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✊#DefendersinDevelopment - Manushya Foundation was in Tbilisi, Georgia, to attend an important Defenders in Development campaign gathering!
❣️ Over the course of a week, we met with over 100 human rights defenders and civil society organizations from 50 different countries! As a collective we discussed how we can better protect human rights defenders and civic spaces, especially in a time where civic spaces are shrinking globally.
🏦 In addition to protecting HRDs and civic spaces, we explored how to pressure development banks (ie: @theworldbank @ADB @ebrd), who fund projects that aim to strengthen the economy of developing countries, to ensure the countries they invest in adequately respect and protect spaces where people can safely speak up. It was critical to come together and reflect on the progress we have made, while understanding what can be done differently to better tackle the challenges ahead.
⛔ Our gathering was held against the backdrop of the current protests in Georgia, where the country is set to implement a law against foreign funding, targeting civic spaces. We stand in solidarity with our partners in Georgia, against the law!
🙏 We would also like to take this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who organized this gathering, and all the people we met while there! Coming together as a community was truly an energizing and fulfilling experience!
⏭️ Stay tuned to see how we will be engaging with the #DefendersinDevelopment campaign and how it applies to Thailand!
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