A prodemocracy organization dedicated to the expansion of freedom around the world. Follow @FreedomHouseLAC for more.
Washington, DC
Joined December 2008
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📣 NEW: #FreedomOnTheNet 2026 is now LIVE!
Global internet freedom declined for the 16th consecutive year, as governments erected new barriers to how people access information and express themselves online. Expanding internet shutdowns, growing digital isolation, and new restrictions on online access are reshaping the global internet.
Internet freedom deteriorated in 16 of the 38 countries assessed, while just 8 registered improvements. Iran experienced the year's largest decline, joining China and Myanmar among the world's worst environments for internet freedom. Bangladesh recorded the strongest improvement for the second consecutive year, while Estonia ranked as the freest online environment.
Authoritarian governments accelerated efforts to isolate their populations from the global internet. Iranian authorities imposed the longest nationwide internet shutdown ever recorded by Freedom on the Net, cutting off most of the population for approximately 88 days. In Russia, authorities expanded internet shutdowns and consolidated control over internet service providers, advancing efforts to restrict access to the global internet.
New age-verification requirements are transforming how people access online spaces. As governments increasingly mandate age checks for social media and other online content, these measures are creating new risks to privacy, security, and online anonymity. Repressive governments have also sought to exploit such requirements to expand surveillance.
Governments are grappling with the challenges posed by artificial intelligence. New measures to address AI-generated impersonation, harassment, and other online harms have advanced, but some have raised concerns about government overreach and restrictions on free expression.
Political change has also created opportunities for progress. Bangladesh and the Gambia demonstrated how the removal of repressive leaders and sustained democratic reforms can help reverse restrictions on internet freedom, even as significant challenges remain.
As the internet undergoes seismic shifts, protecting free expression, privacy, and access to information must remain central to shaping its future.
Explore the findings, country assessments, and recommendations from #FreedomOnTheNet 2026: freedomhouse.org/report/free…
“Those are the moments that give you hope, and they carry you forward.”
As we celebrate our 85th anniversary, Freedom House Ambassador for Freedom @NazaninBoniadi reflects on the victories that sustain human rights advocates, from lives saved to families reunited.
Help make more victories possible: freedomhouse.org/investing-f…
#FreedomHouse85
“When the world looks away, Freedom House is on the ground supporting those in the struggle, and that solidarity matters.”
As we celebrate our 85th anniversary, Katie LaRoque explains why we will keep standing with human rights defenders for as long as it takes.
Support our work: freedomhouse.org/investing-f…
#FreedomHouse85
“We need to uphold these principles of human rights and democracy before any political agenda.”
As Freedom House marks 85 years, Cuban human rights defender and Freedom House Ambassador for Freedom @carolinabferrer reflects on why our founding mission still matters.
Help carry it forward: freedomhouse.org/investing-f…
#FreedomHouse85
“Unless we attend to freedom, it’s not going to be here.”
For our 85th anniversary, artist Laura Roosevelt created five paintings that bring historic voices on freedom into the present.
See the Freedom House Commission: freedomhouse.org/freedom-hou…
Eighty-five years ago, Eleanor Roosevelt and Wendell Willkie came together across party lines to help establish Freedom House.
Today, their grandchildren and great-grandchildren invite a new generation to carry that legacy forward: freedomhouse.org/article/mes…
#FreedomHouse85
Eighty-five years ago today, Freedom House was founded to serve as a “beacon lighting [the] struggle for a free world”.
This telegram, sent to Eleanor Roosevelt days earlier from Freedom House cofounder Herbert Agar, outlined plans for an organization that would urge Americans to reject isolationism and stand against the fascist forces advancing across Europe.
Since 1941, Freedom House has worked across party lines to defend democracy and stand with people risking their lives for freedom. We are proud to carry that legacy forward, and you can be part of its next chapter: freedomhouse.org/investing-f…
On International Day of Political Prisoners, we stand with those imprisoned for defending human rights and democracy.
Through our Fred Hiatt Program, we advocate for their freedom and work to ensure their cases are not forgotten.
Learn more: freedomhouse.org/report/free…
#FreeThemAll #FreedomStartsWithAName
Freedom House stands in solidarity with the Iranian people and all those unjustly imprisoned for exercising their fundamental rights. We call for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners in Iran. #FreeThemAll #FreedomStartsWithAName
Today, Iranians inside and outside the country are joining a coordinated online campaign for political prisoners, launched by opposition groups that signed the “Oslo Human Rights Principles” together with Iran Human Rights.
