1. Notes from the Secretary General
The very purpose of a human rights organisation such as the Norwegian Helsinki Committee is to protect human rights and democracy for all. To be honest, we have seen better times, more hopeful and optimistic than these.
When we challenge state leaders for violations of human rights, crimes against humanity, and other core international crimes, we can do so with reference to established international laws and conventions. States have taken upon themselves the obligation to respect them. Yet, we experience that these laws often lose their true meaning. International institutions fail to protect them, and state leaders ignore them.
According to an authoritative Democracy Report by V-Dem Institute, published by the University of Gothenburg, global democracy levels are at their lowest in over 50 years. In the Middle East, Gaza has been reduced to rubble and left 50,000 dead, 15,000 of them children, according to UNICEF. Putin’s Russia could invade Ukraine, but a UN Security Council decision, let alone a call to action, is blocked by a veto by the perpetrator. So-called peace negotiations seem reduced to purely transactional affairs, ignoring the fundamental rights and responsibilities of the parties involved. The suffering continues. Who will stop the madness? Who will be held to account, and when?
In the USA, we find a President who challenges the competence of the courts of law to overturn executive decisions, even when these decisions run counter to the Constitution and other legislation. He creates international havoc based on his personal opinions instead of facts. A president with such views was elected in a democratic vote.
Western Europe is not immune and has also seen declines in democracy. A divisive public debate is among us in Europe and in peaceful Norway. Discontent, disappointment, and distrust are spreading in the commentaries on social media, drawing people towards authoritarian views. What is true, and what is false?
In the middle of all this, we continue our work out of commitment and necessity. We work with local civil society, supporting them, giving them a voice, and using ours to protest abuse and suggest better solutions. We continue to document the crimes committed in Ukraine together with civil society representatives on the ground, with the aim of ultimately holding the responsible to account and disclosing the truth. We build democratic resilience.
In 2025, we will mark the 50 years since the signing of the groundbreaking Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE, (later OSCE) Helsinki Accords. The Accords were a major diplomatic agreement to reduce tensions between the Soviet and Western blocs during the Cold War. They included commitments to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and provided a platform for Eastern European dissidents to challenge their governments. This was the first time the Soviet Union accepted human rights.
The Norwegian Helsinki Committee of today is, in many ways, the same as it was back then, when it was established in solidarity with those dissidents. Our colleagues in Russia, Belarus, Georgia and Türkiye pay high prices for being human rights defenders. We were extremely happy to see our dear Oleg Orlov of Memorial and Vladimir Kara-Murza freed in an exceptional prisoner swap last August. I am very sorry to be repeating the names from last year, as they remain imprisoned: Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski from Belarus and several of his colleagues at the Human Rights Centre Viasna, and Memorial's Yuri Dmitriev and Golos' Grigory Melkonyants, both from Russia. These are our close friends and partners, but there are hundreds and hundreds of political prisoners who are suffering in jail. It is equally devastating that thousands of civilian Ukrainians are kept under horrible circumstances in Russian jails, as well as prisoners of war.
Protecting the gains after WWII through a law-based international order must be at the forefront of our efforts. In my opinion, this is not only the responsibility of governments and human rights organisations but yours. We have a lot to lose!
I could not be prouder to present this annual report. The actual scope of all the activities and the impact of the work of our competent staff members and partners cannot fit into a mere few pages, but it is at least a taste.
Berit Lindeman
Secretary General