Interviews

Featured

SOMALIA: ‘The work of women’s rights groups is vital in changing the perceived role of women in society’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about recent protests against femicides in Somalia with Ilyas Adam, a Center for Victims of Torture fellow, award-winning human rights journalist and senior consultant at the Coalition of Somali Human Rights Defenders (CSHRD).
Featured

SOMALIA: ‘Civil society is playing key roles in the ongoing constitutional process’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Mahad Wasuge, executive director of Somali Public Agenda (SPA), about recent constitutional change and its implications for Somali civil society.
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HAÏTI : « Les gangs contrôlent le pays en lieu et place des autorités »

Interviews
CIVICUS échange sur l’augmentation de la violence des gangs et la situation politique en Haïti avec Nancy Roc, journaliste indépendante.
Featured

SLOVAKIA: ‘The election result may reinforce the country’s image as a problematic EU member’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Michal Piško, Director of Transparency International Slovensko, about Slovakia’s recent first-round presidential election and the upcoming runoff.
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CROATIA: ‘The longer this government remains in power, the weaker democracy and the rule of law become’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about ongoing anti-government protests in Croatia with Oriana Ivković Novokmet, Executive Director of Gong.
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SRI LANKA: ‘The government curtails online expression critical of democratic and governance deficits’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about recent restrictions on freedom of expression in Sri Lanka with Darshatha Gamage, Head of Programmes at Hashtag Generation.
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EUROPE: ‘Member states must introduce national anti-SLAPP legislation to protect public watchdogs’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Francesca Borg Costanzi, Advocacy Officer at the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, about the recently adopted European Union (EU) Anti-SLAPP Directive and its importance in preventing abusive lawsuits against public watchdogs.
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PAKISTAN: ‘It doesn’t matter who casts the vote as much as who counts the vote’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Pakistan’s upcoming election with Muhammad Mudassar, Chief Executive Officer at the Society for Human Rights and Prisoners’ Aid (SHARP-Pakistan).
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ARMENIA: ‘Lack of compelling international action allowed the attack on Nagorno-Karabakh to occur’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh – the disputed territory within Azerbaijan that until recently was governed by ethnic Armenians – with Lida Minasyan, a feminist peace activist and Resource Mobilisation Consultant at the Central Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central and North Asia (CEECCNA) Collaborative Fund.
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MAURITIUS: ‘LGBTQI+ people no longer need to live with the constant fear of being criminalised’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Najeeb Ahmad Fokeerbux, founder of the Young Queer Alliance (YQA), about the recent ruling by the Mauritius Supreme Court that declared the criminalisation of same-sex relations unconstitutional.
Featured

ARMENIA: ‘As people leave their homes in search of safety, humanitarian organisations must support their basic needs’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the civil society humanitarian response to the Azerbaijani blockade and military offensive against Nagorno-Karabakh – the disputed territory within Azerbaijan that until recently was governed by ethnic Armenians – with Shushanik Nersesyan, Media and Communication Manager at People in Need (PIN) Armenia.
Featured

NORTH KOREA: ‘Since Kim Jong-un came to power, the surveillance and security system has increased dramatically’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about activism in the closed civic space of North Korea with Bada Nam, Secretary General of People for Successful Corean Reunification (PSCORE).
Featured

BOTSWANA: ‘We must strategise so that we don’t merely react to crises and anti-rights action’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the struggle for LGBTQI+ rights in Botswana with Dumiso Gatsha, an LGBTQI+ activist and founder of Success Capital.
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AUSTRALIA: ‘There will be little change on First Nations people’s recognition, representation and rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Peter Lewis, president of Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR), about the recent defeat in a referendum of a proposal to recognise Indigenous Australians in the constitution and create a permanent institution so they can speak directly to government and parliament on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
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MOROCCO: ‘Support those who were there before the earthquake hit and will stay when the cameras are gone’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the role of civil society in the response to the recent earthquake in Morocco with Victoria Vrana, Chief Executive Officer at GlobalGiving.
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JAPAN: ‘Each victory brings backlash, but LGBTQI+ people will keep fighting for equality and dignity'

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the struggle for LGBTQI+ rights in Japan with Akira Nishiyama, Deputy Secretary General of the Japan Alliance for Legislation to Remove Social Barriers based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (Japan Alliance for LGBT Legislation, J-ALL).
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MEXICO: ‘The decriminalisation of abortion is a huge collective achievement for the feminist movement’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Alba Adriana Jiménez Patlán, director of the Network for Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Mexico (ddeser), about the historic ruling of the Mexican Supreme Court decriminalising abortion at the federal level.
Featured

