All States should take a strong stand to address reprisals and to support a crucial resolution being negotiated at this session of the Human Rights Council. A weak resolution would seriously undermine the ability of the UN system to address the needs on the ground, said 50 national and international NGOs in a letter to Human Rights Council members.
Click here to read the joint NGO letter.
The resolution on reprisals being negotiated at this Council session provides a timely and much needed opportunity for the Council to take a stand on ‘worsening incidences of intimidation and reprisals’, as reported in the Secretary-General’s most recent report on reprisals. The Secretary General stressed that ‘any act of intimidation or reprisal is absolutely unacceptable’.
‘The detention of Ibrahim Metwally in Egypt en route to the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances session is a clear example of the dire need to act now and ensure that the right of all people to communicate with the United Nations is protected’ says ISHR’s Director Phil Lynch.
The resolution tabled by the core group – comprising Ghana, Hungary, Ireland, Fiji and Uruguay – calls on various stakeholders. This call was echoed by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Right Defenders and by Peggy Hicks from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights during a side event on this issue last week as they urged:
‘It is incredibly concerning that a resolution seeking to assist the Council to take a stand on the abhorrent trend of threats and attacks against those engaging with the UN, is being challenged so strongly. It is imperative that the Council adopt a strong and substantive resolution, following positive developments in the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights‘, said Lynch.
Beyond the grave impact on the life of persons concerned and their relatives, intimidation and reprisals also constitute an ‘attack on human rights, the rule of law, and the international and regional mechanisms themselves‘. This was highlighted by ISHR in a statement to the Council earlier this session, when expressing deep regret that ‘four years since the detention and subsequent death of Cao Shunli, we continue to call on the President, this Council, the Assistant Secretary General and Chin to take action on her case’.
‘Any proposal to weaken the resolution should be seen in the context of ongoing, systematic efforts in a number of States to restrict civil society space, the right to communicate with the United Nations and its effectiveness and legitimacy’, said ISHR’s Legal Counsel and reprisals focal point Tess McEvoy.
‘If this is how defenders engaging at the UN are treated, it incidates a disturbing picture of the situation for defenders nationally. We call on all Member States to take action to address reprisals at the UN level in an effort to protect human rights on the ground’, added McEvoy.
Contact: Tess McEvoy, [email protected].
Photo: U.S. Mission Photo by Eric Bridiers.
The 79th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights will be held in Banjul, The Gambia, from 14 May to 3 June 2024. The session will be preceded by the NGO Forum, which will be held in hybrid format from the 11-13 May 2024.
13 April 2024 marked one year since the Chinese authorities arbitrarily detained prominent human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng and his wife, woman defender Xu Yan. As their health steadily deteriorates, 30 rights groups and the European Union have renewed their call for their prompt release.
As the United Nations face a historic liquidity crisis due to unpaid dues, civil society urges Member States to fulfill their financial obligations, safeguarding critical human rights operations.
