Civic Space and Activists
We collaborate with local, regional, and international partners to hold governments accountable, create lasting legal change, and foster an environment allowing individual and collective actors to speak out, participate in public affairs, organize, protest, and otherwise freely exercise and enjoy their human rights. Through strategic litigation and targeted advocacy, we foster collaboration and dialogue between civil society and key actors and promote cross-pollination of the most protective legal standards and innovative approaches to legal issues. Our partnership model builds on the work of local organizations on the ground by jointly strategizing and litigating cases, supporting their litigation through filing Amicus briefs, and working together to assess, advise, and build their technical capacity. From litigating landmark cases, such as the first case on lethal violence against journalists before the Inter-American Court on Human Rights or a case on the protection for peaceful assembly before the African Commission of Human and Peoples’ Rights, to developing an innovative tool that maps key ongoing judicial cases worldwide, we are committed to protecting and defending civic space and democracy around the world.
114
Countries with serious civic space restrictions
88%
Rate of impunity for crimes of violence against journalists
44 of 180
U.S. ranking in World Press Freedom Index
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Fighting for Justice With Indigenous Activists in Guatemala
Tags Share Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights and the Xinka Parliament of Guatemala are asking the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to hold the Guatemalan government responsible for failing to protect the life of 16-year-old indigenous activist Topacio Reynoso and her father, also an activist. This case is representative of the threats and attacks
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Mohamed Nuur v. Somalia: Somali Journalist Released From Detention
After being arbitrarily detained for criticizing Somali actions against citizens, Abuuja Abdiwahab Nuur is now free.
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Maury Carrero: Maduro Target Freed From Detention in Venezuela
Maury Carrero was arbitrarily detained for connections to the Venezuelan strongman president’s primary opponent.
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Reynoso Pacheco et al. v. Guatemala: When Mining Turns Into Murder
Topacio Reynoso devoted her too-short life to battling mining interests ravaging Indigenous lands in Guatemala.
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The Case of Omoyele Sowore
Nigerian authorities have subjected the journalist and human rights defender to multiple human rights violations.
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ICJ Orders Myanmar to Protect Rohingya from Genocide
Tags Share (January 23, 2020 | Washington, D.C.) Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights welcomes a historic decision by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which, for the first time, orders Myanmar to protect the Rohingya people from genocide. The order for provisional measures recognized the “real and imminent risk” the Rohingya faced in the aftermath
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Mexico: Under New Prosecutor General, Few Advances in Addressing Impunity
Lack of transparency, appointments without public calls for applications, and the closing of spaces for civil society participation mark the first year of the Prosecutor General’s management.
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RFK Human Rights Leads Global Litigation Network to Protect Civic Space
Tags Share In functioning democracies, individuals and members of civic groups freely engage in dialogue about their community’s social, political, and economic issues and play a role in crafting policies that affect their lives. The protection of civic space is crucial in affording journalists, opposition groups, and social action organizations sufficient opportunity to exercise their
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The Unlawful Re-Arrest of Omoyele Sowore
Tags Share The violent and unlawful re-arrest of journalist and human rights defender Omoyele Sowore is a flagrant violation of his fundamental human rights. As free speech and peaceful protest are cornerstones of any functioning democracy, we join with the international community in solidarity to demand that the Nigerian authorities and Department of State Services,
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Historic Week for Justice for the Rohingya
Tags Share Signaling a growing global commitment to hold leaders accountable for atrocities, two international courts this week moved forward with ground-breaking cases to hold the Myanmar government accountable for violent attacks against the Rohingya people. On Monday, the small West African country of Gambia initiated historic proceedings against Myanmar at the International Court of
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Bangladesh: Protect Rohingya Refugees
We signed an open letter to the Bangladesh Prime Minister, calling for the government to prioritize Rohingya refugee rights.
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Fighting to Free Imprisoned Nigerian Journalist Omoyele Sowore
Sowore’s arbitrary arrest and continued detention violate multiple provisions of Nigeria’s constitution as well as its international human rights obligations.
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