treatment they must deal with. There are also activists who publicly announce their position as human rights defenders and become involved with emblematic causes like putting an end to male guardianship, or with the possibility of setting up an association for the defense of women’s rights or, more broadly, human rights, or running in the municipal elections. All of them are taking risks and are very vulnerable.

In November 2017, blogger Naimah Al-Matrod was sentenced to six years in prison for participating in a peaceful protest movement in the eastern coastal part of the country about economic, social and political claims, and for having called for the release of political prisoners and for democratic reforms.

All these women are already subjected to pressure from their families and are now forced into a silence imposed by the government. They may be threatened with prosecution, arbitrarily arrested, put in prison, banned from travel and forbidden to speak in public. Following the opening of legal proceedings, most of them see the sword of Damocles hanging over their head for several years in order to keep them silent.

The report is available on the FIDH (in French, in English and in Arabic) and OMCT websites (in English, in French, and in Arabic).

Press contacts:
FIDH: Audrey Couprie : +33 6 48 05 91 57
OMCT: Delphine Reculeau: +41 22 809 49 39

With human rights, democracy and the rule of law around the world increasingly under attack, those who stand up to defend them have an ever-more central role to play in sustainable development and conflict resolution.As civil society space closes around them, and governments use repressive tactics to impede their work, human rights defenders (HRDs) often put their lives, liberty, and safety at risk, and require support and protection in order to go on.

However, HRDs, in fact, are receiving declining support.At a time of increasing backlash, the level of funding and support provided by the EU and its Member States no longer matches the magnitude of the needs of HRDs, as seen in the upcoming ProtectDefenders.eu report on funding on support for HRDs.

It is clear that if the EU is to tackle to tackle the instability in the region and advance the Sustainable Development Goals, it must address the root causes of forced migration, conflict, and radicalisation, and environmental destruction.

Investing more in support for human rights, and human rights defenders must be a key strategic priority for the EU and its Member States in the coming years, as the only way of truly rising up to these challenges. This increase in funding must be reflected in the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights programming 2018, as well as the upcoming Multi-annual Financial Framework, and in the long-term future of human rights funding.

ProtectDefenders.eu:

- has provided 346 emergency grants to Human Rights Defenders facing high risk. The main needs covered were emergency relocation, legal support and individual security. 76% of the grants were allocated in the most difficult countries.

- has successfully managed the Temporary Relocation Grants Programme -with 188 relocation initiatives approved benefiting almost 667 individuals-

- has maintained and broadened the EUTRP (from 50 members to 54 members, with 5 prospective members), supported the creation of new host organisations and been consolidated as an increasingly referenced and essential counterpart for human rights defenders in need for relocation; and for host organisations involved in relocation schemes, by co-funding and supporting relocation programmes worldwide and providing solid and reliable support to key relocation organisations.

- has allocated 55 grants to human rights local NGOs and groups of defenders in the field to support, consolidate and expand their operational capacities, develop sensitive initiatives and to prevent and respond to increasing infringements faced by human rights defenders and their organisations in the most difficult countries

- has delivered 98 training and capacity-building initiatives for around 2,050 defenders aiming at empowering HRDs in better managing their security and training them in advocacy strategies to help them advance the Human Rights agenda. At least 860 HRDs could be provided with information and supported thanks to direct access to the hotline, the ProtectDefenders.eu single entry points and the direct contact with the Secretariat.

- has developed its monitoring and advocacy dimension through 9 trial observations, 13 advocacy and fact-finding missions and 66 field-monitoring initiatives reportedly benefiting at least 930 human rights defenders, and mobilised the public and media attention through at least 1,009 actions, including appeals, letters, and petitions, reportedly benefiting 2,478 defenders.

- has conducted 7 outreach missions to remote areas in the most difficult countries, and published targeted communication material to reach at least the less connected and most at-risk defenders in order to provide them with information and support.

Throughout all its programmes. ProtectDefenders.eu has committed to provide gender-sensitive assistance, and WHRDs represent 40% of the overall number of beneficiaries. The European Union Human Rights Defenders mechanism has also successfully reached out to the less connected and particularly targeted defenders and these categories (WHRDs, LGBTIQ HRDs, environmental and land rights defenders, indigenous rights defenders, defenders from remote areas) represent around 66% of the beneficiaries of the European Union Human Rights Defenders mechanism. Again this year, ProtectDefenders.eu has consistently gathered an extremely positive evaluation by direct beneficiaries and related stakeholders.

Picture: The seven KRBKG members as they attended the pre-arraignment hearing at Loei Provincial Court, on September 25, 2017.

See the gallery of pictures of the 2nd Annual Meeting here.

Unique and prime EU gathering of defenders working on the frontlines for change

It will allow to identify best practices from protecting human rights defenders, based on the achievements of the first two years of ProtectDefenders.eu, and draw relevant conclusions on how to counter some of the most difficult protection challenges, while setting a positive narrative for human rights defenders as champions of change for human rights, social justice and development.

The meeting will provide a remarkable opportunity to engage and share experiences directly with a cross section of Human Rights Defenders working across the globe in particularly difficult environments and often under great risk, and who have benefited from the support of the EU’s Human Rights Defenders mechanism, ProtectDefenders.eu, over the last two years. The meeting will be joined by leading experts and personalities on and in the protection of human rights defenders, universal and regional protection mechanisms, and representatives of various EU institutions implicated in the protection of human rights defenders and current development agenda.

In a distinctive feature, the meeting will also include members of the EU Temporary Relocation Platform, providing a growing vital lifeline and rest and respite support to defenders under threat with the support of Protectdefenders.eu

Setting a progressive development and protection agenda:

The meeting will highlight the crucial role and impact of human rights defenders around the world as promoters of a sustainable development, and will engage development actors in how to integrate the protection of human rights defenders  as part of an effective development and protection agenda. It is those actors on the ground who will be the key protagonist of the meeting.

This meeting will also address the widespread attempts to de-legitimise human rights' discourse and human rights defenders' work worldwide, by promoting a positive narrative grounded on the universality and indivisibility of human rights and its contribution to more advanced and developed societies. Human rights defenders and high level speakers will share strategies to enhance the protection of those who strive to defend human rights, and to develop a positive narrative on the human rights' work, legitimising their work at the local level and taking back the human rights discourse to the centre of the international agenda.

This unique occasion will contribute to provide the necessary tools for reflection from the field in order to shape the international and EU agenda for the protection of human rights defenders, by bringing together the key stakeholders involved in the international human rights scene and addressing the most challenging issues faced by the human rights defenders' community.

The working agenda of this event is available here.

Interpretation will be provided into English, French, Spanish and Arabic.

The event will be closed with a dinner for which a limited number of places is available. Kindly fill out the registration form before October 30th. If you have any questions, please contact Javier Roura at contact@protectdefenders.eu

We are very much looking forward to welcoming you.

Human rights defenders know all too well what it means to be targets of hate and state harassment. And sometimes, something as simple as a photograph can kickstart a number of unfortunate events.

This is what happened to Olya P., an LGBTI and women human rights defender from Russia. After staging a street protest, her face and name were suddenly everywhere, after a picture of hers – shoulders wrapped in a rainbow flag – spread from one media outlet to the next. As the picture became a symbol of the protest against the country’s repressive laws against LGBTI communities, this sudden exposure made her a target of online hate.

It was when online abuse added to an already repressive environment that Olya reached out for support. She found it in ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders mechanism: thanks to a grant, she managed to join a self-care training, which also helped her strengthen capacities for her activism.

How did you become involved in the defence of human rights?

I used to live in a small town in the Moscow region, but we didn’t have any activity of this kind there. I was interested in politics, but I didn’t allow myself to read news because… I felt something rising inside of me, but I didn’t know what it was, nor what to do with it.

For almost two years, I stopped reading news. This means that I had not exactly known what had happened to Pussy Riot, or about the 2012 arrests after the Bolotnaya square protests in Moscow, until I moved to Saint Petersburg in 2012 and became an activist.

The first people I met there were LGBT activists: I discovered the city’s organisations quickly, and decided that I wanted to take part in every activity. As quickly as I found them, I also understood that I had no resources to join what they did. I dropped everything I was doing, and started volunteering for Coming Out – I have done so for four years.

In June 2013, I also started joining street actions. At first I didn’t want to, because I was afraid of violence – not against me, but I was afraid that homophobes could beat my friends and I would try and stop them. We had a lot of street actions that summer: the “gay propaganda” law was about to be adopted on a federal level in Russia, and we tried to protest.

After the 2013 Saint Petersburg Pride, all the world learnt about being LGBT in Russia, because there was a lot of violence: homophobes were throwing stones and eggs at us, and police ended up taking us to police stations, while homophobes could walk away free. It was horrible. This was my first time at the police station.
About 70 people were detained, and some activists had to go to the hospital following their release because they had been attacked during the action, and police didn’t want to call an ambulance.

The fact is that I was never scared for myself, but for others taking part in the actions. A person walking by me got attacked in the street right after a street action against the propaganda law, only for wearing a t-shirt with a pink triangle, and when something like this happens I can’t stay silent.

