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Article 19: Freedoms of opinion and expression 2011, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- It is normally incompatible with paragraph 3 to restrict the freedom of journalists and others who seek to exercise their freedom of expression (such as persons who wish to travel to human rights-related meetings) to travel outside the State party, to restrict the entry into the State party of foreign journalists to those from specified countries or to restrict freedom of movement of journalists and human rights investigators within the State party (including to conflict-affected locations, the sites of natural disasters and locations where there are allegations of human rights abuses). States parties should recognize and respect that element of the right of freedom of expression that embraces the limited journalistic privilege not to disclose information sources.
- Body
- Human Rights Committee
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights (2010), para. 19
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 5. Strongly condemns the attacks and other acts of violence perpetrated by terrorist groups, especially Al-Shabab, against the Transitional Federal Government, the Somali people and the African Union Mission in Somalia, and also condemns the ongoing takeover by force of several private media houses, especially in Mogadishu, by Al-Shabab and its affiliates;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights (2012), para. 14
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 1. Strongly condemns the grave and systematic human rights abuses and violations perpetrated against the civilian population, including women, children, journalists and human rights defenders, in particular by Al-Shabaab and its affiliates, and calls for their immediate cessation;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Children
- Women
Paragraph
Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights (2012), para. 15
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 2. Also strongly condemns all attacks against civilians, including the heinous terrorist attack targeting the new President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, and the visiting Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kenya, Sam Ongeri, and his delegation on 12 September 2012, for which responsibility was claimed by Al-Shabaab;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights (2012), para. 16
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 3. Further strongly condemns all attacks on journalists, including the deadly terror attack on 20 September and the assassination on 21 September 2012 of a prominent journalist in Mogadishu, calls upon the Government of the Federal Republic of Somalia to protect the safety of the journalist, calls on all States to provide necessary technical assistance to the Government, subnational authorities, the national union of Somali journalists and individual journalist in this regard, and urges State and non-State actors to refrain from intentional violence against and harassment of journalists and to respect freedom of expression; ;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights (2012), para. 19
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 2. Strongly condemns the grave and systematic human rights abuses perpetrated against the civilian population, including women, children, journalists and human rights defenders, in particular by Al-Shabaab and its affiliates, and calls for their immediate cessation;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Children
- Women
Paragraph
Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights (2016), para. 23
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 7. Strongly condemns the serious and systematic violations and abuses perpetrated against members of the civilian population, including women, children, journalists, parliamentarians and human rights defenders, by Al-Shabaab and its affiliates, and calls for the immediate cessation of these violations and abuses and for perpetrators to be held accountable;
- Topic(s)
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Children
- Women
Paragraph
Best practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2012, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur stresses that States have a positive obligation to actively protect peaceful assemblies. Such obligation includes the protection of participants of peaceful assemblies from individuals or groups of individuals, including agents provocateurs and counter-demonstrators, who aim at disrupting or dispersing such assemblies. Such individuals include those belonging to the State apparatus or working on its behalf. The organizers and stewards of assemblies should not assume this obligation. The Special Rapporteur believes that such responsibility should always be explicitly stated in domestic legislation, as it is in, inter alia, the Republic of Moldova, Serbia and Slovenia. In Armenia, organizers may request police officials to remove provocateurs from the assembly venue (even if in practice the implementation of this provision is reportedly sometimes problematic). The Special Rapporteur holds as a good practice the establishment in Estonia of a Police Rapid Response Unit (riot police) which aims at protecting peaceful demonstrators against attacks by provocateurs and counter-demonstrators and is trained in how to separate the main provocateurs from peaceful demonstrators.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Contemporary challenges to freedom of expression 2016, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- In the context of protests, it is common for journalists to be detained and prohibited from reporting. Such has been the case in Egypt, where journalists collecting information about demonstrations have been detained and charged on various grounds, including involvement in terrorism. At least seven journalists and media workers in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela were arrested and their equipment confiscated for covering looting and public protests. It may also be the case that local officials carry out their functions without appropriately taking into account the roles journalists play, in particular during protests. For instance, a journalist in Mexico covering protests was allegedly detained and severely mistreated by the local authorities. In the United States, journalists covering the protests in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 were subjected to detention by the local authorities.
- 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
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Contemporary challenges to freedom of expression 2016, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- Perhaps most concerning is that Governments often fail to provide measures of protection and accountability that can deter attacks on journalists. The Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights presented alarming statistics involving killings, kidnappings and other forms of aggression against journalists in the Americas, with extremely limited accountability despite some efforts to create special mechanisms for the protection of journalists. Messages from the most senior leadership matter, as I have pointed out in the wake of threatening comments made by the leaders of Thailand and the Philippines. The widespread failure to hold perpetrators accountable for attacks on journalists suggests the absence of concern for the role that journalists play in democratic societies. My communications have highlighted reports and allegations of the failure of accountability in, among other places, South Sudan, where journalists have been killed and disappeared; Mexico, where journalists have been murdered and accountability is inconsistent; the Philippines, which after nearly seven years has not concluded its investigations and prosecutions against those responsible for the massacre of journalists in Maguindinao; and the Russian Federation, where there are multiple reports of journalists who have been murdered and the perpetrators not held to account.
- 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
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (2006), para. 20
- Paragraph text
- 4. Calls upon all States to take all necessary measures to ensure the protection of human rights defenders, at both the local and the national levels, including in times of conflict and peacebuilding;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (2006), para. 29
- Paragraph text
- 14. Requests that the Office of the High Commissioner as well as other relevant United Nations bodies, offices, departments and specialized agencies consider ways in which they can assist States to strengthen the role and security of human rights defenders, including in conflict situations and peacebuilding;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights andFundamental Freedoms (2010), para. 19
- Paragraph text
- 4. Calls upon all States to take all measures necessary to ensure the protection of human rights defenders, at both the local and the national levels, including in times of armed conflict and peacebuilding;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights andFundamental Freedoms (2010), para. 28
- Paragraph text
- 13. Requests the Office of the High Commissioner, as well as other relevant United Nations bodies, offices, departments and specialized agencies, within their respective mandates, to consider ways in which they can assist States in strengthening the role and security of human rights defenders, including in situations of armed conflict and peacebuilding;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Declaration on the Right and Responsibilityof Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (2008), para. 20
- Paragraph text
- 4. Calls upon all States to take all necessary measures to ensure the protection of human rights defenders, at both the local and the national levels, including in times of armed conflict and peacebuilding;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Declaration on the Right and Responsibilityof Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (2008), para. 29
- Paragraph text
- 13. Requests that the Office of the High Commissioner as well as other relevant United Nations bodies, offices, departments and specialized agencies, within their respective mandates, consider ways in which they can assist States in strengthening the role and security of human rights defenders, including in situations of armed conflict and peacebuilding;
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
Paragraph
Elements of a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders 2014, para. 89
- Paragraph text
- As an example of a good practice, the Special Rapporteur commends the adoption of a law and creation of a protection mechanism for defenders and journalists in Mexico in 2012. The law provides a legal basis for the coordination between the government agencies responsible for the protection of defenders and journalists. It defines an extraordinary process for emergency response in less than 12 hours. It also includes collaboration agreements with state-level governments in order to ensure their participation in the mechanism. Furthermore, it establishes a complaints procedure and ensures that public officials who do not implement the measures ordered by the mechanism will be legally sanctioned. The new mechanism also ensures the participation of civil society organizations in its decision-making processes and guarantees the right of the beneficiary to participate in the analysis of his/her risk and the definition of his/her protective measures.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Elements of a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders 2014, para. 91
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur is appalled that journalists and media workers are targeted because of their reports on human rights violations or because they have been witness to human rights violations. They are particularly exposed to violations in contexts such as armed conflicts, post-conflict situations and situations of unrest in connection with a coup d'état or contested elections. In many countries, legal frameworks are used to restrict journalists' and media workers' activities. The Special Rapporteur is concerned that restrictions on media and press freedom and impunity could foster a climate of intimidation, stigmatization, violence and self-censorship.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Elements of a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders 2014, para. 103
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur continues to receive credible reports and allegations indicating that non-State actors, including private corporations, are involved in violations against defenders, including stigmatization, threats, harassment, attacks, death threats and killings. Attacks are sometimes committed by groups which are directly or indirectly set off by States, either by providing logistical support or by condoning their actions, explicitly or implicitly.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Elements of a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders 2014, para. 126
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur also believes that it is essential that defenders make full use of international and regional human rights mechanisms, including special procedures, the treaty bodies, the UPR and the European Union Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders, when reporting on human rights violations and breaches of international humanitarian law.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Environmental human rights defenders 2016, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- In emergencies, some environmental human rights defenders can benefit from ad hoc and structured relocation initiatives. A number of actors provide emergency grants to defenders in immediate danger. Emergency grants that have easy and fast application processes and quick response times and that allow defenders discretion in using funds in a manner appropriate to their personal situation have helped many defenders cope with threats and attacks. With respect to both relocation and emergency grants, however, the particular characteristics of environmental human rights defenders may make the traditional delivery of such support inappropriate: the community-based nature of environmental and land activism may make relocation a less-desirable option and traditional ideas about who should apply for emergency grants may make this option unsuitable. It is vital to consult the defenders themselves on the suitability of interventions in their personal circumstances lest they inadvertently increase the risks that defenders face. Further work should be done by all actors to ensure that defenders are aware of the support that is available to them in emergency situations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Environmental human rights defenders 2016, para. 101
