IBJ’s Biennial Report 2021-2022

“Now entering its third decade working to defend human rights and protect access to justice for all, International Bridges to Justice (IBJ), thanks to all of you, has evolved into a preeminent legal rights defender organization. Since 2000 when I first brought together a small but passionate group of advocates and lawyers, IBJ has grown to develop 12 country programs, train tens of thousands of defenders, support 99 JusticeMakers in 53 countries, and reach over 38 million global citizens through legal rights awareness campaigns. I am proud of the progress we have made – but it is only a start.

After uniting to survive the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the world triumphantly proclaimed that things had gotten “back to normal” by 2022. While this is certainly encouraging in many ways, in many others “normal” is synonymous with “oppressive,” “abusive,” even “unjust.” IBJ’s mission has always been to fight the criminal justice status quo, whether by confronting the practices of arbitrary arrest and malicious prosecution or by creating networks of empowered defenders who strive to give voice to the world’s most disadvantaged. We are glad to be back to “normal” at work, but IBJ will not accept the “normal” human rights abuses endemic to criminal justice systems around the world.

In the spirit of constant progress and growth, IBJ’s rights awareness campaigns have skyrocketed in the last two years, proving that the world shutting down does not have to put the education and empowerment of marginalized communities on hold. In China, for example, IBJ launched a new project in 2021 designed to assist marginalized groups, including religious and ethnic minorities and indigent accused, in recognizing their legal rights. A similar “Know Your Rights” campaign spearheaded by IBJ Myanmar provided virtual and traditional group discussion programs designed to empower the accused and their families as they navigate the justice system. Perhaps the most publicized of IBJ’s recent campaigns was a 2022 program led by IBJ Turkey aimed at empowering and educating Syrian refugees and women . The campaign included a regular radio show in Syria which reached 1.2 million refugees and gave on-air advice to 65 callers, and a live interview with an IBJ JusticeMaker on one of Syria’s most-watched networks.

2021 and 2022 also saw IBJ and its partners overcome political and social threats to their mission, values, and belief systems. For example, despite a military coup, IBJ teams in Myanmar represented nearly 400 clients in 2021 and 2022, many of whom were detained and charged solely for political reasons. In another example, IBJ Indonesia protected the rights of detained women who are frequently and systemically subjected to violence, sexual harassment, and severe overcrowding while imprisoned; in 2022 alone, defenders represented 440 such clients, even when doing so exposed them to threats of lawsuits, retribution, and even physical violence. These threats are not isolated nor unique; deprivations of the right to justice affect lawyers and other defenders who spend every day striving to provide basic legal representation to those being accused, detained, or prosecuted. This problem becomes increasingly oppressive and severe as the world sees more nationalist movements, autocratic regimes, and discriminatory policing which threaten democracy everywhere.

IBJ recognizes that promoting tomorrow’s justice starts today. Toward that end, IBJ fully appreciates the power of young people to act as a powerful catalyst to achieve change. IBJ has therefore mobilized a network of young people, its Youth for Youth Justice Initiative (Y4Y), to focus on the issues that matter most to the next generation. In 73 countries, children can still be sentenced to life in prison, often as young as 8 years old. The Y4Y initiative, launched in 2019, connects and integrates young people throughout the world, including over 400 youth across five continents, in a unified effort to improve juvenile access to justice and mass incarceration of children. This powerful and impassioned effort to combat injustice has already resulted in the provision of psychological, social, and legal support to hundreds of minors, as well as gaining the release of many child detainees.

IBJ will not rest until life as “normal” includes access to justice, equal legal rights, and unconditional freedoms of expression and belief for every global citizen. We are proud of the work we accomplished over the last two years, and we are determined to continue to strive for justice in every corner of the world. None of this would be possible without the hard work and dedication of our global community of advocates and allies. As much as the world has changed in the past two years, your dedication has not wavered. I continue to be inspired by your solidarity and hope.”

With gratitude for your support,

Karen I. Tse 
CEO and Founder