At a certain point, you started receiving hateful messages on social media on the grounds of your activism. How did that start?

It happened in 2015, after I staged a street protest in Saint Petersburg, holding a rainbow flag. After that, some media people found my social media handles and posted my photo with news about the action, using my name and surname. This is why people could find me in social networks, and began sending me messages that were… not very pleasant.

I had been involved in activism for more than three years at that stage, and I was experienced in how to handle these situations: I banned them immediately, but it didn’t work. People managed to find me and write whatever they wanted, especially people I didn’t know.

I have also always felt a threat from the State, too, because we have a law saying that street actions need to be approved in advance by a special committee. Without such an agreement, you can be taken to a police station and receive a fine for joining a street protest. And if you are taken to the police station for more than three times, you can end up in prison.

This is when I really felt threatened, because I constantly take part in these actions – not only advocating rights for rainbow communities, but also for other issues. I was taken to a police station twice in six months, and I was afraid that it could have happened again, even for no reason. I really felt in danger, and I was afraid to take part in other actions.

When I was a teenager, and until I was 25 and moved to Saint Petersburg, I always considered prison as a very distant reality, something that can’t touch me. But now, the reality is that I am interested in what happen in the prison system, and in finding ways to change it.

In Russia, whoever goes to prison receives a punishment, but people running the system can think that prisoners deserve more punishment. This system doesn’t correct behaviours, but just punishes them.

Was there a specific moment in your experience as a human rights defender that prompted you to look for support?

It was in 2015, in autumn, after the street action I was telling you about. The video with me covered in a rainbow flag was everywhere, even on Euronews. People wrote me nasty comments on social networks, and soon after that Ildar Dadin was sentenced to prison – I felt very depressed. It was too hard. I decided to see a psychotherapeutic group.

I had attended similar trainings earlier, and I knew the person who organised them. I asked whether I could join it, but they told me I needed money to apply. Then I began looking for support from an organisation which helps human rights defenders, and I ran into ProtectDefenders.eu. I applied for their support immediately: it was really urgent, because the group would have started its activity in just two weeks.

For me it was like a miracle, because I received a positive answer the next day. Thanks to their support, I could afford paying to attend the activities of a support group in Ukraine. It was very important for me to go there at that time because, among other reasons, I also wanted to let people in Ukraine know that not everyone in Russia supported the war, and approved of what is going on in Crimea.
 

Did taking part in this session help you?

Yes! I don’t know what happened when I was there, but when I returned to Saint Petersburg the feeling was like I had been depressed for the past ten years, and I had finally woken up. It was amazing.
It was a support group for human rights defenders, and we stayed for ten days around Christmas and New Year’s Eve. It helped me very much to understand what I wanted, and the importance of non-violent activism, and to learn how to communicate with people who are important to me.

I still think it was a miracle that I managed to join this group.

Aren’t you scared that the wave of hate on social media against you may start again?

I am scared, but I know that I will be OK: this is the point. Now I know that I will find ways to support myself and to manage. It’s not pleasant to receive threats on the Internet, even if you are a very spiritually developed person: it is just creepy, and if you are facing a situation of psychological crisis this may be the last drop for you. But now I know that it will not happen to me again: it can’t make me depressed anymore.

I am scared when I think of threats that may come from the State, though. Russia is such a country that gives you less and less space to move and organise activities to defend something you believe in.

Do you see the situation of our communities evolving in your country?

It doesn’t look like that, to be honest. In 2016, we could not organise even a single street action with the permission of authorities. I tried to organise an LGBT feminist bloc on the demonstration on the 1st of May: not only we were not granted permission, but our pages on VKontakte were blocked. And this happened to every LGBT initiative that year.

This is why people joined some ecologist or anarchist organisations to take part in the demonstration. For the second time, we could not organise a rainbow flash mob on the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia and we had to do something without having received a permit first – and the same happened with Saint Petersburg Pride. But if you join unauthorized street actions, there is always the risk to get arrested.

The “promotion” law created a system where people are not allowed to speak about our communities, making it so that, for the public opinion, we simply do not exist. And if we do not exist, we do not have problems and issues that need to be addressed. How to come out of such a situation?

If you join a public protest or a street action, you know that you may be assaulted. But I never hoped that someone holding political power would have seen me, or my photos on the Internet, and decided to change something.

To me, it is about simple people seeing me standing there with my placards: maybe they don’t know what I am talking about, but maybe they will go home, google it and find something about our issues for themselves, create their point of view. This is what has always been important to me.

Do you think that occasions like this ILGA World Conference can be useful for human rights defenders to come together and share their experiences?

This conference is an amazing opportunity. Most of the time, it is always the same circle of people who take part in street actions, and it can get tiring and frustrating from time to time, because the situation around you hardly changes. These events – but also visiting other countries which are more respectful of our rights, or taking part in Pride marches – can be so useful for activists in Russia! It is really inspiring to see that you are not alone, and that in other countries people like yourself are accepted and feel more or less safe.

Source: ILGA

Save the date and join us at this event, which will bring together Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights NGOs, Representatives of international and regional Protection Mechanisms, Members of the EU Temporary Relocation Platform, as well as other Representatives of EU Institutions, providing therefore valuable networking opportunities for all participants.

In addition to highlighting the main achievements and challenges of ProtectDefenders.eu, this annual meeting will celebrate the work done by human rights defenders as a cornerstone of development, progress and justice, responding to widespread attempts to criminalise and delegitimise human rights' work and human rights defenders worldwide, by promoting a positive narrative grounded on the universality and indivisibility of human rights.

More information on the preliminary findings of the mission can be found here: http://www.omct.org/human-rights-defenders/urgent-interventions/colombia/2017/07/d24455/

The Observatory has identified four structural causes that explain the current situation.

In the first place, the main attacks against defenders take place amid the persistence of paramilitary structures in the country, identified as the main perpetrators of these crimes. The mission was able to document various cases of collusion and/or connivance between State officials and paramilitary groups in different parts of the country including Norte de Santander and Antioquia in a context in which the authorities continue to deny the existence of this phenomenon.

“In the words of a Colombian defender: ‘If something does not exist, it cannot be confronted’. That is why the Government must publicly recognise the persistence of paramilitary structures in Colombia and confront this phenomenon by effectively and decidedly applying the relevant measures included in the peace agreement”, declared Miguel Martín Zumalacárregui, Director of the OMCT Office in Brussels and delegate of the Observatory mission in Colombia.

In second place, according to the Observatory findings, there is now a tendency among public authorities to recognise the legitimacy of human rights defenders’ work. However, there continue to be examples of smears and stigmatisation against defenders. For example, in Sur de Bolívar, Bucaramanga and Barrancabermeja, in a case where five defenders were arrested, one was linked by the Prosecutor to the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional - ELN) as a result of his leadership in the organisation of demonstrations.

The criminalisation of social protest continues to cause concern. The mission received a number of reports describing the use of repression by the authorities during peaceful protests in Colombia, including numerous examples of excessive use of force against protestors. The mission heard about a number of cases involving defenders in the department of Cauca and during the civic strike in the city of Buenaventura.

In third place, the Observatory notes the persistence of high levels of impunity, which reinforce the vulnerability of all human rights defenders in the country. According to the information received, there have only been convictions in five cases of murders of defenders over the past year. What is more, in May 2017 the first conviction in the history of Colombia was made in a case related to threats against a human rights defender. A bodyguard was convicted of threats to the person he was responsible for protecting; however, there has been no investigation into who may have planned the crime.

“We are particularly concerned about the low priority given to cases of threats by the Public Prosecutor’s office. There is also a tendency, in all investigations into attacks against defenders and in the few cases that lead to a conviction, that these investigations are limited to those who carried out the crimes, while those who planned the crimes are not investigated”, stated Vincent Vallies, international expert and mission delegate.

Finally, in the fourth place, the Observatory notes that despite the considerable institutional framework dedicated to protecting human rights defenders in Colombia, the institutional response continues to be weak for the following reasons: the inadequacy of measures to tackle the structural causes that place defenders at risk, the lack of local implementation of national guidelines and plans, insufficient guarantees to carry out work to defend human rights, and a lack of measures with a differential focus according to age, ethnicity, gender and socio-economic situation.

Context:

The Observatory carried out an international fact-finding mission in different areas of Colombia (Bogotá, Norte de Santander, Antioquia and Valle del Cauca) from July 11 to 19, 2017. The delegation was composed of Vincent Vallies (international expert, French nationality) and Miguel Martín Zumalacárregui (Director of the OMCT Office in Brussels and Human Rights Advisor for the Observatory at OMCT, Spanish nationality), and was accompanied by Jahel Quiroga (Director of the Reiniciar Corporation - Corporación Reiniciar and member of the OMCT Executive Board), and Ana María Rodríguez (Representative before the United Nations, Colombian Commission of Jurists - Comisión Colombiana de Juristas - CCJ).

In the coming months the Observatory will publish a report on its specific findings, conclusions and recommendations regarding the situation of human rights defenders in Colombia. In addition, as part of a strategy to strengthen the Observatory’s work on Colombia, a report will also be published over the following months documenting various cases of attacks against human rights defenders who defend land and environmental rights in the context of large-scale development projects.

