WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The United States has announced Rosa Maria Paya as its candidate to serve as a member of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
Elections to IACHR will be held during the 2025 General Assembly of the Organization of American States, or OAS, in Antigua and Barbuda on June 27.
Rosa Maria Paya is an internationally respected democracy advocate, human rights leader, and expert in Latin American policy. The 36-year-old Cuban activist is renowned for her efforts to promote freedom, human rights, and democratic governance across the Western Hemisphere. She serves as Executive Director of the Foundation for Pan-American Democracy, where she engages with policymakers to advance regional security, human rights, and democratic stability.
As the founder of the citizen initiative called Cuba Decides, she spearheads the most prominent pro-democracy movement, uniting Cuban civil society, activists, and opposition groups to demand political change through a binding plebiscite.
Rosa María Payá is the daughter of the late Oswaldo Payá, the Sakharov Prize laureate assassinated by the Cuban regime. Rosa María has continued his pro-freedom legacy with unparalleled determination. She won a number of accolades, including the Morris Abram Human Rights Award in 2019 and Common-Sense Society Courage Award in 2022.
The independent and autonomous IACHR promotes and defends human rights in all member states of the OAS. It impacts thousands of lives in the hemisphere through the issuance of reports on petitions and cases as well as recommendations to OAS member states to improve the human rights conditions in their countries.
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