Peruvian Government Bills to Control NGOs Raise Human Rights Concerns

In April 2025, the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice (part of the New York City Bar Association) expressed deep concern over the approval by Peru’s Congress of several bills that exert control on the Peruvian Agency for International Cooperation (APCI). A key area of contention is that the new law places excessive, unneeded controls over nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) operating in the South American nation.

In rural, indigenous, and marginalized communities, NGOs provide a vital resource for people to access justice and defend their rights. The new legislation’s concept of “national development,” arbitrary and not well defined, might serve as a lever for the state to stifle dissent and weaken civil society’s important function in counterbalancing the misuse of government power.

Addressing President Boluarte and Congress, the Cyrus R. Vance Center statement notes that the new bills place “disproportionate restrictions… on civic space,” as well as fundamental rights of free expression, free association, and access to justice. It asks those in power to reconsider actions that might endanger the ability of human rights defenders to do their monumental task.

NYC Bar’s Strong Stand on Behalf of the Rights of the Haitian People

The New York City Bar Association remains committed to championing the rule of law and the cause of human rights, not only in New York, but worldwide. In early 2025, the NYC Bar decried the deterioration of the political system in Haiti, hosting a program titled “Crisis in Haiti: The Plague of Escalating Violence.” The program was co-sponsored by the Haitian American Lawyers Association and multiple other civil society and governmental organizations.

This situation in Haiti is one punctuated by coordinated gang attacks, like the attack on an aircraft at the country’s international airport on November 11, 2024. Intensification of this violence led to the deaths of two journalists and a police officer during a December 24 assault on a hospital at the State University Hospital. Earlier in the year, this hospital and others suffered attacks involving looting and vandalism. Such violence has decimated the country’s infrastructure, and in particular its ability to deliver health care to ordinary people.

The situation in Haiti is marked by numerous other widespread human rights abuses, including kidnappings, domestic violence, human trafficking, and abuse of children as forced combatants. The NYC Bar’s concerns also include the unchecked illegal traffic of weapons and ammunition into Haiti. To solve these problems, the NYC Bar advocates for increased international humanitarian aid and legal support for Haiti, and urges members of the United Nations to complete implementation of the arms embargo designated in recent UN Security Council resolutions.