Source: OMCT

Tasks & General Responsibilities:

• Allocation of grants: Temporary Relocation of Human Rights Defenders & Emergency Grants for Human Rights Defenders
• Carry out the first assessment of grants applications received, preparing summaries to be submitted to the Grants Coordinator;
• Contact references that endorse the grants application, in order to gather relevant information that validate the applications' credibility (background analysis, security analysis, need of immediate support);
• Participate in meetings with the Grants Coordinator, preparing summary and briefing notes;
• Follow up on the grants awarded, monitoring the status of progress of grants and liaising with stakeholders to receive intermediate and final narrative and financial reports;
• Maintain up-to-date information within related folders and database.

Communication and Advocacy

• Support the overall communication, advocacy and monitoring programmes and initiatives developed by the secretariat of ProtectDefenders.eu, in collaboration with the Communication and Reporting Officer;
• Support the coordination of actions and campaigns of visibility concerning the situation of HRDs worldwide.
• Support the coordination and preparation of the Annual Meetings of ProtectDefenders.eu, to be held in early November 2017.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED

• Ongoing studies (master's degree) in law, international relations, social sciences or related field. Experience in human rights would be an asset.
• Knowledge of EU institutions, UN procedures and regional mechanisms for the protection of human rights would be an asset.
• Good drafting and editing skills.
• Ability to adapt to multidisciplinary work in the environment of a multicultural team.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills.
• Fluency in English and French, oral and written.
• Fluency in Spanish, Arabic or Russian would be an asset.

STARTING DATE & CONDITIONS

• Preferrable starting date: 1st of August 2017.
• Duration: 3 months minimum.
• Conditions : Internship agreement with University is required. Alternatively, a voluntary agreement may be signed. Please note that this is an unpaid position. However,  ProtectDefenders.eu shall provide reimbursement of transportation expenses and meals.

HOW TO APPLY?

• Please send your CV and cover letter (please include information about your availability) before July 10th by email to: Joan Audierne, Head of Secretariat, contact@protectdefenders.eu with the subject : 'Internship'.
• Please note that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
• Interviews will be held in our office in Brussels or via Skype

INFORMATION ABOUT PROTECTDEFENDERS.EU

ProtectDefenders.eu is the European Union Human Rights Defenders mechanism, established to protect defenders at high risk and facing the most difficult situations worldwide.

ProtectDefenders.eu:

• Operates a permanent and rapid response mechanism to provide emergency support and material assistance to Human Rights Defenders in danger, their families and their work.

• Manages a support programme of temporary relocation for Human Rights Defenders at risk to relocate inside their country, within their region or abroad in case of urgent threat.

• Supports and coordinates an exchange platform for organisations and stakeholders working on temporary relocation for Human Rights Defenders, including through the EU temporary relocation platform.

• Provides training, support and capacity building to Human Rights Defenders and local organisations.

• Monitors the situation of human rights defenders and advocates for a protection agenda for Human Rights Defenders at local, regional and international level.

• Promotes coordination between organisations dedicated to support for Human Rights Defenders, EU institutions and other relevant actors.

The implementation of ProtectDefenders.eu is led by a Consortium of 12 NGOs active in the field of Human Rights, namely Front Line Defenders, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Network (ESCR-Net), International Gay and Lesbian Association (ILGA), Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights (UAF), Protection International (PI), Peace Brigades International (PBI), Euro-Mediterranean Foundation of Support to Human Rights Defenders (EMHRF), Forum Asia and East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (EHAHRDP).

ProtectDefenders.eu is coordinated by an independent Secretariat based in Brussels.

Human rights defenders play an essential role in the realisation of rights. Not only do they fight for human rights in situations of oppression and abuse; they also act as monitors, drawing attention of the international community to otherwise neglected violations and threats; they assist victims in claiming their rights; and they contribute to holding those in power accountable..

EIUC Venice School of Human Rights was born in 2010 with the goal of studying today’s challenges in the field of human rights. It allows its participants coming from all over the world to list these challenges and examine their reasons and possible solutions they can deploy. The EIUC Venice School at the same time, combines theory and practice and its faculty involves both academics and practitioners. The Venice School intends to highlight that the respect for human rights is the responsibility of all, that "Human Rights are our responsibility".

Moderated by Antoine Madelin, International Advocacy director at FIDH, this panel included the participation of Sarah Rinaldi, Acting Head of Unit Human Rights, Gender, Democratic Governance at DG DEVCO, Liliana De Marco, Executive Director at Protection International, Anne-Sophie Schaeffer, Programme Director at the Euro-Mediterranean Foundation of Support to Human Rights Defenders and Sandra Lorena Neira, representative of CPDH Colombia and coordinator of a protection project in rural communities, funded by ProtectDefenders.eu.

Within 8 months I was arrested and detained several times, and finally my house was raided by 14 armed men with machine guns.  I was accused of espionage among other serious charges, and threatened to be prosecuted. With the help of some friends, I managed to flee the country to escape prosecution of charges that could lead to execution.

My story didn't end there, although that could be the end of the journey for so many human rights defenders, especially women. When I arrived in exile, I found help from colleague human rights defenders, who guided me to apply for support from regional human rights defenders network EHAHRDP. Through their help I managed to start again and reorganize my life and resume my work. But most importantly I had confidence that, whatever troubles I might find myself in, I will find a safety network that can protect me and help me restart again. My own experience led me to start thinking about other women and colleagues in my home country who are at the same situation, but they did not have access to direct connection with human rights defenders protection mechanisms, either because of the language barriers or the lack of internet or safe communications in remote areas. So I started helping other women defenders at risk through coordination with human rights defenders safety networks such as Urgent Action Fund for Women/Africa. What I understood from helping those colleagues; that saving one life of human rights defender means saving the lives of so many other people.

Working from exile in helping other defenders at risk was not safe enough in the hosting country. Within couple of years I found myself once again at danger, when the country I fled to became more hostile against civil society organizations, and decided that my work and other NGOs or HRDs in general was not legal anymore. This time ProtectDefenders.eu came at my rescue. When I applied to them I was surprised by the fast response and close follow up, especially that such mechanism is covering applications from all over the world. In my case that fast processing of my application was timely needed, because I was at serious danger and I needed fast relocation. What made me more comfortable throughout the process with ProtectDefenders.eu, is the flexibility in the period of support provided and the wide covering of HRDs needs which is not always covered by most of other mechanisms. Within few weeks I was able to engage again in my work, but through secured communication channels, while I felt safer in my new location.

Working as human rights defender could be seen by some people as not quite a serious work, or more of a volunteering job. The spirit of volunteering is at the core of every human rights defender, but we must remember that; HRDs do not just volunteer or give up some of their time or money. They give up their security, their family safety and unfortunately in too many cases, they also give up their lives. When I say "they give up their lives", I literally mean it. In our days HRDs lose their lives while doing their work, either tortured in detentions or assassinated or executed. But they also lose their lives in other ways, although they remain physically alive.  Human rights defenders who are forced to flee their countries, they are also forced to leave behind their families and their old lives, usually for indefinite periods of time; they are basically forced to start a new life in exile. Other HRDs are enforced to stay in prisons for years or live in hiding for months and sometimes longer. Therefore, a safety network like ProtectDefenders.eu, not only insure the security of the defenders at risk, but it also give them opportunity to reclaim their lives back or to start a new one.

Equally important to saving human rights defenders lives is helping HRDs to resume their work, which enable them to save the lives of so many other people. When HRDs defenders feel safe and have access to protection networks, they are also feel empowered to do better work and provide help to those most at need. HRDs who work in war areas providing aid or documenting violations are at risk of detention and sometime death during their work. One of the WHRDs from the war area of Nuba mountains who used to help displaced families inside Nuba mountains and in Khartoum, she was detained and sexually abused by the Sudanese security. We managed to help her and she had been supported to relocate her family and have access to medical and psychological treatment.  After her relocation to safe place, and within few months, she started her work again. She campaigned to collect food, clothes and education materials for displaced children and sent them back to Sudan. Investing in supporting and protecting HRDs is an investment that empowers vulnerable communities; it's an investment that strengthens peoples' access to justice and builds foundation for sustainable development and peace. When human rights defenders have reliable and strong safety networks, they become able to create different safety nets for other people and make our world more humane.

Local defenders’ persistence against various threats and obstacles is not just coming from compassion; it is coming from sharing experiences and conditions with the victims. Being an advocate in many local communities also means being a leader for change and a voice for the voiceless. These different roles are accompanied by high risks of persecution for the activists defying powerful states and non-state actors. Despite these serious threats and stressors, grassroots advocates do not have the luxuries of quitting the job, taking a break or going on vacation. If they did any of that, they would likely feel more anxious than relieved; burned out or traumatized local advocates always suffer from inner conflicts, because they do not want to abandon their people—otherwise they would see themselves as traitors and cowards. So they stick with it, and continue the work until they fall sick or die. Even those who have been detained or prosecuted and forced to leave their countries continue to feel that guilt, as they keep asking themselves: why I am here and not there? Consequently, either inside or outside their country, local activists struggle to establish professional boundaries that could help them maintain their mental and emotional wellbeing.

