“Our aim is to create an annual event that empowers human rights defenders, and gathers key persons and institutions for the advancement of human rights. Defenders’ Days will be a place for networking, constructive coöperation and personal and institutional development”, says Robert Hårdh, Executive Director at Civil Rights Defenders. The conference will be held on 4 April, which is the date of the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968.

During the conference there will be training sessions in digital security, video campaigning and effective lobbying, along with the chance to listen to panel discussions with representatives from the international community such as Mrs. Margaret Sekaggya, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders. There will also be presentations, which include “The Escape from Camp 14” with Mr. Shin Dong-hyuk, a defector from North Korea.

The conference is on invitation basis only and consists of a closed part and an open session. The closed part is for human rights defenders at risk, and relevant stakeholders, while the open session is open to everyone.

During the conference “The Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award” will be given to one of the most outstanding human rights defenders in the world. A report on the situation for human rights defenders in the award-winner’s country will be presented in connection to the conference.

For more information concerning the conference, contact Ms. Kim Matthis: kim.matthis at civilrightsdefenders.org

via Civil Rights Defenders – Annual conference to empower human rights defenders at risk.

Margaret Sekaggya (UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferré)

Margaret Sekaggya, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, presented her report to the Human Rights Council in Geneva. She said inter alia that the response of law enforcement authorities in Tunisia to violations against human rights defenders appears ‘unsatisfactory’ and that the lack of independence of the judiciary is also a cause for concern. “I am concerned about the considerable polarization I observed in Tunisian society between secularists and Islamists, including so-called Salafists, a divide which also transpires to civil society. All stakeholders, including the international community, should work together to ensure dialogue, understanding and respect between different parts of society.”

Ms Sekaggya also told the Human Rights Council that she’s particularly concerned about the way human rights defenders are treated in countries in the Gulf region, especially in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. And on recent developments in Egypt she said that the considerable violence suffered by peaceful protesters, including gender-based violence against women human rights defenders, points to a situation that is getting out of hand.

To hear the radio interview of 1’32″ by Nicki Chadwick of UN Radio in Geneva go to http://www.unmultimedia.org/radio/english/2013/03/human-rights-defenders-more-at-risk-in-tunisia-since-the-revolution/ and press LISTEN.

For the full report of the Special Rapporteur in PDF: http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session22/A.HRC.22.47_en.pdf

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The expert expressed concern about the challenges faced by certain groups of defenders, notably those working on environmental rights and who try to exercise their legitimate right to protest. She also drew attention to the plight of sexual and reproductive rights defenders who are victims of smear campaigns, and those working for the rights of the Traveller community who are excluded from policy making bodies, as well as ‘whistle-blowers’ who are not properly protected.……

The Special Rapporteur also stressed that “blasphemy is currently a criminal offence in Irish legal framework but its codification seems vague, unclear and no longer appropriate,” and welcomed the Government’s initiative to convene a Constitutional Convention which will contemplate the removal of the offence of blasphemy from the current legal framework.  …………….

Ms. Sekaggya recognized that Ireland has been a champion in the protection of defenders at risk in other countries under the European Union Guidelines on human rights defenders. She also acknowledged the Government’s efforts in integrating and promoting the protection of defenders through its development aid.

“Ireland has a unique opportunity to bring human right issues forward now that it has been elected to the UN Human Rights Council and will have the Presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2013,” she said. “In this context, I suggest a first assessment of the implementation of the EU Guidelines on human rights defenders.”
 

for the full end-of-mission statement by the Special Rapporteur: http://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=12823&LangID=E

The United Nations in the Heart of Europe | News & Media | IRELAND IS A SUPPORTER OF HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS DESPITE CERTAIN CHALLENGES, SAYS UN EXPERT ON RIGHTS DEFENDERS.

via DisplayNews

for the full text go to:

CIVICUS Letter to the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders.

Margaret Sekaggya, U.N. special envoy on human rights organizations, leads a delegation to Tunisia for a trip that concludes Oct. 5, a first since the country’s revolution.

“Human rights defenders have played an essential part in the call for democracy, justice and human rights across the region,” she said in a statement. “We are intrigued and excited to observe the working conditions of defenders of all generations in the country that in many ways triggered the Arab Spring.”

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2012/09/26/UN-rights-delegation-heads-to-Tunisia/UPI-29741348668711/#ixzz27fzkoNw1

U.N. rights delegation heads to Tunisia – UPI.com.

