🇲🇽 Celebramos que ayer se otorgó la libertad absoluta a Jorge Hernández, Ricardo Almanza y Sergio Rodríguez, sobrevivientes de tortura que permanecieron 24 años injustamente privados de su libertad. Reconocemos también la lucha incansable de sus familias, que nunca dejaron de exigir justicia y de mantener viva la esperanza. Su libertad representa un paso fundamental, pero aún es necesario garantizar la verdad, la reparación integral del daño y las medidas necesarias para que estos hechos no se repitan.

#FacesOfHope: El 18 de octubre se cumplieron seis años desde que la abogada, feminista y defensora de derechos humanos indígena amuzga #KeniaHernández fue detenida arbitrariamente, criminalizada e injustamente condenada a penas que suman más de 20 años de cárcel por once delitos. Desde la OMCT nos sumamos al llamado para seguir exigiendo su liberación #LibertadparaKenia @CDHZL @ParaKenia @SEGOB_Mx

¿Puede existir seguridad sin derechos? En las Américas, el avance de las políticas de vigilancia y control coincide con alertas por desalojos, criminalización, desapariciones, impunidad y violencia contra quienes buscan verdad y justicia. Sin derechos humanos, no hay sociedades seguras ni democráticas. Lee nuestra actualización mensual de las Américas: bit.ly/4yCV7QT

Working hand in hand with local partners, OMCT helps expose torture, strengthen accountability, and support those seeking justice. Your support makes this work possible. We now need your support to preserve and expand this work. 🇵🇪 In this video, Tania Pariona Tarqui, Indigenous Quechua human rights defender from Peru and Executive Secretary of the coalition Coordinadora Nacional de Derechos Humanos (CNDDHH), told us about the state of human rights in Peru and what the passing of certain laws mean for human rights defenders and victims of torture. Support our work to end torture and protect those most at risk. 🔗 Donate today: omct.org/en/donate

Fleeing persecution doesn’t always mean reaching safety. A new report, “Out of Reach, Not Out of Risk: Transnational Repression of Human Rights Defenders in East Africa,” exposes how human rights defenders continue to face surveillance, intimidation and threats across borders, even after fleeing their home countries. Based on interviews with 50 human rights defenders, the report reveals how transnational repression follows defenders into exile and calls for stronger protection, accountability and access to justice. No one should face persecution for defending human rights. States must ensure that people seeking refuge can live and work safely, free from threats, reprisals and the risk of torture. Read the report and its recommendations: bit.ly/4B9bk2x 🤝 Produced by the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (a partnership between OMCT and FIDH), together with the Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) and SOS-Torture Burundi. #HumanRightsDefenders #EastAfrica #TransnationalRepression

🇲🇽 En #México, se han localizado más de 5,000 fosas clandestinas en los últimos tres sexenios. Acompañamos a @CEPAD_AC, @PDHIBERO y @Ugent en la presentación del informe “Trazar la ausencia, caminar la esperanza”, que documenta esta crisis. Hablamos con @dw_espanol sobre este tema y los desafíos en la búsqueda de personas desaparecidas. Lee la entrevista aquí: bit.ly/4yvmKv1

“My release shows that collective action can have a real impact.” Faces of Hope, OMCT’s campaign highlighting the stories of human rights defenders who have been arbitrarily detained around the world, is a reminder of the power of international solidarity and the importance of continuing to fight for those who remain behind bars. Abdoul Aziz Goma, a human rights defender who spent more than six years in detention without trial in Togo, was released on 1 January 2026 after seven years in detention. The international mobilisation and advocacy of organisations, including OMCT, helped sustain the efforts for his release. In this interview, Abdoul Aziz Goma reflects on the brutal conditions he endured in detention, the power of international solidarity, and why advocacy must continue until all prisoners of conscience are free: “I was released, but they remained behind. That feeling is still very much with me.” 🔗 Watch Abdoul Aziz Goma’s story and read the full interview: bit.ly/4ynRJJp #FacesOfHope #HumanRightsDefenders