I know all of this because I am one of them. Five years ago, I had to leave my country, escaping from espionage charges as a result of my documentation of the ongoing war crimes in Sudan. But I also know these things because I interviewed and documented dozens of experiences of grassroots activists inside Sudan, who are working in one of the most hostile environments for human rights defenders in the world. These women and men working in conflict areas or with displaced people were deeply involved and committed. They had never considered their own wellbeing neither as a priority nor as a right. One of the most courageous anti-genocide activists I have ever known used to wear dirty clothes and ride a donkey for weeks into remote areas of Darfur. He wanted to reach those women who had been mass raped by militias, while also taking pictures of the burned villages and the mass graves of his own people. I often asked him why he did not stop after ten years of doing this, as it clearly was taking a toll on his health, but he simply said to me, "I can't." I did not understand why at the time. When he died a year ago, I had been disconnected with him for a while so I asked about the reasons of his death. His family told me that, "For more than a year he turned to the bottle; he drank himself to death." My friend and colleague died of depression, because he just could not stop his advocacy work, or did not know how to.

Sudan has been plagued by civil wars for half a century now. The Darfur conflict, which started in 2002, has continued, while new wars have started in another two regions of the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile. The ethnic conflicts in the country escalated to genocide under the current Islamic militarized regime, and the Sudanese president was accused of war crimes and genocide by the International Criminal Court in 2009-2010. However, without the efforts of local and grassroots activists, the evidence and stories of thousands of victims would have been buried by the government forces. But those brave women and men paid high prices in terms of their own safety, wellbeing and health.

One such example was a young female activist from Darfur, who had been documenting war crimes since she was a teenager. Because her family still lived in an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp, she told me: "I had to study psychology, I needed to help myself to survive all that I have been through, and to process what I have heard from others." Another 45-year-old woman activist from Nuba Mountains said:" I have chronic headaches, and I became hypertensive. I just cannot see my people die this way, it's too much and I feel helpless." For women defenders in particular, stress and trauma has a strong effect on the whole family. One of my female colleagues, for example, had ongoing fertility problems that her doctors attributed to too much stress.

The commitment and passion of grassroots advocates is admirable, but the main problem is that they do not know how to stop when they need to. Most of us feel that we should not stop, that we cannot leave our people’s fight. On top of this, the lack of holistic security trainings and resources at the local levels has increased defenders’ risks to develop different types of health and mental problems. And access to psychological support at the grassroots level is very limited, especially for those at risk of PSTD. Occasionally, local advocates have to relocate, sometimes even outside their country, to find psychological treatment.

For grassroots activists, solidarity remains at the core of their coping strategies. One of the female activists who was a victim of rape in security detentions, as a result of her work, decided to share her relocation fund to help another colleague to relocate as well.  We managed to find help for the raped activist to relocate and receive medical and psychological support, but she said: “My other colleague is at risk too, I will not leave her behind." She made this decision because her colleague was living in a remote area inside Nuba Mountains; she did not have access to internet to apply for her own relocation or to communicate with protection networks. With a lack of resources to seek professional help, peer support has been the most effective—and often the only—safety and mental health network for grassroots advocates.

ProtectDefenders.eu is a unique mechanism to fill the coordination gap between the local and the international HRDs support networks. The wide range of collaboration with regional and international partners made the fund operations more effective in providing urgent help for those at immense risk. HRDs from Sudan who were previously helped by the fund, managed to remain safe while resuming their work in secured environment. Yet we know that this is simply not enough. The international donors and human rights defenders support networks need to take measures that consider the complicated challenges encountered by local defenders. More importantly, NGOs, either local or international, that recruit community-based activists must recognize their unique status and develop strategies that understand their vulnerabilities. Only when organizations approach this issue proactively will they be able to ensure the safety, wellbeing and work stability of advocates who are also victims.

About the author - Nazik Awad is a Sudanese Women Human Rights activist who fled to Egypt in 2011 after detention in Sudan. She has worked in youth and peacebuilding organisations for the past decade, and is documenting and monitoring the human rights situation in Sudan focusing on women, youth and marginalized peoples. 

This article was originally published in OpenDemocracy and has been edited with the consent of the author. 

The aim of the training on digital security for LGBTI activists is to equip selected organizations serving and led by LGBTI people across the Asian region with the tools and knowledge to make informed decisions when communicating online, anticipate and counter digital threats, and safely exercise their rights without falling prey to preventable digital threats.

Participants of the training are expected to transfer the skills and knowledges from this workshop to their colleagues and partners they are in contact with through digital and online media.

Selected organizations will nominate up to 3 staff members/volunteers each, who will be able to attend the 3-day training in Bangkok, Thailand from July 11-14, 2017, thanks to scholarships provided by ILGA. The deadline for applications is June 5, 2017.

Who can apply?

Asian organisations serving and led by LGBTI people. Applying organisations can nominate up to three staff members / volunteers to be sent to the training.

The staff members / volunteers indicated by the selected organisations will be provided with flight, accommodation, meals, transportation and per diem to attend the training.

The training is an initiative by ILGA, the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, as a member of the consortium of 12 NGOs leading ProtectDefenders.eu, i.e. the European Union Human Rights Defenders mechanism established to protect defenders at high risk and facing the most difficult situations worldwide.

Should you have any inquiry regarding this training, please send us an email at digitalsecurity2017@ilga.org.

Respect for human rights and the promotion of fundamental values are at the core of an equitable and sustainable development. After a year of intense activity, ProtectDefenders.eu, the EU mechanism for Human Rights Defenders, has provided material and financial support to dozens of local organizations and human rights groups working to advance the human rights agenda within their communities, including vulnerable groups of individuals. The projects funded and the training provided have reportedly contributed to the development of social cohesion, equality and the promotion of the rule of law worldwide. Through relevant examples, participants are encouraged to debate about how to overcome the challenges of the promotion of human rights as a development tool in difficult contexts.

Since January 2016 up to today, ProtectDefenders.eu has compiled more than 1000 documented alerts, provided by ProtectDefenders.eu partners: Front Line Defenders, Reporters Without Borders and FIDH and OMCT within the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders. Alerts are based on verified information concerning violations affecting Human Rights Defenders. As part of its advocacy mission to raise  awareness about the plight of Human Rights Defenders, ProtectDefenders.eu has created this new platform to provide the necessary information for relevant actors to engage and take action to alleviate the situation of Human Rights Defenders at risk. It is ProtectDefenders.eu's belief that an adequate warning helps to break the isolation in which actors of repression attempt to place Human Rights Defenders.

Only in 2017, more than 200 violations have already been committed against defenders, with at least 17 murders and 51 defenders imprisoned around the world. Judicial abuses, including arbitrary detention, judicial harassment, criminalisation or sentencing, are the most frequent types of alerts concerning defenders, with more than 130 cases documented in 2017 alone.

Among the areas of action of threatened defenders, the Index of Alerts confirms the particular plight faced by defenders of land and environmental rights, pro-democracy activists and defenders of freedom of expression, as the most targeted categories of defenders around the world.

All of the alerts of the ProtectDefenders.eu Index can be searched and refined by country, field of action of the Human Rights Defender, gender, profile or specific type of violation faced. The Index features interactive graphs and listings and aims at ensuring optimal accessibility to the information available.

Explore the new ProtectDefenders.eu Index of attacks and threats against Human Rights Defenders

Tasks & General Responsibilities

The Finance Officer will:

Financial Control:

- Coordinate the financial aspects of the multi-state, multi-year, multi-partner program in line with EU requirements and the grant contract.

- Process the disbursement of funds in accordance with the agreed schedule. 

- Ensure that financial management systems and records are effective and robust. 

- Consolidate cash flows, reporting templates, financial plans and amendments throughout the project life.

- Maintain an adequate filing system for all financial and accounting deliverables to ensure ease of access during internal/external audit. 

- Monitor budget burn rates and cash-flow projections. 

- Recommend appropriate action on any significant variances ( +/-10%) and prepare budget amendments where necessary. 

- Prepare the financial accounts for external audit and coordinate audit activities. 

- Follow up on timely implementation of the recommendations to remedy significant variances.

Financial Reporting:

- Oversee forward planning and preparation for reporting to EU, adherence with consortium requirements and time-lines, and timely submission of reports by the 12 member organisations.

- Produce integrated financial reports on a timely basis and in line with international accounting standards and EU regulations.

- Finalize yearly accounts and provides any ad-hoc financial reports that may be required.

- Ensure that all consortium members submit accurate timesheets.

Financial and administrative management of Secretariat managed activities:

- Ensure the daily accountancy of the Secretariat.

- Follow up the level of expenditures of the Secretariat's budget in close coordination with the Head of Secretariat.

- Ensure that all Human Resources procedures under Belgian Law are observed and carry out payment of salaries to the Secretariat staff.

- Ensure financial management of inter-mechanisms meetings, core group meeting, foundation meetings and consortium meetings.

