Thank you Mr. President,

The Kingdom of the Netherlands sincerely thanks the Special Rapporteur for her report and her relentless dedication over the last six years. We reaffirm our strong support for her mandate. 

The Netherlands remains steadfast in its commitment to protecting human rights defenders, translating this commitment into diplomatic engagement through our embassies and dedicated funding for civil society partners. We call on all Human Rights Council member states to go beyond words in upholding the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. 

Special Rapporteur, [your report presents the voices of human rights defenders against a backdrop of increasing challenges to human rights and the international human rights framework.] We acknowledge that the space for defending human rights is increasingly shrinking, including through disproportionally restrictive legislation, global funding cuts, transnational repression, and barriers to access international human rights mechanisms. 

Madame Special Rapporteur, [in light of these developments], how can Member States forge new cross-regional alliances and build collaborations with non-traditional stakeholders to reverse the trend of shrinking civic space and better protect human rights defenders?