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In March 2025, the Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) recommended downgrading the accreditation of the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRCI). It gave the institution one year to bring its work in line with the Paris Principles, the international standards for national human rights institutions. The NHRCI challenged the recommendation, but GANHRI rejected the challenge in December 2025.

The September session drew renewed attention to restrictions on civic space in China, the human rights situation in Tibet and the Uyghur region (Xinjiang), and the use of Hong Kong’s national security laws against activists at home and abroad. Through the testimony of Hong Kong defenders accompanied by ISHR, the Council also heard directly how repression can cross borders and extend to their families.

On 23 September, ISHR and the Coordinadora Nacional de Defensa de Territorios Indígenas Originarios Campesinos y Áreas Protegidas (CONTIOCAP) from Bolivia, delivered a statement during the 63rd Human Rights Council session annual panel discussion on the rights of Indigenous Peoples. This year’s panel focused on the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage: Indigenous Peoples’ rights and engagement.

ISHR will monitor and report on key developments at the 89th session of the African Commission. Stay up to date by following us on X/Twitter at @ISHRglobal, or at @ISHR_fr for French content using #ACHPR89. Our staff can also be followed at @Adelaide_ISHR, @salome_ishr, @Lidawh-weD. Find us on Bluesky at @ishr.ch; and our staff on @lamarbk.bsky.social.

ISHR suivra et rendra compte des principaux développements de la 89ème session ordinaire de la Commission Africaine. Suivez nous sur X/Twitter sur @ISHRglobal ou  sur @ISHR_fr pour les contenus en français, en utilisant le hashtag #ACHPR89. Vous pouvez également suivre les membres de notre personnel sur @Adelaide_ISHR, @salome_ishr, @Lidawh-weD . Retrouvez-nous également sur Bluesky sur @ishr.ch ; et notre personnel sur @lamarbk.bsky.social.

During the UPR adoption of Sierra Leone at the 63rd session of the HRC, Alphonsus Gbanie from Human Rights Defenders Network Sierra Leone delivered a statement on the current situation of HRD in the country following the joint report submission with International Service for Human Rights (ISHR). The statement denounced the attacks and intimidations that persists against HRD, journalists, women activists and political dissenters.

The statement delivered by International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) in partnership with Association for Rights Information and Democracy (ARID) welcomed the acceptance of the recommendation on the establishment of a specific protection mechanism for human rights defenders (108.31). However, the statement, as well as the joint report, raised concerns on the persisting challenges regarding the protection of civic space in the country.

Malgré les efforts du Niger de protéger les défenseur.e.x.s des droits humains (DDH) sur son territoire à travers l’adoption remarquable de la loi sur la reconnaissance et la protection des défenseur.e.s des droits humains en 2022, l’effectivité de la loi peine à se concrétiser. Cette déclaration a donc soulevé avec préoccupation le décalage entre les engagements et la réalité du terrain, marquée par une détérioration persistante de l’espace civique détaillée dans le rapport conjoint soumis.

Despite Niger’s efforts to protect human rights defenders (HRDs) within its territory through the significant adoption of the Law on the Recognition and Protection of Human Rights Defenders in 2022, the law is struggling to be effectively implemented. This statement therefore highlighted with concern the gap between commitments and the reality on ground, characterised by a persistent deterioration in civic space, as detailed in the joint report submitted.

Across the African continent, environmental defenders face increasing criminalisation for opposing extractive projects and land grabs, encountering intimidation, arbitrary detention, and physical violence. Simultaneously, the rapid digitisation of African societies has created new arenas for activism but also for surveillance and repression, where activists grapple with online monitoring, platform censorship, and restrictive cybercrime laws that stifle freedom of expression.