News

Open Letter: Drop charges against Rohingya human rights defender in Malaysia

News
Dear Minister, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is a global alliance of civil society organisations (CSOs) and activists dedicated to strengthening citizen action and civil society worldwide.

CIVICUS at the 89th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights

News
The 89th session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) will be held in Dakar, Senegal, from 11 to 20 October, preceded by the NGO Forum, which will take place from 8 to 10 October.

Release Sudanese Peacebuilder and Women’s Rights Defender Najwa Musa Konda

News
We at CIVICUS call for the immediate and unconditional release of Najwa Musa Konda, a prominent Sudanese peacebuilder, women’s rights defender and humanitarian actor, who has been arbitrarily detained by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM-N) since 30 March 2026.

Singapore: Drop New Wave of Charges Against Human Rights Defenders, End Criminalization of Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Assembly

News
We, the undersigned organizations, are deeply concerned by the continuing criminalization of human rights defenders (HRDs), activists, lawyers and journalists in Singapore for exercising their internationally protected rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

Philippines: Government must implement its human rights obligations on civic space

News
CIVICUS, a global civil society alliance, urges President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Turkey: Six Human Rights Association (İHD) members to stand trial on 29 September and 2 October after months in pre-trial detention

News
Mert Ahmet Aldemir, Zehra Camcı, Hale Nur Çetin, Emirhan Gedik, Tuğba Kahraman and Şevin Özden were among the 16 İHD members detained on 23 June 2026 ahead of the Ankara NATO Summit.

Bangladesh: Draft Cyber Protection (Amendment) Act 2026 poses serious risk to freedom of expression, and mirrors the Digital Security Act used to repress human rights defenders and journalists

News
We, the undersigned organisations, committed to promoting and protecting human rights in Asia, are deeply alarmed by Bangladesh Government’s draft Cyber Protection (Amendment) Act 2026.

Over 450 Organisations Demand an End to the Criminalisation of the LGBTI+ Movement in Turkey

News
More than 450 civil society organisations from 65 countries around the world have called for an immediate end to the crackdown on LGBTI+ organisations, activists and human rights defenders in Turkey.

Indonesia: Lack of accountability six months on for attack on human rights defender Andrie Yunus

News
To: H.

Ecuador: International Organizations Warn of a Rapid Deterioration of Human Rights

News
Seven international organizations denounce the climate of repression and militarization.

81 years on, the United Nations has yet to be led by a woman

News
New York City, 8 September 2026 The race for United Nations (UN) Secretary-General enters a decisive phase, with eight candidates competing for the top job.
Featured

Hong Kong: Unjust verdict against Chow Hang-Tung uses draconian law, silences dissent

News
CIVICUS global civil society alliance condemns the guilty verdict against Chow Hang-Tung.
Featured

Defending Our Lands and Environment: Protecting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Worldwide

News
Statement on International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples Each year on 9 August, the international community marks the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, honouring the first session of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations in 1982.

Morocco: Provide safety and justice for Sahrawi activist Naama Asfari

News
CIVICUS calls on Moroccan authorities and the international community to provide safety and justice for Sahrawi human rights defender (HRD) Naama Asfari.

Bangladesh: Two years after the mass protests, civic space is under attack

News
CIVICUS global civil society alliance warns of faltering civic space under the new Bangladeshi government.

Joint Letter: Urgent Call to End Escalating Repression in Uganda

News
Together with partners, we have written to the international community urging immediate action to condemn and respond to the escalating repression of civil society, human rights defenders, journalists and political opposition in Uganda.

Mandela Day: CIVICUS calls on the public to spend 67 minutes standing with jailed human rights defenders

News
Johannesburg, South Africa — As the world marks Nelson Mandela Day, CIVICUS is calling on people everywhere to dedicate 67 minutes to solidarity and action for imprisoned human rights defenders through the #StandAsMyWitness campaign.

Joint Statement | Tunisia: Conviction of Sihem Bensedrine Threatens Transitional Justice and Deepens Restrictions on Civic Space

News
While awaiting the scheduling of Sihem Bensedrine’s appeal trial before the Tunis Court of Appeal, the undersigned organizations express their deep concern over the judgment issued against the prominent human rights defender and former President of the Truth and Dignity Commission (TDC), sentencing her to twenty-five years in prison in connection with two cases directly related to her work as President of the Truth and Dignity Commission and the preparation of its final report.

