Interviews

Featured

COP28: ‘We are worried that the host country, the United Arab Emirates, restricts civil society’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses the hopes and roles of civil society at the forthcoming COP28 climate summit with Gideon Abraham Sanago, Climate Coordinator with the Pastoralists Indigenous Non-Governmental Organizations’ Forum (PINGOs Forum).
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COP28: ‘Political momentum should translate into adequately funded collective action’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses the hopes and roles of civil society at the forthcoming COP28 climate summit with Caroline Owashaba, an eco-feminist and gender inclusion specialist and Executive Director of Action for Youth Development Uganda (ACOYDE).

UNITED STATES: ‘Every country should do their part to welcome people in need’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about new US immigration regulations with Aaron Nodjomian-Escajeda, policy analyst on asylum and human trafficking at the U.
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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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SRI LANKA: ‘We’ve held Pride celebrations since 2004; we’re very proud of what we have achieved’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the status of LGBTQI+ rights and progress being made towards decriminalising homosexuality in Sri Lanka with Rosanna Flamer-Caldera, founder and Executive Director of EQUAL GROUND.
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NORTHERN CYPRUS: ‘Civil society is not involved in decision-making and is considered a nuisance’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Derya Beyatlı, Director of the Human Rights Platform, about the space for civil society in Northern Cyprus and the prospects for reunification in the context of the 2023 Cyprus and Turkish presidential elections.
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UN CYBERCRIME TREATY: ‘Civil society is fact-checking the arguments made by states’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Ian Tennant about the importance of safeguarding human rights in the ongoing process to draft a United Nations (UN) Cybercrime Treaty.
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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).
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THAILAND: ‘People understood election monitoring was important to ensure checks and balances’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the 14 May election in Thailand with Yingcheep Atchanont, executive director of Internet Law Reform Dialogue (iLaw).
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UN CYBERCRIME TREATY: ‘This is not about protecting states but about protecting people’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Stéphane Duguin about the weaponisation of technology and progress being made towards a United Nations (UN) Cybercrime Treaty.
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CAMEROON: ‘Communities must benefit from what comes from their land’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses the aspirations and roles of civil society at the forthcoming COP28 climate summit with Estelle Ewoule Lobé, co-founder of the Cameroonian civil society organisation (CSO) Action for the protection of environmental refugees and internally displaced people in Africa (APADIME).
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ASEAN: ‘There is a lack of a consistent approach and political will to address the Myanmar crisis’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Mary Aileen Diez-Bacalso, a globally recognised human rights advocate and the new Executive Director of the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), on the state of civic space in the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the regional body’s response to the human rights situation in Myanmar.
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ITALY: ‘Accusing activists of vandalism is much easier than implementing renewable energy policies’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Gabriella Abbate of Last Generation about climate activism and its criminalisation in Italy, a country that has recently experienced both drought and devastating floods.
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TURKEY: ‘The government does not tolerate opinions different from its own’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with lawyer Eren Keskin, chair of the Human Rights Association (IHD), about the Turkish government’s attacks on critical media and the state of press freedoms in the context of Turkey’s current elections.
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HUNGARY: ‘The government is masking anti-LGBTQI+ legislation under the narrative of children protection’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the Hungarian government’s anti-LGBTQI+ campaign with Imre Zsoldos of the Hungarian LGBT Alliance.
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TURKEY: ‘All critical voices are repressed under the pretext of combating disinformation’

Interviews
In the run-up to Turkey’s general election, CIVICUS speaks with Fatih Polat, editor-in-chief of Evrensel, about the state of press freedoms and the Turkish government’s attacks on critical media.
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PARAGUAY: ‘Very tough years are ahead for civil society that promotes human rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses Paraguay’s recent general election with Marta Ferrara, executive director of Seeds for Democracy (Semillas para la Democracia).
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UN RESOLUTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE: ‘The climate crisis is a human rights crisis’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Hailey Campbell about the recent United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution on the environment, which enables the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to issue an advisory opinion on states’ obligations to address climate change.
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SINGAPORE: ‘Being a human rights lawyer has had a huge personal cost’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with constitutional lawyer and human rights advocate M.
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GUATEMALA: ‘Judicial harassment and criminal prosecution have wearing effects’

