Interviews

Featured

HONDURAS: ‘Human rights should be more than just talk. They should be reflected in practice’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Christopher Castillo, General Coordinator of Alternative for Community and Environmental Vindication of Honduras (Alternativa de Reivindicación Comunitaria y Ambientalista de Honduras, ARCAH), about progress made and pending issues after two years of Xiomara Castro’s presidency.
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EL SALVADOR: ‘Legalising abortion is all about recognising women’s status as citizens’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Morena Herrera, president of Citizens’ Group for the Decriminalisation of Abortion, about the struggle for abortion rights in El Salvador, which has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world.
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ARGENTINA: ‘Citizens must be able to take part in informed discussions on the issues that affect them’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Mariela Belski, Executive Director of Amnesty International Argentina, about the potential human rights effects of changes introduced by Argentina’s new government led by President Javier Milei.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘A system that embraces diversity and inclusion is more legitimate’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Marc Limon, Executive Director of the Universal Rights Group and former diplomat at the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council, about the deficits of the global governance system and proposals for reform.
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SERBIA: ‘People are concerned that a critical tool to hold political elites accountable is being taken away’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the results of Serbia’s recent elections and subsequent protests with Raša Nedeljkov, Programme Director of the Centre for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA).
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘The Summit of the Future is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Dr Richard Ponzio, Director of the Global Governance, Security and Justice Programme at the Stimson Center, about the deficits of the global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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GUATEMALA: ‘Disregard for the will of the people expressed at the ballot box is the greatest possible insult to democracy’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Jorge Santos, General Coordinator of the Guatemalan Human Rights Defenders Protection Unit (UDEFEGUA), about the imminent inauguration of a new president, which comes after 100 days of mobilisation to demand respect for the election results.
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VENEZUELA: ‘The government seeks to stoke nationalist sentiment to try to hold on to power’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Mariano de Alba, Senior Adviser at the International Crisis Group, about the recent referendum called by the Venezuelan government on the status of the Essequibo territory, disputed with neighbouring Guyana, and its possible implications for democracy in Venezuela and peace in the region.
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BURUNDI: ‘Human rights activism can hardly be carried out openly anymore’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the repression of civil society and human rights defenders and LGBTQI+ rights in Burundi with Carina Tertsakian, co-founder of the Burundi Human Rights Initiative (BHRI).
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘The scale and urgency of our challenges calls for more than incremental reform, it requires transformation’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Stirling Dean, Chair and Executive Director of the United Institutions Foundation, about the deficits of the global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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UK: ‘The government continues to scapegoat migrants and fuel racist rhetoric to cover its policy failures’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Aria Danaparamita, Advocacy Director of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI), about the UK’s new migration treaty with Rwanda, aimed at sending asylum seekers arriving unlawfully in the UK to Rwanda for processing.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘When there is political will, states are able to uphold their responsibility to protect’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Elisabeth Pramendorfer, Geneva Representative, Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect (GCR2P), about the deficits of the global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘We must reaffirm the relationship between the rule of law and human rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Francesca Restifo, Senior Human Rights Lawyer and UN Representative of the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI), about the deficits of the global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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PANAMA: ‘By giving the government the green light to discriminate, the Court has broadened the reach of the LGBTQI+ cause’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Iván Chanis Barahona, president of Fundación Iguales, about the situation of LGBTQI+ people and the struggle for equal marriage rights in Panama.
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USA: ‘We should shift away from overreliance on policing and promote community-based solutions’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about police violence in the USA with Abdul Nasser Rad, Managing Director of Research and Data at Campaign Zero (CZ).
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BANGLADESH: ‘This is a one-sided election in which we already know who the winner will be’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Dr Mubashar Hasan about the ongoing crackdown on dissent in Bangladesh ahead of 7 January general elections.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘Every person on the planet should have an equal opportunity to participate in decision-making’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Andreas Bummel, co-founder and Executive Director of Democracy Without Borders (DWB) and the Campaign for a UN Parliamentary Assembly, about the deficits of the current global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘The main problem is that words do not translate into tangible actions’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the challenges of global governance with Carlos Quesada, founder and executive director of the Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race & Equality).
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COP28: ‘To truly end the fossil fuel era, bold visions must now turn into historical action on the ground’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Kaisa Kosonen, Senior Policy Advisor at Greenpeace Nordic, about the outcomes of the COP28 climate summit and the vital role played by civil society in setting the agenda for fossil fuel phase-out.
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HONG KONG: ‘We urge governments to protect exiled human rights defenders within their jurisdictions’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Anouk Wear, research and policy adviser at Hong Kong Watch, about recent district council elections held in Hong Kong amid an ongoing crackdown on dissent.
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LEBANON: ‘Civil society has taken the lead in advocating for social change, human rights and political reforms’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about deteriorating civic space conditions amid political and security instability in Lebanon with Fadel Fakih, Executive Director of the Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH).
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UK: ‘The Rwanda plan sets a worrying precedent for the future of migration and human rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Julia Tinsley-Kent, Policy and Strategic Communications Manager of the Migrants’ Rights Network, about the UK’s new migration treaty with Rwanda, aimed at sending asylum seekers arriving unlawfully in the UK to Rwanda for processing.
Featured