ZIMBABWE: ‘This so-called election was a circus and a waste of resources’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Zimbabwe’s August general election and its aftermath with Obert Masaraure, national president of Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe and spokesperson of the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, which brings together 84 Zimbabwean civil society organisations (CSOs).
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PHILIPPINES: ‘The government is headed by a former dictator’s son who reached power in a suspicious manner’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Nymia Pimentel-Simbulan about the human rights situation in the Philippines since the start of Ferdinand Marcos Junior’s government.
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COP28: ‘Having a climate summit in an oil-and-gas country can jeopardise the outcomes’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses the hopes and roles of civil society at the forthcoming COP28 climate summit with Harlee Richards, strategist at Follow This.
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UK: ‘We engage in disruptive protest to keep the climate catastrophe in people’s minds’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Mitch Rose, a volunteer activist with Just Stop Oil, about climate activism and its criminalisation in the UK.
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TURKEY: ‘For the embattled LGBTQI+ movement, simply persisting in taking to the streets is an achievement’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about 2023 Pride and the civil society response to the Turkish government’s anti-LGBTQI+ campaign with Damla Umut Uzun, international relations and fundraising officer at Kaos Gay and Lesbian Cultural Research and Solidarity Association (Kaos GL).
Featured

ANGOLA: ‘The untrue government narrative reveals an aversion to civil society denouncing malpractice’

Interviews
 PORTUGUESE CIVICUS discusses the state of civic space and the new restrictions being imposed on civil society in Angola with Emilio José Manuel, focal point for Angola of the Lusophone Platform for Human Rights and founding member of the Working Group for Human Rights Monitoring in Angola (GTMDH).
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ESTONIA: ‘Legal changes deepen the cultural shift favourable to LGBTQI+ rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about civil society’s role in the recent legalisation of same-sex marriage in Estonia with Kelly Grossthal, head of strategic litigation at the Estonian Human Rights Centre (EHRC).
Featured

FINLAND: ‘We’ll have the most right-wing government since the 1930s’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Finland’s new government with Silla Ristimäki, development policy specialist at Fingo.
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GERMANY: ‘Our street blockades hurt society the least and put no one’s life in danger’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Zoe Ruge of Last Generation about climate activism and its criminalisation in Germany.
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AUSTRALIA: ‘People deeply understand that rights and liberties are won through protest’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with David Mejia-Canales, senior lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC), about anti-protest legislation being introduced in states across Australia and its impact on civil society activism.
Featured

ANGOLA: ‘The new NGO Law is just a way of legalising the government’s arrogance and excesses’

Interviews
PORTUGUESE CIVICUS discusses the state of civic space and the new restrictions being imposed on the work of Angolan civil society with Godinho Cristóvão, a jurist, human rights defender and executive director of the association Movimento de Defensores de Direitos Humanos de Angola (Movement of Human Rights Defenders of Angola, KUTAKESA).
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LITHUANIA: ‘Civil society must humanise the public narrative around irregular migration’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about a new law enabling pushbacks of asylum seekers at the Belarus-Lithuania border with Mėta Adutavičiūtė, head of Advocacy at the Human Rights Monitoring Institute (HRMI).
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UGANDA: ‘Shrinking civic space means affected communities are not able to make their voices count’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses the hopes and roles of civil society at the forthcoming COP28 climate summit with Ireen Twongirwe, a climate activist and CEO of Women for Green Economy Movement Uganda (WoGEM).

CAMEROUN : « Il faut que les communautés bénéficient de ce qui provient de leurs terres »

Interviews
CIVICUS échange sur les aspirations et les rôles de la société civile dans le prochain sommet sur le climat COP28 avec Estelle Ewoule Lobé, cofondatrice de l’organisation de la société civile (OSC) camérounaise l’Action pour la protection en Afrique des déplacés internes et des migrants environnementaux (APADIME).
Featured

ISRAEL: ‘We dream of hundreds of thousands demonstrating for democracy, equality and human rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about current protests against judicial changes in Israel with Debbie Gild-Hayo, Director of Public Advocacy of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI).
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PHILIPPINES: ‘This victory belongs to everyone who supported and fought with us’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the recent acquittal of 10 human rights defenders in the Philippines with Maria Sol Taule, a human rights lawyer and member of the Karapatan Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights.
Featured

