Stop Criminalizing Solidarity in Greece: Daily Brief

For years, the Greek government has created a suffocating environment for civil society, particularly for human rights defenders working on migration. UN rapporteur Mary Lawlor, who was visiting the country this week, reports that human rights defenders have to operate in fear and insecurity due to possible criminal sanctions, and a hostile environment. The government also silences those documenting Greece’s migration and asylum abuses, while shattering the country’s press freedom - it is now the lowest-ranked European Union country in the press freedom index. The Greek government shouldn't wait until the UN report release in March 2023 to stop harassing civil society.

Adding to the devastation of yesterday's earthquake in Afghanistan, the human rights crisis for women and girls is worsening. Recent Taliban directives further limit their freedom and impose strong retaliation on anyone protesting the measures. Unfortunately, the UN Security Council already decided to extend the exemptions of travel bans for most Taliban officials. Afghan women and girls need more than the strong statements made at the Security Council, they need coordinated concrete actions by the international community to defend their rights. There might be hope in the EU's call for an urgent debate on the women’s rights crisis in Afghanistan at UN Human Rights Council - hopefully it will lead to concrete, significant action for women and girls. 

In the UK, the poor quality accommodation and inadequate protection from the cold violate people’s right to housing and an adequate standard of living, in particular for children in low-income families. That's why it's time for the large-scale programme aimed at improving the UK’s cold, damp, and energy-inefficient homes, proposed by The Great Homes Upgrade, a civil society initiative. This public-funded house renovation project would provide legitimate long-term security to families, not just a temporary fix, and dramatically improve the lives and rights of children up and down the country.

In advance of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Rwanda this week, and like in 2021, security forces cleared up the streets of Kigali, with people deemed “undesirable” - like prostitutes, the homeless, and street vendors  - rounded up. Ahead of the meeting, rights NGOs called high profile head of States to seize the moment to reiterate the Commonwealth's core values of human rights, rule of law and good governance to urge the Rwandan government to take concrete measures to respect and promote these values, and to express grave concern to the government on its human rights record. 

June, Pride month, is a time to reflect on progress and ongoing challenges in advancing the rights of LGBT people. Graeme Reed, LGBT rights director at Human Rights Watch, examines the mixed bag of progress and setbacks on LGBT rights in Africa this past year. Of the 69 countries around the world that criminalize same-sex relations, 33 are in Africa, and governments like Egypt or Cameroon continue to target LGBT people. However, positive changes in laws in Botswana, Angola, or Gabon are a testament to the LGBT movement's resilience and tenacity as well as to the activists' efforts to increase visibility and awareness about those issues.  

As people in the US await a Supreme Court decision that could undermine Roe v. Wade, a new case in Brazil highlights the horrors created by restrictions on the right to abortion.