A/HRC/47/24/Add.3
United Nations
General Assembly
Distr.: General
29 June 2021
English only
Human Rights Council
Forty-seventh session
21 June–9 July 2021
Agenda item 3
Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to development
Guidelines for lawyers in support of peaceful assemblies
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful
assembly and of association*
Summary
Lawyers and legal practitioners play a crucial role in helping to ensure full respect for
the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and access to justice. They do so by supporting
organizations’ and individuals’ ability to comply with any procedures required by law for
the exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; by working to
ensure that individuals and groups are protected against violations and abuses in the context
of peaceful assemblies; by holding those responsible for violations to account; by pursuing
remedies for those whose human rights have been violated in the context of peaceful
assemblies; and by promoting structural changes oriented towards the reform of systems
which may lead to violations of the rights to freedom of assembly and association.
This report provides not only a set of key principles on the role of lawyers in upholding the
rights to freedom of assembly and association but also a non-exhaustive list of practical
recommendations for lawyers, aimed at supporting them in their work to provide access to
justice in the context of peaceful assemblies.
The Special Rapporteur hopes that these guidelines will offer a useful practical tool for
lawyers engaged in supporting peaceful assemblies, and that they will inspire new legal
initiatives in this area.
* The present report is reproduced as received.
GE.21-08780(E)