On 11 March 2013 during a side event at the UN Human Rights Council’s 22nd session in Geneva, the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) launched its 2013 Annual Report. The Side event was sponsored by partner organizations the International League for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS). Jeremie Smith, Director of the CIHRS office in Cairo, moderated the talk which included the two Co-Directors of the GCHR, Khalid Ibrahim and Maryam Al-Khawaja.

Khalid Ibrahim, GCHR Co-Director, talked about detained human rights defenders in the Gulf and the need to work very hard in order to secure their immediate release as they are in prison solely for their legitimate and peaceful human rights work.

He also mentioned that during its first year, the Gulf Centre for Human Rights trained about 120 human rights defenders on topics which included digital security; the use of UN mechanisms; the use of social media networks to promote human rights; security and protection; transitional justice; and documentation of human rights violations. In addition, it sent three human rights missions to UAE, two to Bahrain, and one to Iraq.

Maryam Al-Khawaja, GCHR Co-Director, talked about the problems facing human rights defenders in the region on daily basis and outlined that there is a pattern that HRDs feel that they are isolated, and there is not enough support for them.

She said, “It’s important for the various UN mechanisms to provide support and protection to the human rights defenders in the Gulf region.”

Jeremie Smith, Director of the CIHRS office in Cairo, talked about reprisals against human rights defenders due to their co-operation with the intentional mechanisms including the UN system. He added that there are systematic reprisals against HRDs in the Gulf and mentioned several cases where HRDs from the Gulf who engaged with UN mechanisms were targeted afterwards.