UN Human Rights in the field: Americas

Type of presence Location In 2017, OHCHR continued its engagement with the

Country offices OO Bolivia** Americas region from its headquarters in Geneva, the OO Colombia New York Office and 11 field presences. These pres- OO Guatemala ences included two regional offices (Panama City and OO Honduras OO Mexico Santiago de Chile); five country offices (Bolivia (until

Regional offices OO Central America (Panama City, Panama) December 2017), Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras and OO South America (Santiago de Chile, Chile) Mexico); three human rights advisers in the Dominican Human rights OO Haiti (MINUJUSTH) Republic, Jamaica and Paraguay (until February 2017); component in UN Peace Mission one human rights component in a peace mission in Haiti (MINUJUSTH) and one national human rights ad- Human rights advisers OO Barbados in United Nations OO Dominican Republic* viser in Barbados. Until the end of March 2017, OHCHR Country Teams OO Jamaica* provided substantive and administrative support to the OO Paraguay** Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in * Deployed through the UNDG Strategy for the Deployment of Human Rights Advisers. ** Closed in 2017. Haiti. During its thirty-fourth session, the Human Rights Council decided not to renew this country mandate and

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instead requested that OHCHR report on the advance- rights into policies, programmes and activities, such as ment of the National Human Rights Action Plan. OHCHR the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. also worked with a special project, based in Barbados, on supporting countries in the English-speaking Eastern In response to the migration crisis in the region, Caribbean to implement recommendations issued by OHCHR conducted a mission to El Salvador, Hon- the international human rights mechanisms, including duras, Guatemala and Mexico to monitor the human the Universal Periodic Review. In 2017, OHCHR stepped rights situation of migrants in transit and at borders. up its engagement, monitoring and reporting capacities The objective of the mission was to strengthen the from headquarters to respond to the human rights situ- capacity of OHCHR field offices to help promote and ation in Venezuela. OHCHR had to adopt a strategy of protect the rights of migrants and identify opportuni- remote monitoring as access to the country was not au- ties for implementing technical cooperation strategies thorized. In August, OHCHR issued a report document- with government and civil society organizations. ing extensive human rights violations committed in the context of mass protests in Venezuela from April to July. To advance human rights in the region, OHCHR main- tained close contacts with regional organizations, espe- The region faces widespread violence and insecu- cially the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights rity and reports one of the highest murder rates in the (IACHR) and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. world. In some countries, complex networks of organ- In February, OHCHR submitted a written contribution ized crime and drug trafficking exacerbate the situation to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on LGBTI of violence. Security and justice systems face enormous rights. In October, the High Commissioner attended challenges in responding to the violence and govern- the 165th session of the IACHR, in Montevideo, and ments frequently rely on the military to maintain law and launched a Joint Action Mechanism to Contribute to the order, which has serious human rights implications. Im- Protection of Human Rights Defenders in the Americas. punity remains a major concern. Countries in the region were also marked by challenges in democratic gov- During 2017, OHCHR supported and/or accompanied ernance and increasing political and social tensions, the visits of the High Commissioner for Human Rights prompted in part by corruption scandals and the slow to El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, Uruguay and Wash- progress made by governments to reduce poverty and ington D.C., the Deputy High Commissioner to Canada tackle social and economic exclusion. The expansion and the Assistant Secretary-General to Colombia and of the extractive industries negatively impacted on the Honduras. OHCHR actively participated in Regional rights of indigenous peoples and peasant communi- Monthly Reviews under the Human Rights up Front Ini- ties, further exacerbating social and economic conflict. tiative, identified situations for potential risks of human Racial discrimination remained a significant barrier to rights deterioration and recommended appropriate the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights UN integrated responses in the Americas. and political participation. Violence against women remained widespread in the region, which has one of the highest rates of gender-related killings in the world. Country Offices Discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgen- der and intersex (LGBTI) persons is an ongoing issue of concern. Cruel and inhuman treatment, excessive use Bolivia of force by law enforcement officials, inhuman deten- Year established 2007 tion conditions and violence in prisons, were a matter of distress. An increase in hate speech against minorities Staff as of 31 December 2017 - (The field presence and migrants was also reported as migrants and asy- closed in 2017) lum-seekers, mainly from Northern Central America, the Expenditure in 2017 US$1,903,702 Caribbean and Venezuela, continued to be extremely vulnerable to human rights violations. Results OHCHR assisted countries to adopt a human rights per- spective to combat insecurity and violence, with a spe- Strengthening international human rights cial focus on the fight against impunity. In 2017, the Of- mechanisms fice worked on widening the democratic space with a uu A national coordinating body to report to the hu- particular emphasis on protection mechanisms for jour- man rights treaty bodies, reply to individual com- nalists and human rights defenders in Colombia, Guate- munications and enquiries and ensure regular mala, Honduras and Mexico. Work on non-discrimination follow-up to recommendations issued by the inter- issues was carried out, including by strengthening United national human rights mechanisms is established Nations local and regional capacities to integrate human and effectively functioning (EA 6)

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In order to fulfil a commitment undertaken during ties of the penal system, judges of the Supreme its second cycle of the Universal Periodic Review Court, members of the Constitutional Commission (UPR), the Government of Bolivia created a mecha- of the Chamber of Deputies of the Plurinational Leg- nism, in 2015, to coordinate its reporting to the in- islative Assembly, the Ministry of Interior, the Om- ternational human rights mechanisms and the fol- budsperson’s Office and civil society organizations. low-up to their recommendations. The mechanism The information provided by the Office served as held regular meetings between 2016 and 2017 and the basis for holding hearings in the penitentiary arranged for the development of a web-based tool centres of La Paz in order to reduce the percent- (SIPLUS) to facilitate monitoring of the implementa- age of prisoners being held in detention without tion of the recommendations. The Office provided a conviction. In addition, OHCHR’s identification technical support for the development of SIPLUS and description of problems in the justice system and the improvement of its functionalities in 2017. prompted legislators to review the Penal Code. uu A National Human Rights Action Plan integrating uu The School for Judges, the School for Public Pros- follow-up to selected recommendations of the in- ecutors and the Plurinational Academy of Consti- ternational human rights mechanisms is adopted tutional Studies incorporate international human and a participative coordination mechanism for its rights law into their curricula (EA 1) implementation is in place (EA 6) With the support of the Office, the Plurinational In 2015, the Government of Bolivia approved the Public Defence Service and the Victim Attention Plurinational Human Rights Policy for 2015-2020, Service offered the second version of the post- which outlines all of the human rights actions to graduate course in human rights and the adminis- be undertaken by the State. Since then, OHCHR tration of justice, which was taken by 50 public de- provided the Ministry of Justice with technical and fenders from the nine departments of the country. financial assistance in order to disseminate and In 2014, the Office provided technical support to the implement the Policy. The National Human Rights School for Judges and the School for Public Pros- Action Plan for 2014-2018 was also developed with ecutors for the review of their training programmes. the assistance of the Office although, by 2017, it was As a result, human rights were substantively in- still under consideration by different State entities. corporated into the training programmes for new judges, prosecutors and public defenders. Current- Enhanced equality and countering discrimination ly, the training curriculum for prosecutors has one uu The National Committee against Racism effectively module that specifically focuses on international advises organizations of discriminated groups and human rights law and two others make substantive monitors the implementation of the Action Plan (EA references to the rights of women and children. The 4) training programme for future judges includes 15 The National Committee against Racism and All modules on international human rights law. Further- Forms of Discrimination continued to disseminate more, the Office contributed to the development of its “Multisectoral Plan of the Plurinational State of an online training platform for the School for Judg- Bolivia 2016-2020,” and promote the implementa- es, which formed the basis for its own e-learning tion of the 58 specific actions contained therein. platform. In turn, the adapted platform was used to Nonetheless, the limited resources made available conduct training courses for university professors to the Committee have had a negative impact on its on the administration of justice, three postgraduate capacity to carry out its planned activities. courses that were developed in cooperation with the Police University, two postgraduate courses Combating impunity and strengthening that were tailored for the Plurinational Public De- accountability and the rule of law fence Service and the Victim Attention Service and uu The Council of Magistrates, the Plurinational Con- two courses on international standards for judges stitutional Court, the Public Prosecutor’s Office and and prosecutors on preventive detention. the Ministry of Justice improve the compliance with uu Transitional justice mechanisms, including a Truth human rights standards of their policies and pro- Commission, are in place and functioning (EA 3) grammes in relation to judicial independence, ac- The Truth Commission of Bolivia was created by cess to justice, institutional transparency and the Law 879 at the end of 2016 and its commissioners criminal justice system (EA 1) were appointed in August 2017. During 2014, the Between February 2016 and December 2017, the Office supported the advocacy of victims’ organi- Office produced a report with information on all zations, including two that presented a bill on the prisoners in Cochabamba and La Paz (about 5,000) Truth Commission to the Plurinational Assembly. that was disaggregated by sex, age, occupation, The Office provided technical assistance to align custodial status and duration of the pretrial deten- the proposed bill with international human rights tion. The study was presented to relevant authori- standards.

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uu A civil society coalition against torture has been oped to date and coordinate the necessary actions established and is functioning (EA 5) to make use of them. In 2013, Law 474 creating the Torture Prevention Service (SEPRET) was adopted. Since then, the Widening the democratic space SEPRET has served as the National Preventive uu Significant improvement in the compliance of leg- Mechanism under the Optional Protocol to the Con- islation on freedom of opinion and expression and vention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or the right to information with relevant international Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Most local hu- standards (EA 1) man rights organizations, however, have expressed In 2014, the Ombudsperson’s Office requested that concern about the mechanism’s independence. the Constitutional Court declare the unconstitution- With the support of OHCHR, a number of civil so- ality of some provisions of Law 351, which regulates ciety organizations came together in a working the work of national NGOs in Bolivia and imposes group, in 2014, to prepare a legislative proposal excessive restrictions on freedom of association. to reform Law 474, with the aim of ensuring that The Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of SEPRET became a truly independent mechanism. peaceful assembly and of association presented an Following a number of meetings with SEPRET, it be- amicus curiae brief to the Constitutional Court sup- came clear that a review of Law 474 was unlikely. porting the request for unconstitutionality. In 2015, The working group therefore decided to establish, however, the Constitutional Court issued a decision in 2015, a civil society-led “coalition against torture” declaring the constitutionality of the provisions, aimed at coordinating joint actions to promote the which did not take into account the inputs provided State’s compliance with national and international or the international human rights standards. Follow- laws and instruments for the prevention, investi- ing this decision, four national NGOs filed a petition gation and sanction of torture. In addition to other of precautionary measures with the Inter-American activities, the coalition cooperated with OHCHR, in Commission on Human Rights, in 2016, which has 2017, to hold a two-day local event to discuss top- not yet been considered. At present, although ics related to the phenomenon of torture in Bolivia. NGOs are reportedly still facing some administra- One of these issues included a proposal on a new tive difficulties arising from Law 351, none have lost formulation for the offence of torture that was to be their authorization to operate in the country. presented to the Legislative Assembly in the con- uu Increased participation of indigenous peoples in text of the reform of the Penal Code. public life at the national and international levels, in particular through consultation processes and Integrating human rights in development and in the participation in the processes of referenda with economic sphere regards to indigenous autonomy and international uu An increasing number of State institutions develop events (EA 5) and implement human rights indicators according The Bolivian Guaraní Indigenous University devel- to their areas of competence, in accordance with oped training programmes on human rights for rep- international human rights standards, taking into resentatives of indigenous populations. As a result account the Sustainable Development Goals (EA 1) of these programmes, 42 representatives increased From 2011 to 2017, OHCHR supported approximate- their knowledge about national and international ly 30 State institutions in the development of hu- mechanisms and were able to participate in pub- man rights indicators. As a result of this work, 490 lic life and take steps to protect and promote their indicators were developed on the following prior- rights. Over the past four years, OHCHR provided itized human rights: food, education, health, hous- individuals, groups and communities with technical ing, labour, water and sanitation, access to justice assistance, offered legal opinions and developed a and a fair trial and the right of women to a life free number of guidelines and other tools, which have of violence and the right to a life free of trafficking. contributed to the increased awareness of the gen- These indicators were also included in SIPLUS, the eral public about the human rights situation of in- online database established by the Government of digenous peoples. The Office also provided expert Bolivia to systematize all of the recommendations assistance to indigenous communities regarding issued by the international human rights mecha- free, prior and informed consultation and consent. nisms in relation to the Bolivian State and to moni- tor relevant follow-up actions. In 2017, a number of Early warning and protection of human rights in meetings, facilitated by OHCHR, were held with ap- situations of conflict, violence and insecurity proximately 70 focal points, in line ministries and uu State institutions implement effective policies and experts from Bolivia’s National Institute of Statistics measures to foster gender equality and combat (INE). The purpose of the meetings was to review SGBV, in line with CEDAW and ICERD recommen- and consolidate the human rights indicators devel- dations (EA 1)