- Paragraph text
- [Regional intergovernmental organizations should:] The ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights should establish a mechanism to provide emergency protection for defenders.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- These difficulties are exacerbated by ignorance among defenders themselves of the mechanisms they can resort to and levers they can pull to boost their visibility and strengthen protection, as well as by occasional communication failings between those various mechanisms.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- During each regional consultation, discussions were held about the threats and challenges faced by certain specific groups of defenders. As requested on several occasions by the Human Rights Council (in its resolutions 13/3, 22/6 and 24/24), strategies and actions for providing them with better protection were also examined. Some defenders face threats purely because of their identity (for example, women, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex persons, members of indigenous peoples, or defenders of persons suffering from albinism), others because of the issues they address (combating corruption, protecting the environment), or due to a particularly sensitive context (defenders working in conflict or post-conflict areas).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Ethnic minorities
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 74
- Paragraph text
- The regional consultations afforded an opportunity to revisit the issue of increased attacks on journalists working on human rights cases. Such journalists are coming up against growing obstacles as soon as they attempt to report on cases of human rights violations. Some defenders stress, in particular, legal lacunae regarding freedom of information and the right to access information. Journalists investigating accountability and combating corruption have been threatened with the suspension or non-renewal of their accreditation as journalists or have been put under pressure to reveal the identity of their sources. They also complain of the perverse effects of enforcing laws against defamation or blasphemy or for protecting national security which lead to censorship or even self-censorship by numerous journalists investigating human rights violations. Finally, journalist defenders have found it increasingly difficult to move around freely, obtain visas, or work in areas of armed conflicts, where they are targeted by the various parties to the conflict.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur was disturbed at the large number of difficulties encountered by this group of defenders, who have to contend with situations in which their physical and psychological wellbeing are threatened. Defenders working in conflict zones and reporting human rights violations face attacks not only from the State, but also from armed groups, militias or terrorist groups, and are regarded as potential enemies by all the parties to the conflict. In that connection, the defenders recalled that the emergence of terrorist groups makes the work of defending human rights especially difficult in certain regions. They also pointed to material difficulties and restrictions on getting into conflict zones, and also to some defenders' lack of experience particularly when documenting cases of human rights violations and keeping their data secure. Finally, the defenders mentioned the exacerbation of nationalist rhetoric and increasing polarisation in public opinion, which tended to isolate defenders, accusing them of not siding with one party or another.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 77
- Paragraph text
- Given the nature of the attacks and threats to which they are subjected and the type of environment in which they operate, the Special Rapporteur intends to organize a specific consultation with defenders living and working in conflict or post-conflict areas in coordination with certain specialized international organizations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- As regards those communications, the defenders made it abundantly clear that in their experience the mechanism seemed opaque and ineffective and needed to be reviewed in depth with a view to make it more functional. Several difficulties were identified during the consultations, especially by the group of experts: the insufficient number of communications sent by the Special Rapporteur; the lack of a system of notifications and alerts to inform organizations and individuals that have filed a complaint of subsequent developments, due to the principle of confidentiality written into the code of conduct of special procedures mandate holders; and, finally, the lack of follow-up to communications once they have been published. Those difficulties were felt to be factors that may discourage defenders from asking the Special Rapporteur to intervene.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 82
- Paragraph text
- Joint communications, that is to say, those sent by several Special Rapporteurs, were mentioned frequently, without, however, any consensus appearing to emerge between the defenders and the experts. Some stress that such communications add to visibility and impact, while others are not completely convinced of their effectiveness and feel that the repetitive nature of those communications could in the long run prove counterproductive. The defenders and experts proposed various solutions to mitigate the difficulties, such as developing a follow-up plan to keep better track of how certain situations evolve. They also proposed that the annual report on communications, which is public, be widely distributed to embassies, nongovernmental organizations and other stakeholders so as to replicate the information and increase impact during exchanges with States. The issue of communications will be the subject of a specific study that the Special Rapporteur intends to conduct together with other special procedures mandate holders.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Global trends in risks and threats facing human rights defenders 2015, para. 83
- Paragraph text
- With respect to country visits, the defenders reaffirmed the importance of meeting actors in situ, while emphasizing that too few official visits were possible each year, due to lack of resources or to the refusal by State to invite the Special Rapporteur. Nevertheless, they pointed out that such visits could also be detrimental for defenders in the country concerned. For example, some defenders complained of "preventive" detentions carried out in countries visited by a Special Rapporteur. Finally, they recalled the need for better up front preparations for such missions and for a follow-up mechanism to ensure that any recommendations issued as a result of those visits are effectively implemented.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph