OMCT, FIDH and FreedomFor Eurasia Host Side Event: Repressive Trends Threatening Human Rights Defenders in Eastern Europe, South Caucasus, and Central Asia
The original Helsinki Act, more formally the Helsinki Final Act, signed on August 1, 1975, by 35 countries, including the U.S., Canada, and most European nations, to reduce tensions during the Cold War. It established principles for cooperation and aimed to secure respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, the inviolability of borders, and mutual cooperation in economic, scientific, and humanitarian fields.
The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, co-hosted a side event on 31 July 2025 during Helsinki+50 Conference in Finland to address the alarming surge in repression targeting human rights defenders across Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus, and Central Asia.
Moderated by Mariana Garrido, Human Rights Adviser at OMCT, the event highlighted the rollback on promises of open, democratic societies made 50 years ago with the Helsinki Final Act.
“Authorities across the region are escalating strategies to dismantle civic space, silencing dissent and weakening independent civil society through restrictive laws, criminalization of activism, and politically motivated prosecutions,” said Garrido. “Human rights defenders face intensifying risks, including defamation, surveillance, and arbitrary detentions.”
Expert speakers from the region discussed key tools of repression:
- Ilya Nuzov, FIDH: “Foreign Agents” laws and similar legislation.
- Maryia Kvitsinskaya, OMCT: Smear Campaigns Against and Stigmatization of Human Rights Defenders.
- Leila Nazgül Seiitbek, Freedom for Eurasia: Exile and Transnational Repression. Threat of authoritarian kleptocracies.
- Ana Jabauri, Media Institute (Georgia): Severe deterioration of the situation of human rights defenders in Georgia.
The event concluded with key recommendations:
- Champion human rights defenders through public speech and external engagement.
- Promote enabling legal and policy frameworks.
- Strengthen protection and support mechanisms.
- Advance accountability for attacks against civil society.
- Fund solidarity and resilience for defenders.
OMCT, FIDH and human rights defenders from Freedom for Eurasia and Media Institute urge democratic governments and institutions to take concrete action to support civil society, protect defenders, and sustain open civic spaces.