OMCT warmly congratulates Navanethem “Navi” Pillay on being awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize 👉 lnkd.in/dMNPgQWw As a young lawyer in apartheid-era South Africa, she defended political prisoners and exposed torture in police custody, a commitment to human dignity that carried through five decades of judicial and diplomatic service, including as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (2008–2014), working closely with bodies like the Committee against Torture. Her life’s work reminds us that the fight against torture and the fight for international justice are one and the same, a message that resonates powerfully for torture survivors and human rights defenders everywhere. OMCT stands in solidarity with Ms Pillay’s continued work in defence of justice and human dignity. #NobelPeacePrize #NaviPillay #HumanRights

“I want people to look at the faces of those who spent years in a condemned cell for nothing, and to see who pays when the system gets it wrong.” In Bangladesh, thousands of people await execution, some for decades. Many have been sentenced to death on the basis of confessions obtained through torture. On the World Day Against the Death Penalty on 10 October, we interviewed anthropologist and photographer Mosfiqur Rahman Johan, who has spent four years documenting the people wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death in Bangladesh. 🔗 To find out more, read our latest blog post: bit.ly/4hO2AHy #WorldDayAgainstTheDeathPenalty

#Spain 🇪🇸 — On 1 October 2017, Roger Español lost an eye after being hit by a rubber bullet during #protests surrounding the independence referendum in #Catalonia. Nine years later, four Spanish National Police officers stood trial, accused of aggravated bodily injury and #torture. 📢 An international mission composed of representatives of Amnesty International, the World Organisation Against Torture, the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations, REDRESS, ICHRP–Spain and Defender a quien Defiende attended the trial as independent observers. In its preliminary findings, the mission raised concerns over: ➡️The lack of an active role by the Public Prosecutor’s Office in investigating the alleged acts, and its questioning of the applicability of international standards on the use of force during protests. ➡️The failure of State authorities to provide the victim with the support, assistance, care and reparation required under Spanish law. 🚨 The mission also recalled the long-lasting impact of #ocularviolence and the State’s obligation to facilitate the exercise of the right to freedom of #peacefulassembly and protect those who participate in protests. The Mission will continue to closely monitor developments in this case. 🔗 Find out more: bit.ly/47R3ygk

🇲🇽Condenamos la represión de la manifestación por el derecho al agua ocurrida el 11 de octubre en Guadalajara #México, y nos sumamos al llamado de la relatora @Ginitastar exigiendo al Estado mexicano información inmediata sobre todas las personas detenidas, garantías contra la tortura y una investigación independiente de los hechos. Lee nuestra declaración: bit.ly/3UnZCk4

Torture often happens behind closed doors, hidden from public view. At OMCT, we partner with human rights defenders worldwide to expose torture, support survivors, and push for justice and accountability. With your support, we can continue and expand this vital work. 🇧🇷 In this video, Maria Clara D’Ávila, a lawyer at the Brazil-based organisation GAJOP, recounts some of the detention conditions she has witnessed in Brazil’s socioeducative units. Support our work to end torture and protect those most at risk. 🔗 Donate today: omct.org/en/donate

Près de vingt-cinq ans après son ouverture, Guantánamo reste le symbole d’une justice sacrifiée au nom de la peur. Détentions arbitraires, torture et violations des droits humains : les conséquences de ce système se font encore sentir aujourd’hui. La torture ne détruit pas seulement des vies. Elle fragilise aussi les institutions, compromet la recherche de la vérité et retarde la justice, y compris pour les familles des victimes du 11-Septembre. L’interdiction de la torture est une garantie essentielle pour préserver l’État de droit et la dignité humaine. Découvrez pourquoi la prison de Guantánamo doit enfin fermer dans la nouvelle chronique OMCT, dans @tdgch. 🔗 Lisez l’article : bit.ly/4ieZnRw

What happens when music is silenced and art is pushed underground? Afghan artists continue to create. Last month in Geneva, "Blooming Afghanistan: Art Resists – Hope Blooms" brought Afghan artists, human rights defenders and audiences together through an exhibition at the Palais des Nations and a concert at Victoria Hall. The initiative showed how art can remain a powerful space for expression, resilience and hope. In this interview, Afghan artist and human rights defender Nazifa Jalali and musician Arash Barez speak about creating under repression, the importance of keeping Afghan culture alive, and what freedom means to them. Read the full interview here: bit.ly/4AMUyWO #BloomingAfghanistan #Afghanistan #HumanRights #ArtisticFreedom