Joint Global Call for the Protection and Release of Unjustly Imprisoned Human Rights Defenders

News
We, the undersigned organisations and partners from around the world, reaffirm our unwavering solidarity with human rights defenders (HRDs) who continue to face judicial harassment, arbitrary detention, and persecution for their peaceful human rights work.

United States: Texas Federal judges' sentence against ICE protestors a brutal assault on First Amendment rights

News
A justice system turned upside down: protesters face decades-long sentences while an agent who killed Renée Good, an unarmed female activist, walks free.
Featured

United States: End attacks on anti-ICE protesters and civic freedoms activists

News
As federal agents raid anti-ICE protesters and a voting rights group and the administration targets critics, CIVICUS warns of an increasing assault on US civic space.
A Public Call to end Khurram Parvez’ arbitrary detention
Featured

A Public Call to end Khurram Parvez’ arbitrary detention

News
On his 49th birthday, his fifth while arbitrarily detained, we, the undersigned organisations and individuals, stand in solidarity with human rights defender Khurram Parvez.

Indonesia: Deliver justice for attack on activist by armed forces

News
CIVICUS condemns the inadequate and unjust sentences by the military for the acid attack on human rights defender Andrie Yunus.

Civil organizations demand transparency and citizen participation in the election of Venezuela's Supreme Court of Justice

News
The partial renewal of justices of the Supreme Court of Justice and other senior positions in the Judicial Branch is taking place in a context of serious questions about judicial independence in Venezuela.

Turning Locally-Led Development into Action

News
By Trisha Alexis De Leon Recent global crises have magnified the gaps in the global development architecture—deficits which especially impacted under-represented and marginalised communities, reflecting the power imbalances and colonial biases that continue to shape whose knowledge, leadership, and solutions are valued.
Featured

Hong Kong: Civic space remains ‘closed’ as security laws used to repress all forms of dissent

News
CIVICUS, a global civil society alliance, calls on the Hong Kong government to halt the continued use of security laws to target activism and create a chilling effect in the territory.

Cambodia: Overturn the conviction of the Mother Nature environmental defenders

News
CIVICUS, a global civil society alliance, along with the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) and Front Line Defenders calls on the appeals court to overturn the conviction of five Mother Nature Cambodia environmental defenders.

Egypt: Rights Groups Call for the Release of Filmmaker Omar Salah Marei and Immediate Access to Medical Care

News
Read in Arabic We, the undersigned organisations, strongly condemn the continued detention of Egyptian filmmaker and screenwriter Omar Salah Marei.

78 Years Since the Nakba: Ongoing Displacement, Denied Return, and Enduring Resistance

News
Today we mark the Nakba, the ‘catastrophe’, and remember the more than 750,000 Palestinians forcibly expelled from their homeland in 1948, some 530 villages destroyed and the families forced to live in an exile that has never ended.

Mexico:The recent closure of the federal cases against human rights defender Kenia Hernández opens an opportunity to deliver justice and secure her release

News
The undersigned organisations call for a solution for the imprisonment of Kenia Inés Hernández Montalván, an amuzga indigenous woman and human rights defender who has been detained since October 2020.

CIVICUS at the 87th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights

News
The 87th session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) will be held in Banjul, The Gambia, from 11 to 20 May.

IRAN: Release Narges Mohammadi and Provide Urgent Cardiac Care

News
CIVICUS global civil society alliance calls for the immediate release and urgent medical care for Iranian woman human rights defender and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi.

BAHRAIN: Civil society urges world leaders to act against citizenship stripping and related human rights violations

News
Arabic Dismayed by the Government of Bahrain’s (GoB) continued violations of its international human rights obligations, on 1 May 2026, 12 human rights organisations appealed directly to the UN, the European Union, and the UK government to take action to address citizenship stripping and related abuses.

Andrea Bolaños Vargas appointed UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders by the UN Human Rights Council

News
CIVICUS welcomes the appointment of Andrea Bolaños Vargas as the new UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders.

Bahrain: Call to Release Political Prisoners and End Prison Abuses

News
The undersigned organisations urge the European Union and other regional bodies and agencies to address the human rights situation in Bahrain, in particular the ongoing crackdown on protests, incidents of torture and the inadequate provision of medical care for political detainees.

