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Title | Date added | Template | Original document | Paragraph text | Body | Document type | Thematics | Topic(s) | Person(s) affected | Year |
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The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of multilateral institutions 2014, para. 80 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur finds all these practices deeply disconcerting, and believes that they profoundly undermine the ability of the United Nations to constructively engage with civil society. States sitting on the Committee should champion the right to freedom of association and the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. In this context, he voiced concern about the election of Azerbaijan to the Committee after criminal charges were filed against three of that country's most prominent human rights defenders. His concerns only increased after the three were convicted. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
Best practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2012, para. 48 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur refers to the report to the General Assembly of the then Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights defenders, who stated that "monitoring of assemblies can provide an impartial and objective account of what takes place, including a factual record of the conduct of both participants and law enforcement officials. This is a valuable contribution to the effective enjoyment of the right to peaceful assembly. The very presence of human rights monitors during demonstrations can deter human rights violations. It is therefore important to allow human rights defenders to operate freely in the context of freedom of assembly" (A/62/225, para. 91). Such defenders include members of civil society organizations, journalists, "citizen journalists", bloggers and representatives of national human rights institutions. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
Best practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2012, para. 49 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In this regard, the Special Rapporteur considers good practice the invitation of the London Metropolitan Police to Liberty, an independent human rights organization, to act as independent observers when they were policing a Trades Union Congress march in London in 2010. He also refers to the statement of the Vice-Chair of the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM) made during the panel discussion on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protests, at the nineteenth session of the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/19/40, para. 33). The Vice-Chair highlighted, inter alia, the monitoring role played by SUHAKAM during a sensitive public demonstration, by deploying teams of observers. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of elections 2013, para. 18 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | However, in many countries, elections have been marred by human rights violations and abuses. For instance, in September 2009, in Guinea, some 50,000 peaceful demonstrators gathered in a stadium to protest against the possible candidacy of Capitain Moussa Dadis Camara for the presidential elections of January 2010. Security forces opened fire and used bayonets and knives to disperse the crowd. More than 150 persons were killed, and over a thousand injured. Many individuals were arrested on the scene, at their home or in hospitals. In the Islamic Republic of Iran, in June 2009, following the declaration of victory for President Ahmadinejad, security forces killed several protestors when they peacefully took to the streets to contest the election results. Security forces opened fire during the demonstrations and used batons and pepper spray to disperse the crowds. Several hundred people were arrested during the protests following the presidential elections of 2009. In the Russian Federation, peaceful protests against alleged fraudulent elections in the context of parliamentary elections held in December 2011 were met with excessive use of force, with over a thousand persons detained in various cities. Various acts of harassment, intimidation, arbitrary detention of several activists and members of the opposition also occurred in the context of the presidential protests on 6 May 2012. In the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in the wake of the presidential elections of April 2013, peaceful demonstrations held in front of the offices of the national electoral commission in several states were met with brute force by security forces, along with arbitrary arrests. In Malaysia, security forces used indiscriminate force to repress a peaceful protest organized by the Coalition for Fair and Free Elections (Bersih), which advocates for the reform of the electoral process in that country. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of elections 2013, para. 19 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Apart from using excessive force against peaceful protesters, in some instances, States have criminalized the participation in and organization of peaceful assemblies during election time, with a view to sanctioning or deterring those willing or intending to do so. In Ethiopia, several peaceful demonstrators and human rights defenders were charged with "crimes of outrage against the constitutional order", and sentenced to life imprisonment for having participated in a demonstration against alleged fraud in the general elections of May 2005, in which over 190 protestors were reportedly killed by law enforcement authorities. After signing a statement admitting that their activities had been unconstitutional, they received a pardon and were freed. In the run-up to the legislative elections in Bahrain in September 2011, numerous human rights defenders and their relatives were arrested, dismissed from their jobs and subjected to intimidation and harassment for various politically motivated offences, including "participating in