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During the reporting cycle, a number of laws were Colombia adopted to promote and protect the rights of wom- en, including the Integral Law to Guarantee Women Year established 1997 a Life Free of Violence and the Law against Sexual Staff as of 31 December 2017 54 Harassment and Political Violence against Women. Expenditure in 2017 US$9,786,329 The Office provided technical assistance to the Bo- livian State regarding the implementation of both Laws. It further supported the Vice-Ministry of Equal Results Opportunities and the police in the development of a manual to investigate crimes of feminicide, Enhancing equality and countering discrimination based on the Latin American Model Protocol for uu Increased implementation of anti-discrimination the investigation of gender-related killings of wom- legislation and governmental initiatives in accord- en. OHCHR also worked with the Vice-Ministry of ance with international standards (EA 4) Equal Opportunities on the implementation of the In 2016, the Committee on the Elimination of Ra- Integral System of Prevention, Attention, Sanction cial Discrimination (CERD) reviewed the State Party and the Eradication of Gender Violence through report of Colombia and issued recommendations the development of a curriculum on the subject for which noted the obstacles to economic, social and the School of Judges and by conducting training cultural rights, the right to land and territory and to on combating violence against women for the Min- the participation of discriminated groups. The rec- istry of Justice. The Office trained 90 judges from ommendations remained fully relevant in 2017. In its across Bolivia on implementing a gender approach monitoring of issues such as participation in peace in the courts. In addition, the technical assistance processes, prior consultation and the effective pro- offered to the judicial Gender Committee led to tection of the right to land and territory, OHCHR de- the development of a protocol for judges, which in- termined that little progress had been achieved in cluded a gender-based approach, and the organi- addressing the areas of concern noted by CERD. zation of three workshops, which were attended by In addition, the legislative measures related to ac- approximately 200 participants. The protocol was cess to education, housing and health do not take presented to the Congress in 2017. into account the differentiated approach required to overcome the exclusion of groups in vulnerable Bolivia: situations, such as Afrodescendants, indigenous Expenditure in 2017 peoples and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons. Law 1482 of 2011, which amended Regular budget Extrabudgetary expenditure expenditure the Criminal Code to include measures against rac- in US$ in US$ ism and discrimination, represented a positive step Personnel and in addressing discrimination. The Law focuses on - 1,140,140 related costs sanctioning acts of discrimination, yet it fails to pro- Activities and mote prevention measures or provide reparations - 544,552 operating costs to address the impact of discriminatory acts on the Subtotal - 1,684,692 rights of victims. Programme support - 219,010 costs GRAND TOTAL - 1,903,702

OHCHR staff member facilitating an activity with kids in El Bagre, Colombia. © OHCHR/Colombia

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Combating impunity and strengthening accountability and the rule of law uu Decisions of the national justice system, including ordinary, indigenous and special jurisdictions (mili- tary justice), increasingly conform to international human rights standards, norms and principles (EA 1) Impunity in cases of gross human rights violations re- mained a significant concern in 2017. The apparent in- activity of the authorities responsible for the investiga- tion and prosecution of cases of serious human rights violations resulted from a number of factors, includ- ing extended time spent on building strong cases for prosecution, obstacles to the advancement of certain causes, the prioritization of other, more visible criminal cases, especially those related to the fight against cor- ruption, and the amount of time required to establish and operationalize transitional justice mechanisms, all of which created delays in the administration of justice. Meeting with the Arhuaco indigenous community in Sierra Nevada, In 2014 and 2015, the State promoted constitutional Colombia, to validate a protocol for prior consultation. and legal reforms that sought to broaden the constitu- © OHCHR/Colombia tional scope of military and police jurisdiction through provisions that did not correspond to relevant interna- The Administrative Department for Social Prosper- tional standards. The Office presented technical doc- ity increasingly applied standards of economic, uments to the Congress and the Constitutional Court, social and cultural rights in poverty eradication reiterating the need to respect the limits established programmes and other programmes related to the by international law in relation to the military justice right to food and water in La Guajira. The Office system and the use of force. It also followed up on further observed positive changes in the Depart- the passage of these reforms through the Congress. ment’s guidelines to provide access to education Moreover, the Office undertook advocacy to ensure for children with disabilities and efforts to empower that the rulings on reform of the 2016 Constitutional women in rural areas. Regarding the implementation Courts were consistent with Colombia’s international of comprehensive solutions to the right to an ad- obligations. Specifically, the rulings emphasized the equate standard of living, the Department and the complementarity between international human rights Office took steps, in 2017, to establish a mechanism law and international humanitarian law and the restric- to monitor the programmes that were implemented tive scope of military jurisdiction. to guarantee the rights to drinking water and food of uu Transitional justice mechanisms, including ac- the Wayúu indigenous peoples. While these efforts countability, truth, reconciliation and reparations are commendable, more needs to be done to tackle mechanisms, providing for the active participation the conditions of poverty and inequality in the rural of victims, established and/or functioning in ac- regions of the country. For its part, the Ministry of cordance with international standards (EA 3) Health began to disseminate the Integrated Health With regard to transitional justice, the Office pro- Care Model in the department of Chocó, taking into duced a technical document for the Ministry of Jus- account recommendations issued by the Committee tice, which included recommendations on coordina- on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in relation tion between the Special Jurisdiction for Peace and to Colombia. OHCHR also provided support for the the Special Indigenous Jurisdiction, in conformity development and dissemination of the Health Care with international norms and standards. This had a Model in Chocó, based on a thorough assessment positive impact on the recognition of the Special In- of the human rights situation in the area, and ob- digenous Jurisdiction, in accordance with the scope served its compliance with international standards, established by international law. including with regard to the participation of indig- enous and Afro-Colombian peoples in its design. Integrating human rights in development and in the While OHCHR’s work with the Ministry of Education economic sphere has not been as systematic as it was with the Depart- uu Increased compliance with economic, social and ment and the Ministry of Health, the Office facilitated cultural rights standards by the Administrative De- the hiring of 450 teachers in order to guarantee the partment for Social Prosperity and the Ministries of right to education in Caquetá and encouraged the Health and Education (EA 1) Ministry to commit to improving the infrastructure,

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quality of education and reinforcement of the teach- rate a human rights-based approach into local de- ing staff in Buenaventura. velopment plans, which were distributed to mayors uu Relevant institutions and programmes from the and governors. In 2016, the Presidential Council on national, regional and local levels increase their Human Rights made an assessment of the process capacity to incorporate a human rights-based ap- and reported that nearly 80 per cent of the territo- proach into policy design and the formulation of rial entities had incorporated a human rights-based indicators that allow the measurement of progress approach into their development plans. Finally, a hu- in their implementation (EA 1) man rights-based approach was incorporated into at As a result of OHCHR’s support and advocacy, arti- least 10 public policy documents in four communities cle 123 of the Law establishing the National Devel- that were prioritized by the Office. opment Plan, approved in 2015, provides that the uu Increased integration of human rights standards 2014-2034 National Strategy to Guarantee Human into business operations (EA 3) Rights should include a human rights-based ap- Since 2013, the Office has been participating in proach and be implemented at the national and re- Guías Colombia, a multi-actor initiative that was cre- gional levels. The Law also required national states ated in 2006 to establish due diligence guidelines to incorporate this approach into their public poli- so that businesses can prevent or mitigate the neg- cies. The Presidential Council on Human Rights, the ative impact of their operations on human rights. Ministry of the Interior’s Human Rights Division and The initiative is composed of eight businesses the National Planning Department subsequently from different economic sectors and includes the received training on the incorporation of a human National Business Association, two government in- rights-based approach into public policies. OHCHR stitutions, the National Ombudsperson’s Office, five also supported the development of three brochures civil society organizations and three multilateral or- providing a practical explanation on how to incorpo- ganisms.

Changing lives of women In La Gabarra

In 2014, 54 women from the La Gabarra community in The members have slowly come to recognize them- Tibu, who were victims of enforced displacement, en- selves as rights-holders. Discretely and confidentially, forced disappearance and sexual violence, formed the they speak about the most terrifying incidents of the past Asociación de Mujeres Campesinas y Negritudes Em- and present and ask questions to reassure themselves prendedoras para un Futuro de La Gabarra (AMUCANE- that their perceptions are correct. They are very careful FU). They are women heads of household who provide with their knowledge because they know that it guaran- financial support to their 210 children and grandchildren tees their safety, but they do not keep silent. Together, in one of the regions of Colombia with the highest levels they have learned to develop strategies to protect their of unsatisfied basic needs. The region is also one of the lives, including by providing psychosocial care to other most conflict-ridden in the country due to the continued women victims of gender-based violence. presence of several armed groups. New leaders have emerged during this process, such At the request of the National Ombudsperson’s Office, as Isabel, who, like many other women, made the deci- UN Human Rights began to support this association in sion to build a life project for her children that is far from October 2015. The Office facilitated a series of training violence and illegal activities. In 2016, she began her sessions on a human rights-based approach, gender, university studies in business administration, which she project formulation and the understanding and scope of in turn taught to the other members of the Association collective reparations. In addition, the Office led the col- during their monthly meetings. Because she understood laborative implementation of advocacy strategies with the value of education and the transformative power that institutions and international cooperation agencies in it brings to women’s lives, she took steps to ensure that order to seek funds for the association. the participants in the projects learned to read, write, add and count. This is the best tool for life and over- The implementation of the project provided opportuni- coming marginality and violence. “I had already given ties for the women from AMUCANEFU to meet, work up and believed that I was destined to live in poverty in together and talk about the violence they had suffered. the countryside, but the workshops made me see that I “We already know one another and accept each other could study. I now explain to my children that school is as we are. We know that we have support, that we are a tool to gain knowledge and become independent. It’s no longer alone, that we are a family,” said one of the not only about receiving a better salary,” said Isabel. members of the Association.

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Through its technical advice, the Office contributed them to meaningfully participate in these process- to the inclusion of the United Nations Guiding Princi- es. For instance, members of the National Human ples on Business and Human Rights in the Guías Co- Rights Platform, “La Alianza,” received training on lombia guidelines and participated in the formulation how to formulate municipal and departmental public of guides on decent work, land acquisition, supply policies that incorporate a human rights-based ap- chains and institutional strengthening by providing proach. The participants of the trainings formed a information on applicable human rights standards. network to further disseminate the information and The Office influenced the adoption of mandatory achieve more effective participation in the formula- due diligence standards for the diagnosis, preven- tion and oversight of public policies. In addition, in tion and mitigation of human rights impacts, both in cooperation with the Presidential Council, the Minis- the operations of the Guías Colombia members and try of the Interior and regional Ombudsperson’s Of- the operations of their contractors and suppliers. An fices, the Office strengthened the capacity of social evaluation undertaken in 2017 demonstrated that leaders and organizations in five prioritized commu- approximately 60 per cent of the businesses report- nities to prepare them for the process of public pol- ing to Guías Colombia made significant progress in icy formulation deriving from the peace agreement the implementation of the guides. between the Government and the FARC-EP. The ob- The Office achieved significant progress in promot- jective was to ensure that the communities would be ing the incorporation of human rights into business ready for the initial drafting of the “Development Pro- operations by, for instance, facilitating training activi- grammes with a Territorial Approach,” in each region, ties for business personnel who are responsible for as required by the peace accords, so that they could making decisions related to environmental, social more effectively participate in and advocate for an and labour issues in Mineros S.A., EPM, CENS and improvement of the human rights situation in their Amerisur; reviewing complaints mechanisms and respective territories. The same strategy was imple- procedures for engagement and the protection of mented in Arauca and Serranía del Perijá, where the local social leaders with ISAGEN and Mineros S.A.; National Liberation Army (ELN) has greater influence, and promoting the local development initiatives of so as to prepare them for the formulation of public companies such as ISAGEN, Cerro Matoso, Ecopet- policies before an eventual disarmament agreement rol and Mineros S.A. in their respective areas of influ- between the ELN and the Government. ence. In addition, the Office supported companies in uu Increased use of national protection systems to the management of social conflicts that arose in the ensure free, prior and informed consultation (EA 5) course of their commercial operations in different re- While Colombia is one of the Andean countries that gions in the country. The establishment of dialogue conducted a significant number of prior consultation round-tables, supported by the Office, enabled processes with indigenous communities during the many relevant stakeholders to discuss solutions to reporting period, the majority of these processes did the conflicts that have frequently resulted in protests not comply with international standards since they or blockades. were conducted over very short periods of time and Less progress was made in relation to the National did not allow for internal decision-making processes. Action Plan on Business and Human Rights as there This is in violation of the right of indigenous peoples was limited scope for the adequate integration of to effective participation in the decisions that affect the UN Guiding Principles. In 2017, however, the them. At the same time, some authorities and the Presidential Council was able to advance its imple- media promoted a perception that the right to prior, mentation of the Plan. The Office contributed to the free and informed consultation was a deterrent to formulation of departmental public policies on busi- development. In this context, a draft regulatory law, ness and human rights in Antioquia and Magdalena; announced in 2016, was introduced with the objec- the design of mechanisms for non-judicial remedies; tive of reducing the scope, cost and duration of prior and the formulation of a human rights policy for the consultations without guaranteeing the right of com- energy and mining sectors. munities to prior, free and informed decision-making. uu Rights-holders meaningfully participate in the de- Despite these difficulties, prior consultation contin- sign and monitoring of public policies, budgets and ues to be claimed by relevant stakeholders as a development projects particularly affecting their fundamental right and their use of legal mechanisms human rights (EA 5) has led to 97 Constitutional Court rulings, which The territorial development plans, formulated over have upheld this right. the reporting period, provided an opportunity for the With regard to the protection of the right to land, al- Office to advocate for and facilitate the engagement though 122 requests for the protection of territories of rights-holders in the design of public policies. The were presented by indigenous and Afrodescendent Office therefore undertook a number of capacity- authorities over the reporting period, most of these building activities with civil society actors to enable were not processed. This resulted in the denial of

