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In Egypt and elsewhere, women human rights defenders are among the tens of thousands of people imprisoned without charge or trial. They have been targeted for their gender, activism or political beliefs. They should never have been imprisoned in the first place, and now face incarceration during a pandemic.
This puts them at great risk of illness and even death. Global Fund for Women has joined with the local women’s rights group Nazra Egypt to call for the release of gender justice advocates worldwide and #LetThePrisonersOut in the wake of COVID-19.
This crisis also multiplies threats for all activists (imprisoned or not) as governments and institutions around the world use the pandemic as a cover for authoritarian policies that crack down on dissent, mobilisation, activism and rights.
In several US states, politicians have exploited the emergency by classifying most abortions as non-essential procedures. In Uganda, police raided a shelter for homeless LGBT youth, beating and arresting dozens under the pretext of stopping the spread of the virus. In Honduras, President Juan Orlando Hernández declared a coronavirus state of emergency that also revokes the right to free expression.
“Right now, the most urgent need is to help the most vulnerable and marginalised people in the community,” Nattan in Georgia told us. Meanwhile, she added, the long-term work is to make governments responsible for “equal and universal access to healthcare, wages and a safe environment for all”, not just for the privileged.
COVID-19 shows us how these movements are more important – and more imperilled – than ever. And movement funders, such as Global Fund for Women, must step up and support them. We cannot cut funding during this time; on the contrary, we should be increasing flexible, core and multi-year resources.
We are committed to following the lead of activists, and to doubling down on flexible support, so that they can adapt and push forward as they see fit. This way, we can use this pandemic as a “portal”, to quote the Indian novelist Arundhati Roy, to create healthier, safer and more just societies – even as regressive forces push back.