Capacity Building:

- Be available to partners to clarify EU financial rules and check compliance of reporting.

- Put forward recommendations when appropriate.

- If needed, undertake support visit to consortium members.

- Participate in consortium meetings to foster compliance and to address any financial issues.

- Ensure that internal audit recommendations for grant-funded projects are adhered to.

- Share lessons learned with consortium members throughout the project's implementation.

General administrative and logistic support:

- Support in the logistical and administrative organisation of meetings when necessary.

- Ensure supply of stationery and necessary equipment for the Secretariat in coordination with other staff members.

- Perform other administrative tasks if needed.

- Ensures timely communication with the Head of Secretariat regarding eventual problems and possible solutions.

Experience/knowledge

Masters Degree in Finance or Accounting or professional accounting qualification.

Minimum of five years of experience in a finance/accounting role preferably with an international NGO.

Demonstrated experience in developing and managing large budgets, with preference for previous experience working in a consortium or a network.

Considerable experience of successfully managing the implementation of complex projects.

Experience in working on projects funded by major international donors, with preference for previous experience with EU.

Strong coordination/negotiation skills specifically with the ability to effectively coordinate among partner organisations.

Understanding of the security and protection of human rights defenders around the world.

Skills:

- Excellent oral and written English language skills.

- Strong financial management skills.

- Ability to work towards tight reporting deadlines.

- Strong analytical, interpersonal, communication and organisation skills.

The Finance Officer should have the necessary permit to work in the EU.

The Finance Officer will be based in ProtectDefenders.eu secretariat in Brussels. The gross annual salary for the position is €45 080 (full-time).

Applications comprising a CV with at least two references and a cover letter should be sent by email to jaudierne@protectdefenders.eu. Interview will take place on March 10 (in person or by Skype). The successful candidate will be expected to start working by the end of March if possible. The initial contract will be up to End of September 2018. The position is expected to be full-time, although a contract at 80% can be discussed.

This workshop will gather together lawyers, representatives of the EU institutions, Human Rights organisations and lawyers' associations to explore the resources and initiatives at EU level to support threatened lawyers worldwide, including the coming ProtectDefenders.eu online monitoring platform on attacks and threats against Human Rights Defenders and other practical tools for the protection of HRDs/ Lawyers.

Registration is available at: event@ccbe.eu

WORKSHOP - How to improve the protection of threatened lawyers worldwide? Practical tools from the EU Human Rights Defenders mechanism

Thursday 30 th March - 14.00-18.00

Press Club, rue Froissart 95, 1040 Brussels

Registrations: event@ccbe.eu

14.00: Registration

14.30: Welcome speech by Ruthven Gemmell WS, President of the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE)

14.40: Keynote address by Mercedes García Pérez, Head of Human rights Division, European External Action Service

14.50 : Session I - INITIATIVES AT EU LEVEL TO SUPPORT THREATENED LAWYERS WORLDWIDE

Moderator: Richard Sédillot, CCBE Human Rights committee member/French National Bar Council (CNB) Vice-Chair of International & European affairs committee

Speakers:

- Threatened lawyers worldwide – Patrick Henry, Chair of the CCBE Human Rights committee

- Testimony: the situation of lawyers in Colombia - Jairo Enríquez Céspedes, President of the Executive Committee of the Colombian Bar

- The European Commission’s support of human rights defenders/lawyers - Sarah Rinaldi, acting Head of Unit "Human Rights, Gender, Democratic Governance", Commission’s Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development (DEVCO)

- The EU Human Rights Defenders mechanism – Joan Audierne, Head of Secretariat ProtectDefenders.eu

Q&A

16.00: Coffee break

16.20 : Session II - NEW ONLINE PLATFORM AND OTHER PRACTICAL TOOLS FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS / LAWYERS 

Moderator: Richard Sédillot, CCBE Human Rights committee member/French National Bar Council (CNB) Vice-Chair of

International & European affairs committee

Speakers:

- The new online platform - Javier Roura, Communications Officer ProtectDefenders.eu

- Presentation of the different types of help available - Tommaso Mignani, Grants Coordinator,
ProtectDefenders.eu

- Testimony by a Burundi lawyer relocated in Belgium

- Testimony by an Egyptian lawyer relocated in the United Kingdom (tbc)

- Testimony by a Kenyan lawyer relocated in the Netherlands

Q&A

17.50: Concluding remarks – Patrick Henry, Chair of the CCBE Human Rights committee

18.00: End – Drinks reception

"My expectations towards my participation in Tbilisi Shelter City programme, thanks to the support of ProtectDefenders.eu, were fully met. I got to change the working situation, meet a lot of new people and even got new skills: had started to learn English, began to learn how to drive a car and other things. Despite my frequent working trips, I rarely manage to travel for personal purposes, and this was a great opportunity. I became calmer, less irritable, less nervous. On a 10-point scale, I feel myself at 9!

I think that participation in such programs as Tbilisi Shelter for Russian human rights defenders is needed not only because they are vulnerable and subjected to pressure and threats. First of all, it is important to understand the number of prejudices connected with the relations between Russia and Georgia: one must fight against prejudice. We need to discover the Caucasian traditions for ourselves by the example of the most hospitable Caucasian country - Georgia.

In addition, Georgia has much interesting achievements which we could learn: the success of the police reform; organization of public mass events and legislation on this topic. Now there are activists and NGO staff in Russia, in relation to whom there is a constant persecution from different sides. And the experience of Georgian NGOs that have evolved over the last 4-5 years under completely different conditions, even with regard to supervision and control over non-profit organizations will be very useful for my colleagues.

In Georgia, of course, you start to feel yourself much more secure. For example, my first trip to the metro in Tbilisi: I will never approach a policeman in Russia to ask anything, direction or advice. And in Tbilisi, I overcame myself, asked the way - and received a very friendly, human response. Psychologically, in Georgia, you are relaxing, and friendliness to non-citizens from the locals is helping on it. I was struck by the culture and nature of Georgia, but Georgians are generally a special attraction. To learn how to rest – what is was the most difficult skill for me - this is what you need to do in Georgia. In Moscow it is not common to show strong friendliness on the streets to strangers. In Georgia, you will not just be helped, but will also go where you need, or help you get any kind of service."

Picture: Tbilisi Shelter City

In the meetings with UN special procedures, Isela González explained the accompaniment which the organization provides to the indigenous raramuri communities in Chihuahua, who are claiming their rights to land and territory against the exploitation of the wood resources in the region.

In the side event “Environmental Human Rights Defenders: Responding to a Global Crisis”, convoked by the Permanent Mission of Spain, UNHCHR, PBI and other human rights organizations and networks, the defender called the attention to the structural impediments that arose, such as the lack of recognition of their ancestral territory and the lack of adequate resources, which are an obstacle to legal and administrative's defence in litigation.

According to data from civil society, Chihuahua is the state with the highest number of killings of human rights defenders in Mexico, and a PBI early alert was published recognizing the gravity of the situation in the state, with the intention of preventing future violations.

You can download PBI statement here: bit.ly/34-HRC-PBI

As a blogger, writer and filmmaker, Dulal has been campaigning for the freedom of speech, women’s rights and against religious oppression as well as terrorism in his home country for years. Just as long, he has been threatened by islamists but also by the Bangladeshi government. Because in his home country the writer is in constant danger of being killed by a radical Islamist movement, the Dulal family has had to relocate again and again since 2015. Moreover, he risks up to 14 years of imprisonment due to his criticism of state and religion on the basis of article 57 of the “Information and Communication Technology Act” of the Bengali penal code.

In 2011, Nur Nobi Dulal was voted Bangladesh’s “Blogger of the Year“. In 2012, he founded the Online Activist Forum, which is advocating the freedom of speech. His blog Itishon, founded in 2013 – in terms of readership the second largest blog of the country – was shut down by the authorities on 25 September 2016. In addition, he runs the online bookstore iKarigor.com, which is renowned for its liberal and religion-critical range of books.

In 2013, the terrorist group Hefazat published the names of 84 "Islamophobic" bloggers, among others Dulal’s name. So far, eight of these bloggers have been murdered. Dulal’s name is also on a death list of the terror organization Ittehadul Mujahedini. According to Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, the situation has recently become even more serious. Those affected cannot count on protection by the police.

Source: http://www.hamburger-stiftung.de/

Como seguimiento al informe conjunto “Detenciones arbitrarias e ilegales – Criminalización: Una política de Estado para inhibir la defensa de los derechos humanos en México" publicado en diciembre de 2016, el Observatorio y Consorcio Oaxaca han realizado una misión conjunta a México de solidaridad con los defensores detenidos y de incidencia ante las autoridades para alertarlas sobre esta grave situación. La misión ha prestado una particular atención a la situación de las personas defensoras de derechos humanos en el Estado de Oaxaca.

La misión visitó a tres defensores arbitrariamente detenidos, los Sres. Damián Gallardo Martínez y Enrique Guerrero Aviña, ambos encarcelados en el CEFERESO nº 2 de El Salto, Estado de Jalisco, en lo que constituyó la primera visita por parte de organizaciones de la sociedad civil desde hace más de dos años, así como al Sr. Librado Baños Rodríguez, encarcelado en el Penal de Ixcotel, Estado de Oaxaca.