ALGERIA: ‘The state must respect the freedoms of those calling for truth and justice on enforced disappearances’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the repression of civil society in Algeria with Nassera Dutour, a Franco-Algerian human rights activist and president of the Collective of Families of People Disappeared in Algeria (CFDA) and the Euro-Mediterranean Federation against Enforced Disappearances.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘We cannot address 21st-century challenges with 20th-century foundations’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Nudhara Yusuf, Executive Coordinator of the Global Governance Innovation Network at the Stimson Center, about the deficits of the current global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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INDIA: ‘The once-cosmopolitan state of Manipur is now divided into two rival communities’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about ethnic violence and a humanitarian crisis in the Indian state of Manipur with Mangneo Lhungdim and Sulekha Thapa, Executive Director and Deputy Director of Oasis India.
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TAIWAN: ‘China has tried to intimidate voters and pressure Taiwanese civil society organisations’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election with Brian Hioe, one of the founders of New Bloom Magazine.
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BOLIVIA: ‘Forest fires translate into loss of biodiversity and a low quality of life’

Interviews
  CIVICUS speaks with Jordi Surkin, conservation director of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Bolivia, about recent fires in four of Bolivia’s nine departments.
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BELARUS: ‘Despite the repression, we haven’t halted our work for a single day’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Marina Kostylianchenko of Viasna about the closure of civic space and criminalisation of activism in Belarus.
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MEXICO: ‘The criminalisation of human rights defenders threatens the whole collective in order to deactivate it’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with members of the Collective for the Freedom of Kenia Hernández about the criminalisation of activism in Mexico.
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NIGER: ‘We seek to cut the umbilical cord with the former colonial power’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses the situation in Niger since the July military coup with Clément Kocou Gbedey, National Coordinator in Niger of the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP).
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PALESTINE: ‘Lack of a political horizon leading to the liberation of Palestinians has brought us here’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the ongoing conflict in Gaza with Abdalaziz Alsalehi, senior researcher at the Social and Economic Policies Monitor (Al-Marsad).

NETHERLANDS: ‘We call on potential coalition partners to stand up for our country’s international reputation’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the far-right victory in the snap elections that took place in the Netherlands on 22 November with Niels Hoogerheijde, Policy Advisor at Partos, the Dutch membership body for civil society organisations (CSOs) working in international development.
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LATVIA: ‘The legalisation of same-sex civil partnerships has brought instant conservative backlash’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Kaspars Zālītis, a human rights activist and board member of Mozaika, about the recent legalisation of same-sex civil partnerships in Latvia.
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NEPAL: ‘The TikTok ban signals efforts to control the digital space in the name of national sovereignty’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the recent TikTok ban in Nepal with Anisha, provincial coordinator for Gandaki Pradesh at Body and Data.
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SPAIN: ‘Territory will become the backbone of Spanish politics’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Spanish political scientist and political consultant Eva Silván about the recent re-election of Pedro Sánchez as Spanish prime minister at the head of a coalition with left-wing and pro-independence parties, in a country deeply divided by the Catalonia issue.
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ALGERIA: ‘Civil society aspires to a more democratic and rights-centred environment’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the ongoing repression of dissent in Algeria with Rachid Aouine, Director for SHOAA for Human Rights.
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘We must take up the declaration of human rights to lead the way’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about global governance challenges with Marta Benavides, a spiritual leader who has led numerous sustainable peace initiatives in and outside of El Salvador, for which she has had to go into exile several times.
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BOLIVIA: ‘The minimisation of forest fires and the lack of response from the authorities is ecocide’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Andrea Barrientos, Senator of the Citizen Community (Comunidad Ciudadana) party for the department of Cochabamba, about recent fires in four of Bolivia’s nine departments.
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KOSOVO: ‘Civil society has done most of the effort when it comes to dealing with our recent history’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about intensifying inter-ethnic violence in north Kosovo and civil society’s ongoing peacebuilding efforts with Bjeshkë Guri, coordinator of the ‘Dealing with the Past’ programme at Youth Initiative for Human Rights Kosovo (YIHR-KS).
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YEMEN: ‘We are caught in limbo, neither at war nor at peace, with state institutions nearly collapsed’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Yemen’s ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis with Radhya Almutawakel, co-founder and chairperson of Mwatana for Human Rights (Mwatana).
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘It may take a crisis as big as the one that originated the system to produce the reform it needs’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with John Vlasto, Board Chair of the World Federalist Movement (WFM), about the deficits of the existing global governance system and civil society’s proposals for reform.
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PAKISTAN: ‘The authorities must guarantee the human rights of Afghan asylum seekers’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the move to expel Afghan refugees from Pakistan with Habib Malik Orakzai, president of Pakistan International Human Rights Organization (PIHRO).
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GLOBAL GOVERNANCE: ‘The current system is dysfunctional, but we still depend on it in crucial ways’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Natalie Samarasinghe, Global Director for advocacy at the Open Society Foundations (OSF), about the need for global governance reform and the proposal for a civil society envoy within the United Nations (UN) system.
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CHILE: ‘The proposed constitution reflects the country’s division rather than being an instrument for its union’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Patricia Reyes, director of Fundación Multitudes, about the process to develop a new constitution in Chile since a previous draft was rejected in a referendum in September 2022.
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SDGs: ‘Radical policy changes are our only hope of ending global poverty’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Andy Sumner about the prospects for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the underlying dysfunctions of the current global governance system.
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SWITZERLAND: ‘Right-wing populists pose a true threat when other parties meet their demands’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Lea Schlenker, board member of Operation Libero, about the rise of right-wing populism in Switzerland’s recent elections.
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ARGENTINA: ‘Milei’s victory expresses the rejection of the previous governments’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Yanina Welp, researcher at the Albert Hirschman Centre on Democracy, about the results of Argentina’s runoff presidential election, won by a far-right outsider.
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KOSOVO: ‘Civil society plays a crucial role in maintaining communication in difficult times’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Milica Andric Rakic, project manager at New Social Initiative (NSI), about intensifying inter-ethnic violence and deteriorating civic space in Kosovo.
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NETHERLANDS: ‘A strong sense of solidarity endures with those who are left-behind’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about snap elections taking place in the Netherlands on 22 November with Niels Hoogerheijde, Policy Advisor at Partos, the Dutch membership body for civil society organisations (CSOs) working in international development.
Featured

IRAN: ‘It is clear that most people don’t support the regime anymore and want it gone’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Iranian activist Asal Abasian about the situation more than a year since the start of the protest wave triggered by Mahsa Amini’s killing by the morality police and the prospects for change in Iran.

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