A group of 23 women and two men have issued a letter to the press, calling on government and other aligned actors to cease their vile attacks against activists, journalists, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and human rights defenders who are doing their part to represent the interests of vulnerable groups.
Over the past month verbal attacks, denigrating comments, erroneous accusations, name calling and threats against journalists, NGOs, environmental activists and human rights defenders have mushroomed. Such actions have originated from several sources, including senior members of Government, individuals who appear to be paid or unpaid advisers, social media personalities, columnists and anonymous Facebook page operators. These attacks including threats have been publicized in the media so they are widely available for anyone to read, plus the probability that similar attacks could take place places persons identified and others at increased risk of harm.