Blog Post Apr 22, 2026 What Does Authoritarianism Have to Do with Fashion? The clothes we wear rarely tell the full story of how they were made. Behind a shirt or pair of jeans is a global supply chain that spans farms, factories, and lives.
Publication Apr 20, 2026 Art on trial – a sculptor’s arrest highlights new extremes for censorship in China Jesus Christ stands at gunpoint, palms upturned, seven figures in a firing squad around him. The bronze riflemen are unmistakable in their likeness.
Newsletter Apr 16, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #117 We start in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the country’s central bank has announced plans to ban cash transactions in US dollars and other foreign currencies starting in April 2027.
Announcement Apr 10, 2026 Beyond Borders: HRF Equips Young Leaders With Skills To Counter China’s Transnational Repression CCPDI’s First In-Person Activist Retreat
Newsletter Apr 9, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #116 In China, officials have ordered the removal of Bitchat from Apple’s App Store. Officials cited violations of regulations governing “internet-based information services with attribute (sp) of public opinions or capable of social mobilization.”
Publication Apr 3, 2026 Families React After Supreme Court Denies Bail to Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam in Delhi Riots Case Families of activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam expressed disappointment after the Supreme Court of India denied them bail in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case.
Newsletter Apr 2, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #115 India’s central bank is negotiating with up to five peers to expand its digital rupee, a central bank digital currency (CBDC), for cross-border institutional and retail transactions, urging fellow BRICS nations to connect their respective CBDCs.
Press Release Apr 1, 2026 HRF’s Bitcoin Development Fund Announces Support for 26 Projects Worldwide NEW YORK (April 1, 2026) — The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is pleased to announce grants totaling 1.5 billion satoshis from its Bitcoin Development Fund (BDF). This round of grants supports projects advancing open-source software development, Bitcoin research and educational initiatives, and financial privacy for the 6.2 billion people living under authoritarian regimes.
Publication Mar 31, 2026 US-based dissident artist put on trial in China over satirical Mao sculptures, says rights group The Chinese dissident artist Gao Zhen, known for making satirical sculptures of China’s former leader Mao Zedong, has been tried over accusations of “defaming national heroes and martyrs”, his wife and a rights group have said.
Newsletter Mar 30, 2026 HRF’s AI for Individual Rights Newsletter #8 We begin with research from the African Digital Rights Network, which documents how 11 African countries have collectively spent more than $2 billion on Chinese-built “smart city” AI-powered surveillance systems.
Publication Mar 29, 2026 The Secret Trial of a Chinese Artist Accused of Mocking Mao Zedong A prominent New York-based Chinese artist known for his provocative and irreverent sculptures of Mao Zedong stood trial on Monday, accused of slandering the country’s heroes in a case underlining how little criticism is allowed under China’s leader, Xi Jinping.
Newsletter Mar 26, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #114 In Uganda, the Museveni regime has frozen the bank accounts of several prominent human rights organizations.
Op-Ed Mar 20, 2026 Tyranny Tracker: Identifying authoritarianism, illuminating freedom The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) has launched Tyranny Tracker — a qualitative democracy index that classifies countries and territories as democratic, hybrid authoritarian, or fully authoritarian.
Publication Mar 20, 2026 Rights Groups Call For Release of Kashmiri Journalist Irfan Mehraj After Three Years in Detention The rights groups have also sought the release of human rights defender Khurram Parvez, who has been detained in the same case since 2020, and described both arrests as politically motivated.
Newsletter Mar 19, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #113 This edition examines Venezuela’s first official inflation reading in more than a year after the regime halted public reporting and restricted independent estimates.
Op-Ed Mar 13, 2026 Putin Bombs the Power Grid. The Children Keep Playing When the Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych risked disqualification for wearing a helmet displaying the faces of more than 20 Ukrainian athletes and coaches killed in the war during this year’s Olympics, it became clear: even sports equipment has become political.
Announcement Mar 13, 2026 HRF Calls on Doja Cat to Cancel Move Afrika’s Dictator-Sponsored Concert in Rwanda The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) has learned of your plans to perform in Kigali, Rwanda on March 17, 2026, as part of the Move Afrika tour.
Report Mar 13, 2026 Doja Cat Rwanda Concert Letter The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) has learned of your plans to perform in Kigali, Rwanda, on March 17, 2026, as part of the Move Afrika tour.
Newsletter Mar 12, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #112 We begin this week’s edition in Cuba, where personal stories reveal the human toll of currency collapse under the communist regime.
Newsletter Mar 5, 2026 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #111 In Nicaragua, the Ortega-Murillo regime is turning exile into economic erasure. Nicaraguans expelled since 2023 have reported that, within hours of deportation, the state stripped them of their nationality, canceled their pensions, and deleted decades of their contribution records.
