Issue 3/2026: When human rights end
April 21, 2026 -
New Eastern Europe
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Issue 3 2026Magazine
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In 1975, the Helsinki Final Act was signed, marking a landmark moment that introduced human rights into the framework of the international legal and political order. Its significance became even clearer in 1976, when initiatives such as the Ukrainian Helsinki Group, the Lithuanian Helsinki Group and the Moscow Helsinki Group were established to monitor the Soviet state’s compliance with its provisions.
These were the first wave of Helsinki monitoring groups, setting a model for later initiatives in other Soviet republics and across Central and Eastern Europe. At the height of the Cold War, these developments affirmed that the treatment of individuals within states was not merely a domestic concern, but a matter of legitimate international interest.
Today, as that very principle comes under strain, this legacy feels more relevant than ever. Major powers are increasingly abandoning decades of multilateralism, reverting instead to a geopolitical logic where might makes right. This shift has many dimensions that cannot be ignored. Among the most consequential is the growing tendency to subordinate human rights to national interests and the securitization of state policy. This trend is not confined to distant powers; it is increasingly visible across Europe as well.
In this issue, we pose a fundamental question: do human rights still matter? Our answer is unequivocal: they do. Yet, we have asked our contributors to examine this question within a broader and more complex context. Can multilateral institutions tasked with promoting human rights endure in the current climate? Where are the most serious violations occurring? And how is the concept of human rights evolving in our region?
Beyond this central theme, the issue explores the role of the Azerbaijani minority in Iran in the context of the US-Israeli conflict with Iran. We also examine the debate over whether Ukraine should hold elections during wartime – an issue that touches on the very nature of democracy under existential threat.
Finally, we present a series of stories on Armenia, offering insight into the country’s domestic and social dynamics ahead of its upcoming elections in June.
Contents
Why human rights still matter
When human rights defenders are imprisoned, it is a litmus test for democracy An interview with Ales Bialiatski
Of course human rights still matter Barbora Bukovská
Rights in the age of the new autocracy Zuzana Pavlíčková
When international institutions fail Anaïs Marin
Georgia’s democracy is being quietly strangled George Melashvili
Armenia’s civil rights under scrutiny ahead of elections Anna Vardanyan
Repressions in Belarus continue An interview with Veranika Stankevich
Essays and analysis
New Persian Gulf war puts Iranian Azerbaijanis in the spotlight Natalia Konarzewska
The politics of reforming Ukraine’s wartime lifeline Jakub Łoginow
Ballots under fire. Elections during war? Mariia Didkovska
Populism and motherhood Tatsiana Astrouskaya
How Georgia is being led away from NATO Beka Chedia
How Central Asia quietly expands its horizons westward Ioseb Dzamukashvili Sekhniashvili
Interviews
The imperial mindest knows no borders A conversation with Vitaliy Dribnytsia
I predicted a stalemate and that’s what we got An interview with Mark Kimmitt
Stories and ideas
The last resident of Kharkov Martina Sanna
Ukrainian children’s future left to Italian courts Nataliya Kudryk
Dividing the forest Nikola Budzińska and Nasta Zakharevich
Armenia’s diaspora comes home amid challenges and opportunities Hugo Laulan
Art, culture and society
Nostalgia is a drug James C. Pearce
New threats of war and how Europe should respond Agnieszka Łada-Konefał
Into the wild: tales of foraging in Armenia Kushane Chobanyan
History and memory
The return of the despot Jens Malling
The myth of the Dalwitz saboteurs Ihar Melnikau
