Today:

Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission@tlhumanrights.bsky.social · 3w ago

Please join us for a briefing on "Central Asia: Political Prisoners and Ongoing Human Rights Abuses" on Wednesday, July 22, at 11:30 p.m. EST. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara had been released from prison in Cuba following five years of detention, as announced by @SecRubio, and has arrived in Miami. @wassermanschultz.house.gov is his Defending Freedoms Advocate. www.cnn.com/2026/07/17/a...

Prominent Cuban dissident arrives in US after release | CNN

Prominent Cuban dissident and performance artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara arrived in Miami on Saturday following his release from Cuban detention, according to his supporters and US Secretary of St...

cnn.com

Please join us for a briefing on "Central Asia: Political Prisoners and Ongoing Human Rights Abuses" on Wednesday, July 22, at 11:30 p.m. EST. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Please join us for a hearing on "Human Rights in Venezuela: Status and Opportunity" on Wednesday, July 15, at 12:00 p.m. EST. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Please join us for a virtual briefing on The Enduring Human Rights and Humanitarian Crises in Ethiopia on Wednesday, July 8, at 2:00 p.m. EST. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Due to changes in the House Floor schedule, the hearing “AI in the Military Domain: Implications for Human Rights” has been postponed.

Please join us for a hearing on "Artificial Intelligence in the Military Domain: Implications for Human Rights" on Wednesday, July 1, at 2:00 p.m. EST. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Please join us for a hearing on "Artificial Intelligence in the Military Domain: Implications for Human Rights" on Wednesday, July 1, at 2:00 p.m EST. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

PRESS RELEASE: Co-Chairs Call on U.S. Corporations to Reassess UAE Partnerships Amid Sudan Atrocity Concerns. Letters call on Disney, Warner Bros., NBA and NFL to reassessment engagements that may risk enabling or obscuring human rights violations. humanrightscommission.house.gov/news/press-r...

Co-Chairs Call on U.S. Corporations to Reassess UAE Partnerships Amid Sudan Atrocity Concerns

Washington, D.C.- The Co-Chairs of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, Congressmen James P. McGovern (D-MA) and Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ), have sent letters to four U.S. corporations in the ente...

humanrightscommission.house.gov

Please join us tomorrow, April 16 at 2 PM EST for a hearing on 'The State of Exception in El Salvador: Year Five.' humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

It is now 10 years since Ekpar Asat, a Uyghur entrepreneur, was detained by PRC authorities following his participation in a U.S. exchange program. Trial details have never been disclosed, and he is held in solitary confinement. He must be released immediately.

Please join us for a hearing on 'The State of Exception in El Salvador: Year Five' on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. (EST) humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

7 years ago today, citizen journalists Osman Arifmemetov, Ruslan Suleymanov, Remzi Bekirov, & Rustem Sheykhaliev were arrested for reporting on human rights violations in occupied Crimea. #Russia must release them immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms

Please join us TODAY, March 25 at 2 PM EST for a hearing on Abducted Children and Mechanisms for Accountability in Ukraine. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Please join us tomorrow, March 25 at 2 PM EST for a hearing on Abducted Children and Mechanisms for Accountability in Ukraine. humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, observed to raise awareness and encourage global action against racism. We must remain committed to ending all forms of racial discrimination and uphold principles of equality affirmed in the UDHR.

“9 years ago today, Ahmed Mansoor was arrested and sentenced to 10 years in prison for defending human rights. Since his arrest, he has been held in solitary confinement and in poor conditions. #UAE must release him immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms”

Please join us for a hearing on 'Ukraine: Abducted Children and Mechanisms for Accountability’ on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. (EST) humanrightscommission.house.gov/events/heari...

The Democratic staff of the TLHRC are now accepting applications for the summer term (May-August) under the Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Internship Program (deadline February 28). For application information see: humanrightscommission.house.gov/about/intern...

CPJ is proud to join the @tlhumanrights.bsky.social's Defending Freedoms Project coalition. We'll work with the Commission and partners to defend press freedom and help secure the release of jailed journalists. Thanks @repmcgovern.bsky.social & Rep. Chris Smith for bipartisan leadership.

Kazakhstan authorities should drop charges against 19 advocates from the Atajurt human rights organization for protesting PRC abuses against Uyghurs & Kazakhs in Xinjiang. Gov't should respect their right to freedom of expression and resist China’s transnational repression.

Mary Lawlor@marylawlorhrds.bsky.social · 7mo ago

12 years ago today, economist and Uyghur rights defender Ilham Tohti was arrested for promoting cultural understanding between Uyghurs & Han Chinese. China must release him immediately & unconditionally. @amo.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.

Today is writer and activist Abduljalil Al-Singace’s 64th birthday. He was sentenced to life in prison for protesting discrimination & repression. Bahrain must release him immediately & without conditions. @khanna.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.

Narges Mohammadi is a writer & Nobel Prize laureate. She was sentenced to 8 years and 2 months in prison for her activism & work covering abuses against prisoners in 2022. She was temporarily released for medical purposes in December 2024 but was rearrested on December 12, 2025.

11 years ago, Raif Badawi was publicly flogged, enduring 50 lashes for peacefully expressing his views. This punishment amounts to torture under international law. He was conditionally released from prison in 2022.

Today marks Ekpar Asat's 10th birthday in prison. He is a Uyghur entrepreneur and was sentenced to 15 years in solitary confinement. China must grant him communication access & free him immediately without conditions. @coons.senate.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.

Zhang Shaojie spends his 60th birthday in prison. He was charged with disrupting public order and fraud for practicing his religion. China must release him immediately and without conditions. SenatorTed Budd is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.

6 years ago today, Wang Yi, a human rights attorney and Pastor was sentenced to nine years in prison for “inciting to subvert state power”. China must clarify his status & release him immediately. Senator Thom Tillis is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.

Today, Wang Bingzhang turns 78 in prison. This marks 23 birthdays in detention for his pro-democracy activism. China must release him immediately & without conditions. @schiff.senate.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.

11 years ago, Bahraini opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman was arrested. He is serving a life sentence and has been imprisoned for exercising his right to free assembly. Bahrain must release him immediately and without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms