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Protection of journalists and press freedom 2010, para. 88
- Paragraph text
- Given that in at least 4 of every 10 cases involving the murder of journalists, the victims receive threats before being killed, the Special Rapporteur urges all Governments to investigate such threats and ensure effective protection, for example through witness protection programmes. In this regard, the Special Rapporteur notes that detailed guidelines and recommendations have been set out in the report of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions (see A/63/313), the reports of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the right to the truth (A/HRC/12/19 and A/HRC/15/33) and the analytical study on human rights and transitional justice (A/HRC/12/18).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2010
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Protection of journalists and media freedom 2012, para. 110
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur recognizes efforts in countries, such as Colombia and Mexico, to create bodies to offer, inter alia, greater protection to journalists. The Special Rapporteur underlines the importance of the willingness and ability of such bodies to take on a broad range and high number of cases and issues under its competency; to work with autonomy; to have their own and sufficient resources and to have the capacity to coordinate between different authorities. Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur recommends that journalists and civil society organizations participate in the design, integration, functioning and evaluation of these bodies; that they have investigatory powers; that they have the competency to make recommendations to the Governments of their respective countries; that risk-assessment is prompt and efficient; that measures are implemented promptly; and that a contextual approach is adopted. Protection measures must be holistic, including a range of physical, legal, and political measures.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2012
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The right to access information 2013, para. 107
- Paragraph text
- Government officials who release confidential information concerning violations of the law, wrongdoing by public bodies, grave cases of corruption, a serious threat to health, safety or the environment, or a violation of human rights or humanitarian law (i.e. whistle-blowers) should, if they act in good faith, be protected against legal, administrative or employment-related sanctions. Other individuals, including journalists, other media personnel and civil society representatives, who receive, possess or disseminate classified information because they believe that it is in the public interest, should not be subject to liability unless they place persons in an imminent situation of serious harm.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Activities of the Working Group 2014, para. 68
- Paragraph text
- People of African descent should enjoy all the guarantees of a fair trial and equality before the law, as enshrined in the relevant international human rights instruments and, specifically, the right to presumption of innocence, the right to assistance of counsel and to an interpreter, the right to an independent and impartial tribunal and guarantees of fair punishment and the enjoyment of all the rights to which prisoners are entitled under the relevant international norms.
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The impact of housing finance policies on the right to adequate housing of those living in poverty 2012, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- Housing finance policies based on credit are inherently discriminatory against lower-income households, and at their best increase housing affordability for upper- and middle-income groups. Housing finance policies often "redline" the poor, who are required to pay much higher prices for financial services, exposing them to financial risks inherent to global financial markets and indebtedness.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Year
- 2012
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Review of the standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners 2013, para. 88j
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur calls upon all States to:] Actively engage with the open-ended intergovernmental Expert Group on the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners established by the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, to exchange information on good practices and challenges with a view to ensuring that the revised Rules reflect the recent advances in correctional science and best practices and to implement the Rules at the national level.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Discussion on "Recognition through Education, Cultural Rights and Data Collection" 2013, para. 87d
- Paragraph text
- [In accordance with paragraph 92 of the Durban Programme of Action, States should also:] Adopt laws regulating the collection and processing of ethnic and racial data that protect fundamental freedoms, including the right to privacy, provide the necessary safeguards for protecting data from misuse, such as racial profiling and negative monitoring, and ensure confidentiality of information, in accordance with relevant regional and international standards, in particular the Guidelines for the Regulation of Computerized Personal Data Files concerning the legality, fairness, accuracy and relevance of data, purpose-specification, interested-party access, non-discrimination, security, oversight and penalties. The normative framework should be approved beforehand and lay down the following minimum conditions: the person must give explicit consent; the data collection must serve the public interest, i.e., the fight against racial discrimination; and the framework must be legally binding;
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Activities of the Working Group 2014, para. 89d
- Paragraph text
- [In accordance with paragraph 92 of the Durban Programme of Action, States should also:] Adopt laws regulating the collection and processing of ethnic and racial data that protect fundamental freedoms, including the right to privacy, provide the necessary safeguards for protecting data from misuse, such as racial profiling and negative monitoring, and ensure confidentiality of information, in accordance with relevant regional and international standards, in particular the Guidelines for the Regulation of Computerized Personal Data Files concerning the legality, fairness, accuracy and relevance of data, purpose-specification, interested-party access, non-discrimination, security, oversight and penalties. The normative framework should be approved beforehand and lay down the following minimum conditions: the person must give explicit consent; the data collection must serve the public interest, namely, the fight against racial discrimination; and the framework must be legally binding;
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Activities of the Working Group 2016, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- The Working Group recognizes that without the essential contribution of civil society, non-governmental organizations and academics, the fight against racism, racial discrimination, Afrophobia, xenophobia, Islamophobia and related intolerance will remain invisible. The link between their work, States and various United Nations mechanisms must be strengthened and made visible by joint equitable partnerships. There must be increased support for civil society engagement with States and the United Nations.