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the economic, social and cultural rights of various National Ombudsperson’s Office, the Human Rights ethnic peoples, which was manifested in the loss of Division of the Ministry of the Interior and the Nation- land and fauna due to the clearing of forests and the al Protection Unit. The National Army, for instance, contamination of water sources, negatively impact- developed and strengthened the National Imme- ing on food autonomy, child morbidity and mortal- diate Response System to Advance Stabilization ity. The limited realization of the rights to territorial to improve the quality of responses to threats and integrity and participation also affected the exercise attacks against organizations that advocate for hu- of the autonomy and self-determination of ethnic man rights. Specifically, the Response System is trig- peoples, thereby increasing their vulnerability. After gered when complaints are made regarding alleged the peace agreements were signed, new displace- threats, displacement, extortion and attacks against ments and restrictions to the effective enjoyment of human rights leaders, primarily in the departments of the right to land and territory were generated as a Chocó, Antioquia and Cauca. Furthermore, through result of disputes over land by new actors involved the development of the National Police’s Protection in drug trafficking in areas that were previously Strategy for Vulnerable Populations, a new coordi- controlled by the FARC-EP guerrillas. In 2016 and nation mechanism was created whereby OHCHR 2017, there was a marked increase in the number informs the police about alleged threats and attacks of threats against and homicides of indigenous and against social leaders and human rights defenders, Afrodescendent leaders. which triggers an immediate response by local po- In view of this situation, the Office supported the for- lice forces and judicial investigation groups. OHCHR mulation of protocols for interaction with third par- issued two documents outlining the protection that ties in the post-conflict phase and prior, free and in- the State should provide to human rights defenders. formed consultation and consent with 17 indigenous These documents contributed to the establishment and Afrodescendent communities based in seven of parameters for police intervention in cases of regions of the country. It further supported five in- threats against human rights defenders, indigenous digenous and Afrodescendent peoples in obtaining representatives, social leaders and other groups in protection measures in cases of vulnerability and vulnerable situations. physical and cultural risk. Early warning and protection of human rights in Widening the democratic space situations of conflict, violence and insecurity uu National human rights institution functioning in ac- uu Policies and regulatory frameworks applied by the cordance with the Paris Principles (EA 1) National Police and the Armed Forces in relation to The National Ombudsperson’s Office, the national security and the use of force, including in the con- human rights institution (NHRI) of Colombia, was cre- text of demonstrations, increasingly comply with ated 20 years ago and has consistently operated in human rights standards (EA 1) substantive compliance with the Paris Principles. The With the technical assistance of OHCHR, the Minis- Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions try of the Interior and the National Police developed (GANHRI) reviewed the NHRI in March and, as noted and implemented the concept of prevention-based by GANHRI and the same National Ombudsperson’s security, which includes prevention measures in re- Office in its annual reports, it has been operating with lation to social, cultural, economic or environmental financial constraints and limited staff. Consequently, risk factors that have an adverse impact on levels of the Office advocated with the Government for the violence and criminality. Another significant develop- provision of additional funding. OHCHR accompa- ment in the area of citizen security was the approval nied the staff of the National Ombudsperson’s Office and implementation of the National Police and Co- in their field missions to strengthen their monitoring existence Code (Law 1801 of 2016). The Office as- capacities and help improve their relationships with sisted in drafting the Law and delivered a document, social organizations. Efforts were also undertaken at the request of the legislators who introduced the to strengthen the Early Warning System of the Na- bill, on the integration of human rights standards into tional Ombudsperson’s Office by sharing concept the National Police and Coexistence Code. notes and findings that were compiled during field In relation to the peace accords, OHCHR supported missions to rural areas and prioritized communities. the formalization of the Special Investigation Unit to uu Effective mechanisms and measures are in place dismantle paramilitary successor organizations by to protect civil society actors, including human advising the legislators responsible for introducing rights defenders (EA 3) Decree 898/2017 and drafting the proposed text. In order to develop mechanisms to protect human The Office also delivered a technical document on rights defenders, OHCHR provided technical sup- the structure of Decree 299/2017 to the legislators port and collaborated with various national entities, who introduced the Decree. As a result, a repre- including the National Army, the National Police, the sentative of OHCHR was invited to participate in the

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Security and Protection Technical Round-table. In solve disputes and avoid an escalation of violence, the 10 sessions of the Round-table that have taken including in the event of a peace agreement (EA 3) place, OHCHR provided technical inputs to inform OHCHR developed, applied and institutionalized a decisions related to the protection of members of methodology to prevent violence and reduce the the new FARC party. The Office produced two other risk of escalating violence during social protests technical documents on the creation of the security through coordination with State authorities, includ- and protection sub-section of the National Protec- ing public security forces, as well as organizations tion Unit. The documents specifically refer to mech- and communities that had mobilized in different re- anisms for coordination with public security forces gions. By applying this methodology during 47 dem- on the implementation of prevention and protection onstrations of peasants and indigenous peoples measures, as well as information collection process- that took place in 2016, the Office contributed to the es that are undertaken by government institutions, de-escalation of violence and the end of strikes. In the State and the organizations and agencies re- October 2017, the same methodology contributed sponsible for prevention and security. to reducing tensions between indigenous communi- With regard to guarantees for mobilization and ties, which were mobilized in various regions of the peaceful protest, OHCHR is working with legislators country, and public security forces. in charge of introducing a bill on the application of The Office also facilitated the establishment of human rights standards. The draft calls for ensuring spaces for dialogue between parties in conflict and full guarantees for peaceful mobilization and protest provided methodological support for the creation of as part of the constitutional right to freedom of ex- technical secretariats and the settlement of agree- pression, right of assembly and right to opposition; ments that were reached during the dialogues. This guaranteeing the rights of protesters and other citi- approach was particularly useful in ending the civil zens; guaranteeing the right to information during strike in Buenaventura, in 2017. In coordination with mobilization and protest; and reviewing and amend- the Office of the Prosecutor General, OHCHR en- ing norms that are applicable to social mobilization sured that the proposals and agreements respond- and protest. ed to concrete measures, addressed the principal uu Legal frameworks, public policies, State institu- demands of the strikers and included specific mech- tions, as well as non-State actors, increasingly anisms to guarantee the fulfilment of agreements. comply with international human rights standards Other relevant examples include the dialogue pro- in the area of prevention and response to human cess facilitated by the Office in La Lengüeta (Santa rights violations in situations of conflict, violence Marta) to promote respect for the territorial rights of and insecurity (EA 1) indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Advances made in the prevention of human rights Marta; and the negotiation between peasants and violations committed by State agents demonstrate the Government in Catatumbo (Norte de Santander), that the application of the human rights standards where agreements were reached on local develop- proposed by OHCHR increased the capacity of ment projects. State agents to intervene in and investigate com- uu Preparedness, response and recovery policies, plaints of misbehaviour by public security forces. protocols and mechanisms of the United Nations Between 2014 and 2017, 12,150 disciplinary inves- to deal with national disasters, conflict and other tigations were opened, resulting in 8,800 sanc- situations of violence and insecurity comply with tions. Advances in the prevention of human rights human rights standards (EA 11) violations also included judicial investigations. With OHCHR contributed to improving the alignment regard to judicial activity, the Office found that in- of the plans of the United Nations Country Team quiries were initiated in 92 cases, 13 arrest warrants (UNCT) with international human rights standards. were issued, 13 formal investigations were opened The Office actively participated in the development and 31 trials were carried out, which resulted in 15 of the United Nations Development Assistance convictions. In the cases of threats against human Framework 2015-2018 and provided technical ad- rights defenders, OHCHR helped to implement vice to the UNCT in order to reinforce its capacity to protection measures in all of the cases, including integrate human rights standards into the planning by collecting and sharing information that facilitated document. The Office also participated in meetings the protection process, participating in 215 meet- of the Humanitarian Country Team to provide techni- ings of the Committee to Assess Risk and Recom- cal advice on human rights standards. As a result, mend Measures (CERREM) and ensuring the imple- the Humanitarian Country Team’s response plans in- mentation of the protection measures for human tegrate human rights and gender approaches. rights defenders. OHCHR also contributed to strengthening the uu Mechanisms for dialogue and negotiation are in UNCT’s capacity in relation to the internal armed place to enable the Government and CSOs to re- conflict and peace process. In 2016, the UNCT ac-

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cepted OHCHR’s technical assistance on the incor- poration of a human rights-based approach into its work to support the implementation of the peace ac- cord. OHCHR worked with UNODC, WHO and FAO, as well as the Ministry of Justice and Law, on a road map for the formulation of a public policy on drugs and the implementation of point 4 of the peace ac- cord, “Solution to the Drug Problem,” in accordance with a human rights-based approach. Furthermore, OHCHR drafted and shared with the Special Political Mission, areas of cooperation and coordination between OHCHR and the Special Po- litical Mission based on UN human rights policies. The document systematized seven key types of hu- man rights complaints that the Mission would need to be prepared to address in its deployment and operations. In addition, OHCHR facilitated briefings OHCHR staff members monitor massive demonstrations against corruption in Guatemala. © OHCHR/Guatemala on regional and local human rights situations where the Mission will be present. OHCHR also ensured that the Mission was aware of and implemented the Guatemala obligatory online course on human rights for all of Year established 2005 its incoming members and delivered orientation ses- Staff as of 31 December 2017 22 sions on the human rights responsibilities of UN per- sonnel and the human rights context in Colombia, Expenditure in 2017 US$3,929,338 including the Human Rights up Front Initiative. The Office participated in the Integrated Planning Core Group, which provided visions and strategies for Results coordination and cooperation between the Mission and the UNCT. Finally, OHCHR facilitated the inclu- Strengthening international human rights sion of a focus on human rights in all discussions and mechanisms documents produced by both the Integrated Plan- uu State institutions are coordinated to achieve in- ning Core Group and the UNCT. tegrated reporting and implementation of recom- mendations (EA 6) Colombia: Since 2014, OHCHR has been providing capacity- Expenditure in 2017 building support to the Presidential Coordinating Commission on Human Rights (COPREDEH) in rela- Regular budget Extrabudgetary expenditure expenditure tion to Guatemala’s reporting obligations. The Of- in US$ in US$ fice provided technical assistance in the classifica- Personnel and tion of more than 1,000 recommendations issued by - 6,806,308 related costs the international human rights mechanisms. In 2017, Activities and the Office began providing technical assistance to - 1,901,991 operating costs COPREDEH to develop a system to monitor the im- Subtotal - 8,708,299 plementation of recommendations based on the SI- Programme support MORE experience in Paraguay. - 1,078,031 costs uu Civil society and the NHRI make increased use of GRAND TOTAL - 9,786,329 the individual communication procedures of the human rights treaty bodies or UPR follow-up pro- cedures (EA 7) The Office continued building the capacity of civil society actors and the national human rights institu- tion (NHRI) to provide them with the necessary tools to submit alternative reports to the human rights treaty bodies, follow-up reports to the Universal Pe- riodic Review (UPR) and communications to the spe- cial procedures. Civil society organizations submit- ted approximately 20 communications to the special procedures during the reporting period.

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uu UN agency plans and programmes deriving from the 2015-2019 UNDAF serve to systematically fol- low up on recommendations emanating from the international human rights mechanisms (EA 11) After a year-long negotiation, the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) and the Government of Gua- temala signed the 2015-2019 United Nations De- velopment Assistance Framework (UNDAF), which includes an annex with all of the recommendations issued by the international human rights mecha- nisms in relation to Guatemala, as well as the indica- tors OHCHR proposed to measure the effectiveness of the UNDAF. To contribute to this result, OHCHR worked closely with the Resident Coordinator’s Of- fice in its discussions with the Government and ad- vocated with other UN agencies on the key human A representative of an indigenous community, supported by rights aspects to be included in the UNDAF. Follow- OHCHR’s Maya Programme in Guatemala, presents her case ing the signature of the UNDAF, OHCHR developed before the Supreme Court. © OHCHR/Guatemala a matrix for the UN agencies to report on what hu- man rights recommendations they could help to im- limitations of the recognition of indigenous jurisdic- plement. In 2017, OHCHR continued working with tion in the Constitution. UN agencies and supporting them on the follow-up to the relevant recommendations under their re- Combating impunity and strengthening sponsibility. accountability and the rule of law uu The Attorney General’s Office, the judiciary, public Enhancing equality and countering discrimination defender and Constitutional Court increasingly in- uu Indigenous organizations, traditional authorities corporate human rights norms and standards into and communities use litigation as a channel to de- their policies and decisions (EA 1) mand recognition of their rights (EA 5) A series of tailored activities that were undertaken The results achieved through the Maya Programme by the Office for the judiciary, prosecutors and legal far exceeded initial expectations. One of the litiga- clerks strengthened their knowledge regarding the tion cases, for example, led to the establishment of practical application of international human rights a State policy that recognizes traditional territories standards. The Constitutional Court issued impor- within protected areas. In one case, indigenous com- tant decisions based on international human rights munal property rights were recognized in relation to standards on the protection of the rights of indige- over 4,000 hectares that a Maya-Kaqchikel com- nous peoples, in particular regarding the recognition munity had occupied since pre-Columbian times. In of indigenous jurisdiction, the right to prior consul- another case, the Supreme Court urged the Con- tation and to collective property and the unconsti- gress to legislate a norm that would recognize indig- tutionality of lowering the minimum wage in some enous community radios. Through this Programme, municipalities and of the application of the death OHCHR provided technical assistance to indigenous penalty in the case of murder. Moreover, sentences rights-holders and Government duty-bearers on the handed down by judges and magistrates, includ- application of relevant international standards in the ing in the high-risk court and the Supreme Court of litigation cases. The Office also implemented a train- Justice, were increasingly based on human rights ing programme on strategic litigation, which was at- standards. This was particularly evident in decisions tended by almost 100 persons, most of whom were regarding transitional justice, indigenous peoples, representatives of indigenous organizations. This women and the abusive use of criminal charges contributed to strengthening their knowledge and against human rights defenders. In the emblematic capacity to claim their rights before the judiciary. In Sepur Zarco Case, the Court condemned two army 2016, within the framework of the national dialogue officers for crimes against humanity that were com- on justice reform, OHCHR promoted and facilitated mitted during the armed conflict in the form of sexual the participation of at least 225 indigenous Mayan, violence, murder and enforced disappearance. Garifuna and Xinka authorities in seven regional dia- The Office also supported the Attorney General’s logue events. The process enabled them to discuss Office to strengthen their capacities to facilitate ac- and articulate their proposals on the general content cess to justice for indigenous peoples. The Office of constitutional reforms and highlight the scope and helped to develop guidelines for the design of a policy on access to justice for indigenous peoples

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and a protocol on cultural expertise. Both docu- rights in the departments of Suchitepequez, Retal- ments were used to elaborate the policy, which was hulehu, Escuintla, Alta Verapaz, Quetzaltenango, developed through a participatory process with in- Coatepeque, Totonicapán, San Marcos, Sololá, Chi- digenous representatives. The policy was present- chicastenango and Quiché. In 2015, OHCHR sup- ed in May 2017 and the Attorney General created ported the Ministry of Labour to develop and im- the position of Secretary for Indigenous Peoples to plement a manual to guide labour inspectors when ensure its implementation. The Attorney General’s verifying the human rights situation of agricultural Office has demonstrated significant progress in the workers. fight against corruption and impunity, including in the During the reporting period, the Office also tackled investigation of past crimes. The so-called CREOM- the issue of business and human rights, in particular PAZ case is the first transitional justice case at the due to the limited capacity of the State to investi- national level, which led to the arrest of military of- gate business operations that result in human rights ficials at all levels in the chain of command. violations and the lack of implemented institutional reforms to incorporate business and human rights Integrating human rights in development and in the standards into relevant State policies. OHCHR facili- economic sphere tated discussions and conducted training activities uu Selected policies related to the exploitation of nat- with State representatives on the Guiding Principles ural resources and rural and local development in- on Business and Human Rights. As a result, COPRE- corporate human rights standards into their design DEH expressed its intention to develop a policy on and implementation (EA 1) business and human rights. A number of policies on the use of natural resources uu A national network of NGOs monitors the imple- and rural development, which were drafted with the mentation of public policies, including budgets, support of OHCHR, incorporate applicable human related to the right to food, land and housing and rights standards. Through the development of sev- engages with government institutions in these ar- eral workshops for the Ministry of Environment and eas (EA 5) Natural Resources, the Office was able to influence In 2014, a national network of NGOs working on the design of policies on environmental issues. The economic, social and cultural rights was established. Ministry committed to developing a guidance docu- The network held regular meetings to exchange in- ment for consultation with indigenous peoples dur- formation and drafted a shadow report to the Com- ing the initial phase of environmental impact stud- mittee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Sev- ies related to the exploitation of natural resources. eral of the issues addressed in this report, prepared In 2015, OHCHR supported the Ministry of Labour with the technical assistance of OHCHR, were incor- in developing and approving a protocol on the veri- porated into the final report and recommendations fication of labour law violations in accordance with issued by the Committee. With the support of the a human rights-based approach. In 2016, the Min- Office, these organizations increased their knowl- istry adopted the Single Protocol of Procedures for edge in relation to international standards on hu- the General Inspectorate of Labour, which contains man rights, the justiciability of economic, social and a specific section on agricultural workers. As a re- cultural rights and access to information, all of which sult of the implementation of the Protocol, labour significantly helped them in their monitoring and au- inspectors are more aware of the issues faced by diting of the State’s budget. agricultural workers, most of whom are indigenous peoples. With the technical assistance of ILO and Widening the democratic space OHCHR, the Ministry is developing a procedure for uu The NHRI fulfils its mandate in accordance with in- the inspection of labour and human rights conditions ternational human rights standards in investigating in manufacturing operations. human rights abuses (EA 1) uu The Labour Inspectorate adopts and increasingly The NHRI strengthened its capacity to undertake implements a policy to monitor the fulfilment of the the investigation and documentation of human rights rights of land workers (EA 1) violations in a number of different settings, includ- In 2014, the Office supported the establishment of ing prisons, situations of social conflict and elections. a Task Force focusing on human rights issues in the The NHRI also improved its instrument on early warn- agricultural sphere. The Task Force is composed of ing, resulting in the increased capacity of its regional trade unions, rural peasant organizations, academ- offices to monitor and report on urgent cases of hu- ics, lawyers, activists and other groups. The Task man rights violations. OHCHR contributed to these Force developed a study on the human rights of results by conducting joint monitoring missions and agricultural workers, which was shared with relevant exchanging information with the NHRI. With the tech- authorities. The study benefited from the findings nical support of OHCHR, the NHRI issued thematic of OHCHR’s monitoring missions to observe labour reports and studies on pretrial detention and vio-

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lent deaths in detention and prepared a Guide on National Strategy for Citizenship Education, which interventions in urgent and specific situations, which includes practical pedagogical guidelines for teach- was implemented to monitor the electoral process ers of primary and secondary education and focuses in 2015. In 2017, information gathered by OHCHR on five thematic axes, namely, human rights, democ- during six monitoring missions to the western part racy, historic memory, multiculturalism and a culture of the country was used to identify trends, patterns of peace. Launched by the Minister of Education in and potential crisis situations in order for the NHRI to 2016, the Strategy represents a key step in advanc- take preventive steps. ing human rights education in the official education uu Strengthened protection mechanisms for human system. rights defenders working in accordance with inter- national standards (EA 3) Early warning and protection of human rights in Throughout the years, civil society actors, includ- situations of conflict, violence and insecurity ing journalists and human rights defenders, have uu Public policies in the area of security incorporate increased their capacity to use regional and interna- human rights standards (EA 1) tional human rights mechanisms to claim and defend During the reporting cycle, a number of laws and their rights. In 2014, for instance, following assistance policies were developed or amended in line with provided by the Office, human rights defenders par- international standards. The Migration Code, which ticipated in sessions of the Inter-American Commis- incorporates a human rights-based approach as a sion on Human Rights and provided information on result of the Office’s joint work with the UNCT and individual cases of attacks on defenders. They also civil society, was adopted in September 2016. A documented cases of human rights violations against proposal for amendments to the Law that regulates them and presented their findings to the UN Special private security services, which would align it with Rapporteur on human rights defenders and the OAS international human rights standards, was present- Special Rapporteur for freedom of expression. In ad- ed to the Congress. The proposal was made after dition, the Office regularly monitored allegations of OHCHR facilitated a visit to Guatemala of a member threats and attacks against human rights defenders of the UN Working Group on the use of mercenar- across the country and advocated with State authori- ies, who interacted with the Congress, civil society ties to ensure the implementation of adequate re- and the private sector. Furthermore, State security sponses. The State demonstrated an improvement institutions made good progress in incorporating hu- in ensuring protection mechanisms for human rights man rights into their policies. For instance, the police defenders as a result of OHCHR’s capacity-building improved their internal procedures to limit the use of activities, including trainings on investigation tech- force against civilians, particularly in the context of niques for public prosecutors. Furthermore, in 2017, judicial evictions. In addition, the unit within the Min- the Office participated in the development of a pub- istry of Interior that regulates private security servic- lic policy on the protection of human rights defend- es adopted internal manuals and protocols. OHCHR ers, which is still under development. played an important role in this result. uu Increased advocacy and awareness of national uu State policies and practices increasingly address protection systems by the general public, particu- SGBV, including through the application of national larly youth and women (EA 5) legislation by the judiciary (EA 1) The Office continued promoting the debate on hu- In cooperation with the School of Judicial Studies and man rights issues of particular concern through press the Supreme Court of Justice, the Office presented conferences, press releases, meetings with opinion a toolkit, in 2016, for the incorporation of a human leaders, social media platforms and networks and in- rights-based approach and a gender perspective terviews. Through these means, the Office increased into sentences of feminicide and other forms of vio- the awareness of the general public on critical human lence against women. The toolkit is based on a 2014 rights issues, including the situation of human rights study, supported by OHCHR, which analysed how defenders and journalists, insecurity, justice, transi- the specialized tribunals incorporated international tional justice, the situation of indigenous peoples standards into their rulings and applied a gender and economic, social and cultural rights. In the area perspective. Further, the study also assessed the im- of human rights education, the Office worked with in- pact of the training curriculum of the School of Judi- stitutions and relevant actors, such as teachers, stu- cial Studies in relation to gender matters. The toolkit dents and community leaders, to promote practical has now been disseminated to all judges of the spe- methodologies for human rights education. Through cialized and ordinary tribunals across the country. assistance provided to the Board of Education for It has also been shared with other Latin American Peace, Human Rights and Memory (composed of countries as a good practice. over 35 civil society organizations), the Office and other UN agencies contributed to the design of the

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Guatemala: dividual communications and enquiries; and inte- Expenditure in 2017 grated follow-up to recommendations issued by the international human rights mechanisms (EA 6) Regular budget Extrabudgetary expenditure expenditure A national mechanism for reporting on and following- in US$ in US$ up to recommendations from the international hu- Personnel and man rights mechanisms is not yet in place. OHCHR - 2,781,037 related costs provided inputs to the draft decree that would cre- Activities and ate such a mechanism. It is anticipated that the draft - 745,149 operating costs decree will be submitted to the Council of Ministers Subtotal - 3,526,186 for approval in 2018. In the meantime, an ad hoc Programme support inter-institutional mechanism will follow up on the - 403,152 costs implementation of recommendations accepted by GRAND TOTAL - 3,929,338 Honduras. uu Increased number of substantive submissions to the international human rights mechanisms by the NHRI and civil society organizations (EA 7) Honduras With OHCHR’s guidance, NGO submissions were made, in 2017, in anticipation of the review of Hon- Year established 2015 duras by the Human Rights Committee, the Com- Staff as of 31 December 2017 9 mittee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Expenditure in 2017 US$1,957,777 the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The Office also supported submissions by the national human rights institution to the two previously mentioned human Results rights treaty bodies.

