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icono Human Rights Defenders Fund

Human Rights Defenders Fund

The HRDF is a LICADHO Canada initiative motivated by countless situations where human rights defenders, political victims and/or the NGOs who protect/support them, lack the ability to quickly access funds from traditional donor sources in a crisis, the primary barrier being the significant time and efforts it takes to prepare and process funding applications.

Further difficulties are often created by the ‘political’ nature of human rights defence work in which many traditional funding sources are unable or unwilling to support the immediate and complex needs to protect human rights defenders.

Monies distributed from the HRDF will be utilised for costs not covered by traditional funding sources; including but not limited to:



  • 1) The cost of providing protection to threatened HRDs/political victims, specifically those who are in need of ongoing protection.
  • 2) The cost of any court related fee of HRDs/persons who have been victimized by the judiciary.
  • 3) The cost of legal aid and representation for persons otherwise unable to access the court system for issues such as land evictions.
  • 4) The cost of mediation, training and/or facilitation for threatened communities/groups.
  • 5) The cost of in country or out country re location of HRDs/political victims.
  • 6) The cost of counselling and security of HRDs/political victims, their families or/and witnesses.

The HRDF is funded through the HRD Apparel project and private donations. The fund will be accessible to all threatened HRDs and victims of human rights defenders via LICADHO/LICADHO Canada and our partners.