illegal gatherings". Following the presidential elections in December 2010 in Belarus, hundreds of persons protesting on election night were detained, including civil society activists, journalists, and opposition leaders, including presidential candidates. A peaceful protestor was subsequently sentenced to three years and six months in a labour colony on charges of mass disorder, for his participation in peaceful protests. He was initially detained for an administrative offence, but was later charged with a criminal offence, despite the fact that the police officer who had filed his arrest warrant stated in court that he had not actually seen him during the protest. Similarly, in the Russian Federation, charges of "mass disorder" have been pressed against peaceful protestors during election time. Many demonstrators were arrested and accused, inter alia, of "public intimidation" and "public incitation". Peaceful demonstrators in Azerbaijan have increasingly been targeted in the context of the forthcoming elections of October 2013, with several of them being arrested and/or fined. In Nepal in January 2006, four human rights defenders were arrested because of their involvement in the organization of large-scale peaceful demonstrations calling for a boycott of municipal elections scheduled for the following month. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of elections 2013, para. 28 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | It is also important to allow the unimpeded access to and use of the Internet, in particular social media, and other information and communication technology, which are essential tools, especially in times of elections, by which the right to freedom of peaceful assembly can be exercised, but also monitored and reported upon in relation to human rights violations and abuses. In the Islamic Republic of Iran, in the context of the presidential elections of 2009, access to social media was temporarily blocked across the country, since many bloggers reported on violations against peaceful protestors and foreign media were denied access. In Nepal, in relation to the aforementioned demonstration, telephone lines and mobile phones were cut off in Kathmandu and other major cities by the Nepalese authorities. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of elections 2013, para. 29 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur finally emphasizes again the crucial role played by human rights defenders, including journalists, who monitor assemblies and who have been targeted in the context of elections. In Belarus, in December 2010, the Chair of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, among other activists, was arrested and detained by security forces while observing a demonstration organized by an opposition candidate, which was held in front of the Government headquarters. He was taken to pre-trial detention facility before being placed in police custody. In Malaysia, media personnel covering a protest organized by Bersih were allegedly targeted by security forces, while documenting police brutality, despite clearly identifying themselves as media personnel. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of multilateral institutions 2014, para. 55 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Another example is the World Bank's practice of completely delegating the monitoring of assemblies to local police. Despite the legitimate security concern surrounding World Bank buildings, designated as embassies, the repeated mass arrests, including of bystanders, journalists and tourists, make it difficult and frightening for anyone to participate in or observe World Bank-related demonstrations. Similar examples, such as the excessive force used by authorities during the so-called "Battle of Seattle" surrounding WTO meetings in 1999 stand out as practices that should be combated robustly by multilateral institutions. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of multilateral institutions 2014, para. 67 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Activists from Bahrain, Malawi, Sri Lanka participating in Human Rights Council sessions have had their names and pictures taken by State representatives and reproduced in local newspapers and social media, and been accused of tarnishing the image of their respective countries. In Malaysia, the Coalition of Malaysian NGOs (COMANGO) was the subject of a smear campaign run by various groups after it had made submissions to Malaysia's second UPR in 2013. A local newspaper and Islamic organizations made inflammatory comments against COMANGO, and the Malaysian Ministry of Home Affairs subsequently declared it illegal, before backtracking on its position a few months later. In Saudi Arabia, civil society activists who participated in United Nations forums to report on human rights violations in the country have been labelled as "terrorists" or acting against Islam. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of multilateral institutions 2014, para. 69 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur remains deeply concerned about the enforced disappearance of the Laotian human rights defender Mr. Somphone in December 2012. Prior to his disappearance, Mr. Somphone had been involved in the organization of the Asia-Europe People's Forum held alongside the Asia-Europe Meeting Summit in November 2012. He had tried to address alleged threats from officials against the participants of the People's Forum who had spoken out against the practice of land grabbing. Moreover, in Azerbaijan, in January 2013, law enforcement authorities arrested a large group of peaceful protestors in Baku a few days after a delegation of human rights defenders returned from an advocacy trip to the Council of Europe. During that trip, the delegation had welcomed the adoption of a resolution by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe expressing concern about the human rights situation in Azerbaijan. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
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. 20 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [International human rights instruments that protect the rights of particular groups specifically recognize directly or indirectly the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association for those groups:] The Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms explicitly recognizes the rights of human rights defenders to peacefully assemble, to form, join and participate in non-governmental organizations, associations or groups and to communicate with non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations (art. 5). In its resolution 22/6, the Human Rights Council recognized the importance of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association for defenders. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
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. 32 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Numerous jurisdictions have in recent years banned peaceful protesters from covering their faces during demonstrations, motivated by fears that demonstrators who wear masks or hoods could engage in violence and escape punishment due to their concealed identities. Besides the fact that violent acts during peaceful demonstrations are already illegal under the laws of virtually every jurisdiction, the Special Rapporteur is concerned that bans on face coverings during assemblies are in some circumstances used to target particular groups and improperly curtail their right to freedom of peaceful assembly. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
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. 60 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Criminal procedure laws and penal sanctions are used in several States to deter the exercise of the right to freedom of association. Authorities who are hostile to critical voices resort to criminal prosecution for defamation or similar offences, thereby discouraging and interfering with legitimate activities by groups. Organizations engaged in human rights work, anti-corruption advocacy and other accountability initiatives are particularly targeted. In Oman, between May and June 2012, 11 human rights defenders, including bloggers, writers, and members of human rights organizations and of the media, were sentenced for offences related to injurious speech and assembly. They were all pardoned on 22 March 2013. In Viet Nam, in March 2013, the police charged a human rights defender with slander against the regime. The authorities asserted that he had not expressed his opinions in a peaceful manner and that he had thus disturbed the public order. The country's Press Law of 1989 limits the right to express dissent, restricting it to "constructive" opinions on implementing the lines and policies of the Communist Party and the laws of the States law. In El Salvador, article 345 of the Criminal Code considers as illegal two or more people gathering to commit a crime. Despite the necessity to prove intent to commit a crime, law enforcement officials often stop and detain young people simply because it is believed that they are gathering to organize or plan a crime, or that they belong to a gang merely because they have a tattoo, are young, live in a particular neighbourhood where there is gang presence or are poor. Youth are additionally disproportionately affected because criminal groups force them to join their ranks, thereby violating their right to freedom of association. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
Comparative study of enabling environments for associations and businesses 2015, para. 65 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In some cases, restrictions on human rights can be directly linked to States' efforts to encourage business investment. Businesses then profit from those violations, sometimes calling upon State security organs for further protection. Crimes are often committed on their behalf with impunity. This is particularly true in the field of natural resource exploitation, as the Special Rapporteur documented in his 2015 report to the Human Rights Council. For example, reprisals against activists who stood up to large business interests have occurred in Colombia, the Lao People's Democratic Republic and the Philippines. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Comparative study of enabling environments for associations and businesses 2015, para. 100 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Differential treatment of assemblies takes various forms. The authorities may deny permission, licences or other facilitation for demonstrations and protests, especially those held in opposition to major corporate-sponsored events. A glaring example is the crackdown by Azerbaijan on human rights activists protesting the European Games, which were largely sponsored by corporate entities. The Special Rapporteur previously cited with concern the case of protestors who staged a sit-in at the department store Fortnum & Mason, in London. The demonstrators did not prevent customers from shopping, yet 138 were arrested and charged with aggravated trespass; 29 were prosecuted. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of natural resource exploitation projects 2015, para. 19 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In many cases, the most egregious violations of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of natural resource exploitation are committed against groups and individuals inhabiting regions far from centres of power, who are often at risk or already marginalized within society. They may lack access to information or the means of effectively advocating for their concerns, or they may be confronted with authorities are that are unable or unwilling to address their grievances. The ability to freely associate and to peacefully assemble are indispensable in this regard. Some of the categories of persons that require special attention in the context of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and of natural resource exploitation are women (including women human rights defenders), Afro-descendants, indigenous peoples, peasant farmers, fisher folk and forest dwellers. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of natural resource exploitation projects 2015, para. 55 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur is alarmed by the latitude afforded to corporations and private military and security companies in relation to policing, and often suppressing, peaceful protests. He echoes the grave concerns expressed by other special procedures mandate holders about these companies suppressing legitimate advocacy activity, particularly social protest, and their attacks on human rights defenders (see A/HRC/7/7/Add.4, para. 71, and A/HRC/19/55, para. 63). In his view, the potential for violations of rights, including to peaceful assembly and association rights, is particularly high when law enforcement responsibilities are ceded to private actors, who are accountable to their clients rather than to the public. Private security companies have also been known to receive concessions to exploit natural resources in exchange for their services, further blurring the interests and relationships between the actors (see A/61/341, para. 74). | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of natural resource exploitation projects 2015, para. 63 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Some States may also target members of civil society based on their foreign citizenship. In 2015, the Government of Cambodia, for example, refused to renew the residence permit of a Spanish environmental activist who was working with the local organization Mother Nature to halt a controversial hydroelectric project in the Areng valley. The activist was later deported. The Special Rapporteur emphasizes that nationality is not a proper basis for limiting the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association (see A/HRC/26/29, para. 25). | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of natural resource exploitation projects 2015, para. 64 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Individual human rights defenders and associations may also be subject to attacks, stigmatization, intimidation, surveillance, travel bans, and risk the suspension of their activities or even dissolution of the organization when they speak out against natural resource exploitation. The organization Publish What You Pay Uganda reported, for example, that they had had their equipment confiscated for nearly two months after trying to screen a documentary on lessons that could be learned from other resource-rich countries. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the workplace 2016, para. 71 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | On 14 November 2015, at a rally in the Republic of Korea, 20,000 police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse a protest attended by 100,000 demonstrators. Dozens were injured, and criminal proceedings were brought against 585 leaders and members of the Korea Confederation of Trade Unions. The Confederation president was sentenced to five years in prison (A/HRC/32/36, para. 41). The Special Rapporteur emphasizes again that charging peaceful assembly participants with criminal offenses violates the right to peaceful assembly. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the workplace 2016, para. 76 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Violence against workers is both a reason for and a consequence of the global weakening of workers' rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. In 2015, unionists were murdered in 11 countries for their activism: Chile, Colombia, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Islamic Republic of Iran, Mexico, Peru, South Africa and Turkey. Honduras has seen a plague of violence, with 31 trade unionists, 57 rural workers and 28 journalists murdered between 2009 and early 2014, while 62 trade unionists have been assassinated in Guatemala since 2008. This violence is generally delivered with impunity and serves as a terrifying deterrent to workers' exercise of rights of freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the workplace 2016, para. 77 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | At times State authorities actually bolster employers' efforts to restrict workers' peaceful assembly and association rights. In 2013, in Algeria, police violently dispersed a peaceful protest of the Contractual Workers Union at a Government compound, and arrested 20 people. In Nigeria, on 19 May 2016, police beat, tear-gassed and arrested members of the Nigerian Labour Congress who were peacefully demonstrating, claiming that workers had not obtained police clearance to hold the protest. The Special Rapporteur stresses that the right to peaceful assembly is fundamental; its exercise does not require the permission of the State (A/HRC/32/36/Add.1, para. 17). | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the workplace 2016, para. 78 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Indonesian law states that unions have the right to strike, but police often pressure workers to end legal strikes and protests through violence or arrests. For example, 23 labour activists and 2 public defenders were arrested when several union federations protested Government Regulation on Remuneration No. 78/2015. In 2014, 17 workers in West Java were injured in an organized attack; police watched but did not stop the violence. The incident has had a chilling effect on unionization and workers' exercise of their rights. The role of the military and police in monitoring and providing security services at factories has had a similar effect. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