Strengthening international human rights Combating impunity and strengthening mechanisms accountability and the rule of law uu Optional Protocols to ICESCR and CEDAW ratified uu National justice systems, including military justice, and declarations made recognizing the competence increasingly conform to human rights principles of CERD, the Human Rights Committee, CAT, CED and standards in their institutional setup and deci- and CMW to handle individual complaints (EA 2) sions (EA 1) Honduras has ratified the core human rights treaties OHCHR sought to promote the adoption of a legal but no progress has been achieved in the ratification framework for the establishment of a judicial council of their optional protocols, in spite of the targeted and to strengthen the selection process of justice op- recommendations issued by the international hu- erators, in compliance with human rights standards. man rights mechanisms. On several occasions, the Office met with a judge uu Establishment of a participatory standing national of the Supreme Court who is in charge of the com- coordinating body on reporting on/replying to in- mission that is tasked with reviewing relevant legisla-

OHCHR’s Representative in Honduras meets with community leaders in relation to a demonstration against a hydroelectric project in Pajuiles, Honduras. © Movimiento Amplio por la Dignidad y la Justicia

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tion. The Supreme Court submitted a formal request training to business operations. The Office held for technical assistance from the Office. The Office meetings with the main Honduran business associa- also engaged with the Judiciary School to develop tions in order to raise their awareness about the UN capacity-building trainings on human rights for justice Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, operators. It is expected that a memorandum of un- as these associations have decisive influence over derstanding will be signed in 2018. A technical col- governmental decisions and policies in the develop- laboration agreement has been struck with the Office ment sphere. of the Attorney General to develop and implement a protocol for the investigation of crimes against human Widening the democratic space rights defenders. Since September 2017, six working uu Respect and exercise of the right to freedom of sessions of the drafting team have taken place. opinion and expression, assembly and participa- uu National protection mechanisms, in particular the tion in political life are promoted, including in the CONAPREV, are strengthened to monitor, investi- context of elections and public protest (EA 1) gate and redress acts of torture and ill-treatment Through a number of advocacy efforts, OHCHR and violations of the rights of persons deprived of sought to promote respect for the freedoms of opin- their liberty (EA3) ion and expression. The Office actively advocated OHCHR provided support to the National Commit- with the Congress for the decriminalization of the tee for the Prevention of Torture, Cruel, Inhuman or so-called honour crimes that were outlined in the Degrading Treatment (CONAPREV), established in proposed Criminal Penal Code. While the approved 2016, aimed at strengthening its mandate, structure Code maintains the crime of defamation, it is now and visibility. The Office offered technical assistance punishable with a fine, rather than imprisonment. during several of CONAPREV’s planning meetings The Office also issued a joint press release with the and discussions around legislative reforms and also Inter-American Commission on Human Rights ex- advocated with institutions of the penitentiary sec- pressing concern over the adopted reforms in the tor for their increased engagement with CONAPREV. Honduran Penal Code, which may negatively impact Furthermore, OHCHR engaged with the Director of the legitimate exercise and enjoyment of freedom of the Penitentiary Institute to promote the Institute’s expression in the country. compliance with the recommendations of CONAP- uu The Ombudsperson’s Office works in conformity REV. Due to its weak institutional framework and lim- with international standards (EA 1) ited resources, the Office undertook advocacy with In 2010, after the 2009 military coup, the status of national authorities to strengthen that framework. the national human rights institution (CONADEH) was downgraded from ‘A’ to ‘B’ by the Global Alli- Integrating human rights in development and in the ance of National Human Rights Institutions. Follow- economic sphere ing several failed efforts by CONADEH to regain an uu National protection systems related to the right to ‘A’ status, the last of which was in 2016, the Global participation and free, prior and informed consent Alliance issued a series of recommendations to are developed/strengthened (EA 1) help CONADEH operate in compliance with the Over the last two years, OHCHR advocated for the respect of international and regional human rights standards during the development of the draft law Children in conflict with the law on prior consultation. The Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples also provided com- In May 2017, as part of its response to violence and inse- ments, in 2016, on the process to legislate free, prior curity in the country, the Honduran Executive launched and informed consultation. In April 2017, during her a proposal to reform the Children and Adolescents’ visit to Honduras, the Special Rapporteur noted that Code to increase the detention sentences for children her comments on the legislation had not been ob- in conflict with the law to up to 20 years. In coordination served and, subsequently, provided further observa- with the United Nations Country Team and the Organi- tions. The draft law has not yet been approved. zation of American States, UN Human Rights promoted uu Increased integration of human rights standards a debate on the rights of the child by engaging a wide into development legislation and policies, includ- constituency, including civil society actors, State institu- ing with regard to business operations (EA 1) tions and the international community. This contributed The Honduran National Association of Industries de- to the abandonment of the proposal by the Executive. veloped an initiative to promote human rights among Luis Pedernera, Member of the UN Committee on the their members and created the Industrial Committee Rights of the Child, who visited Honduras to support the on Human Rights. In 2016, it signed an agreement debate, highlighted the value and impact of the efforts of on technical cooperation with the Vice-Ministry of UN Human Rights. Justice and Human Rights to provide human rights

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international human rights standards. The Criminal Law, adopted in 2016, is not in full compliance with international human rights standards.

Early warning and protection of human rights in situations of conflict, violence and insecurity uu Public policies and regulatory frameworks in the

OHCHR staff member monitors a demonstration demanding justice security sector increasingly incorporate human for the deceased Honduran environmental activist Berta Cáceres. rights standards, including in relation to citizen se- © OHCHR/Honduras curity and the use of force (EA 1) Limited progress has been achieved on the integra- tion of a human rights-based approach into secu- Paris Principles. In 2016, OHCHR and UNDP agreed rity policies by national authorities. In 2017, the Of- to support CONADEH through a capacity assess- fice presented its written observations regarding a ment. The final report contained 22 recommenda- number of legislative proposals, including the Penal tions to strengthen the institution. In February 2017, Code and the Law on the strengthening of the secu- OHCHR and CONADEH began to develop a plan to rity sector. It also held meetings with the Congress implement the findings of the assessment. and its committees and with governmental focal uu A protection mechanism for human rights defend- points in charge of security. Nevertheless, OHCHR’s ers and journalists is in place (EA 3) recommendations were seldom considered and the The National Protection Mechanism (NPM) contin- adopted legislation could potentially have a nega- ued to work in overall compliance with international tive impact on the rights to freedom of expression standards. The Office provided technical support to and peaceful assembly. Furthermore, the weak im- the NPM on the operationalization of its structure plementation of the National Policy on Citizen Secu- and follow-up to individual cases. The Office also rity reflected the larger problem of an absence of participated in at least 35 meetings of the technical financial resources for the implementation of local committee that is tasked with risk assessment and security plans. the provision of protection measures. At a struc- uu UN agencies increasingly apply a human rights- tural level, the Office provided guidance in relation based approach to their violence and insecurity to the interpretation of the Law on Human Rights programmes (EA 11) Defenders and to fact-finding missions conducted OHCHR promoted the application of the Human to assess community-level risks. Rights Due Diligence Policy by the United Nations In September, the Office began cooperating with Country Team in Honduras, including by gathering the Office of the Attorney General to provide tech- information on projects that appeared to fall within nical assistance on the elaboration of a protocol the purview of the Policy, sharing the Standard Op- for the investigation of crimes committed against erating Procedures and the General Preliminary Risk human rights defenders. With the assistance of Assessment with the UN Inter-Agency Human Rights OHCHR, the protocol is being developed on the Working Group, the Inter-Agency Standing Commit- basis of international norms and the experiences of tee’s Gender Reference Group and the Inter-Agency neighbouring countries. The Office also maintained Support Group on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues, and constant communication with a wide network of na- undertaking a risk assessment for the first project tional human rights organizations and human rights identified under the scope of the Policy. defenders and provided guidance on available protection mechanisms at the regional and interna- tional levels. In 2017, at least 50 human rights or- Honduras: ganizations and defenders participated in trainings Expenditure in 2017 organized by the Office to strengthen their capac- Regular budget Extrabudgetary ity to use regional and international human rights expenditure expenditure mechanisms. in US$ in US$ Personnel and uu Rights-holders, including women and discriminated - 1,328,057 groups, meaningfully participate in the design and related costs Activities and monitoring of the implementation of at least three - 401,271 operating costs key human rights laws and policies (EA 5) In the context of the review of the Criminal Code Bill Subtotal - 1,729,329 Programme support and the security sector reform, the Office facilitated - 228,448 meetings between the Congress and civil society costs organizations and provided expertise on relevant GRAND TOTAL - 1,957,777

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Mexico

Year established 2002 Staff as of 31 December 2017 21 Expenditure in 2017 US$2,442,593

Results

Strengthening international human rights mechanisms uu The competence of CESCR, CRC and CED to re- ceive and consider individual communications is recognized and reservations or interpretative dec- larations to international human rights treaties are

withdrawn (EA 2) OHCHR accompanies family members of disappeared persons during During the reporting period, OHCHR carried out a an exhumation process in Cohauila, Mexico. © OHCHR/Mexico campaign, with the participation of victims, activists and experts, for the recognition of the competence Combating impunity and strengthening of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances to accountability and the rule of law receive and consider individual communications. uu Human rights indicators are adopted by an in- The Office also advocated with relevant authorities creasing number of federal and local institutions for the recognition of the competence of the Com- and are being used to evaluate the impact of pub- mittee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and lic programmes and the level of implementation of the Committee on the Rights of the Child to also re- recommendations issued by the international hu- ceive individual communications. Moreover, several man rights mechanisms (EA 1) international human rights mechanisms issued rec- OHCHR participated in the development of indi- ommendations in that regard to Mexico. In response, cators for Mexico’s plans to implement the 2030 the Mexican Government noted that it will undertake Sustainable Development Agenda, resulting in the internal consultation processes to decide on appro- development of indicators with a human rights and priate follow-up action, but none of the ratifications equality perspective, and promoted the disaggrega- has occurred so far. tion of data by sex, age, ethnic origin and vulnerabil- ity factors. A National Information System on Human Enhancing equality and countering discrimination Rights was designed by OHCHR and the National uu Human rights-compliant legislation adopted on an- University’s Human Rights Programme for use by ti-discrimination issues and/or same-sex marriages the Ministry of Interior. The content and variables and/or sexual and reproductive rights (EA 4) of the system are based on OHCHR’s indicators No new legislation on anti-discrimination was adopt- framework, which were established through a par- ed and the proposal for a law on same-sex marriag- ticipatory process involving the Supreme Court, the es was defeated in Congress. However, two land- National Human Rights Institution, the National Sta- mark laws were adopted in 2017, with major input tistical Institute, the National Council for Social Policy from OHCHR, including the General Law on Torture Evaluation, civil society and academia. and the General Law on Disappearances, both of OHCHR also supported the adoption of a methodol- which include non-discrimination and gender princi- ogy for following up on the implementation of local ples. Moreover, the legislations establish aggravat- human rights plans in the states of Mexico, Oaxaca ing causes when the crimes are committed against and Coahuila and of the National Human Rights Ac- individuals and groups in vulnerable situations, such tion Plan. The indicators elaborated by those institu- as children, women, persons with disabilities, elder tions, which were validated by all relevant actors, fo- persons, migrants and Afrodescendant and indig- cused on the rights to health, to a fair trial, life, liberty enous peoples. Also in 2017, the new Criminal Code and security of the person and the human rights of of the state of Coahuila was adopted, which decrimi- prisoners. nalizes abortion in cases of risk to the health of the uu An increasing number of judicial institutions and woman and/or when the pregnancy results from a universities formally incorporate human rights into sexual crime and establishes the obligation of the their curricula (EA 1) state to provide health care services where abortion One of the outcomes of the 2011 constitutional re- is not penalized. form was the recognition that international human rights standards need to be incorporated into do-

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mestic legislation. To this end, OHCHR cooperated NPM is located. OHCHR carried out trainings on the with the Supreme Court of Justice, the Human Rights application of the Protocol for relevant authorities, in- Commission of the Federal District and some aca- cluding judges and magistrates, public prosecutors, demic institutions to develop the “Reforma DH” tool. public defenders, federal police forensic officials Reforma DH is a virtual human rights training tool, and staff of local human rights institutions. OHCHR available to the general public, which details each also trained independent experts, members of ac- of the elements related to human rights that are in- ademia and NGOs, physicians and psychologists cluded in the constitutional reform and promotes its from six states on the same subject. As a result of implementation according to the highest standards these and other capacity-building activities, a group of the promotion and protection of human rights. of stakeholders from different branches of govern- The tool has been widely used by various judicial ment, academia, NGOs and independent experts schools in Mexico, becoming mandatory for judges have the knowledge and skills to implement the Is- in several states. It has also been used in several pri- tanbul Protocol. vate and public universities and educational centres across the country and has been formally adopted Integrating human rights in development and in the as part of their human rights curricula. economic sphere uu By the end of 2017, the National Mechanism for the uu Legislation adopted on the right of indigenous Prevention of Torture will have established an an- peoples to prior consultation and the rights to food nual programme of training for relevant authorities and water is in compliance with international hu- on the application of the Istanbul Protocol (EA 3) man rights standards (EA 1) In 2017, the Congress adopted the long-awaited Although a constitutional amendment provides for General Law on Torture to which OHCHR contribut- the adoption of legislation on the rights to food and ed by ensuring the incorporation of relevant interna- water and the right of indigenous peoples to prior tional standards. The law provides for the creation of consultation, and that there were several legal initia- a National Programme for the Prevention of Torture tives in that direction, the Congress has not adopted and the strengthening of the National Preventive such laws in the present legislative period. In terms Mechanism (NPM). Over the period under review, of prior consultation of indigenous peoples, OHCHR OHCHR has supported several institutions that play has prioritized work on specific cases of large-scale a key role in the prevention of torture and the ap- projects with an impact on the rights of indigenous plication of the Istanbul Protocol, including the Na- communities (e.g., Maya communities in the state of tional Human Rights Commission, within which the Campeche affected by a project for transgenic soy,

