By NHRI mandate
By topic
Enabling environment for HRDs & CSOs
Environmental HRDs
Freedom of assembly and association
Freedom of expression
Freedom of the media
Funding of CSOs
Non-government controlled territories
Prohibition of discrimination
Protection of HRDs
Right to a fair trial
Right to an effective remedy
Right to privacy
Right to respect for private and family life
Sustainable Development Goals
Whistleblowers
Women HRDs
By country
In 2024, the Slovak National Centre for Human Rights addressed a letter to the National Council of the Slovak Republic in relation to the amendment proposal to the Act on non-profit organisations (hereinafter “NGO Act”).
In the letter, the Centre shared its considerations on the draft law, including its adoption process, which was carried out without consultations with CSOs, thus weakening and undermining trust in civil society. At the same time, the draft law portrayed civil society as an enemy, and contributed to the restriction of democratic space and the stigmatisation of organisations.
Following widespread criticism, an amendment was presented to the National Council reformulating the original proposal. The new proposed legislation replaced the obligation to register as a ‘foreign-backed organisation’ with an obligation to register for the activity of “lobbying”, targeting non-governmental non-profit organizations only. In response to the new amendments, the Slovak NHRI published an opinion on its website, asking the deputies of the National Council not to support the parliamentary bill.
In addition, ahead of the second parliamentary hearing in March 2025, the Slovak NHRI requested a legal review of the draft law from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).
Shortly before the law was adopted in April 2025, certain provisions were removed, including those relating to ‘lobbying’ activities by non-profit NGOs and the grounds for dissolution due to non-compliance with the newly introduced requirements.
Nonetheless, ODIHR found that the adopted law still did not meet the strict requirements set by international human rights law to limit the right to freedom of association. The OSCE/ODIHR concluded that the law should be fully reviewed.
Slovak National Centre for Human Rights
The Slovak National Centre for Human Rights has mapped experiences of threats, intimidation, harassment and restrictions of rights faced by human rights defenders and civil society in the field of environment protection. The research aimed to find out whether cases of harassment occur, and, if they do, what their nature is and whether they are reported to public authorities. The information was collected via questionnaires which asked respondents to detail their experiences. The NHRI collected 11 cases considered by respondents as a threat, harassment, or intimidation. Harassment of and slander against individuals or their families were most common. Additionally, threats and the use of administrative procedures as a form of harassment (e.g. complaints, criminal reports) were prevalent. In most cases, human rights defenders sought to defend themselves by legal means and addressed existing public authorities. However, human rights defenders perceived the options available to defend their rights as very limited.