Fundamentalism and its impact on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2016, para. 45 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Constitution of the Republic of Cuba states that the Communist Party is the superior leading force of the society and the State, organizing and guiding common efforts, effectively eliminating the ability of those with competing ideologies to engage seriously in public life. The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are guaranteed by the Constitution, but in practice these rights cannot be used to peacefully criticize the ruling party or its policies. For instance, in 2012 a group of protestors were reportedly arrested and physically assaulted by the police when they were peacefully demonstrating in Havana against hunger and poverty in the country (see A/HRC/20/30, case CUB 5/2011). Technically, the existence of other political parties was legalized in 1992, but none of these groups performs the function of a true opposition party due to the constitutional dominance of the Communist Party and restrictions on campaigning and the conduct of political activities. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
Fundamentalism and its impact on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2016, para. 49 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Bahrain, formally organized as a constitutional monarchy, has embarked on an extensive crackdown on dissent since a large protest movement began calling for greater political freedom, among other things, in 2011. The Special Rapporteur remains particularly concerned about the imprisonment of opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman and the harassment and detention of human rights defenders involved in organizations defending human rights, including Nabeel Rajab (see A/HRC/28/85, case BHR 13/2014), Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja (see A/HRC/19/44, case BHR 18/2011), Zainab Al-Khawaja, Abduljalil Al-Singace (see A/HRC/18/51, case BHR 4/2011) and others (see A/HRC/28/85, cases BHR 10/2014 and BHR 12/2014). | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
Fundamentalism and its impact on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2016, para. 54 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | As an initial matter, however, the Special Rapporteur emphasizes that no single religious group has a monopoly on fundamentalism. In 2015, a Christian fundamentalist in Colorado, United States of America, attacked a family planning clinic run by the not-for-profit association Planned Parenthood; three people were killed. In recent years, Hindu fundamentalists in India have been responsible for a wave of violence against Muslims and Christians, some of which was motivated by the fact that the latter eat beef (cows are considered sacred in Hinduism). Meanwhile, in Israel and the State of Palestine, Jewish fundamentalists have carried out repeated attacks against Muslims, frequently targeting mosques. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
| 2016 | |||
Fundamentalism and its impact on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2016, para. 63 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association is also concerned when ostensibly secular States leverage fundamentalist religious teachings to restrict the assembly and association rights of certain groups. Nigeria (see A/HRC/26/21, case NGA 1/2014) and Uganda (see A/HRC/26/21, case UGA 1/2014), for example, have seized upon majority Christian opposition to homosexuality to impose draconian laws that severely restrict the assembly and association rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals and groups (see, for example, A/HRC/25/74, case NGA 4/2013; and A/HRC/22/67, case UGA 5/2012). | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
Fundamentalism and its impact on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2016, para. 78 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In Mauritania, the Haratine community is considered the "slave caste" and a large proportion are victims of slavery and slavery-like practices (see A/HRC/31/56, para. 39). Anti-slavery activists and organizations reportedly face repression for their activities from the Government, including harassment, intimidation and arbitrary arrests. Members of the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement and of the non-governmental organization (NGO) Éducation et Travail pour le Progrès des Droits de l'Homme (KAWTAL) were arrested in November 2014 while participating in a campaign against slavery that included rallies, public meetings and lectures. Several activists were imprisoned in 2015 following conviction on charges that included taking part in an unauthorized assembly, rebellion and resisting arrest (see A/HRC/29/25/Add.3, p. 97). | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
| 2016 | |||
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of multilateral institutions 2014, para. 81 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | On a positive note, some States within the Committee have expressed support to human rights organizations. The Special Rapporteur praises Belgium, Chile, Mexico and Uruguay, among others, for their role in combating attempts by peer members to arbitrarily dismiss applications of NGOs. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The Special Rapporteur's vision of the mandate 2017, para. 18 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Successes and achievements of civil society in recent years have been thoroughly investigated and recorded (see A/HRC/35/28). They were, by and large, acknowledged, recognized and endorsed by delegations during the clustered interactive dialogue held by the Human Rights Council with the Special Rapporteur on 7 June 2017 (A/HRC/35/28, para. 4). Yet, since the establishment of the mandate in October 2010, the voices of civil society have been restricted or silenced, if not eliminated, in every region across the globe. Mass surveillance, obstructive regulation of democratic space, including online, overly restrictive legislation to regulate association and limit the exercise of fundamental public freedoms, with frequent use of counter-terrorism legislation to curtail dissenting voices, and harassment of and violence against human rights defenders and ordinary people who exercise their right to express opinions in peaceful protests are all too common. | Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2017 |