Interviews
On World Press Freedom Day, CIVICUS speaks with Carlos Ernesto Choc, a Q’eqchi’ Mayan journalist with almost two decades of experience, about the criminalisation of journalism and the media in Guatemala.
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THE NETHERLANDS: ‘People are beginning to realise that we need real and systemic change’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Sieger Sloot, an actor and climate activist from a Dutch branch of Extinction Rebellion (XR), about climate protests and the criminalisation of climate activism in the Netherlands.
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UN PLASTICS TREATY: ‘It is up to civil society to speak up for the public when their governments won’t’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the progress being made towards a United Nations (UN) Treaty on Plastic Pollution with Aidan Charron, End of Plastics and Canopy Project Coordinator with EARTHDAY.
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PAKISTAN: ‘They put a black hood over my face and took me to the airport’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Syed Fawad Ali Shah, a writer and journalist from Pakistan, about the situation of journalists in his country and his experience of persecution, exile and deportation.
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KENYA: ‘We have concerns about state functions being used to dictate and define morality’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about LGBTQI+ rights in Kenya and the criminalisation of activism with Ivy Werimba, Communications and Advocacy Officer at galck+.
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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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UN PLASTICS TREATY: ‘Human health and the environment must come first’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the progress being made towards a United Nations (UN) Treaty on Plastic Pollution with Vito Buonsante, an environmental health lawyer and technical and policy advisor at the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN).
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GREECE: ‘The criminalisation of solidarity has had a chilling effect’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Melina Spathari, Director of Strategy and Programmes at HumanRights360 (HR360), about the prosecution of civil society activists working with migrants and refugees in Greece.
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EL SALVADOR: ‘Rather than a real security policy, what the government has is an electoral strategy’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the one-year state of emergency in El Salvador with César Artiga, founder and coordinator of the National Promoting Team of the Escazú Agreement and of the National Promoting Group for Resolution 2250 on the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda.
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MOLDOVA: ‘There are attempts to replace the pro-European government with a pro-Kremlin puppet regime’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about recent political changes in Moldova in the context of the global energy crisis with Victoria Nemerenco, coordinator of the Europeanization, Foreign and Security Policy Program at the Institute for European Policies and Reforms (IPRE).
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BELARUS: ‘There is a pro-democracy civil society that opposes the war and advocates for democratic reforms’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Anastasiya Vasilchuk of Viasna about the escalating repression and criminalisation of civil society in Belarus.
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GEORGIA: ‘Civil society must be ready for any further regressive move the government attempts’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Georgian civil society’s successful campaign against the draft Agents of Foreign Influence Law with Nino Ugrekhelidze, co-founder of the CEECCNA (Central Eastern Europe, Caucasus, and Central and North Asia) Collaborative Fund, and Guram Imnadze, Director of the Democracy and Justice Programme of the Social Justice Center.
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BAHRAIN: ‘The government uses public relations to mask human rights violations’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Drewery Dyke of Salam for Democracy and Human Rights (Salam DHR) about closed civic and democratic space in Bahrain as the state prepares to host the Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
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UN TAX CONVENTION: ‘People power is the major weapon we bring to the fight against inequality’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about civil society’s work to tackle inequality from the ground up and discusses the prospects of a United Nations (UN) tax convention with Jenny Ricks, Global Convenor of Fight Inequality Alliance.
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TURKEY: ‘It is just not possible to respond to such a large-scale disaster effectively without civil society’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Gözde Kazaz, Communications Officer at Support to Life, about the way Turkish civil society has responded to the recent earthquakes and the support it needs to provide an effective emergency response.
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MOZAMBIQUE: ‘The new NGO Law will be the death of the civic movement’

