Blog Post Jun 26, 2024 Eight Ways Zimbabwe’s regime hijacked the 2023 vote Zimbabweans have never known free and fair elections. Voter intimidation and suppression have tainted every election since February 1980, during which Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party claimed power.
Blog Post Jun 20, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #28 From June 3 to 5, human rights advocates gathered in Norway for the Oslo Freedom Forum to share their stories and reclaim individual rights from authoritarian regimes. During the Financial Freedom track, speakers highlighted how Bitcoin funds counter-terrorism and pro-democracy movements, provides banking services to repressed populations, and safeguards against the risks of central bank digital currencies.
Blog Post Jun 13, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #27 From June 3 to 5, human rights advocates gathered in Norway for the Oslo Freedom Forum to share their stories and reclaim individual rights from authoritarian regimes. During the Financial Freedom track, speakers highlighted how Bitcoin funds counter-terrorism and pro-democracy movements, provides banking services to repressed populations, and safeguards against the risks of central bank digital currencies.
Blog Post May 30, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #26 This week in Nicaragua, the number of political prisoners continues to grow. This time, the targets are journalists and teachers who are arbitrarily detained and often cut off from their banking accounts.
Blog Post May 23, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #25 In Hong Kong, officials launched a pilot program for China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the e-CNY, marking its first expansion beyond the mainland. But even under duress, adoption remains limited as many Chinese workers are quickly converting their e-CNY for traditional currency, emphasizing their distrust of centralized digital currencies.
Blog Post May 16, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #24 This week in Russia, Vladimir Putin’s “reelection” for a fifth term underscores a deepening authoritarian regime, characterized by stringent control over the financial system and harsh crackdowns on dissenters — a far cry from his pledge to “preserve and develop democracy” when first assuming office in 2000.
Blog Post May 10, 2024 Kyrgyzstan Under Japarov: The Country’s Decline Into Dictatorship For years, Kyrgyzstan was considered the only country that was moving toward democratization in Central Asia as its civil society has mobilized each time to resist the oppression of tyrants.
Blog Post May 9, 2024 Thailand Election: A New Beginning or Political Déjà Vu? Thailand’s general elections are set to be held on May 14. Up to 70 political parties, both big and small, are running candidates in these elections hoping to win seats in the parliament.
Blog Post May 9, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #23 n Nigeria, the director general of the Securities and Exchange Commission announced the government’s intention to delist the naira from peer-to-peer platforms, a move that would effectively trap the public inside the failing currency.
Blog Post May 3, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #22 This week news centered around the harassment of press freedom defenders through financial de-platforming. In Somalia, the regime froze the bank accounts of the Somali Journalist Syndicate (SJS).
Blog Post May 3, 2024 Capital Punishment in Vladimir Putin’s Russia On Monday, an independent polling organization reported that more than 50% of ordinary Russian citizens support bringing back the death penalty, yet another sign of the public’s growing approval of the use of capital punishment over the last 10 years.
Blog Post Apr 28, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #21 Last week, on halving day, the Human Rights Foundation launched the Finney Freedom Prize to honor the legacy of Hal Finney and inspire others to follow in his footsteps. As the world becomes increasingly digital, the fight for electronic privacy and cash becomes more and more important.
Blog Post Apr 22, 2024 Beyond Borders: China’s Attempts to Censor Global Academia The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is dedicated to perfecting its global narrative, employing a combination of coercion and co-optation tactics to shape public discourse both within China and abroad.
Blog Post Apr 18, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #20 Depending on your time zone, Bitcoin’s fourth halving will take place tomorrow or Saturday at block height of 840,000. Here’s a great 101 from Andreas Antonopolous on the basics of the halving, why it is important, and what he expects to happen as a result of Bitcoin issuance being cut in half.
Blog Post Apr 13, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #19 After five failed currencies in the last ten years, Zimbabwe is launching yet another currency. This time, one ostensibly backed by foreign reserves and precious metals. Observers, however, remain skeptical, questioning whether the regime will provide sufficient reserves to back up the new currency.
Blog Post Apr 8, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #18 This week’s news is led by the headline that SWIFT — the global messaging system for banks — is developing a central bank digital currency platform to facilitate the interoperability of CBDCs across the globe, most of which are being issued by authoritarian governments.
Blog Post Mar 28, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #17 In Hong Kong, lawmakers have passed a new national security law aimed at suppressing dissent among citizens. Meanwhile, the ruling Indian government has frozen the bank accounts of the Indian National Congress, the largest political opposition group in the country, further raising concerns over the erosion of freedom and democracy.
Blog Post Mar 27, 2024 Beyond Borders: China’s Grip on Global Media Controlling the public narrative is the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) modus operandi. It relies on narrative and revisionist storytelling to coerce its subjects into ideological adherence.
Blog Post Mar 21, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #16 We’re thrilled to announce that this week HRF granted $500,000 to 14 projects worldwide as part of its Bitcoin Development Fund.
Blog Post Mar 14, 2024 HRF’s Weekly Financial Freedom Report #15 This past week, BRICS — an intergovernmental organization led by the Russian and Chinese dictatorships — explored the development of an independent payment system that aims to use digital currencies and potentially central bank digital currencies.