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Year
- 2016
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 41b
- Paragraph text
- [In order to protect the right to food, States should:] Adopt tenancy laws, and effectively implement existing laws against the pressure to free land for private investors. The adoption of tenancy laws can protect tenants from eviction and from excessive levels of rent. Such laws can also allow a tenant's heirs to occupy the land if the tenant dies, and provide the tenant with the right to pre-emption if the landowner wishes to sell (ideally, at a below-market price); they can provide for the joint titling of husband and wife as tenants, in order to protect widows from the risk of eviction; and they can ensure that the tenant will be allowed to remain on the land if the property changes hands;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Year
- 2010
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Fisheries and the right to food 2012, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- States should discharge their duties to respect, protect and fulfil the right to food in the fisheries sector by moving towards sustainable resource use while ensuring that the rights and livelihoods of small-scale fishers and coastal communities are respected and that the food security of all groups depending on fish is improved. This is a difficult balance to strike, but, without swift and bold action by States, the contribution made by fisheries to securing the right to food will diminish, with considerable consequences, in particular for poorer rural communities that depend on fisheries for both their nutritional needs and their income. Both coastal and flag States should accept their duties in this regard and should actively involve the fishing communities themselves, both in fisheries management and in the design and implementation of policies in adjacent sectors that could affect fishing.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2012
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 105
- Paragraph text
- The weaknesses in information systems and the poor quality of data are major barriers in investigating femicides, developing meaningful prevention strategies and advocating for improved policies. The different frameworks, definitions and classifications used in the conceptualization of femicide often complicate the collection of data from different sources and could lead to documentation that may not be comparable across communities or regions. Studies on the subject have been conducted primarily using data from homicide databases. Information collected by official or State sources is frequently not harmonized or coordinated. Often there are incongruities between the data collated by the different facilities, including inconsistencies in the categories used to document the circumstances surrounding the crime, the victim-perpetrator relationship and the fact of pre-existing violence. The development of an effective evidence base requires improving the quality and comparability of data.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Year
- 2012
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Diversity in humanity, humanity in diversity 2017, para. 66c
- Paragraph text
- States are encouraged to ratify the core international human rights treaties (if they have not yet done so) and to implement them fully, including in regard to respect for sexual orientation and gender identity, in cooperation with partners. This requires a range of human rights-sensitive measures, such as laws, policies, programmes, practices, case enforcement, mechanisms and personnel, resources (material and non-material), information and monitoring, education and capacity-building, accountability and remedies, and a participatory process and broad mobilization and networking open to civil society, with space for dialogue and reforms.
- Body
- Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2017
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Report of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent on its nineteenth and twentieth sessions 2017, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- The International Decade for People of African Descent aims at raising the issue of the historical, economic, political and cultural non-recognition of the people of African descent who were victims of the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans, enslavement and colonialism. It also aims to deconstruct racism. The Decade offers the possibility of bringing together States, civil society and multilateral institutions to elaborate ways to effectively address the fundamental basis of knowledge and rights of people of African descent. Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, adopted by the African Union and rooted in pan-Africanism and African renaissance, is also an important reference in this regard.
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2017
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Effective and full implementation of the right to health framework, including justiciability of ESCR and the right to health; the progressive realisation of the right to health; the accountability deficit of transnational corporations; and the current ... 2014, para. 73c
- Paragraph text
- [To ensure effective enforcement of the right to health in domestic jurisdictions, the Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations:] Judgements and orders should be implemented with the participation of affected communities and other stakeholders;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Large-scale development project and human rights defenders 2013, para. 81a
- Paragraph text
- [States should:] Enshrine a human rights-based approach to development in relevant legislation and administrative regulations, ensuring that contracts, permits, certificates and other documentation required for large-scale development projects to go ahead, to include the elements mentioned in section IV above, most notably participation of affected communities and those defending their rights in decision-making related to such projects;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 82d
- Paragraph text
- [States should undertake to do the following:] Cooperate to establish and implement a common methodology for the collection of comparable data and the establishment of a femicide watch;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Year
- 2016
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The protection of sources and whistle-blowers 2015, para. 68
- Paragraph text
- State entities should also support civil society organizations that are expert in the areas of access to information, protection of journalists and their sources, and whistle-blower promotion and protection. Many such organizations may offer technical advice and training. States should ensure that civil society can participate fully in all efforts to adopt or revise source and whistle-blower laws, regulations and policies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Large-scale development project and human rights defenders 2013, para. 83i
- Paragraph text
- [Private companies should:] Establish accountability mechanisms, including project- or company-level grievance mechanisms, that are legitimate, accessible, predictable, equitable, transparent, rights-compatible, a source of continuous learning and based on dialogue and engagement (see Guiding Principle No. 31 of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights);
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Role of forensic and medical sciences in the investigation prevention torture and other ill-treatment 2014, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- Ensure that the fundamental principles of investigation, such as competence, impartiality, independence, promptness and thoroughness are enshrined in legislation and officially recognized among relevant departments and personnel, including prosecutors, defence attorneys, judges, law enforcement, prison and military personnel, forensic and health professionals and those responsible for detainee health care.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Discussion on "Recognition through Education, Cultural Rights and Data Collection" 2013, para. 85
- Paragraph text
- Special data-processing methods are necessary for protecting people's identity, in particular procedures that ensure anonymity and guarantee that data could not be traced back to individuals. There is a difference between personal data, which are subject to special protection, and processing impersonal statistical data, which is permitted for historical, statistical or scientific purposes. In that regard, efforts should be made to neutralize the risks inherent in identifying individuals and examine how the data could be dissociated from the identification of individuals. Relevant practice in the field of medicine could be an important guide.
