The Committee for Justice (CFJ), an independent international organization headquartered in Geneva and holding consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), has released a summary of its activities during the first quarter of 2026, reaffirming its continued role in supporting victims of human rights violations and human rights defenders in North Africa and the Sahel region, while promoting accountability pathways and combating impunity.
Between January and March 2026, CFJ intensified its efforts in monitoring, documentation, and ensuring access to data, documenting hundreds of human rights violations in Egypt, Sudan, and Libya, as well as in the Maghreb countries and Mauritania. During this period, the organization published more than 225 statements and news items in Arabic, English, and French, and updated the Justice Monitoring Archive with new data related to detainees and victims of deprivation of liberty.
In parallel, CFJ placed particular emphasis on monitoring the right to a fair trial by observing hundreds of court hearings in Egypt, reflecting ongoing concerns regarding judicial independence and fair trial guarantees. The organization also strengthened capacity‑building efforts through the launch of two specialized training courses focused on documentation methodologies and fact‑finding missions.
At the international advocacy level, Sudan constituted a central focus of CFJ’s work during this period. The organization conducted training sessions for Sudanese activists and human rights defenders and contributed to the establishment of the “Sudan Working Group,” a coalition comprising 17 Sudanese and regional civil society organizations. CFJ further submitted complaints and substantive contributions to various United Nations human rights mechanisms addressing grave violations committed in the context of the ongoing armed conflict, while holding direct meetings with UN mandate holders and officials of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
In Egypt, CFJ continued its engagement with UN mechanisms through the submission of complaints and inputs concerning arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, torture, and freedom of expression, as well as gender‑based violence. The organization also followed up on cases before African Union mechanisms relating to children’s rights. In Libya, CFJ highlighted patterns of systematic human rights violations and the absence of accountability, warning of the escalating climate of impunity.
CFJ’s participation in the 61st session of the United Nations Human Rights Council constituted a key milestone during the reporting period. The organization delivered written and oral statements addressing the human rights situation in Sudan, Egypt, and Libya, and organized advocacy meetings in Geneva with UN mandate holders, as part of efforts to enhance international coordination and advance accountability processes.
These activities underscore CFJ’s continued role as an international human rights actor committed to rigorous documentation, capacity building, legal advocacy, and engagement with international and regional human rights mechanisms, with the aim of amplifying victims’ voices and promoting justice in some of the most restrictive and challenging human rights environments.
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