Founded during the Cold War, the International Society for Human Rights is still active worldwide today. In the interview, its chairman talks about religious freedom, political prisoners and the Cuban secret service. Edgar Lamm IGFM Mr Lamm, many people are familiar with Amnesty International, but the IGFM is less well known. What kind of organisation is it? The IGFM was founded in 1972 in response to
While participating in the educational project, young people from the Putivl community, together with IAC ISHR specialists, joined in the work on developing urban space, focusing on improving the Summer Park area. The students gained practical experience in teamwork, analysing community needs and implementing initiatives aimed at improving the urban environment. The knowledge and skills acquired became the basis for further action. As part of the IAC ISHR humanitarian
Estonian independence fighter Mart-Olav Niklus passed away on 25 December 2025 at the age of 91. The ISHR remembers him and his legacy. Obituary for Mart-Olav Niklus Hero of the Estonian independence movement Mart-Olav Niklus was a political prisoner in the former Soviet Union from 1959 to 1966 and from 1981 to 1988. After Estonia gained independence in 1991, he was a member of the Estonian Parliament from
The Ombudsman's Office signed a Memorandum of Cooperation and Partnership between the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, and the Information and Analytical Centre of the International Society for Human Rights (IAC ISHR), which is the national representative of the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR, Germany) in Ukraine, represented by its director, Anton Feliksovich Alekseev. The memorandum provides for the development of a long-term partnership in the
The European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO) has identified a number of structural concerns in its final report on Moldova’s parliamentary elections held on 28 September 2025 ENEMO warning that measures adopted to protect electoral integrity may themselves have undermined democratic safeguards. While ENEMO concluded that the elections were technically administered and completed, the mission emphasized that the broader process took place in a highly polarized environment and under a
Belarus has released 123 political prisoners, including leaders of the 2020 protests. Maria Kolesnikova and other released political prisoners, 13 December 2025 COORDINATION HEADQUARTERS FOR THE TREATMENT OF PRISONERS OF WAR / AFP / Scanpix / LETA Alexander Lukashenko agreed to this as part of an agreement with US President Donald Trump and at his request, "in connection with the lifting of illegal sanctions against the potash industry." Today, a
This would be the third Christmas celebration that the ISHR (International Society for Human Rights) has organised for aid workers and victims of the war Christmas celebration at the children’s hospital © ISHR Ukraine Section “The situation in northeastern Ukraine is deteriorating. People there are suffering from ongoing power outages, inadequate logistics, and especially the psychological pressure of approaching, buzzing drones. Due to unpredictable missile attacks, children
200 packages of infusion equipment for Odesa – Interview with Valerio Krüger, Spokesman of the ISHR Board In March 2025, you were already in Ukraine on an aid mission, and now again in October 2025. What was the reason for this trip? How was the trip? Jens Leisenberg and Valerio Krüger © ISHR At dawn on September 29, we started with two vans in Cottbus. These were loaded
Putin’s New Law – Harsher penalties for juveniles The International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) condemns the law passed by the Russian State Duma, which lowers the age of criminal responsibility for “sabotage and terrorist offences” to 14 years. In the future, minors will face prison sentences up to life imprisonment for symbolic resistance against the war and repression in the country. In Russia, Putin’s repressive apparatus is now systematically
Critics of the Russian regime and opponents of the war continue to face criminalisation, torture, and long-term imprisonment for distributing flyers, posting on social media, or participating in symbolic protests. On the Day of Political Prisoners in Russia, the ISHR reaffirmed our condemnation of the imprisonment and torture of Ukrainian and Russian civilians and called for their immediate release, alongside an end to hostilities. In Russian prisons, Ukrainian civilians are
