Annual Report 2023

«We know that human rights, when applied, act as guardrails, as safeguards and as a blueprint for concrete action towards development, peace and security.» 

Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights upon his country visit to Uzbekistan in March 2023

«There’s really no other office quite like ours in Central Asia. There are organizations monitoring human rights, and there are organizations supporting local human rights initiative. The Norwegian Helsinki Committee does both, and that makes us a flexible and valued partner for the human rights community.» 

Marius Fossum, Regional Representative Central Asia 

Since 2006, the NHC has had a permanent presence in Central Asia through a dedicated Representative Office for the region, which includes five countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan.  

Our office is located in the largest city in Kazakhstan, Almaty. From here, we monitor developments in human rights across this vast and complex part of the world and engage with local partners and initiatives. As our Small Grants Fund is moving into its 17th year of existence, we recognize that there are more good ideas than there can ever possibly be funds. However, small grants can often be the kickstart an emerging human rights group needs to get started.

Our Central Asian projects are devoted to human rights in the broadest possible sense. In 2023, we supported human rights defenders and independent journalists across the region. Through partnerships with local groups and our activities, we carried out advocacy to support repressed media outlets in Kyrgyzstan and imprisoned activists in Tajikistan. Together with our partners, we monitored court proceedings, penitentiaries, and the activities of law enforcement in Uzbekistan and campaigned for the rights of political prisoners in Kazakhstan and victims of enforced disappearances in Turkmenistan. We assisted victims fleeing political persecution and protected the rights of torture victims, persons with disabilities and low-income people. 

When Kazakhstan held parliamentary elections last year, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee observed the elections, and although no genuinely independent candidate won a seat in parliament, the elections marked a change in Kazakhstan as independent opposition candidates could run. 

Strengthening the capacity of our partners is a priority for us, and last year, we organized training, study trips and skill-share events for our partners in and from Central Asia, enabling them to learn from each other, share experiences and enhance each other's skill sets.

From our Central Asian office, we observe a general trend in which authorities increasingly seek to control civil society. Last year, we and our partners fought against measures aimed at repressing the non-governmental sector, including the "foreign funding registry" in Kazakhstan and a repressive draft law in Kyrgyzstan on "foreign representatives", which echo similar legislation in the Russian Federation.