links: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=41541&Cr=rights+defenders&Cr1=
UN and regional experts urge countries to stop reprisals against rights defenders
“Reprisals have to cease immediately and credible investigations into
pending cases of reprisals have to be carried out,” said Margaret
Sekaggya, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights
defenders; Reine Alapini-Gansou of the African Commission on Human and
Peoples’ Rights ACHPR); and José de Jesús Orozco of the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), in a joint statement.
They also called on States to ease civil society’s access to the UN and regional human rights institutions.
The experts said that reprisals against individuals or groups engaging
directly with the UN and the regional human rights systems took the form
of smear campaigns, harassment, intimidation, direct threats, physical
attacks and killings.
In an effort to safeguard collaboration between civil society and the UN
and regional human rights mechanisms, the three experts called for
enhanced monitoring and action to ensure respect of UN, ACHPR and IACHR
normative agreements and rules of procedure prohibiting acts of
reprisals by States and non-state actors.
“Such steps towards full accountability for reprisals are an important
preventive measure that should be combined with those that facilitate,
rather than deter, civil society’s safe and unimpeded access to the UN
and the regional human rights institutions,” they stressed.
They also called on governments to immediately put an end to harassment
and intimidation of individuals and groups attending the ongoing session
of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
United Nations - UN
http://www.un.org/news/
http://www.un.org/apps/news/subject.asp?SubjectID=5
links:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=41541&Cr=rights+defenders&Cr1=
http://www.un.org/news/
http://www.un.org/apps/news/subject.asp?SubjectID=5
links:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=41541&Cr=rights+defenders&Cr1=
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------
------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------
------------------
