Blog Post Jan 15, 2024 Beyond Borders: China’s Transnational Repression of Uyghurs In March, Turkish police raided a bookstore in Istanbul, accusing it of selling copies of Uyghur books banned by the Chinese regime without proper copyright.
Announcement Jan 3, 2024 “Beyond Utopia” shortlisted for Best Documentary Feature at 2024 Oscars The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is pleased to announce that “Beyond Utopia,” a film following the desperate and harrowing journeys of several individuals as they attempt to escape North Korea, has landed on the Oscars shortlist for Best Documentary Feature, Variety reported.
Blog Post Nov 17, 2023 Worldconned: How China Co-Opted Sci-Fi’s Crown Jewel Amidst the Uyghur Genocide Last month, Chengdu, China hosted the 81st World Science Fiction Convention. Known as Worldcon, this annual convention is the site of the prestigious Hugo Awards—sci-fi’s equivalent to the Oscars.
Press Release Nov 14, 2023 HRF Supports South Korea Decision to Uphold Freedom of Speech in Face of North Korean Threats The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) strongly condemns the North Korean regime’s recent threats following a September South Korean Constitutional Court decision striking down a law that banned private activists from sending informational leaflets into the dictatorship of North Korea
Press Release Oct 20, 2023 HRF Sponsors Art Exhibition “Singing About North Korea: Heaven on Earth” at South Korea’s National Assembly The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) announces the upcoming art exhibition, “Singing About North Korea: Heaven on Earth,” dedicated to raising awareness of North Korean human rights issues.
Press Release Oct 13, 2023 The Governments of South Korea and the US Must Demand Xi Jinping to Stop Forcibly Repatriating North Korean Defectors On the evening of Oct. 9, Chinese officials swiftly repatriated North Korean defectors back to North Korea through Hunchun, Tumen, Changbai, Nanping, and Dandong.
Press Release Oct 9, 2023 HRF to UN: Do Not Elect Dictatorships to Human Rights Council On Oct. 10, 193 member states of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) face the crucial task of filling 15 of the 47 seats of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
Blog Post Sep 24, 2023 International Day of Education: An Afghan Woman’s Crime to Learn The right to education — to learn, to be curious, to explore the past and present freely — is critical to the development of individuals, civil societies, and nations as a whole. A robust and fair education system transforms societies for the better. In fact, education and democracy are considered highly correlated and intertwined.
News Sep 21, 2023 21st-Century Gulag – HRF x The Signal As the United Nations General Assembly convened its annual meeting in New York City this week, a small event on the sidelines provoked anger from China’s UN mission.
Blog Post Jul 31, 2023 Threats Against Journalists in Asia: Online Trolling and Jailing of Reporters A free and independent press is essential to the functioning of a democratic society. It allows citizens to access information and hold their leaders accountable.
Blog Post Jul 19, 2023 HRF Brings UN Attention to Rights Abuses in Congo, Malaysia, and Senegal Last week, the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) submitted contributions to the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) regarding the Republic of the Congo, Malaysia, and Senegal.
Blog Post Jul 13, 2023 All Fabricated: Shein’s Influencer Trip to a Guangzhou Factory In June, the global fast-fashion retailer Shein treated a group of social media influencers to an all-expenses paid trip to Guangzhou, a city in southeast China. Glamorous at the onset, Shein took these “brand ambassadors” — individuals paid to endorse the company’s products — on tours of the company’s “aboveboard” factories. Soon after, the individuals shared raving reviews of the working conditions, suggesting no signs of maltreatment or forced labor.
Blog Post Jul 7, 2023 What’s Happening in Hong Kong? Q&A with HK Activist Sunny Cheung As further proof that the Chinese Communist Party isn’t letting up on infringing on Hong Kong’s autonomy and the freedom of its citizens, police on Monday issued arrest warrants for eight overseas Hong Kong activists for offenses such as foreign collusion and incitement to secession under the national security law.
Announcement Apr 24, 2023 Meet Oslo Freedom Forum Speaker Pastor Kim Meet Pastor Seungeun Kim (@Pastorkim_Caleb), a prominent human rights advocate, the head of the Caleb Mission, a Christian church based in South Korea, and a 2023 Oslo Freedom Forum speaker.
Blog Post Apr 13, 2023 What’s Happening In China’s Concentration Camps? Q&A with Uyghur Camp Survivors As Muslims globally celebrate the holy month of Ramadan with their families, the Uyghur people — many of whom practice Islam — are suffering genocide at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (“Uyghur Region”).
Announcement Apr 11, 2023 Meet HRF Freedom Fellow Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal Meet Buddhist monk and Thai human rights activist Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal (@NetiwitC).
Blog Post Apr 10, 2023 Red-Tagging in the Philippines: A License to Kill February 2023 marked three years in prison for Frenchie Mae Cumpio, a 24-year-old Philippine community journalist and executive director of the independent news website, Eastern Vista. In 2020, the Philippine government accused her of illegally possessing firearms and explosives; Cumpio was reportedly denied “the right to present evidence and prove the utter falsehoods against her.”
Blog Post Mar 17, 2023 Women at the Forefront of Democracy: Tackling the Military Regime in Thailand In May 2014, a Thai military coup effectively put an end to democracy. Coup leader General Prayuth Chan-o-cha announced in a television broadcast at the time that “in order to run the country smoothly, [the military has] suspended the constitution of 2007, except for the chapter on the monarchy.” The country has continued toward authoritarianism.
Press Release Feb 22, 2023 HRF Announces New Grants for North Korean Human Rights The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is pleased to announce five grants to help strengthen the work of civil society organizations in South Korea focused on improving North Korean human rights, education, and resettlement.
Announcement Feb 8, 2023 Meet HRF Freedom Fellow Pema Doma Human Rights Foundation Freedom Fellow Pema Doma is a Tibetan human rights and climate campaigner who was a key organizer in #NoBeijing2022, a global campaign against China’s hosting of the Winter Olympic Games.
