alert type: Deterioration
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USAID funding freeze sends shockwaves through Ugandan civil society
On 28 January 2025, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) formally notified all its implementing partners about the suspension of funding for foreign assistance programs. This action was taken following President Trump’s Executive Order on Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid, reflecting a broader shift in U.S. foreign policy objectives. The decision has…
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Journalists attacked while investigating a worksite run by a state-contracted company
On 21 February 2025, journalists from MCRTV-NF were verbally and physically assaulted by security agents from the company China State Construction Engineering Corporation Congo (CSCEC) while reporting in Pointe-Noire’s Siafoumou neighbourhood. The team was investigating whether construction on a drainage project had ceased, following a suspension order by the Minister of the Environment. Despite the…
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Investigative journalist Ahmad Noorani charged under cybercrime law, his Brothers abducted
Pakistani investigative journalist Ahmad Noorani, and co-founder of FactFocus, has been at the center of escalating tensions between the press and the military establishment over the last three years. Noorani is a fact-based investigative journalist who has always provided factual reports to check state power and expose the wealth, power and influence that top military…
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Activist Khanun Sirapop on Hunger Strike Amid Ongoing Detention
Khanun Sirapop, a political activist in Thailand, went on hunger strike from 21 February 2025 until 16 March 2025, in protest of his ongoing detention and the denial of bail. He was sentenced under the royal defamation law on 25 March 2024 to two years in prison for a speech he made at a rally…
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Authorization of theatre play revoked after pressure
After initially approving the play María Maricón for performances on 30–31 January 2025 at the Cultural Center of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, the Peruvian Ministry of Culture revoked its authorisation, citing non-compliance with Law 30870, which requires cultural content to align with community traditions. This led to the festival’s cancellation . The mayor…
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Amendments to cybercrimes act restrict free speech online
On 23 January 2025, the Pakistan parliament amended the 2016 cybercrimes law, known as the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA). The PECA Amendment Act 2025 created a new penal offense of intentional distribution and sharing of false information, with a penalty of up to three years in jail and fines of up to 2 million…
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Hong Kong National Security Police questions Tony Chung’s stepfather
Parents and family members of activists continue to face police harassment in Hong Kong. On March 18, 2025, Hong Kong national security police took in the stepfather of self-exiled activist Tony Chung for questioning. According to local media, he was brought in to “assist in the investigation” of Chung’s suspected national security offenses. Police confirmed…
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Military regime withholds certificates of around 800 doctors after blacklisting them
The military regime has blacklisted and withheld the degree certificates of approximately 800 doctors who were set to receive certification in 2025, preventing them from practicing. This has been a growing trend targeting healthcare workers associated with the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) — a peaceful protest led by civil servants against the military coup that…
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Precarious sustainability of Malaysian CSOs following US foreign aid freeze
The human rights organisation Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) has been significantly impacted by the 90-day freeze on foreign aid initiated by an executive order from President Trump on 20 January 2025. This funding freeze immediately halted half of SUARAM’s ongoing programmes under two funders, as well as use of more than half of core funding…
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Dismantling of transparency agency undermines access to information
On 20 March 2025, amendments to Mexico’s General Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information were published, threatening civil society’s ability to monitor government actions, report corruption, and hold authorities accountable. The reform follows an earlier initiative by President Claudia Sheinbaum to dissolve the National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information, and Personal Data…