United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders

Who is a Human Rights Defender? What can the Special Rapporteur do?

Official Statements

The flag of Colombia flying against a blue sky background.

Colombia: amenazas de muerte contra el defensor de los derechos humanos y del medio ambiente Bernadino Mosquera (comunicación conjunta)

Official Letters and Statements
Lo que sigue se basa en una comunicación conjunta enviada al Gobierno de Colombia sobre las amenazas de muerte contra el defensor de los derechos humanos y del medio ambiente Bernadino Mosquera.
Read Statement • 9th Oct 2024
See more official statements

Latest Information Received

Flyer promoting a side event at the 79th session of the UN General Assembly. The title of the event is 'Driving sustainable development: the crucial contributions of Human Rights Defenders to the 2030 Agenda'. The event will take place on October 15, 2024, from 13:15 to 14:30 EDT at Conference Room 6 in the UN Headquarters, New York City. The panellists are: Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights Defenders. Wellington Gabriel de Jesus dos Santos, Human rights defender from the Pitanga dos Palmares Quilombola community, Brazil. Emily Donovan, Woman human rights defender and co-founder of Clean Cape Fear, USA. The moderator will be Amb. Fergal Mythen, Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations. The opening remarks will be delivered by Amb Joan Cedano, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Dominican Republic to the United Nations. The flyer mentions that the event will be conducted in English only and can be watched live on UN WebTV.

UNGA side event – “Driving sustainable development: the crucial contributions of Human Rights Defenders to the 2030 Agenda”

Latest Information
On 15 October 2024, a side event will take place on the margins of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, discussing my new report on the contributions of human rights defenders to the Sustainable Development Goals.
• 11th Oct 2024
Screen capture of a video call between UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor, a member of her team and eight Tunisian human rights defenders. Four men are visible on the call while the other participants had their camera off and name blurred for safety reasons.

Rencontre avec des défenseur·e·s des droits humains en Tunisie

Latest Information
[Français / English] Lors d’une réunion en ligne avec des défenseurs des droits humains tunisiens, j’ai appris que les restrictions à leur encontre s’étaient intensifiées et étendues à de nouveaux secteurs, créant un climat de peur accru dans tout le pays.
• 1st Oct 2024
The flag of Georgia floating in the wind against a blue sky background.

Meeting with Georgian human rights defenders with disabilities

Latest Information
Human rights defenders with disabilities in Georgia stand to be greatly affected by the proposed Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence.
• 27th May 2024
More Information Received “Information received” does not necessarily reflect the views of the Special Rapporteur or the United Nations.

Human Rights Defenders

Headshots of HRDs in a grid with different coloured backgrounds behind each
Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) are people who act peacefully to promote or protect human rights in accordance with the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.
“Human rights defenders are ordinary people who do extraordinary things. They work peacefully for the rights of others and help build civil and just societies based on the rule of law.”
Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of HRDs
Violations committed against HRDs Submit Information on HRDs at risk
This website is not managed by the Office of the High Commissioner for human rights Its content does not reflect the position of the United Nations