Global Civil Society Calls for Ending Violence and Protecting Civilians in the Middle East

News
  A coalition of 342 civil society organisations calls on all parties to immediately cease attacks on civilians in the Middle East and uphold international law.
Featured

Pakistan: Civic space situation has regressed two years since the elections

News
CIVICUS, a global civil society alliance, calls on the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his government to halt the continued harassment of activists and journalists and crackdown on protests.
Featured

CIVICUS Monitor Watchlist: March 2026

News
  The March 2026 Watchlist from the CIVICUS Monitor highlights five countries where civic freedoms are deteriorating at an alarming pace: Ecuador, Georgia, Iran, the Philippines and Benin.

Civil society organizations raise concerns about the lack of transparency and public participation in the appointment of the heads of the Attorney General’s Office and the Ombudsperson’s Office in Venezuela

News
The process for appointing the top officials of the Attorney General’s Office and the Ombudsperson’s Office in Venezuela has raised concerns due to the lack of transparency and public participation, which are essential safeguards for appointing independent, qualified, and ethical individuals to key positions that ensure access to justice and the protection of human rights.

Belarus Releases Viasna Human Rights Defenders Marfa Rabkova and Valiantsin Stefanovich

News
  The global civil society alliance CIVICUS welcomes the release of Belarusian human rights defenders Marfa Rabkova and Valiantsin Stefanovich, featured in its Stand As My Witness Campaign, following the Belarusian authorities’ decision to free 250 political prisoners in exchange for sanctions relief.

Pakistan: Release human rights activist Dr. Mahrang Baloch

News
CIVICUS calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Pakistani human rights defender Dr.

Indonesia: Investigate attack on human rights defender Andrie Yunus

News
  To: General Listyo Sigit Prabowo  Chief of Indonesian National Police Indonesian National Police Headquarter  Jl.

Joint Call for the Immediate Release of Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace

News
CIVICUS joins 17 organisations in calling for the release of human rights defenders, Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace.

Bangladesh: New Prime Minister must address human rights challenges

News
Nine civil society groups including CIVICUS have written a letter to Bangladesh’s prime minister, Tarique Rahman, who was elected in February 2026 to use this opportunity to bring lasting protections of human rights.
Featured

Global elites threaten democracy, but a new generation is fighting back

News
CIVICUS’s 2026 State of Civil Society Report highlights how a dangerous convergence of authoritarian leaders, economic elites and tech oligarchs are tearing up the international rulebook to imperil democracy, peace and environmental sustainability.
© REUTERS - Johanna Alarcon
© REUTERS - Johanna Alarcon

Ecuador: international organizations alert of the rapid deterioration of the human rights situation

News
As part of a human rights observation visit, the organizations visited several communities and interviewed human rights and environmental defenders, civil society organisations, public institutions and the international community.

IRAQ: Assassination of WHRD Yanar Mohammed, Emblematic Figure of the Feminist Movement, Condemned

News
Read the statement in Arabic The assassination of woman human rights defender Yanar Mohammed, a prominent Iraqi feminist and President of the Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq (OWFI), on 02 March 2026 in Baghdad, constitutes a grave attack against human rights defenders and against the struggle for women’s rights in Iraq.

CIVICUS Global Campaign Urges the Release of Mother Nature Cambodia Activists 

News
  CIVICUS, a global civil society alliance, calls for the immediate release of five Mother Nature Cambodia environmental rights defenders, who are now featured in its ‘Stand As My Witness’ campaign.

UN Human Rights Council at 20: Rights and Civil Society under attack

News
The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Office and independent civil society human rights organisations are struggling to survive.

Pakistan: Overturn Conviction and Release Human Rights Lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha

News
OPEN LETTER To: Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar Federal Minister for Law and Justice & Human Rights S-Block, Pakistan Secretariat, Islamabad, Pakistan Pakistan: Overturn conviction and release human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha Dear Minister, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is a global alliance of civil society organisations (CSOs) and activists dedicated to strengthening citizen action and civil society worldwide.

Sign up for our newsletters

Our Newsletters

civicus logo white

CIVICUS is a global alliance that champions the power of civil society to create positive change.

brand x FacebookLogo YoutubeLogo InstagramLogo LinkedinLogo TikTokLogo BlueSkyLogo

Johannesburg Hub

25  Owl Street, 6th Floor

Johannesburg
South Africa
2092

Tel: +27 (0)11 833 5959


Fax: +27 (0)11 833 7997

UN Hub: New York

CIVICUS, c/o We Work

450 Lexington Ave

New York
NY
10017

United States

UN Hub: Geneva

11 Avenue de la Paix

Geneva

Switzerland
CH-1202

Tel: +41 (0)79 910 3428