Announcement May 25, 2016 OFF, the Arab Spring, and Digital Technology It seems a long time ago. Four years back, when human-rights campaigners, brave dissidents and their supporters assembled for an annual get-together in Oslo, there was a giddy optimism in the air.
Press Release May 12, 2016 Uganda: HRF Condemns Social Media Blackout Ahead of Presidential Inauguration Human Rights Foundation (HRF) condemns the Uganda Communication Commission’s (UCC) order blocking access to major social media platforms ahead of President Yoweri Museveni’s controversial fifth term inauguration.
Press Release May 11, 2016 HRF to Azerbaijan: Drop Criminal Investigation Into Independent Media Human Rights Foundation (HRF) condemns the criminal investigation launched against Meydan TV, an independent digital news outlet known for its critical reporting on the government of Azerbaijan.
Press Release Apr 21, 2016 Venezuela: HRF Condemns Prison Sentence Against Journalist Who Denounced Corruption Natera Febres was sentenced to four years in prison and fined $20,000 for reporting on a corruption case linked to the state-owned company CVG Ferrominera Orinoco and to Venezuela’s Directorate General of Military Counterintelligence.
Press Release Apr 20, 2016 HRF to the Gambia: Investigate Extrajudicial Executions of Political Opponents Last week, Gambian armed forces forcefully dissolved a peaceful demonstration calling for electoral reforms and arbitrarily arrested 25 activists.
Press Release Apr 12, 2016 Venezuela: HRF Condemns Large-scale, Illegal Wiretapping of Political Opposition A recent journalistic investigation revealed that a group of intelligence agents from the Strategic Center for the Security and Protection of the Homeland (CESPPA), acting under direct instructions from President Nicolás Maduro, has unlawfully wiretapped phone conversations, and hacked text messages and email communications of prominent opposition figures such as Henrique Capriles, María Corina Machado, Henry Ramos Allup, and Julio Borges.
Press Release Apr 11, 2016 Egypt: Halt Persecution of Civil Society Groups HRF calls on the Egyptian government to drop all charges and vacate the arbitrary convictions against members of non-governmental organizations.
Press Release Mar 30, 2016 HRF to Cuba: Stop Harassing El Sexto El Sexto has been detained three times and held for three to five hours each time since his return to Cuba earlier this month.
News Mar 28, 2016 Javier El-Hage writes on Obama’s visit to Cuba in El País El presidente Obama ahora ostenta el dudoso honor de ser el único presidente en ejercicio de Estados Unidos que ha posado en decenas de fotografías con uno de los hermanos Castro en la mismísima Habana, en pleno año 57 de su régimen totalitario.
News Mar 28, 2016 HRF to Nigeria: Withdraw Social Media Bill Targeting Free Speech The vaguely drafted bill, officially called “An Act to Prohibit Frivolous Petitions; And Other Matters Connected Therewith,” seeks to prevent “false” and “abusive statements,” published through “text message, tweets, WhatsApp or through any other social media post,” against any person or “institutions of government.”
Press Release Mar 28, 2016 Angola: HRF Condemns Convictions and Demands Release of Youth Activists HRF calls on the Angolan government to vacate the convictions and release the activists immediately.
News Mar 18, 2016 Garry Kasparov in Newsweek Historical comparisons involving Russian leader Vladimir Putin are usually directed toward the distant past.
Press Release Mar 16, 2016 HRF to UN: Inquire into Death Threats Against Rosa María Payá in Cuba The appeal requested that the rapporteur call on the Cuban government to provide an official and comprehensive explanation regarding the state’s treatment of Rosa María Payá.
Blog Post Mar 16, 2016 Elections Under Authoritarian Regimes: Azerbaijan and Iran NEW YORK – On Monday, Russia’s Putin-controlled Constitutional Court approved proposed constitutional amendments to reset the count on presidential term limits to zero.
Press Release Feb 25, 2016 Egypt: HRF & American University Washington College of Law Submit Petition to UN Yesterday, HRF handed the petition to representatives of the WGAD requesting that the group issue an opinion declaring Mr. Zeid’s detention to be arbitrary.
Press Release Feb 24, 2016 HRF to UN: Inquire into Suspicious Death of Oswaldo Payá in Cuba In a meeting with staff members from the U.N. Special Rapporteur’s office, HRF presented the conclusions of its July 2015 legal report, which strongly suggests that Cuban dissident Oswaldo Payá’s 2012 death was an extrajudicial execution carried out by the Cuban government.
Press Release Feb 11, 2016 HRF to Turkey: Free Journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül On November 26, Dündar, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Cumhuriyet, and Gül, the Ankara bureau chief, were arrested based on a criminal complaint filed against them by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Press Release Feb 10, 2016 HRF Supports the First US Exhibit of Cuban Artist El Sexto El Sexto, a Cuban graffiti artist and activist, will showcase his work in an exhibition entitled “PORK,” which will take place at Market Gallery in South Beach, Miami, from February 26 to March 16.
Press Release Feb 4, 2016 HRF to Morocco: Drop Charges Against Human Rights Activists Human Rights Foundation (HRF) strongly condemns Morocco’s continued crackdown on freedom of expression, and urges the authorities to drop all charges against seven human rights activists, including five journalists.
Press Release Jan 29, 2016 Ecuador: HRF Condemns Cyber-Attacks Against Free Press Watchdog These attacks began just days after the nonprofit launched Censuracom.ec, a website designed to expose the government’s crackdown on independent media during 2015.