“Durante la visita pudimos constatar que los problemas médicos de los tres defensores son evidentes pero resulta reconfortante comprobar que lejos de afectar a su compromiso con la defensa de derechos humanos los tres se mantienen fuertes y convencidos de que su liberación tiene que producirse antes o después”, declaró Miguel Martín Zumalacárregui, Director de la Oficina de la OMCT en Bruselas y miembro de la misión a México. “Resulta alarmante que, tres años y medio después de su detención y más de dos años después de que la opinión de la ONU reclamase su liberación, los tres procesos sigan en fase de instrucción en medio de un cúmulo de irregularidades y violaciones al debido proceso”, añadió.

Tanto Damián Gallardo como Enrique Guerrero han dado positivo en la aplicación del Protocolo de Estambul para documentación de la tortura que les ha sido realizado. La misión pudo verificar que ambos mantienen problemas de salud en conexión con la tortura que han experimentado, en un contexto de inacción por parte de las autoridades carcelarias y judiciales, así como de la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos (CNDH) que tres años y medio después aún no ha emitido ninguna recomendación. El Sr. Enrique Guerrero sufre de un tic nervioso y de daños debido a la dislocación de su dedo pulgar durante el interrogatorio mientras que el Sr. Damián Gallardo sufre de una lesión en un pie y ambos mantienen daños psicológicos como víctimas de tortura y/o malos tratos. En conexión con las condiciones de detención y la denegación de un tratamiento médico adecuado el Sr. Librado Baños ha perdido la vista de uno de sus ojos y mantiene menos del 50% de visibilidad en el otro.

En el caso del Sr. Damián Gallardo, hace más de cinco meses solicitó al juez la autorización para poder recibir rehabilitación psicológica como víctima de tortura así como tratamiento oftalmológico para tratar una carnosidad en su ojo derecho. Pese a la urgencia, la solicitud aún no ha sido procesada, en un claro ejemplo de los constantes retardos y demoras en el proceso judicial al que regularmente se enfrentan los tres defensores de derechos humanos.

Damián Gallardo, Enrique Guerrero y Librado Baños se cuentan entre los beneficiarios de recientes opiniones del Grupo de Trabajo de Naciones Unidas que declaran arbitrarias las detenciones de cinco personas defensoras de derechos humanos. Ninguna de las cinco opiniones ha sido implementada tal y como resaltó recientemente en el informe preliminar de su visita a México el Relator de la ONU sobre la situación de las personas defensoras de derechos Humanos, el Sr. Michel Forst. En los cinco casos se puede verificar un mismo patrón de detención, no existieron ordenes de aprehensión, fueron sometidos a actos de tortura y/o malos tratos , así como a diversas violaciones al debido proceso.

En cuanto a la situación en el Estado de Oaxaca, según datos de la Defensoría Especializada en la Protección de Personas Defensoras y Periodistas de la Defensoría de los Derechos Humanos del Pueblo de Oaxaca, en 2016 se produjeron 197 agravios contra 95 personas defensoras (39 mujeres y 56 hombres) y contra 10 grupos. En al menos 72 de estos agravios se contó con la participación de integrantes de corporaciones policiacas federales, estatales o municipales. Además, según datos de la Red de Mujeres Activistas y Defensoras de Derechos Humanos de Oaxaca, el Estado lidera desde 2010 el ranking de ataques contra defensoras de derechos humanos a nivel nacional con un aumento constante de las cifras.

“La situación para las personas defensoras en Oaxaca se cuenta entre las más difíciles en todo el territorio mexicano. Sin embargo, el Estado de Oaxaca sigue sin contar con una política pública integral de protección a personas defensoras con un enfoque particular para las mujeres defensoras y con medidas que hagan frente tanto a la impunidad como a la falta de efectividad de las medidas de protección”, declaró Yésica Sánchez, miembro de la Junta Directiva del Consorcio Para el Diálogo Parlamentario y la Equidad Oaxaca A.C.

Contexto de la misión:

La misión tuvo lugar entre el 31 de enero y el 8 de febrero y estuvo conformada por Miguel Martín Zumalacárregui, director de la oficina de la OMCT en Bruselas y Yésica Sánchez, integrante del Equipo Directivo del Consorcio Oaxaca.

En el Estado de Oaxaca la misión sostuvo reuniones con numerosas personas defensoras y organizaciones de la sociedad civil oaxaqueña así como con la Defensoría Especializada en la Protección de Personas Defensoras y Periodistas de la Defensoría de los Derechos Humanos del Pueblo de Oaxaca (DDHPO). Lamentablemente, la solicitud de reunión con el gobernador de Oaxaca, Alejandro Murat, no fue atendida.

En la Ciudad de México la misión pudo reunirse con la Delegación de la Unión Europea en México, la Oficina en México del Alto Comisionado de Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos, la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos (CNDH) y la Subsecretaría para Asuntos Multilaterales y Derechos Humanos de la Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE). Lamentablemente, la solicitud de reunión con la Subsecretaría de Derechos Humanos de la Secretaría de Gobernación (SEGOB) no fue atendida.

Contactos de prensa:

·       OMCT: Miguel Martín Zumalacárregui / Delphine Reculeau: +41 22 809 49 39

·       FIDH: Audrey Couprie : + 33 1 43 55 25 18 / José Carlos Thissen : + 51 95 41 31 650

·       Consorcio para el Diálogo Parlamentario y la Equidad Oaxaca A.C.: Yésica Sánchez: Tel: +52 951 132 8996 / Cel: +52 951 17 00 432

El Observatorio para la Protección de los Defensores de Derechos Humanos (el Observatorio) es un programa creado en 1997 por la Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT) y la FIDH y tiene por objetivo intervenir para prevenir o remediar situaciones concretas de represión contra los defensores y defensoras de los derechos humanos. OMCT y FIDH son miembros de ProtectDefenders.eu, el Mecanismo de la Unión Europea para Defensores de Derechos Humanos implementado por sociedad civil internacional.

The report includes the accounts that RSF received from Veracruz journalists about their problems, the need to censor themselves and the decision that some have had to take to flee the region. The families of victims also describe their mostly unsuccessful battles for justice.

The report concludes with a series of recommendations for Mexico’s federal authorities and for Veracruz’s new governor, Miguel Ángel Yunes, the heir of the appalling record of his predecessor, Javier Duarte, who disappeared into thin air late last year after the federal authorities accused him of illicit enrichment.

The recommendations, to be presented in detail at RSF’s press conference on 2 February, aim to end the vicious circle of violence, improve the existing mechanisms for protecting journalists and effectively combat the chronic impunity that constrains media freedom in Veracruz and the rest of Mexico.

Source: Reporters Without Borders (RSF)

(READ HERE THE FULL VERSION OF THE JOINT STATEMENT)

To conclude the meeting, the twelve partner organisations of ProtectDefenders.eu have issued a public statement urging all national authorities to "publicly recognise the crucial role played by human rights defenders and protect them in all circumstances from any form of judicial harassment". As stressed by Antoine Madelin, FIDH Director for International Advocacy and Chair of the Board of ProtectDefenders.eu, "Human Rights Defenders are the pillars of democracy and of the rule of law but are too often subjected to unfair criminal prosecution, in an effort to undermine their work in the defence of human rights."

Since the launch of the project in October 2015, ProtectDefenders.eu has witnessed an increased criminalisation of defenders worldwide in reprisal to the conduct of legitimate human rights activities.

ProtectDefenders.eu held its meeting in Brussels under the motto "Defenders are not criminals" and brought together dozens of human rights defenders at risk supported by the EU mechanism during its first year of implementation, together with prominent representatives of NGOs, European institutions and Representatives of International and Regional Protection Mechanisms, including the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Michel Forst. Participating defenders, coming from more than 20 countries such as Burundi, Honduras, Egypt, Bangladesh or the Russian Federation, shared their experiences of resilience in often dangerous and challenging situations and debated on the most effective strategies to counter criminalisation and pursue their work.

This meeting has also emphasised the main achievements and highlights of the first year of ProtectDefenders.eu. In the first twelve months, the EU Mechanism has provided more than 330 emergency grants to defenders at high risk, facilitating a rapid response to their legal, medical, security or emergency relocation needs in pressing circumstances. At the same time, ProtectDefenders.eu has successfully started and run a temporary relocation programme, disbursing more than 700,000 € in support of 74 temporary relocations in favour of 150 individuals, with the collaboration of host institutions worldwide and in the framework of the EU Temporary Relocation Platform.

The Project has also provided institutional and operational support to grassroots organisations, allocating more than 300,000 € through 32 grants. 1,300 defenders worldwide were trained to improve their security and protection in difficult contexts.

Finally, ProtectDefenders.eu has expanded its advocacy and outreach dimension, by conducting fact-finding missions and monitoring trials against defenders particularly in difficult countries, as well as carrying out initiatives to assist and connect isolated and vulnerable defenders throughout the world. ProtectDefenders.eu has coordinated more than 430 urgent alerts aimed at mobilizing the attention of concerned authorities, public and media on behalf of defenders at risk.