Political activists, civil society members and citizens are taking part with one clear message: we stand together in defence of everyone’s human rights, regardless of political views, ethnicity or beliefs.
#PoliticalPrisoners
#زندانی_سیاسی_آزاد_باید_گردد #نه_به_اعدام
Freedom House retweeted
TODAY: Join us at the Lincoln Memorial on the International Day of Political Prisoners to demand the release of people imprisoned worldwide for exercising their fundamental freedoms.
At the Roll Call for Freedom ceremony, former political prisoners, their families, and advocates will read aloud the names of those unjustly imprisoned to make their voices heard in the nation's capital.
Be part of this movement to support those behind bars for daring to speak, worship, assemble, and express themselves freely.
5:00 PM | Lincoln Memorial
#FreedomStartsWithAName
Learn more: ned.org/events/roll-call-for…
“We cannot allow their names or their causes to be forgotten.”
On International Day of Political Prisoners, Freedom House CEO @jamiemfly writes in @washingtonpost's @thefreedomdesk about why international attention matters and how we can help secure their freedom.
Read more: links.washingtonpost.com/s/v…
#FreeThemAll @jrezaian
Today, on International Day of Political Prisoners, Freedom House joins the October 30 Coalition in calling for the immediate and unconditional release of political prisoners worldwide.
We must keep their names and stories in public view until they are free.
Read our joint statement: freedomhouse.org/article/joi…
#FreeThemAll #FreedomStartsWithAName
Political prisoners must never be forgotten. Thank you, @ChinaSelect and Chairman @RepMoolenaar, for highlighting the courageous individuals imprisoned for exercising their fundamental freedoms, including in Hong Kong and China. We stand with them and their families. #FreeJoshuaWong #FreeJimmyLai #FreeThemAll
Chairman @RepMoolenaar has issued the following statement commemorating International Day of Political Prisoners in honor of the individuals who are imprisoned for their political beliefs:
On International Day of Political Prisoners, we stand with those jailed for defending fundamental rights.
Brian Tronic explains how Freedom House's Fred Hiatt Program advocates for their freedom and why international allies matter.
Learn more: freedomhouse.org/report/free…
#FreeThemAll #FreedomStartsWithAName
On International Day of Political Prisoners, we remember Theary Seng.
As she fled the Khmer Rouge, Freedom House spoke out at the UN. Today, we fight for her freedom.
Tomorrow marks our 85th anniversary. Help us continue this work: freedomhouse.org/investing-f…
#FreeThemAll #FreedomStartsWithAName
Freedom House retweeted
Today, on the International Day of Political Prisoners, we will gather at the Lincoln Memorial to honour all those imprisoned for their beliefs — and to be the voices for those whom dictatorships are trying to silence.
Please join us at 5:00pm at the Roll Call for Freedom.
ned.org/events/roll-call-for… – at Washington, DC
Thank you, @TLHumanRights, for your bipartisan leadership in shining a light on the plight of political prisoners around the world. On Political Prisoners Day, we stand with those unjustly imprisoned for exercising their fundamental freedoms and their families. Their voices must not be forgotten. #FreeThemAll
Freedom House is proud to be part of the October 30 Coalition and stand in solidarity with the more than one million political prisoners around the world and their families. We will continue to raise our voices for their freedom. #FreeThemAll #FreedomStartsWithAName
There are more than 1 million political prisoners around the world, behind bars for daring to speak, worship, assemble, and express themselves freely.
Today, @NEDemocracy honored leaders who have worked tirelessly to free them. Their efforts remind us that standing with those who choose freedom is a proud American tradition.
Freedom House retweeted
Thank you @freedomhouse for shining a light on this painful reality. My heart aches for the heavy burden my imprisonment places on my brave wife, Enita, & our children. Her strength & love sustain me behind these walls, & we will never stop hoping & fighting for justice.
Cameroonian journalist @TsiConrad has been imprisoned since 2016. His wife, Enita Meyeh Yambong Tsi, shares how his detention has uprooted their family.
On the International Day of Political Prisoners, we stand with families fighting for their loved ones' freedom.
Read more: freedomhouse.org/article/fam… #FreeThemAll
On International Day of Political Prisoners, @GaoPu1231 shares how his parents' detention in China for exercising their religious freedom has affected his family.
Read his story and those of other families fighting for their loved ones: freedomhouse.org/article/fam…
#FreeThemAll
On the International Day of Political Prisoners, we stand with families like @taliakhattak's, whose father, human rights defender Idris Khattak, has been detained in Pakistan since 2019.
Read how families worldwide are affected by political imprisonment: freedomhouse.org/article/fam…
#FreeThemAll