This information was provided by the International Secretariat of the Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition (WHRD IC)

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The questionnaires in question, in 3 languages, can be found at: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/SRHRDefenders/Pages/QuestionnaireHRDefenders.aspx

On 14 May 2012 an exceptional group of international experts urged the Government of Mexico to protect better Human Rights Defenders and journalists.  “The killings and threats repeatedly suffered by rights defenders and journalists in Mexico must stop immediately,” urged a group of four experts from the United Nations and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, calling on the Government to move ahead with the swift promulgation and effective implementation of the ‘Law for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists’.

Highlighting the immediacy of the threats facing defenders and journalists, the experts also urged the Government to implement existing protection mechanisms as a matter of urgency, in order to avoid further attacks and loss of life and to complement the new provisions when they come into effect.The Bill, which has been approved by both chambers of the Federal Congress, seeks to guarantee and safeguard the life, integrity and security of human rights defenders and journalists by creating a mechanism with the authority to implement measures to protect those at risk, as well as at preventing such risks from arising in the future.

“Human rights defenders in Mexico desperately need the State’s effective protection now,” said Margaret Sekaggya, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders. “They continue to suffer killings, attacks, harassment, threats, stigmatization and other serious human rights violations.”  “The State has to implement, as a matter of priority, a global protection policy for human rights defenders. The lack of appropriate and effective systems for implementing specialized protection measures are related to the situation of defenselessness in which many human rights defenders find themselves, which has caused the death of many of them in recent years,” stressed Santiago A. Canton, the Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on behalf of the Rapporteurship of Human Rights Defenders*.

“We have to break the cycle of impunity in Mexico, which is becoming an increasingly violent place for journalists,” said Frank La Rue, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression. “The recent killing of four press workers in Veracruz underscores the dire need for concrete steps to be taken to guarantee the safety of journalists and put an end to impunity.”

Catalina Botero, Special Rapporteur for freedom of expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, stressed that “safeguarding journalists and human rights defenders is not only compatible with the fight against crime, it is an essential element of this struggle. The Mexican authorities should take immediate measures to protect those journalists and human rights defenders that are being threatened, as well as to make definitive advances in the struggle against impunity for the crimes that have been committed against them.”

The four experts commended the Federal Congress for approving the Bill, pointing out that it would provide added impetus and sustainability to existing protection frameworks, while also strengthening these frameworks.The Bill was drafted in consultation with civil society organizations, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Mexico provided technical advice throughout the drafting process.

The human rights experts praised the consultative process which allowed multiple stakeholders to play an important role in the drafting of the Bill, and called for the same participatory approach throughout the implementation process. However, they emphasized the urgency of providing effective protection to those at risk and ensuring that human rights violations against journalists and human rights defenders do not go unpunished.

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Countries/LACRegion/Pages/MXIndex.aspx 

For more information:
Human rights defenders: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/SRHRDefenders/Pages/SRHRDefendersIndex.aspx
Freedom of opinion and expression:http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/OpinionIndex.aspx
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights:http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/default.asp 

By UN-OHCHR

The Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, has heard numerous accounts of the abuses faced by environmental defenders, including violence, raids on property, and even killings, during her official visits and investigations in different countries. In addition, families of defenders are often threatened or harmed. The perpetrators, she says, include government forces, as well as non-State actors, such as corporations, and members of organised crime or terrorist groups.

In her latest report to the Human Rights Council, the Special Rapporteur calls for swift action by States to “give full recognition to the important work carried out by defenders” and to “combat impunity for attacks and violations against these defenders… by ensuring prompt and impartial investigations into allegations and appropriate redress and reparation to victims.”

Read more:  http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/EnvironmentalHumanRightsDefenders.aspx

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for the text of her report:  annual report of the Special Rapporteur to the Council

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights’ (IACHR) has it own Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders, Mr José de Jesús Orozco. His report will highlights an increase in assassinations, extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances of human rights defenders in the region since 2006, particularly in those countries where democratic rule is interrupted, where there is internal armed conflict, or where clashes occur between defenders and organised crime groups or powerful economic actors. In response, the IACHR has ordered many American States to take specific action to protect defenders. These protection measures have been issued primarily to Colombia (27 percent), Guatemala (24 percent), and Honduras (9 percent).