Human Rights defenders who attended the meeting positively assessed the first year of implementation of ProtectDefenders.eu. The twelve partners praised the EU strong support through the EIDHR of a project as ambitious and comprehensive as ProtectDefenders.eu. As pointed out by Andrew Anderson, Executive Director of Front Line Defenders and member of the Board of ProtectDefenders.eu, in the closing speech, "human rights defenders in danger around the world do benefit from this  strong coordination between international civil society organizations and the institutions of the European Union."

Participating defenders, coming from more than 20 countries such as Burundi, Honduras, Egypt, Bangladesh or the Russian Federation, shared their experiences of resilience in often dangerous and challenging situations and debated on the most effective strategies to counter criminalisation and pursue their work.

This meeting also emphasised the main achievements of ProtectDefenders.eu for this first year of support: More than 330 emergency grants have been allocated to defenders at high risk, facilitating a rapid response to their legal, medical, security or emergency relocation needs in pressing circumstances. At the same time, ProtectDefenders.eu has successfully started and run a temporary relocation programme, disbursing more than 700,000 € in support of 73 temporary relocations in favour of 150 individuals, with the collaboration of host institutions worldwide and in the framework of the EU Temporary Relocation Platform. The Project has also provided institutional and operational support to grassroots organisations, allocating more than 300,000 € through 37 grants. 1,600 defenders worldwide were trained to improve their security and protection in difficult contexts. Finally, ProtectDefenders.eu has expanded its advocacy and outreach dimension, by conducting fact-finding missions and monitoring trials against defenders particularly in difficult countries, as well as carrying out initiatives to assist and connect isolated and vulnerable defenders throughout the world. ProtectDefenders.eu has coordinated more than 430 urgent alerts aimed at mobilizing the attention of concerned authorities, public and media on behalf of defenders at risk.

See the gallery of pictures of the 1st Beneficiaries' Meeting here. 

Within the first year of the project, ProtectDefenders.eu, the EU Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society, has perceived this phenomenon as a worldwide growing trend, which undermines the existence of an enabling environment for human rights defenders. Only in 2016, as per ProtectDefenders.eu's findings 1 , more than 425 defenders have faced judicial harassment and at least 193 defenders have been charged or sentenced to prison.

The misuse of domestic criminal justice systems and the development of restrictive legislations and regulations against human rights defenders have a threefold impact on their work. Firstly, it practically interferes with their daily human rights activities. It obliges them, for instance, to present themselves regularly to summons, to serve long periods of pre-trial detention or, when convicted, to serve sentences preventing them from pursuing their human rights activities. Secondly, it contributes to the stigmatisation of human rights defenders and organisations depicting them as criminals, therefore delegitimising their positive role in society. Thirdly, criminalisation and judicial harassment of defenders creates a chilling effect on civil society as a whole, specifically within the communities or groups to which the defenders belong, in many cases leading to social fragmentation and isolation of the defenders themselves.

Some groups of defenders have been more frequently the target of criminalisation by State and non-State actors, due to the issues they work on. In particular, land and environmental rights defenders, defenders working on economic, social and cultural rights, women’s rights (including sexual and reproductive rights), LGBTIQ rights, freedom of expression, rule of law or accountability issues, often face trumped-up criminal charges. Criminalisation is generally accompanied by major violations of the right to a fair trial. Criminal proceedings are often characterized by lack of independence of the judiciary, summary procedures, failure to inform the accused of charges brought against them, obstacles to their right to defence and access to a lawyer, lack of translation and failure to comply with the principle of publicity of the hearings, among other violations.

An increasing number of countries around the world have developed repressive legal environments that undermine the exercise of the right to freedoms of association (including the right to access funding), expression and peaceful assembly. Those restrictions not only violate universally recognised human rights standards, but also seriously impact efforts by civil society to promote and protect human rights and ensure that the voice of victims of violations is heard. These laws and regulations, as well as restrictive official practices and procedures, are very detrimental to the work of NGOs, and result in a limitation of their activities, the criminalisation of their staff and/or even the closure and dissolution of the organisation. In many countries, these new laws and policies threaten the very existence of a human rights civil society.

ProtectDefenders.eu strongly calls upon all national authorities to:

- Publicly recognise the legitimate and crucial role played by human rights defenders in society and condemn systematically all acts of harassment and violence against them.

- Protect them from any kind of harassment, particularly at the judicial level, so that they are able to carry out their human rights activities without any hindrances.

- Remove all legal and administrative obstacles placed on the activities of human rights defenders.

- Immediately and unconditionally release all arbitrarily detained human rights defenders and drop all charges against them, as their detention only aims at sanctioning their human rights activities.

- Guarantee the right to defence of all detained defenders by lifting obstacles undermining access to their lawyers and putting an end to the practice of depriving defenders from the support of their designated
lawyers by calling them as witnesses in the case.

- Investigate in an effective, transparent and independent manner and sanction accordingly all public officials involved in cases of undue use of the criminal system against human rights defenders and guarantee the access to justice and redress to all victims.

ProtectDefenders.eu also calls upon the European Union and its Member States to:

- Publicly recognise the trend of criminalisation of human rights defenders as an urgent issue to address, as one of the biggest threats to the security and the work of defenders, and incorporate this as a priority focus into their human rights advocacy strategy.

- Work on a strategic approach to advance human rights with a global perspective and specially condemn every form of criminalisation of human rights defenders.

- Monitor more closely the trends of criminalisation in countries of concern and systematically observe trials against human rights defenders in countries with presence of EU Delegations.

- Take steps to combat the stigmatisation of human rights defenders by public officials: condemn public statements made by public officials that negatively affect the image and reputation of human rights defenders and reiterate the damaging effect this has; and conduct positive awareness work and encourage governments to do the same.

- Encourage governments and media bodies to take affirmative action to clear human rights defenders’ name, support their work, and restore their reputation and legitimacy.

- Afford special attention to groups marginalised due to their identity -such as women, LGBTIQ, and ethnic or indigenous groups - who are particularly vulnerable to all types of harassment, including criminalisation.

#HRDsNotCriminals"

During the meeting, more than 140 social movements, civil society organisations and advocates from over 40 countries came together to confront global systems that perpetuate inequality, impoverishment and dispossession and to explore alternatives to these global common conditions. The participants ranged from representatives of social movements and grassroots organisations working in difficult countries as well as representatives from larger NGOs based in the Global North who collaborate with human rights defenders under threat.

Following a dynamic methodology, participants were asked to draw an average day in their lives. They subsequently discussed their drawings in pairs. Then, in plenary, participants explained their drawings and shared observations about their daily routines and what those mean for the security risks and vulnerabilities that they face, as well as general observations about well-being for human rights defenders.

Participants expressed appreciation for the training and informational session, which was made possible thanks to ProtectDefenders.eu, and highlighted interest in further capacity-building opportunities for the coming period.

In addition to highlighting the main achievements and challenges of the first year of implementation of ProtectDefenders.eu, this first beneficiaries' meeting will aim at giving enhanced visibility to the human rights defenders agenda. It will address the issue of criminalisation as a worrying trend, foster sharing of experiences on successful strategies to counter criminalisation and draw relevant conclusions on the support needed by human rights defenders both within and outside ProtectDefenders.eu.

ProtectDefenders.eu chose to highlight the issue of criminalisation of human rights defenders as a topic of concern throughout this event. Indeed, in recent years, state and non-state actors have made numerous attempts to criminalise the work of human rights defenders worldwide in order to silence their voices and undermine the credibility of their actions. Countering criminalisation of the work of human rights defenders is therefore imperative to ensure a safe environment for individuals to defend and exercise their rights.

This event will bring together Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights NGOs, Representatives of international and regional Protection Mechanisms, Members of the EU Temporary Relocation Platform, as well as other Representatives of EU Institutions, providing therefore valuable networking opportunities for all participants.

If you are interested in joining us, please contact Javier Roura at contact@protectdefenders.eu

Nkosilathi had previously participated in the Shelter City relocation program in the Netherlands after receiving several threats and being under constant surveillance due to the publication of his book 'Robert Mugabe from freedom fighter to the people’s enemy'.

Nkosilathi is the co-founder of Zimbabwe Organisation for the Youth in Politics (Z.O.Y.P),  a community-based organisation working with human rights defenders and youth based in the small mining town of Kwekwe, in Zimbabwe. He has also established the ‘Community Human Rights Defenders Academy’ where he is educating and training human rights defenders based in remote and grassroots areas to help them perform their human rights work.

This new shelter programme is open to human rights defenders under threat coming from Central Asia, Russia and Turkey. Thanks to the advantageous conditions of the visa free regime in Georgia, the programme will be able to swiftly relocate human rights defenders at risk. Local organisations Truth Hounds and the Analytical Center for Interethnic Cooperation, who are running the Tbilisi Shelter City programme, have developed a comprehensive program to make out the most of the stay of defenders, providing meaningful opportunities for professional development. The relocation programme includes courses in human rights offered by the University, English and driving lessons, as well as trainings in communication, project writing and advocacy.

