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The Assembly and Association Briefing Newsletter of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association Vol

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The Assembly and Association Briefing Newsletter of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association Vol The Assembly and Association Briefing Newsletter of the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association Vol. 3, No. 4 (Issue 21) - Published June 21, 2016 The United Nations’ Palais des Nations building in Geneva, Switzerland, with the The Celestial Sphere in the foreground p2 p4 p6 p13 Special Rapporteur presents Contribute to the Special UN experts urge India to World briefing: freedom of four reports to the Human Rapporteur’s next report on repeal law restricting foreign assembly and association in Rights Council in Geneva labor issues funding to NGOs the news Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland • Fax : + 41 22 917 9006 • Email : [email protected] http://www.freeassembly.net • https://www.facebook.com/mainakiai.sr • https://twitter.com/MainaKiai_UNSR • https://www.flickr.com/photos/mainakiai • http://ohchr.org Kiai: Fundamentalist intolerance degrading assembly & association rights GENEVA – The phenomenon of fundamentalism is fueling growing intolerance worldwide, which poses a grave threat to the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly the report and of association, United Nations expert Maina Kiai told the Human Rights Council on Click to read the Special June 17 in presenting his latest report on religious, free market, political, and nationalist Rapporteur’s report on or cultural fundamentalism. fundamentalism and its “The concept of fundamentalism cannot be limited to religion,” cautioned the UN Special impact on FOAA rights Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. “It can and should be defined more expansively, to include any movements – not simply religious ones – that advocate strict and literal adherence to a set of basic beliefs or principles.” “At its core, this report is about the struggle between tolerance and intolerance,” Kiai Statement “At its core, this report is stressed. Click to read the Special “The people of the world speak some 7,000 languages, practice 270 major religions, Rapporteur’s full statement about the struggle between live in 193 UN Member States and belong to thousands of cultures. But we share only to the Human Rights tolerance and intolerance. one planet. We will not always agree. But tolerance towards our differences is the only Council on June 17 tolerance towards our way to make sure that they do not boil over into violence, oppression and conflict.” For the Special Rapporteur, the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of differences is the only way association are the ‘bedrock’ of such tolerance, because they help ensure that “all of to make sure that they do humanity, in its stunning diversity, has a voice.” Despite this, he noted, many States are moving in the wrong direction, promoting fundamentalist viewpoints –whether via Factsheet not boil over into violence, government policy or by supporting non-State actors– and suppressing dissent. Click to read a factsheet oppression and conflict.” “Free market fundamentalism –the belief in the infallibility of free market economic summarizing the Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai presenting his latest report to the Human policies– is an urgent threat,” Kiai said, noting laws in Australia and Canada that fundamentalism report Rights Council in Geneva on June 17, 2016 potentially criminalize some anti-business protests. “Economic activity is certainly important, but States tread a dangerous path when they prioritize the freedom of the market over the freedom of human beings. The economic rights of investors should never trump fundamental human rights in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” he stated. Political fundamentalism poses a similar problem, the UN expert said, requiring dogmatic adherence to official party platforms or allegiance to particular leaders. He cited the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Bahrain, China, Cuba, Laos and others as examples. “The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association unequivocally include the right to assemble and associate for political purposes,” the Special Rapporteur said. “In fact, one of their core purposes is to preserve people’s ability to peacefully express their grievances with political leaders. This may pose a threat to the Government’s hold on power, but this should not be confused with a threat to the State itself. The former is democracy at work; the latter is how autocracies work.” The independent expert explained that religious fundamentalism also poses a severe threat to the enjoyment of peaceful assembly and association rights, but emphasized that no single religious group has a monopoly on this problem, citing instances of Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish and Muslim fundamentalism around the world. “The failure of States to ensure a tolerant environment,” Kiai noted, “can have catastrophic results.” “People have an instinctive