Acquittal of an illegally detained woman in Mexico

On 26 October 2012, María del Sol Vázquez Reyes (Mari- on the right to freedom and not to be tortured. These sol, 31 years old) was arrested in Córdoba, Veracruz, by standards were integrated into the judicial file and were members of the State investigation agency. She was falsely used as the basis for the ruling that was issued, in Au- accused of kidnapping and theft and not shown an arrest gust 2017, which acquitted her of the charges as a result warrant at the moment of her detention or afterwards. of violations of her right to due process, in particular her illegal detention and torture. The Office also worked with Following her arrest, members of the investigation agen- the NGO which provided her with legal assistance and cy tortured Marisol over a period of 14 hours. The agents other civil society organizations to highlight this case applied electric shocks to her abdomen and pelvis and as part of a nationwide campaign on the eradication of she suffered injuries to various parts of her body after sexual torture in Mexico. being beaten as they tried to force her to accept respon- sibility for the kidnapping of a woman she did not know. Although Marisol has been acquitted of all of the charg- They also threatened to rape her and harm her family if es, she is now facing the emotional and physical scars of she did not confess to the crimes. Although she refused the torture and the more than five years that she spent in to confess, the agents extracted her signature on blank detention without cause. While seeking justice and repa- pages, which they then used to prepare a false declara- rations for the violations committed against her, Marisol tion admitting her guilt. From the time of her arrest, she has been vocal about her case and has publicly spoken was held in pretrial detention. out about what she endured in order to raise awareness about the use of sexual torture, especially against wom- In December 2016, UN Human Rights approached the en, as a method of investigation. judge in her case and shared international standards

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Yaqui communities in Sonora affected by megapro- jects, indigenous communities in the state of Mex- ico affected by highway construction, communities in Oaxaca affected by industrial-scale construction of wind turbines, communities in Yucatan affected by massive solar energy projects). OHCHR has ac- companied the communities in the consultation pro- cesses, provided training to public authorities and organized seminars on the subject, with the aim of developing good practices before actual legislation is proposed. Furthermore, the outcomes of the 2016 visit of the Working Group on Business and Human Rights, published in 2017, and of the 2017 visit of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peo- OHCHR staff members engage with local communities in Sierra Norte, Puebla, to understand their human rights concerns. ples, have been highly relevant in terms of guidance. © OHCHR/Mexico uu Paradigmatic human rights cases raised by OHCHR relating to violations of economic, social legislation. OHCHR undertook several missions to and cultural rights, business and the right to free, lobby state congresses to encourage such amend- prior and informed consultation of indigenous peo- ments. OHCHR also identified that 26 states in Mex- ples, receive a positive response from authorities ico regulate the crime of insults against authorities (EA 3) in different ways, thereby having a potentially nega- During the reporting period, 30 per cent of the cases tive impact on freedom of expression. In 2017, the of violations of economic, social and cultural rights Supreme Court established that the crime of insults that were documented by the Office received a against the authorities contravenes the Constitution. positive response from relevant authorities. OHCHR has documented many cases related to the right to Early warning and protection of human rights in water, environmental rights and business and human situations of conflict, violence and insecurity rights and shared its findings with all of the relevant uu Legislation adopted on the use of force, military ju- stakeholders involved, including representatives of risdiction, victims’ rights and asylum-seekers is in the Government, civil society organizations and pri- line with international human rights standards (EA 1) vate companies. Following the 2014 amendment to the Military Jus- tice Code, all human rights violations against civilians Widening the democratic space allegedly perpetrated by military personnel were re- uu By the end of 2017, federal or local legislation will moved from military jurisdiction, although violations be adopted in compliance with international hu- committed against military personnel by military man rights standards in order to safeguard the ex- personnel remained under military jurisdiction. Fur- ercise of freedom of expression (EA 1) thermore, the fast-track adoption of a controversial Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in Law on Internal Security, in December 2017, was the world for journalists and human rights defend- challenged by OHCHR as it provides sweeping au- ers (with at least 12 journalists assassinated in 2017). thorization of the role of the armed forces in law en- OHCHR has worked with the National Protection forcement, which had been going on de facto since Mechanism for Human Rights Defenders and Jour- 2006, and because in doing so it does not create nalists to ensure that adequate protection measures adequate safeguards. OHCHR’s arguments were are in place for persons at risk. Also, the 2017 visit widely publicized, and although they did not pre- of the Special Rapporteur on human rights defend- vent the adoption of the Law, they were echoed by ers and the subsequent joint visit of the Special Rap- a number of other actors, including the National Hu- porteurs on freedom of expression of the UN and man Rights Institution and a representative group of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights members of Congress who are challenging the Law provided strong messages to the authorities to ad- before the Supreme Court as unconstitutional. The dress the structural causes of risk, particularly the outcome of the constitutionality review is still pend- prevalent impunity. Moreover, OHCHR has consist- ing. With regard to legislation on the use of force, a ently advocated for the derogation of crimes that law that was approved by the State of Mexico was restrict freedom of expression on the level of indi- challenged before the Supreme Court, with OHCHR vidual states and for the regulation of official adver- inputs, in order to align the legislation with interna- tising, both on federal and on state level. In addition, tional standards. In 2017, the Supreme Court issued three Mexican states (Baja California, Tlaxcala and a resolution which declared several sections of the Tabasco) derogated so-called honour crimes in their law to be unconstitutional.

232 UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2017 UN HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE FIELD: AMERICAS

uu Establishment of a national mechanism to search for disappeared and missing persons (EA 3) Regional Offices In 2015, the Constitution was amended to enable the Congress to enact a general law on enforced disappearances. The adoption process lasted ap- Regional Office for Central America proximately two years. During that time, OHCHR was in regular communication with the Executive (Panama City, Panama) Branch and the Congress to advocate for the ap- Year established 2007 proval of a bill that incorporated provisions on the rights of victims, in accordance with international Staff as of 31 December 2017 10 standards. The Office further supported victims’ or- Expenditure in 2017 US$1,269,342 ganizations in their advocacy activities. In Novem- ber 2017, the Law on Enforced Disappearances Committed by Private Persons entered into force Results and many of OHCHR’s recommendations were incorporated, notably the recommendation to es- Strengthening international human rights tablish a mechanism to search for disappeared mechanisms persons. Moreover, OHCHR has supported the uu Increased ratification of international human rights establishment of the Specialized Office on Disap- instruments, especially CPED and the OPs to CRC peared Persons in the state of Jalisco. As a result (3rd) and ICESCR and increased number of decla- of OHCHR’s training activities, 160 police officers rations under article 14 of ICERD (EA 2) and prosecutors in Jalisco increased their knowl- Several countries made tangible progress in the rati- edge about human rights, including the norms and fication of core human rights treaties, as a result of standards relating to enforced disappearances, voluntary commitments made in the context of their as well as investigation methodologies, women’s Universal Periodic Reviews and technical assistance rights and gender perspectives. OHCHR further provided by OHCHR. During the period from 2014 to engaged with families of disappeared persons in 2017, eight new ratifications were deposited with the several states to strengthen their advocacy capaci- Secretary-General of the United Nations, including ties and knowledge of international human rights the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Con- standards and support them in meetings with local vention on the Rights of the Child on the involve- and federal authorities. For example, OHCHR ac- ment of children in armed conflict by El Salvador, in companied victims of disappeared persons in their 2015, and Panama, in 2017. The Optional Protocol to meetings with local and federal authorities in Ver- the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a com- acruz and Tamaulipas and drew the attention of the munications procedure was ratified by Costa Rica, in authorities to the key role of victims in the search 2014, El Salvador, in 2015, and Panama, in 2017. Also and investigation activities being developed. in 2015, Belize ratified the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disap- pearance, the International Covenant on Economic, Mexico: Social and Cultural Rights and the Optional Protocol Expenditure in 2017 on the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Regular budget Extrabudgetary Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. expenditure expenditure uu Establish fully functioning participatory standing in US$ in US$ national coordinating bodies in some of the coun- Personnel and - 1,744,140 tries covered by the Regional Office and strength- related costs ening the existing ones in Costa Rica and Panama Activities and - 417,447 to report on/reply to individual communications operating costs and enquiries; Integrated follow-up to recommen- Subtotal - 2,161,587 dations issued by the international human rights Programme support - 281,006 mechanisms (EA 6) costs In Belize, the Government maintained the existing GRAND TOTAL - 2,442,593 ad hoc collaboration between the Ministry of For- eign Affairs and the other line ministries to follow up on recommendations issued by the international hu- man rights mechanisms. In Costa Rica, OHCHR sup- ported the inter-institutional mechanism for reporting and follow-up by developing a matrix with recom- mendations received from the international human

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rights mechanisms. During the second review of the of Afro-Panamanians, which is tasked with design- Universal Periodic Review (UPR), El Salvador com- ing and implementing initiatives to achieve the full mitted to establishing a coordinating body for report- inclusion of Afrodescendants in Panamanian soci- ing and follow-up, which has not yet been created. ety. Within the context of the International Decade In Panama, OHCHR provided support to the exist- of African Descent, OHCHR published its Guidelines ing inter-institutional mechanism with emphasis on to elaborate reports on racial profiling, in 2015. The bringing up to date their reporting obligations to the Guidelines represent an important tool to promote treaty bodies, with the submission of reports to CRC the elaboration of thematic reports and studies on and CAT, and strengthening of the capacity to coor- racial profiling cases and to demonstrate and docu- dinate with civil society actors. ment the racial profiling that is carried out by the se- uu Increased number of civil society organizations, NHRIs curity forces against the Afrodescendant population. and UN entities making substantial submissions to the The newly created National Secretariat for the Devel- international human rights mechanisms (EA 7) opment of Afro-Panamanians has shown an interest In Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua and in conducting the study, which is planned for 2018. Panama, UPR submissions were prepared by several stakeholders as a result of OHCHR briefings, trainings Combating impunity and strengthening and advocacy. In El Salvador, four of the 12 NGO sub- accountability and the rule of law missions were from NGOs that attended an OHCHR uu Judicial operators increasingly apply international training workshop. A specific training for representa- and regional human rights standards in their work tives of indigenous traditional authorities in Panama regarding women’s rights and the rights of indig- resulted in several individual and joint submissions to enous peoples, anti-discrimination, the rule of law the international human rights mechanisms, including and impunity (EA 1) the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous During the reporting cycle, the technical assistance peoples. Several reports were also submitted by civil provided by OHCHR to institutionalize training of train- society organizations from Nicaragua prior to the re- ers courses on human rights at the Judicial and Pub- view of the country’s initial report by the Committee lic Prosecutor’s Academies in Costa Rica, El Salvador on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Panama contributed to significantly strengthen- and Members of Their Families. ing the capacity of the judicial sector. Furthermore, in El Salvador, OHCHR promoted the discussion on Enhancing equality and countering discrimination impunity and transitional justice through the organi- uu Public policies, legislative frameworks and practic- zation of high-level meetings and tailored trainings es in the area of non-discrimination (racial discrimi- addressed to prosecutors. In March, OHCHR organ- nation, gender equality) are in compliance with in- ized a high-level forum, entitled “Impunity, past and ternational human rights standards (EA 4) present,” with the goal of sharing good practices and In December 2016, Panama adopted the Law to es- lessons learned in the region on addressing impunity tablish the National Secretariat for the Development in relation to past violations of human rights. The Of-

Indigenous communities in Costa Rica voting for the approval of a protocol on prior consultation. © Roberto Carlos Sánchez/Casa Presidencial Costa Rica

234 UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2017 UN HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE FIELD: AMERICAS

The High Commissioner meets with the Ombudswoman during his visit to El Salvador, November 2017. © OHCHR/Central America

fice also organized a second high-level public forum is still under discussion while the implementation of under the title “Why transitional justice?” The event the National Development Plan began in 2017 after was attended by more than 130 participants, includ- concrete actions were included in the annual plans ing members of the judiciary, representatives of the of relevant public institutions. Furthermore, OHCHR diplomatic community, UN agencies, academics, civil facilitated the dialogue between the Government society organizations and journalists. and indigenous authorities from the Comarca Ng- abe-Bugle region to guarantee the participation of Integrating human rights in development and in the indigenous peoples in the decision-making process economic sphere related to the exploitation of natural resources in the uu Increased number of consultation processes be- Barro Blanco hydroelectric project. The dialogue tween States and indigenous peoples in order to contributed to ending violent confrontations be- obtain the latter’s free, prior and informed consent tween indigenous peoples and security forces and in line with the Declaration on the Rights of Indig- led to a negotiated agreement between indigenous enous Peoples (EA 5) authorities and the Government. The draft agree- Progress in the establishment of consultation pro- ment included compensation for the communities cesses between indigenous peoples and authorities affected by the project as well as measures to re- is uneven among countries of the region. In Costa duce its social, economic, cultural and environmen- Rica, the creation of a consultation mechanism was tal impact. Nonetheless, the General Congress of initiated in 2016 and included the participation of the Comarca Ngabe-Bugle rejected the agreement the eight ethnic groups from 24 indigenous territo- and no further progress has been achieved since ries across the country. In 2017, after more than 120 that time. meetings and activities throughout the country, a na- Over the last four years, OHCHR continued to work tional meeting was held, in May, during which 96 in- with State institutions and indigenous peoples to pro- digenous delegates from the 24 indigenous territo- mote their dialogue on issues such as land tenure, ries met with representatives from the Government, consent, self-determination and self-governance. the national human rights institution and UN agen- Through its work, OHCHR aimed to assist States in cies. At the meeting, a draft proposal was discussed putting in place the necessary conditions to initiate and indigenous delegates requested additional time consultation processes, upon their request, enhance to revise a final proposal regarding the consultation the negotiating skills of the representatives of indig- mechanism within their respective territories. Conse- enous peoples, and liaise with extractive companies quently, the Government undertook a new cycle of to ensure the adoption of policies and practices that consultations within each territory to clarify doubts are respectful of the rights of indigenous peoples. and collect more inputs for the draft proposal. In uu UNDG LAC integrates a human rights-based ap- 2018, the Government will hold a second national proach in its support to countries in the context of meeting in order to conclude the process. the Millennium Development Goals and the post- In Panama, the indigenous round-table, established 2015 development agenda and implements the in 2012, continued meeting to discuss the ratifica- Human Rights up Front Action Plan (EA 11) tion of ILO Convention No. 169 and the adoption With the support of a regional human rights adviser, of the National Development Plan for Indigenous between 2014 and 2016, OHCHR actively partici- Peoples. The ratification of ILO Convention No. 169 pated in meetings of United Nations Country Teams