At the same event, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Ms Margaret Sekaggya will present ISHR’s report on the situation of defenders in Colombia. The findings are the result of research into whether recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur have been effectively implemented in Colombia, following her visit to the country in 2009. The report portrays a Colombian Government showing a more constructive attitude in its dealings with human rights defenders. However, it also identifies a failure to mainstream this attitude among local authorities, a worrying increase in attacks on human rights defenders in the past year, and the limited success of State authorities in investigating and addressing such attacks. Executive Director of the Colombian Commission of Jurists, Mr Gustavo Gallón will go on to provide a civil society view on the ISHR report and the situation of defenders in Colombia.

Further information about the event can be downloaded here.

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Image via Wikipedia

On the occasion of the 13th anniversary of the UN Declaration on human rights defenders (HRDs) on December last year Protection International issued a video interview with the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Ms Margaret Sekaggya. In 1998, after 14 years of negotiations with governments and under continuous pressure of human rights NGOs, the international community finally recognized the need of human rights defenders for a better protection. To support the implementation of the Declaration, the UN created a Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, at present Mrs. Margaret Sekaggya.
The interview can be seen on: http://www.vimeo.com/27006290, in which Ms Sekaggya explains her motivations for promoting defenders rights, the difficulties defenders are currently facing and how they can rely on her mandate.
For more information on Protection International http://www.protectionline.org/.

(Mr. Jonal Javier (in red shirt), Secretary General of HRD-Pilipinas during the 4th Regional HRD Forum in Manila)

Human Rights Defenders – Pilipinas or HRD-Pilipinas is a non-stock, non-profit organization duly registered under the Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).  It is a membership organization of individuals actively engaging in the promotion, defense, protection and fulfillment of “human rights for all” in the Philippines on various issues be it in civil, political, economic, social, cultural spheres or in the field of development and peace.

Human Rights Defenders-Pilipinas was born-out from the series of campaigns of civil society organizations against the rising phenomenon of extra-judicial killings of human rights workers and activists in Philippines in 2006.  This was highlighted with the official visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Summary Execution Prof. Phillip Alston in March 2007; and, its subsequent report and recommendations on the Philippines at the UN Human Rights Council.  In 2008, under the Human Rights Defenders Program of the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), series of consultations were conducted on the situation and protection of HRDs.  In a resolution during the 1st National Conference of Human Rights Defenders on December 1-2, 2009 at De LaSalle University in Manila, participants to the gathering resolved to establish a formal organization of HRDs to look into possible protection mechanisms for HRDs and ways of enhancing their capabilities in doing human rights work.  A National Coordinating Committee was set-up to implement the resolution and manage the preparation of the organization.  On November 30 – December 1, 2010, the 1st National General Assembly was called for and participated in by 75 HRDs coming from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao; formally launching the Human Rights Defenders – Pilipinas at the La Consolacion Convent, San Juan, Metro Manila.

(HRD-Pilipinas National Training on ASEAN Human Rights Mechanisms)

As a human rights organization, it caters to all the human rights defenders regardless of sex, religion, social status, belief or political persuasions.  As such, it is mandated to provide following services:

•  Enhancement of skills and capabilities of its members and their organizations in particular and human rights defenders in general;
• Policy formulation and recommendation through engaging the Philippine Government and its apparatuses towards recognition and respect of the rights of human rights defenders;
• Campaign for and monitor excesses hampering effective implementation of human rights work;
• Organizing and facilitating formation of HRDs in “areas of struggles” where there is none; networking among and facilitation of support to areas with strong civil society movements;
• Work on preventive measures towards a strong protection mechanism for HRDs at risks through:
• Media work and liaisoning;
• Referral system on sanctuary issues, health, relief and psychosocial services;
• Lobby for and dialogue on preventive measures with authorities.

Towards this end, HRD-Pilipinas shall be a platform for cooperation, channel of communication and a mechanism for protection and promotion of the rights of human rights defenders in the Philippines.

(From left to right: Dr. Renato G. Mabunga, Chairperson of HRD-Pilipinas; Ms. Margaret Sekaggya, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of HRDs; Mr. Yap Swe Sing, Executive Director of Forum-Asia)

For more information, contact us at:

#45 St. Mary Street Cubao, Quezon City PHILIPPINES

Email: hrd.pilipinas@gmail.com Tel.: (+63) (2) 995-0246/ 437-8054

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Mr. Subedi acknowledges that the overall situation of human rights had improved over the years in Cambodia, but that there still was “a great deal of work to be done to strengthen the rule of law, to accelerate the process of democratisation and to enhance the capacity of parliament to hold executive to account.”