From the invisibility of women and girls to "media deserts" amid an artificial intelligence (AI) tsunami, dozens of UN independent experts have been shedding light on the battle for equal rights worldwide as the Geneva-based Human Rights Council's continued its annual session on Thursday.
"UN special rapporteurs, along with other parts of the human rights ecosystem, address, by their nature, sensitive and often divisive issues, that are of international concern," UN rights chief Volker Türk said when the United States imposed sanctions in 2025 on Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Council-appointed and mandated to monitor and report on specific thematic issues or country situations, special rapporteurs and independent experts are not UN staff and do not receive a salary, but their work is unique, insightful and a window to the world.
They also provide a sharp focus on pressing issues of global or national concern, and as of November 2025, there are 46 thematic and 13 country Council-approved mandates.
Here are highlights of rights in the spotlight on Thursday:
'Media deserts' amid shrinking public spaces
Digital technology has become the most disruptive factor affecting freedom of expression in centuries, leading to "media deserts" and dangerously shrinking public spaces, warned Irene Khan, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
Delivering a sharp critique of both corporate tech giants and sovereign States, without naming names, she said many nations are leveraging digital tools to suppress dissent.
At the same time, tech "oligarchs" manipulate online spaces for profit, creating environments "polluted by hate", where women, children and journalists bear the brunt of online attacks.
Read the full report here .
Dangerous asymmetry of power
Underscoring an asymmetry of power that challenges traditional human rights frameworks, the report revealed massive financial gains whereby a single digital company can generate more revenue than the gross domestic product (GDP) of 130 national governments.
Meanwhile, unprecedented reach has seen individual platforms boasting over three billion monthly users, exceeding the population of any single nation.
Watch an interactive dialogue with Special Rapporteur Khan below:
Ms. Khan warned that the line between regulator and regulated has blurred, with States often colluding with companies at a time when some populist leaders and liberal democracies alike are increasingly weaponising criminal laws and weak AI frameworks, to censor speech and incite hostility against minorities, migrants and women leaders.
"The game has to change," the special rapporteur urged, calling on States to take their human rights responsibilities seriously to ensure technology does not continue to do profound harm to global free speech.
"Most governments today in the Council supported me. My question to them is, what are you going to do about it now?"
Taliban decree erodes women, girls' rights
A new decree issued by the Taliban in Afghanistan to govern the conditions for separation of spouses will both license child marriage and prevent women and girls from leaving abusive relationships, UN experts warned.
"The decree on 'separation of spouses', issued by the de facto Ministry of Justice in April 2026, leaves women and girls vulnerable to abuse and exploitation and increases the potential for abuse of power by guardians, including in marriage arrangements, rendering it almost impossible for girls to report or act on domestic abuse, the experts found.
Several provisions allow a child to seek separation upon reaching puberty, indicating a failure to protect them from being subjected to marriage in the first place, which leaves girls exposed to years of physical, psychological, sexual and economic harm before they can seek relief, they said.
Restrictive reality
The decree lists various conditions whereby a woman may seek separation from her husband, including "incompatibility", disappearance, obstinacy and religious grounds, which are not defined by the law.
"On the surface, these appear to be an attempt to protect women and girls by creating uniform guidance nationally, but in practice these provisions are undermined by fundamentally discriminatory treatment of women and girls and bias against them."
Read their full statement here .
Invisibility of lesbian, bisexual and queer women
Policymakers must address the political and statistical invisibility of lesbian, bisexual and queer women whose communities face distinct and intersecting forms of violence and discrimination, said Graeme Reid, the Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
"Despite significant diversity in the lived experiences of lesbian, bisexual and queer women, common structural patterns drive their marginalisation," he said.
The rights of lesbian, bisexual and queer women are often mediated through patriarchal institutions and conditioned upon their relationships with men, which particularly constrains their freedom of movement, housing, land and property rights, access to healthcare and other public services and their rights as parents, he said.
Calls for action
The independent expert urged States to adopt laws and policies that expand women's ability to exercise their rights without condition, address violence against women linked to their sexual orientation or gender identity, prohibit discrimination in healthcare and other public services and safeguard lesbian, bisexual and queer human rights defenders.
Mr. Reid also called on multilateral organisations, national human rights institutions and civil society to collaborate in support of such efforts and to close the data gap.
Read the full report here .
Nicaragua: Gender-based violence used as weapon of repression
Nicaragua's Government has employed gender-based violence as a weapon of political repression against women, girls and LGBTIQ+ persons in a bid to punish and silence thousands of people across the country, the UN Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua said in a newly released report.
Hundreds of all ages have been subjected to multiple violations and political persecution, exacerbated by gender discrimination and stereotypes, said Ariela Peralta Distéfano, an expert member of the group.
"Notably, Nicaragua has employed specific forms of gender‑based violence and repression to target women who played and active and prominent role in the country's public, political and community life."
Equality ends where criticism begins
The main motive behind the violations, abuses and crimes against humanity committed since 2018 in the country is political, the group stressed. However, the gender of the victims influenced how they were chosen, how they were repressed and the impacts they suffered.
"The government boasts of gender parity, but the women it places in its institutions carry out orders, they don't give them," said Reed Brody, an expert member of the group.