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The Central American migration route: The fate of migrants

In February 2001, two major earthquakes struck El Sal- returning the relatives they have lost along the migration vador, destroying more than 100,000 houses and tak- route from Central America to the United States. ing the lives of nearly 1,000 people. Immediately after the earthquake, Luis’ older brother, “Calin” (24), made a COFAMIDE, along with similar organizations in the region, difficult decision to leave his family behind and begin a organize search tours, provide psychological counsel- journey to the United States in search of better oppor- ling and legal support to the families and create local and tunities for himself and his family and in order to secure regional actions to advocate for stronger commitments the means to rebuild the house they had lost. from the involved States to facilitate the search and iden- tification of deceased and disappeared migrants along After promising his 21-year-old brother that he would the migration route. The work of these organizations has send for him after a year, Calin left his home on a resulted in their identification of an alarming list of obsta- breezy morning, riding on the steps of a bus heading cles, ranging from government bureaucracy to a lack of to Guatemala with a small bag and a heart full of hope. political will and commitments from the States to guaran- He travelled the 425 kilometres from San Salvador tee appropriate forensic investigations and stronger legal (El Salvador) to Tecun Uman, situated on the Guatemala- frameworks to enable better search mechanisms. Mexico border, to join a group of migrants that was led by a “coyote” (smuggler of migrants), to whom they The story of Luis’ brother and the efforts undertaken by entrusted their lives. Upon his arrival, Calin rushed organizations such as COFAMIDE, is just one example off of the bus to phone his mother and tell her that of the countless stories encountered by a joint mission he would cross the border that very night. “She was organized by the UN Human Rights Regional Office for devastated,” Luis later recounted. “She prayed that he Central America, the country offices of Guatemala, Hon- would change his mind and return home…That was the duras and Mexico and the headquarters in Geneva to as- last we heard from him.” sess the human rights situation of migrants, their families left behind and the challenges that they face once they Seventeen years have passed since that phone call and are forcibly returned to their countries. Luis still feels that Calin just left home. “My father, my mother and my grandmother have all passed away hop- The 17-day joint mission that toured El Salvador, Guate- ing to see my brother’s face one last time. I witnessed mala, Honduras, Mexico and the border with the United their suffering and despair from not knowing if my broth- States collected a vast amount of data from government er was even alive,” remembered Luis. “This indescriba- authorities, local NGOs, international organizations, the ble feeling of uncertainty forced me to step up and take United Nations System, families of migrants, shelters action, together with a promise to my family that I will and migrants. This data will be used to design a regional find him and bring him home.” action plan aimed at guaranteeing that the human rights of migrants and their families are respected and protect- Luis Alberto López is one of the leaders of the Commit- ed from the moment they leave their homes until they tee of Families of Deceased and Disappeared Migrants reach their destination, including if they are returned. of El Salvador (COFAMIDE), an NGO created in 2006 by The action plan will be drafted in 2018 for its subsequent a group of families with the sole purpose of finding and implementation across the region.

(UNCT) in Central America and contributed techni- the Action Plan in the region in order to strengthen cal advice, trainings and the dissemination of rec- the ability of UN agencies to prevent and respond ommendations issued by the international human to human rights violations and crises. In this context, rights mechanisms to the mainstreaming of human the Office reviewed the contents of the online hu- rights into UN development programmes. By deliv- man rights course for UN staff and provided relevant ering targeted trainings on a human rights-based examples from the region to illustrate good practices approach for UNCT members and being actively en- on human rights protection. The Office also ensured gaged in the preparation of programing documents, the translation of the course into Spanish. The Of- such as road maps, common country assessments fice played an active role in a number of UN region- (CCAs) and United Nations Development Assistance al working groups, including the Regional Human Frameworks (UNDAFs), OHCHR ensured that human Rights Group, the Regional Inter-Agency Group on rights were mainstreamed. Following the adoption of Indigenous Peoples and the Inter-Agency Regional the Secretary-General’s Human Rights up Front Ac- Group for Gender Equality and the Empowerment tion Plan, OHCHR supported the implementation of of Women, through which it pursued efforts to main-

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stream human rights into the regional and national cial operators tackling the investigation, prosecution programmes and activities of other UN agencies. and judgment of gender-related crimes. The Model Protocol was presented at a number of regional and Widening the democratic space international events and has been applied in some uu National human rights institutions established and countries in Latin America. The Public Prosecutor’s Of- functioning in accordance with the Paris Principles fice of Panama adopted the Model Protocol and it has (EA 1) been included in the curricula of the Attorney Gen- In 2017, the ‘A’ status of national human rights in- eral Office’s Training School. Similarly, in Argentina, stitutions (NHRIs) in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nica- the Protocol was endorsed by the Attorney General’s ragua and Panama was reviewed and confirmed Office of La Pampa province. Following requests by by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights In- different Attorney Generals in the region, OHCHR stitutions (GANHRI). OHCHR continued supporting provided advice for the implementation of the Model NHRIs of the region to implement their mandates Protocol as a tool to guide the action of prosecu- in accordance with the Paris Principles through a tors in their criminal investigations at the national number of activities. For instance, in 2016 and 2017, level. OHCHR also developed an online self-training the Office supported the meetings of the network course on the Model Protocol directed at relevant ju- of Central American Ombudsperson Offices in the dicial officials and has promoted its use in countries region, during which NHRIs discussed their work throughout Latin America. In 2017, the online course on monitoring and actions with regard to the situa- was administered to 72 judges, public prosecutors tion of migrants and the protection needs of human and police officers in Argentina. The virtual course rights defenders in the region. The Office also sup- was also implemented in Central American countries ported the work of the NHRI in Costa Rica on issues and reached almost 200 judicial officials and other related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and key actors dealing with the investigation of femicide intersex (LGBTI) persons and of the NHRI in Pana- cases. Furthermore, the first official visit by the High ma on its engagement with the Special Rapporteur Commissioner to El Salvador raised the need to com- on human rights defenders and civil society actors bat violence against women, and in particular around with regard to practices on the protection of human the need to establish a moratorium on the criminali- rights defenders in the region. zation of women for obstetric emergencies. uu Increased interventions of the international com- uu A human rights-based approach is increasingly in- munity to promote and protect civil society actors, corporated into the implementation of the Central including against reprisals (EA 10) American Security Strategy at both regional and The protection of human rights defenders was national levels (EA 11) identified as a thematic priority for the joint work In the area of citizen security, the Regional Office of OHCHR and the Inter-American Commission on reinitiated its cooperation with the Inter-American Human Rights (IACHR). In December 2016, in the Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Cen- framework of the IACHR 159th regular session, tral American Integration System (SICA) and pro- OHCHR organized a working session and a public vided capacity-building and technical assistance to event with the Special Rapporteur on human rights public forces in El Salvador and Panama. In coop- defenders and the IACHR Commissioner on Hu- eration with the IACHR, OHCHR followed up on the man Rights Defenders. The forum sought to exam- implementation of the recommendations related to ine the situation of human rights defenders in the the modernization of police forces, as outlined in region and analyse measures required to protect the IACHR Report on Citizen Security and Human them. Participants included high-level officials from Rights. With the support of OHCHR, the report was American countries, civil society organizations and published in 2009. Six years later, in 2015, a regional Ombudspersons from Central America. consultation was held in Panama, with the participa- tion of approximately 40 experts from Central and Early warning and protection of human rights in South America, to analyse the status of police re- situations of conflict, violence and insecurity form. The Directorate of Security of SICA’s General uu Measures taken to combat gender-based violence, Secretariat actively participated in the event, which in particular through the use of the Latin American opened avenues of collaboration for OHCHR. In El Model Protocol for the investigation of gender-re- Salvador, in 2017, OHCHR held a training workshop lated killings of women (EA 1) for police forces on the human rights standards that OHCHR, together with UN Women, developed the are applicable to policing. Moreover, during his of- Latin American Model Protocol for the investigation of ficial visit to El Salvador, the High Commissioner gender-related killings of women, which was released raised concerns around the implementation of secu- in 2014. The Model Protocol has been recognized as rity policies in the country and its negative impact on a valuable tool for strengthening the capacities of judi- the enjoyment of human rights.

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Regional Office for Central America man rights treaty bodies and the Universal Periodic (Panama City, Panama): Review (UPR) and for engaging with civil society on Expenditure in 2017 these processes. uu CSOs and NHRIs, when applicable, make substan- Regular budget Extrabudgetary expenditure expenditure tive submissions to the human rights treaty bodies, in US$ in US$ special procedures and the UPR in Argentina, Bra- Personnel and zil, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay (EA 7) 770,226 213,955 related costs The Office worked to strengthen the capacity of civil Activities and society organizations in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ec- 182,636 66,116 operating costs uador, Peru and Uruguay regarding the use of inter- Subtotal 952,862 280,070 national human rights mechanisms through a large Programme support number of workshops and trainings on how to effec- - 36,409 costs tively engage with these mechanisms and develop GRAND TOTAL 952,862 316,480 strategies to follow-up on the implementation of rec- ommendations. In Ecuador, OHCHR’s efforts led to 13 submissions to the UPR by local civil society or- ganizations. Similar results were seen in Argentina, Regional Office for South America Brazil and Uruguay in relation to other international (Santiago, Chile) human rights mechanisms.

Year established 2009 Combating impunity and strengthening Staff as of 31 December 2017 9 accountability and the rule of law Expenditure in 2017 US$1,355,982 uu National Preventive Mechanisms against torture (as per OP-CAT) are functioning in conformity with international human rights standards in at least Results three countries (EA 3) The establishment of National Preventive Mecha- Strengthening international human rights nisms (NPMs) has been key to reporting serious mechanisms human rights violations against persons who have uu At least one international human rights treaty and been deprived of their liberty. In recent years, the Of- five optional protocols are ratified (EA 2) fice has significantly invested in ensuring that such OHCHR used every available opportunity to advo- mechanisms are created and have the adequate cate with governments for the ratification of optional resources and independence to implement their protocols. For example, the Office held a number of mandates. Results in the region have been uneven, trainings for civil society organizations regarding the as most of the NPMs have been situated within na- Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights tional human rights institutions (NHRIs) and lack the of the Child on a communications procedure. High- adequate resources and political weight to work level discussions were also organized on the ratifi- alongside authorities to improve detention condi- cation of the instrument in Argentina, Chile and Peru. The Optional Protocol was ratified by Argentina in 2014, and in 2015, by Chile, Peru and Uruguay. uu Improved timely submission of national reports to the human rights treaty bodies and the UPR in compliance with the reporting guidelines (EA 6) Since 2014, OHCHR has strongly promoted the es- tablishment of permanent national mechanisms for reporting to the international human rights mecha- nisms and monitoring the implementation of their recommendations. In this regard, regional work- shops were held in Argentina, Brazil and Peru to ex- change good practices in this area, which contrib- uted to strengthening such mechanisms in a number of countries in the region. The Office also advised on the development of databases for following up on recommendations in Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay. OHCHR provided technical support to Indigenous representative presents his concerns to the High Commissioner during his visit to Peru, October 2017. States in the preparation of their reports to the hu- © OHCHR/South America

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The High Commissioner talks to participants in a meeting where OHCHR and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights launched a joint action plan on the protection of human rights defenders, October 2017. © OHCHR/South America

tions and rehabilitation measures. In Chile, the Office on Business and Human Rights. In Peru, the Office participated in several meetings with authorities to trained the staff and commissioners of the NHRI on advocate for the adoption of the law that establishes the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human the NPM. To date, however, the NPM does not have Rights, resulting in the adoption of a strategy for a robust legal framework or the necessary financial the monitoring of cases of human rights violations resources to implement its mandate. In Peru, the Re- in the context of business activities. In collaboration gional Office promoted the adoption of a law des- with the UN Working Group on Business and Human ignating the NHRI as the NPM through workshops Rights, the Office organized regional consultations and various high-level meetings. In Argentina and on business and human rights in the framework of Brazil, the Office assisted with the institutionalization the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development. of the National and Local Mechanisms for Prevent- This contributed to the identification of gaps and a ing and Combating Torture to function in compliance discussion on the development of a road map to fa- with international human rights standards. The Office cilitate implementation of the Guiding Principles in also advocated for torture to be typified as a crime the region. in accordance with the Convention against Torture uu UNDAFs of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or and Venezuela incorporate a human rights-based Punishment. Almost all of the countries in the region approach (EA 11) now have relevant legislation. United Nations Country Teams (UNCTs) in the region have generally demonstrated a strong commitment Integrating human rights in development and in the to support the promotion and protection of human economic sphere rights through their programmes, in close coop- uu Constitutions, laws and policies increasingly protect eration with the Office. While providing advice and human rights, especially land and housing rights, technical cooperation, OHCHR has promoted the in- with particular attention paid to non-discrimination clusion of a human rights-based approach and rec- and gender equality, in the context of development ommendations issued by the international human and the exploitation of natural resources (EA 1) rights mechanisms into the UNCT’s planning docu- In 2017, with the support of OHCHR, the Government ments. In 2017, the Office developed a matrix link- of Chile developed and launched a National Plan ing the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),