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The protection of sources and whistle-blowers 2015, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- Acts of reprisals and other attacks against whistle-blowers and the disclosure of confidential sources must be thoroughly investigated and those responsible for those acts held accountable. When the attacks are condoned or perpetrated by authorities in leadership positions they consolidate a culture of silence, secrecy and fear within institutions and beyond, deterring future disclosures. Leaders at all levels in institutions should promote whistle-blowing and be seen to support whistle-blowers, and particular attention should be paid to the ways in which authorities in leadership positions encourage retaliation, tacitly or expressly, against whistle-blowers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Criminalisation of sexual and reproductive health 2011, para. 65l
- Paragraph text
- [In applying a right-to-health approach, States should undertake reforms toward the development and implementation of policies and programmes relating to sexual and reproductive health as required by international human rights law. In that context, the Special Rapporteur calls upon States to:] Ensure that accurate, evidence-based information concerning abortion and its legal availability is publicly available and that health-care providers are fully aware of the law related to abortion and its exceptions;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The human rights situation of Roma worldwide, with a particular focus on the phenomenon of anti-Gypsyism 2015, para. 99
- Paragraph text
- There is a need for integrated approaches that combine measures in different policy areas, strengthen political will at the national and local levels in particular and build mutual trust and an openness to learn from past mistakes. Inclusion programmes should not be limited to material improvements; they should also contribute to the empowerment of both urban and rural Roma communities, strengthen dedicated institutional attention to Roma rights and encourage Roma leadership in order to break the vicious cycle of discrimination and marginalization. Such programmes should ensure that Roma groups most at risk of discrimination and/or social and economic exclusion are also targeted and empowered.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 73a
- Paragraph text
- [In that regard, the Special Rapporteur calls upon States to:] Ratify all relevant international human rights instruments that protect the rights of individuals belonging to groups most at risk;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Solitary confinement 2011, para. 89
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur reiterates that solitary confinement should be used only in very exceptional circumstances, as a last resort, for as short a time as possible. He emphasizes that when solitary confinement is used in exceptional circumstances, minimum procedural safeguards must be followed. These safeguards reduce the chances that the use of solitary confinement will be arbitrary or excessive, as in the case of prolonged or indefinite confinement. They are all the more important in circumstances of detention where due process protections are often limited, as in administrative immigration detention. Minimum procedural safeguards should be interpreted in a manner that provides the greatest possible protection of the rights of detained individuals. In this context, the Special Rapporteur urges States to apply the following guiding principles and procedural safeguards.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Role of forensic and medical sciences in the investigation prevention torture and other ill-treatment 2014, para. 72b
- Paragraph text
- [Recommendations regarding capacity-building and training:] Enhance the skills of health and legal professionals on the effective medical documentation of torture and other ill-treatment through training on the use of the Istanbul Protocol and other relevant materials to forensic pathologists, medico-legal officers, general practitioners, psychiatrists, psychologists, Ministry of Health officials and social workers; as well as lawyers, State investigators, prosecutors, judges, prison officials, police officers, immigration officers, NGO activists, members of national human rights commissions and similar bodies, representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of the Interior.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The issue of trafficking in persons for the removal of organs 2013, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- Discharging the obligation of identification will also require States to review existing victim identification procedures, protocols and practices and revise them as necessary to reflect the particular situation of victims of trafficking in persons for the removal of organs, including challenges of identification that are unique to this form of exploitation. Further steps would include ensuring that those in a position to identify victims (such as medical professionals and front-line law enforcement officials) have the technical capacity to do so effectively and that structures and procedures are in place to support such identification.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Violence
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Embrace diversity and energize humanity 2017, para. 59d
- Paragraph text
- States should explore more cooperation with independent national human rights institutions, such as national human rights commissions and ombudspersons, to interlink between international norms and national settings. Those institutions should be supported as part of the checks and balances to prevent and overcome abuses of power and human rights violations, as well to access justice and remedies. They should be paralleled by regional systems and initiatives to help to advance protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity;
- Body
- Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Year
- 2017
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Report on the Post-2015 Education Agenda 2013, para. 130
- Paragraph text
- Accordingly, effective enforcement mechanisms linked to Government accountability should be foreseen in the future agenda. The agenda should contain provisions enabling individuals and groups to claim their right to education as an entitlement in the case of violation or lack of its fulfilment. In this respect, the special role of ombudspersons and national human rights institutions and public human rights defenders should be recognized.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph