President, 

I am honoured to deliver this statement on behalf of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. 

Human rights defenders do invaluable work in promoting human rights and democracy. We continuously rely on their expertise, and they should be protected when cooperating with the UN.

With membership on the Council comes with a particular responsibility to uphold high human rights standards. We therefore call on all current members to prevent or cease reprisals against individuals seeking to engage with the UN, and to create an environment in which defenders can safely cooperate with UN mechanisms.  

In particular, we call attention for: 

1.    Human rights defender Chow Hang-Tung from Hong Kong who is arbitrarily detained for exercising her right to freedom of expression in advocating for democratic rights. We call for her immediate release. 
2.    Human rights defender Roberto Perez Fonseca from Cuba, facing reprisals after the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found his detention arbitrary. We call for his immediate release. 
3.    Journalist [and human rights defender] Pham Doan Trang, arbitrarily detained for sharing reports with the UN on the human rights situation in Viet Nam. We call for her immediate release.

As penholder for the resolution on Human Rights in Russia, we also wish to draw the Council’s attention to:

4.    Human rights defender Alexey Gorinov from Russia, facing punitive measures after the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found his detention arbitrary. We call for his immediate release. 

The ASG’s report however only shows the tip of the iceberg, we take this moment to remember those that are not included, but whose voices and names have been silenced by the regimes in place.  

Lastly, we express our deep sorrow about the killing of Yanar Mohammed, a woman human rights defender from Iraq, on 2 March 2026.We emphasize the importance of accountability for the perpetrators. 

Thank you.