The Observatory, particularly concerned by the high levels of police violence against HRDs and the attempts of restricting their space of work, decided to carry out an International Fact-Finding Mission in Kenya with the objective of verifying in situ the situation of human rights defenders in the country, raising international attention on their situation and contributing to their protection and the improvement of an enabling environment for civil society in Kenya. More particularly, the mission focused on the analysis of the high levels of police violence against defenders working on accountability and the rule of law, as well as against peaceful demonstrators, especially during election periods such as the one Kenya is living at the moment. Another important focus was the legal path of the 2013 Public Benefit Organisations Act a new NGO law which, once enacted, will repeal the 1990 NGO Coordination Act, the NGO legislation currently regulating the civil society sector that is clearly out-dated. The Mission touched also upon the recent attempts to shrink the space of civil society through administrative sanctions as well as through criminalization within the anti-terrorism legal framework.

INFORMATION ABOUT PROTECTDEFENDERS.EU

ProtectDefenders.eu is the European Union Human Rights Defenders mechanism, established to protect defenders at high risk and facing the most difficult situations worldwide.

ProtectDefenders.eu:

• Operates a permanent and rapid response mechanism to provide emergency support and material assistance to Human Rights Defenders in danger, their families and their work.
• Manages a support programme of temporary relocation for Human Rights Defenders at risk to relocate inside their country, within their region or abroad in case of urgent threat.
• Supports and coordinates an exchange platform for organisations and stakeholders working on temporary relocation for Human Rights Defenders, including through the EU temporary relocation platform.
• Provides training, support and capacity building to Human Rights Defenders and local organisations.
• Monitors the situation of human rights defenders and advocates for a protection agenda for Human Rights Defenders at local, regional and international level.
• Promotes coordination between organisations dedicated to support for Human Rights Defenders, EU institutions and other relevant actors.

The implementation of ProtectDefenders.eu is led by a Consortium of 12 NGOs active in the field of Human Rights, namely Front Line Defenders, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Network (ESCR-Net), International Gay and Lesbian Association (ILGA), Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights (UAF), Protection International (PI), Peace Brigades International (PBI), Euro-Mediterranean Foundation of Support to Human Rights Defenders (EMHRF), Forum Asia and East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (EHAHRDP).

ProtectDefenders.eu is coordinated by an independent Secretariat based in Brussels.

TASKS TO BE PERFORMED BY THE INTERN DURING THE INTERNSHIP

Based at the Secretariat's office in Brussels, the intern will work in support to the different file-holders and under the overall supervision of the Head of Secretariat.

He/She will carry out a variety of tasks related to the purposes of the EU HRD Mechanism coordination and implementation, what will provide an opportunity for learning and achieving relevant work experience in the field of human rights at global and EU levels.

Tasks & General Responsibilities:

Allocation of grants

• Carry out the first assessment of grants applications received, preparing summaries to be submitted to the Grants Coordinator;
• Contact references that endorse the grants application, in order to gather relevant information that validate the applications' credibility;
• Participate in meetings with the Grants Coordinator, preparing summary and briefing notes;
• Follow up on the grants awarded, monitoring the status of progress of grants and liaising with stakeholders to receive intermediate and final narrative and financial reports;
• Maintain up-to-date information within related folders and database.

Temporary Relocation of Human Rights Defenders

• Do ‘on demand’ research on human rights defenders; backgrounds, security analysis, immediate support;
• Support human rights defenders in finding ad-hoc solutions for temporary relocation;
• Connect human rights defenders with relevant hosting structures in link with the EU Temporary Relocation Platform (www.hrdrelocation.eu);
• Support the Coordinator of the EU Temporary Relocation Platform in related tasks.

Communication and Advocacy

• Support communication, advocacy and monitoring initiatives regarding the situation of human rights defenders, in collaboration with the Communication and Reporting Officer;

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED

• Ongoing studies (master's degree) in law, international relations, social sciences or related field. Experience in human rights would be an asset.
• Knowledge of EU institutions, UN procedures and regional mechanisms for the protection of human rights would be an asset.
• Good drafting and editing skills.
• Ability to adapt to multidisciplinary work in the environment of a multicultural team.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills.
• Fluency in English and French, oral and written.
• Fluency in Spanish, Arabic or Russian would be an asset.

STARTING DATE & CONDITIONS

• Starting date: To be negotiated (December 2016, January 2017).
• Duration: 3 months minimum.
• Conditions : Internship agreement is required.

Please note that our internships are unpaid. Schedule can be flexible and would be agreed between the supervisor and the intern. Local transportation costs and meals expenses shall be reimbursed.

HOW TO APPLY?

• Please send your CV and cover letter (please include information about your availability) before November 30th by email to: Joan Audierne, Head of Secretariat, contact @protectdefenders.eu with the subject : 'Internship'.
• Short-listed candidates will be invited for interviews. Succesfully candidates will be notified shortly after the interview.
• Interviews will be held in our office in Brussels

Arash Chakeri joins at least 39 other defenders that have accessed the Temporary Relocation Programme of the EU Human Rights Defenders Mechanism during the last three months.These threatened defenders, coming from multiple countries (Bangladesh, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan or Uganda, among others) and working on fields such as freedom of expression, land and environmental rights or women's rights are now protected and accompanied by host organisations throughout the world. Since the launch of the Temporary Relocation Programme in February 2016, 68 human rights defenders at risk and their families when needed have been awarded with a temporary relocation grant by ProtectDefenders.eu.

Human Rights Defenders facing threats are eligible to the Temporary Relocation Programme of ProtectDefenders.eu. All information and secure application forms are available at https://www.protectdefenders.eu/supporting-defenders.

In this briefing, the Observatory warns about the escalation of acts of repression against defenders and members of Cuban civil society, in particular against the movement of 'Las Damas de Blanco' and defenders related to the "#TodosMarchamos" campaign, documenting arbitrary detentions, judicial harassment, attacks, ill-treatment and death threat reported since April 2016.

Read the full briefing here.

With the financial collaboration of ProtectDefenders.eu, this NGO - established in June 2013 by a group of young people belonging to the movement of 20 February 2011 -, has been able to rent an office space and to employ a coordinator to develop new programmes aimed at channelling the voices of youths in the drafting of public policies in Morocco.

As a result of this contribution, the Prometheus Institute has set up, among other initiatives, a monitoring programme on respect for human rights in the country to address non-conventional mechanisms of the United Nations and it has published a memorandum on the cultural public policies in Morocco in April 2016, in partnership with a specialised UN agency and an international foundation.

Local organisations of human rights defenders, communities and informal groups working on human rights, also in remote and less connected areas, are eligible for funding and assistance within the ProtectDefenders.eu programme for strengthening organisations.

Through seven of its partners, ProtectDefenders.eu provides up to EUR 60000 for the implementation of projects aimed at advancing a human rights agenda and to counter violations (including emerging local initiatives, protection plans, lifeline funding, advocacy or public campaigns, capacity building and trainings, documentation and printing of materials or development of networks).

PBI has also accompanied the Q'eqch'i Maya Community witnesses involved in this case, both during their journeys to Guatemala City and the trial audiences. In addition, PBI have lent support and accompaniment to the lawyers of the Bufete Jurídico de Derechos Humanos in the reopening of the trial for genocide on March 16.

During this process, as PBI reported, the judge ruled that there is evidence to believe that 8 soldiers, -including the brother of former President Lucas Garcia (1978-1982), who was head of the Presidential junta during that period- were involved in the crimes and sent them to trial.

Through its partners, ProtectDefenders.eu raise its voice to warn about the critical situation of Human Rights Defenders at risk worldwide, especially when affecting vulnerable groups and defenders working in crisis situations, difficult countries or under repressive regimes.

ProtectDefenders.eu dispatches urgent alerts and coordinates immediate responses, including early warnings, field missions to conduct urgent advocacy, documentation of human rights violations and mobilisation of public and media attention on severe situations. It also monitors the individual situation of defenders in critical situations, whether imprisoned or under trial, and advocates for the end of impunity of perpetrators.

The journalist fled to escape imminent imprisonment for his activities as an independent journalist and an outspoken activist. He was known for his investigative coverage of local government corruption and his involvement in local grass-roots campaigns.

At time of his arrest, RSF denounced his imprisonment in a press release, calling for his liberation. Within sight of his trial, in addition to his Cypriot lawyer, he benefited from the support a Bulgarian lawyer, specialised in requests for extradition to Russia. The emergency grant allocated through ProtectDefenders.eu also covered his legal fees. Thanks to these joint initiatives, the court ruled his liberation and he then went to Lithuania, where he was granted asylum.

ProtectDefenders.eu has allocated 188 emergency grants for human rights defenders at risk, journalists and those fighting for the freedom of expression, since the start of the Project. Emergency grants for individuals can reach up to EUR 10000 and are channeled through the existent mechanism of eight ProtectDefenders.eu partners. Applications details, thematic and geographic criteria and contact forms, as well as a hotline working 24/7, are available at www.protectdefenders.eu.