need to take part in the societies in which they live – to have some control over their destinies, to voice their discontent and to improve their lives. Assembly and association rights allow them to do this, and to do it in a peaceful manner,” Kiai said. “Denying these rights does not make peoples’ feelings of anger, despair and dissatisfaction go away. It simply pushes these feelings underground, where they can fester and turn violent,” the human rights expert concluded. “Extremism thrives in such environments, because it is the only option left.” South Korea Pictured: Special Rapporteur Chile The Special Rapporteur also presented reports on his official visits to Chile (September Click to read the Special Maina Kiai during a break 2015) and the Republic of Korea (January 2016) and a report with his Observations Click to read the Special Rapporteur’s report on his in his presentation of four on Communications to Governments and Replies Received for 2015-16. reports to the Human Rights Rapporteur’s report on his Jan. 2016 mission to the Video of Kiai’s presentation is available via UN TV at this link. Photos of Kiai’s week in Council on June 17, 2016 Sept. 2015 mission to Chile Republic of Korea Geneva are available here and here. The Assembly & Association Briefing 2 Kenya: UNSR tells court that 2015 protest ban violated assembly rights NAIROBI – Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai has filed an amicus curiae brief before the High Court of Kenya in Nairobi, arguing that protesters’ assembly rights were violated when they were prevented from staging an anti-corruption protest in front of the President’s official residence in 2015. The brief was filed on May 27, 2016. The protesters, led by activist Boniface Mwangi – who is the petitioner in the case – planned to march from a nearby park to the residence, where they would present a petition acting the President to act firmly on the issue of corruption. The march was to take place on International Day Against Corruption, Dec. 9, 2015. The group notified authorities of their proposed route, but the request to march to Gate A of State House, the presidential residence, was denied. No reasons were provided. Full brief In his brief, the Special Rapporteur asserts that international law Read the brief protects the right of protest organizers to choose the location of their assembly – whether it is static or mobile. Thus, any restriction State House in Nairobi (photo: Wikipedia) imposed on the location must meet the stringent requirements under Background international law for “legitimate restrictions” to the right to freedom Read about the protest of peaceful assembly. That is, they must be: (1) in conformity with behind the case the law; (2) designed with a legitimate government aim in mind; and (3) necessary in a democratic society. “The prohibition of all access to Litigation The Special Rapporteur argues that the restrictions in this case did Click for more on the not meet this test. State House and its vicinity for UNSR’s project “On its face, the prohibition of all access to State House and its peaceful assemblies does not meet vicinity for peaceful assemblies does not meet the proportionality requirement,” the Special Rapporteur writes in the brief. “Full prohibition of the location the proportionality requirement. indicated by the organizers is severe, especially when the location has a symbolic meaning for the message the assembly organizers wish to convey. Alternative measures, such as Full prohibition of the location agreeing with the organizers on the time to access that location, would be less intrusive.” Kiai also noted that the Kenyan regulation restricting protests at State House – the Protected indicated by the organizers is Areas Order – does not specifically mention the roads around State House or State House Gate A as “protected areas,” meaning there was no legal basis for the restriction. severe, especially when the location Further, the government did not specify what “legitimate aim” was served by banning the has a symbolic meaning.” march. While national security at the president’s residence may be a legitimate aim, it does not automatically follow that the entire perimeter of State House should be off limits to protest. On Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai in his amicus brief filed with the High Court of Kenya in Nairobi the contrary, such spaces are politically important and ought to be “considered as public spaces on May 27, 2016 and [where] peaceful assemblies should be allowed to take place,” he writes. A decision in the case is expected later this year. The Assembly & Association Briefing 3 Contribute to the UNSR’s next report: FoAA rights in the context of labor The globalization of the world economy in the past half-century has contributed to a dramatic rise in the power of large multinational corporations and has concentrated wealth in fewer hands. State power to regulate these business entities, meanwhile, has been simultaneously eroded and co-opted by elite economic actors themselves. Unconstrained power – whether public or private in origin – is now, more than ever, a critical threat to the protection of human rights.
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