Human Rights Foundation

New York ranks high on the list of cities targeted by foreign governments and regimes. HRF’s Combatting Kleptocracy program director, Casey Michel, shares insights on foreign lobbying and the potential targeting of NYC Mayor Adams. Read more in Rolling Stone: https://buff.ly/4dEyEs2

The Pakistani capital of Islamabad is locked down with a heavy police presence, shipping containers blocking entrances, cell phone services blocked, and schools shut down after police clashed with and fired tear gas at supporters of jailed ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan. Supporters of Khan's party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have hosted a series of protest rallies demanding Khan's release. But with high-level diplomatic events slated to take place, the interior minister warned against attempting to storm the capital and urged Khan’s party to postpone the rallies. Despite the warnings, Imran Khan called on his supporters to gather outside parliament for a peaceful protest on social media. Imprisoned since August 2023, Khan remains a popular figure in Pakistan's politics while his party continues to face a military-backed crackdown. HRF raises concern over the police's use of teargas and violence when dealing with PTI supporters and urges Pakistani officials to respect citizens' right to peaceful assembly. https://buff.ly/3BuNUdI

On Thursday, Torpad, a Thai pro-democracy activist and artist, received a three-year suspended prison sentence on charges of royal defamation for posting a drawing of King Vajiralongkorn on social media. In June 2022, Torpad was arrested after being charged under royal defamation law, Article 112, and the Computer Crimes Act. TLHR reported that she never received a summons, despite the police claim that the arrest warrant was issued in April 2022. During her arrest, police seized her artwork, computer, and mobile phone. According to TLHR, at least 1,956 people have been charged for participating in public gatherings or expressing political views. Of these, at least 273 were charged under the royal defamation law. HRF remains deeply concerned about Thailand’s misuse of the royal defamation law, or Article 112, to suppress freedom of expression. It urges the Thai regime to amend the law to allow people to freely exercise their right to free speech. https://buff.ly/4gLw6vb

NYC Mayor Eric Adams is being charged with funnelling foreign funds into his election and acting at the behest of Turkish benefactors, compromising both his office and US elections. Read HRF’s Combating Kleptocracy program director Casey Michel's op-ed for The New York Times:

On Wednesday, Chinese officials reportedly transferred the remaining students at a closed-down Tibetan Buddhist monastery school in Sichuan province to state-run residential schools. In July, Radio Free Asia revealed that the Chinese Communist Party #CCP shut down the Buddhist school in Dzoge county, affecting nearly 600 students. Officials also mandated parents to enroll their children in state-run residential schools. The move is part of a broader effort to control education among Tibetan youth. Tibetan children are separated from their families and taught the Chinese language and a curriculum designed to instill loyalty to the CCP. HRF strongly condemns the CCP for its continued efforts to eliminate the culture, language, and ethnic identities of Tibetans and promote CCP ideology instead. https://buff.ly/4dwM0Xd

A new report by USCIRF reveals that the CCP has removed the crosses and replaced images of Christ and the Virgin Mary with images of President Xi Jinxing, mandating churches display CCP slogans. Religious texts also face increased censorship, and clergy are forced to preach CCP ideology. The government requires churches to enroll in “patriotic religious associations,” with anyone practicing outside state-approved associations being criminalized as a cult. Despite a 2018 agreement with the Vatican, Beijing has installed CCP-aligned bishops without Vatican input and detained and disappeared religious leaders, including underground bishops who resist state-controlled religious structures. HRF strongly condemns Beijing's crackdown on religious groups in accordance with its own political agenda and urges the protection of people's right to practice their own religion.

Recent indictments, including that of NYC Mayor Eric Adams, expose a growing threat of foreign regimes influencing democracies. How are they targeting state-level officials? Read HRF’s Combating Kleptocracy program director Casey Michel's op-ed for Foreign Policy: https://lnkd.in/gP32ZSaZ

On Tuesday, Tunisian presidential candidate Ayachi Zammel was sentenced to 12 years in prison, following his previous sentencing of 20 months. This comes days before the Tunisian presidential election. Zammel, the head of the Azimoun party, was charged with document falsification, accusations he described as manufactured by Kais Saied’s regime. He has been allowed to continue to stand in the election while jailed. HRF strongly condemns the sentencing of Ayachi Zammel and the ongoing crackdown of opposition figures in Tunisia. https://buff.ly/3NcIJBL

This week, Saudi fitness instructor and women’s rights activist Manahel al-Otaibi was stabbed in the face with a pen by an unknown assailant while in prison. In May, it was found that Saudi officials had sentenced al-Otaibi to 11 years in prison in January for tweeting in support of women’s rights and posting photos online without wearing traditional clothing. Between November 2023 and April 2024, al-Otaibi was forcibly disappeared by the Saudi regime. HRF condemns the attack on Manahel al-Otaibi and the ongoing repression of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. HRF calls for al-Otaibi’s immediate and unconditional release.

Today, HRF remembers the killing of Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered in 2018 at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Khashoggi was a dear friend and OFF community member, fearless journalist, and advocate for democracy and human rights in the Arab World. His vision for freedom in the region was most captured in his last Washington Post op-ed, “What the Arab world needs most is free expression.” In 2019, a Saudi criminal court convicted eight people in connection with his murder. That same year, however, a United Nations report published by Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary killings, Agnes Callamard, said the Saudi regime was directly responsible for his death. In honor of his life, HRF wishes to shed light on his pursuit of freedom in the Arab World by highlighting the brave advocacy undertaken by his fiancee, Hatice Cengiz. She has called for justice and accountability in order to ensure that others don’t suffer his tragic fate.