Interviews
Portuguese CIVICUS discusses the state of civic space and new restrictions being imposed on civil society in Mozambique with Paula Monjane, Executive Director of the Civil Society Learning and Capacity Building Centre (CESC).
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SRI LANKA: ‘Without international solidarity and support, our democratic hopes will soon be gone’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Sri Lanka’s protest movement and its repression with student activist Fathima Ashfa Razik.
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BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS: ‘This treaty should not be negotiated behind closed doors’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the process to develop an international treaty on business and human rights and the role of civil society with Ivette Gonzalez, Director of Strategic Liaison, Advocacy and Public Relations at Project on Organising, Development, Education and Research (PODER).
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ZAMBIA: ‘The abolition of the death penalty is a victory for civil society calling for respect of the right to life’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about Zambia’s recent abolition of the death penalty and the role played by civil society with Macdonald Chipenzi, outgoing Executive Director of the Governance, Elections, Advocacy, Research Services (GEARS) Initiative Zambia, a civil society organisation (CSO) that promotes democracy and electoral integrity.
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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.
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WOMEN’S RIGHTS: ‘Violence against women is a global crisis that needs urgent attention’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about civil society’s role in the fight against gender-based violence with Lina AbiRafeh, a feminist activist, women’s rights expert and Senior Advisor for Global Women’s Rights at the Arab Institute for Women at the Lebanese American University, where she served as Executive Director for seven years.
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PERU: ‘Political and social instability has already cost dozens of lives’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the political crisis in Peru with Nadia Ramos, CEO of the Women’s Leadership Centre of the Americas and official spokesperson for the Hemispheric Network Somos Lideresas, two organisations that promote women’s leadership and empowerment in Peru and Latin America.
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GUATEMALA: ‘Criminal law is being used as a weapon of political persecution’

Interviews
CIVICUS discusses corruption in Guatemala and the criminalisation of anti-corruption activism with Claudia González, former member of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) and Virginia Laparra’s defence attorney.
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TANZANIA: ‘The new administration is committed to ending discriminatory policies that undermine girls’ rights’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Prudence Mutiso, Legal Adviser at the Center for Reproductive Rights-Africa about the Tanzanian government’s policy on pregnant and married girls in schools.
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AUSTRALIA: ‘Repressive laws have been introduced to limit people’s ability to protest against climate injustice’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the challenges faced by climate activists in Australia with Nelli Stevenson, head of communications and investigations at Greenpeace Australia Pacific.
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MALTA: ‘People should be able to access abortions locally without the risk of criminalisation or stigmatisation’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the struggle for abortion rights and the anti-rights backlash in Malta with Break the Taboo Malta.
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AFGHANISTAN: ‘Open-source monitoring reveals both the clampdown on women’s rights and the impact on their lives’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the situation of human rights and women’s rights in Afghanistan with Anouk Theunissen and Humaira Rahbin, researchers with Afghan Witness, and Meetra Qutb, Afghan Witness’s communications specialist.
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INDONESIA: ‘The new Criminal Code spells danger for civil society’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the new criminal code passed in Indonesia with Fatia Maulidiyanti, Executive Coordinator of KontraS/The Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence.
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UNITED NATIONS: ‘Outstanding issues on the binding treaty on business and human rights are mainly political’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks with Fernanda Hopenhaym, chair of the United Nations (UN) Working Group on Business and Human Rights, about the process to develop a binding international treaty on business and human rights.
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LEBANON: ‘The world seems to be starting to forget Syrian refugees’

Interviews
CIVICUS speaks about the situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon with Serene Dardari, Middle East Regional Communications Manager, and Mahmoud Abdullah, Lebanon Bekaa Area Manager of American Near East Refugee Aid (Anera).
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SOUTH AFRICA: ‘We want to live in an environment that respects women and recognises our human rights’

Interviews
As part of the #16DaysOfActivism campaign, CIVICUS speaks with Amanda Nomnqa about civil society efforts to eradicate gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa.

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