NORTH KOREA: ‘Many women escape to experience the freedoms they are denied’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Kyeong Min Shin, researcher with Korea Future, about the situation in North Korea and the challenges faced by North Korean women in exile in South Korea.
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AFGHANISTAN: ‘The seizure of sovereign assets will worsen the world’s worst humanitarian disaster’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Arash Azizzada, co-founder and co-director of Afghans for a Better Tomorrow, about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.
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CSW66: ‘Grassroots environmental defenders are highly underrepresented in decision-making’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about women’s rights and the United Nations (UN) Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) with Joy Hayley Munthali and Dorothy Kazombo Mwale of the Green Girls Platform.
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POLAND: ‘If lots of tiny actions are performed by many people, we can achieve big things’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Magdalena Demczak, co-founder and director of Akcja Menstruacja (Menstrual Action), about the work her organisation is currently doing to help Ukrainian refugees.
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AUSTRIA: ‘Unfortunately, times of crisis have rarely proven to be a catalyst for gender equality’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about International Women’s Day and civil society’s role in combatting gender-based violence (GBV) in Austria with Hannah Steiner and Sophie Hansal of the Network of Austrian Counselling Centres for Women and Girls.
Featured

PAPUA NEW GUINEA: ‘The mining company must address its human rights and environmental legacy’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Keren Adams, Legal Director of the Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC), about the victory recently obtained in holding the British-Australian mining company Rio Tinto accountable for the multiple human rights violations caused by its operations in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea.
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UNITED KINGDOM: ‘The government is set on hiding from accountability and scrutiny’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks to Sam Grant, Head of Policy and Campaigns for Liberty, a UK civil society organisation, about the introduction of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill and its impacts on the right to protest.
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POLAND: ‘People are more understanding and supportive of LGBTQI+ issues than politicians’

Interviews
  Following our 2019 special report on anti-rights groups and civil society responses, we are interviewing civil society activists and leaders about their experiences in facing anti-rights backlash and their strategies to strengthen progressive narratives and civil society responses.
Featured

Letter from Jail: West Papuan activists speak about their prosecution in Indonesia

Interviews
CIVICUS has received letters from Dano Anes Tabuni and Charles Kossay around their arrest and detention.
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EGYPT: ‘There's been severe deterioration in the rule of law & respect for human rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about recent protests in Egypt and their repression with a woman activist and protester who, for security reasons, asked to remain anonymous.
Featured

GHANA: ‘Work in the corner of your community has a potential to cause change at the top’

Interviews
Following a year marked by massive mobilisation on the climate emergency, CIVICUS is interviewing civil society activists, leaders and experts about the main environmental challenges they face in their contexts and the actions they are taking.
Featured

ETHIOPIA: ‘For civil society, 2019 has been a new beginning’

Interviews
In 2019, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed Ali, “for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighbouring Eritrea.
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#UN75: ‘There is often a lack of transparency on how civil society’s inputs are reflected in UN work’

Interviews
2020 marks 75 years since the founding of the United Nations (UN).
Featured

ARMS CONTROLS: ‘Greater women’s participation in male-dominated mechanisms would increase prospects for peace’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Aaron Lainé, Policy and Government Liaison Officer, and Raluca Muresan, Programme Manager at Control Arms, a civil society coalition that advocates for greater controls in the international arms trade to end the human suffering caused by the irresponsible arms trade, and to stop arms transfers that fuel conflict, systemic armed violence, poverty and serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.
Featured

AGAINST DISINFORMATION: ‘Enabling each to tell their story offers an opportunity to share our truths’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks to Chris Worman, Vice President of Alliances and Program Development at TechSoup, a non-profit international network that provides technical support and technological tools to civil society organisations (CSOs).
Featured

BANGLADESH: ‘Protecting water amounts to protecting basic human rights in all nations’

Interviews
Following a year marked by massive mobilisation on the climate emergency, CIVICUS is interviewing civil society activists, leaders and experts about the main environmental challenges they face in their contexts and the actions they are taking.
Featured

DISINFORMATION: ‘The fact that profit drives content creation on the internet is dangerous to democracy’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Rory Daniels about the 2019 elections in the UK and the dangers that disinformation poses to democracy.

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