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its targets and indicators with the recommenda- ness about human rights standards and correspond- tions issued by the UPR, special procedures and ing State obligations. human rights treaty bodies in relation to the coun- uu Legal frameworks, public policies and institutions tries of the region and shared it with UNCTs. As a are in place and functioning to combat all forms of result, the United Nations Development Assistance human exploitation, including trafficking and sexu- Frameworks 2017-2021 of Brazil and Peru incorpo- al and gender-based violence (EA 1) rate a matrix that matches each strategic outcome In Chile, OHCHR provided inputs to the draft law on of the plan with relevant SDGs and recommenda- violence against women. In relation to the adoption tions emanating from the international human rights of legislation decriminalizing abortion under specific mechanisms. circumstances, the Office cooperated with UNFPA and WHO to promote several meetings with national Widening the democratic space stakeholders, including civil society organizations, uu Civil society, in particular youth and women, increas- the NHRI, parliamentarians and government offi- ingly advocate for and claim their rights; and protect cials to discuss the contents of the law. In Uruguay, themselves more effectively from reprisals (EA 5) a new bill on human trafficking and exploitation is In view of the increasing number of reported kill- currently under discussion in the Parliament, which ings and threats against human rights defenders in would provide comprehensive rights to victims, in- the region, the Office continuously advocated with cluding specialized services. The draft legislation States and supported civil society organization ini- includes all of the recommendations issued by the tiatives to promote the establishment of NPMs for international human rights mechanisms and guiding human rights defenders. In relation to national ini- principles on the protection of trafficked persons. tiatives, Peru drafted a National Action Plan for the The Regional Office collaborated with IOM in com- Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, which menting on a preliminary draft of the law, in line with includes human rights defenders as one of the prior- the recommendations issued by the human rights ity thematic areas. mechanisms. The Regional Office also promoted and supported Early warning and protection of human rights in the national adaptation of the Latin American Model situations of conflict, violence and insecurity Protocol for the investigation of gender-related kill- uu Legal frameworks, public policies, State institu- ings of women. Brazil was the first country in the re- tions, as well as non-State actors, increasingly gion to adapt the Model Protocol, following efforts comply with international human rights standards led by UN Women and the Regional Office. OHCHR in the area of prevention and responses to human is supporting the adaptation of the Protocol in Ar- rights violations in situations of conflict, violence gentina, jointly with UN Women, at the request of the and insecurity (EA 1) Prosecutor’s Office. OHCHR carried out a number of missions to Brazil to meet with relevant authorities and shared an analy- sis of legislative and policy initiatives on security is- Regional Office for South America sues that could have a negative impact on human (Santiago, Chile): rights, including the use of force by the police. Un- Expenditure in 2017 fortunately, such efforts have not resulted in new or Regular budget Extrabudgetary improved legislation or changes to the behaviour of expenditure expenditure police forces. In Peru, following the adoption of Leg- in US$ in US$ Personnel and islative Decree 1186/2015 on the use of force by law 699,322 302,411 related costs enforcement agencies, OHCHR organized a series Activities and of activities to support the preparation of the regu- 176,384 122,611 operating costs lation of this Decree, which was adopted in 2016. Subtotal 875,707 425,022 Furthermore, while laws and policies regulating free- Programme support dom of assembly have become stricter during the - 55,253 costs reporting period, the Office’s work with civil society organizations contributed to their increased aware- GRAND TOTAL 875,707 480,275

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Combating impunity and strengthening Human Rights Component accountability and the rule of law in a UN Peace Mission uu International community raises key rule of law-re- lated human rights concerns in a cohesive fashion (EA 10) United Nations Mission for Justice A wide range of human rights issues were brought Support in Haiti (MINUJUSTH) to the attention of the diplomatic community by the HRS through regular meetings, including on human Year established 2004 (as MINUSTAH; rights and elections, access to justice, the rights of as MINUJUSTH since migrants and discrimination on the basis of sexual 2017) orientation. In November 2017, the HRS briefed the Staff as of 31 December 2017 21 diplomatic corps on the situation of the national hu- man rights institution (NHRI), including on the ap- pointment of the new Ombudsperson and the up- Results coming review by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions. Strengthening international human rights mechanisms Integrating human rights in development and in the uu Fully functioning and effective participatory stand- economic sphere ing national coordinating body on reporting on/ uu The ISF or UNDAF fully integrates human rights replying to individual communications and enquir- standards and principles (EA 11) ies; and integrated follow-up to recommendations In December 2017, the United Nations Country issued by the international human rights mecha- Team (UNCT) and the Haitian Government signed nisms (EA 6) the joint Action Plan for the period 2017-2021. The While Haiti improved its reporting to the human Action Plan integrated human rights concepts and rights treaty bodies, no progress was achieved in approaches to a significant extent and established the preparation of a national plan of action to imple- indicators to measure the achievement of the Sus- ment the recommendations accepted by the Gov- tainable Development Goals. The HRS participated ernment following the second cycle of the Universal in regular meetings within the UNCT to ensure the Periodic Review (UPR), in March 2017, and recom- integration of human rights standards into relevant mendations from the Independent Expert on Haiti planning documents and related activities. It also and the human rights treaty bodies. The Human participated in regular Humanitarian Country Team Rights Services (HRS) of the United Nations Mission meetings and activities, to ensure the mainstream- for Justice Support in Haiti (MINUJUSTH) provided ing of human rights into the Humanitarian Action technical assistance to State authorities and civil Plan. society organizations for the implementation of the recommendations emanating from the first cycle of Widening the democratic space the UPR, which primarily focused on strengthening uu Appointment of an independent and qualified Pro- the Haitian national police and reform of the justice tector and establishment of a functional and inde- system. At the same time, the HRS continued to ad- pendent “Protecteur du Citoyen” (EA 1) vocate with national authorities for the development Following the termination of the Ombudsperson’s of an action plan. seven-year mandate in October 2016, the Parlia- ment launched a public call for candidates, in Feb- Enhancing equality and countering discrimination ruary, and a new Ombudsperson (the Protector) was uu Increased openness to recognizing equal treat- appointed in October after a protracted and con- ment for LGBTI persons and discussing legislation troversial process. The HRS supported the NHRI in for the recognition of their rights (EA 4) order to contribute to a sustainable national pro- The Haitian Senate passed a draft law that discrimi- tection framework, met with the new Protector and nates lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and inter- shared recommendations focused on maintaining sex persons in the work place and public offices and the ‘A’ status of the NHRI. The review of the status another draft law to prohibit advocacy for the rights of the NHRI by the Global Alliance for National Hu- of same sex couples. Neither of the two drafts were man Rights Institutions, initially scheduled for early submitted to the Lower Chamber for ratification. The 2018, was postponed to 2019 to have more time to HRS consistently advocated for the approval of non- assess the performance of the new leadership. discriminatory laws and worked with national part- ners to this end.

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Universal Periodic Review (2014). Civil society or- Human Rights Advisers in ganizations submitted alternative reports to some of UN Country Teams these bodies, with technical support from OHCHR. uu Recommendations issued by the international hu- man rights mechanisms have been integrated by the UNCT into at least three of its programmes (EA 11) Dominican Republic8 The United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) roll-out process was used as Year established 2014 an opportunity to integrate recommendations is- Staff as of 31 December 2017 1 sued by the international human rights mechanisms into the new planning cycle 2018-2022. In particu- lar, recommendations made by the CRC, the Com- Results mittee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Human Rights Committee were Strengthening international human rights fully integrated into the new UNDAF. OHCHR ad- mechanisms vocated for the integration of recommendations of uu By the end of the reporting period, the Dominican the international human rights bodies into the UN- Republic has a National Human Rights Action Plan DAF and other programmes and facilitated training as well as a permanent, participatory and strength- for the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) on the ened human rights mechanism within the Execu- human rights-based approach. tive to effectively engage with international human rights mechanisms, including by fulfilling reporting Integrating human rights in development and in the obligations, as well as follow-up and implementa- economic sphere tion of their recommendations (EA 6) uu Human rights standards and principles are increas- The dialogue between State institutions and civil ingly integrated into CCAs/UNDAFs/CAPs and the society organizations regarding the development work of UN agencies (EA 11) of the National Human Rights Action Plan has been As co-leader of one of the UNDAF strategic ar- stalled since December 2016. OHCHR provided as- eas (Institutional strengthening and human rights), sistance to facilitate the approval of the Plan and OHCHR provided training and continuous advice coordinated advocacy activities with civil society and support to both the UNCT and the Government organizations. In terms of the follow-up to recom- to ensure that a human rights-based approach is mendations issued by the international human integrated into the UNDAF and other programmes. rights mechanisms, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs As a result, the UNDAF 2018-2022 is a rights-based launched a web-based tool to facilitate the monitor- document that is closely aligned with the 2030 ing of their implementation, representing the first Agenda for Sustainable Development. tool of its kind in the Caribbean. The system was developed and implemented with the cooperation Widening the democratic space of the Government of Paraguay, which shared its uu A national human rights institution is established expertise on the development of a similar tool (SI- and functioning in accordance with the Paris Prin- MORE), and technical advice provided by OHCHR. ciples (EA 1) The system will also facilitate the elaboration of pe- The national human rights institution (NHRI) was cre- riodic reports to the UN human rights mechanisms ated in 2001 but it was only formally established in and allow civil society and human rights organiza- 2013. OHCHR provided technical cooperation and tions to monitor the actions undertaken by the Gov- capacity-building activities to increase the NHRI’s ernment to comply with its international obligations. capacity to promote and protect human rights, in uu Increased number of submissions by civil society compliance with the Paris Principles. For instance, organizations, NHRI and UN entities to internation- an independent assessment was initiated in March al human rights mechanisms (EA 7) 2017 and will be finalized in 2018 to analyse the During the reporting period, the country’s human gaps in the NHRI’s structure, legal framework and rights performance was reviewed by different hu- working methods. During a workshop that was held man rights treaty bodies, such as the Human Rights to launch the assessment, a set of preliminary rec- Committee (2017), the Committee on Economic, So- ommendations were shared and discussed with cial and Cultural Rights (2016), the Committee on the the NHRI. In addition, a number of positive changes Rights of the Child (CRC) (2015), the Committee on have been noted, particularly in the areas of human the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2015) and the rights protection and education. A second work-

8 Deployed through the UNDG Strategy for the Deployment of shop was held, in December, which focused on the Human Rights Advisers. accreditation process with the Global Alliance of

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National Human Rights Institutions. The NHRI is ex- pected to submit a formal request for certification in 2018. In June 2017, a draft bill was presented to the Congress to revise the law that established the NHRI and it is anticipated that it will be discussed in 2018. OHCHR provided inputs to the draft.

Early warning and protection of human rights in situations of conflict, violence and insecurity uu Mechanisms and initiatives are adopted to in- crease human rights protection in the context of Participants of a six month training course on international human conflict, violence and insecurity (EA 3) rights standards, in Jamaica, receive their certificates. © OHCHR/Jamaica The Law of the National Police was approved in 2016. As recommended by OHCHR, the Law includes pro- visions for the establishment of both internal and People of African Descent in 2016, no dates have external oversight mechanisms to investigate alle- been agreed upon. gations of abuse and human rights violations com- mitted by members of the National Police. Enhanced equality and countering discrimination uu A human rights-based approach is incorporated into the National Strategic Plan on HIV/AIDS (EA 4) 9 Jamaica Jamaica’s National Family Planning Board produced policy briefs on Recommendations to address dis- Year established 2014 crimination based on health status with a particular Staff as of 31 December 2017 1 focus on HIV and HIV-sensitive social protection, which will be used in their advocacy efforts with the Parliament and government entities. In 2016, OHCHR Results was asked by the National Family Planning Board to be a member of its Legal and Policy Review Commit- Strengthening international human rights tee and participated in the drafting and review of the mechanisms two policy briefs. The Office provided substantive uu Establishment of a participatory standing national inputs on applicable human rights standards. coordinating body on reporting on/replying to in- dividual communications and enquiries; and inte- Integrating human rights in development and in the grated follow-up to recommendations issued by economic sphere the international human rights mechanisms and uu Common country programming documents, name- timely submission of reports to the human rights ly, the 2012-2016 and 2017-2021 UNDAFs devel- treaty bodies and the UPR (EA 6) oped and implemented in line with a human rights- Limited progress has been achieved in terms of Ja- based approach (EA 11) maica’s reporting as its ad hoc Inter-ministerial Com- Six Caribbean United Nations Country Teams (UNCTs) mittee on Human Rights, which was created in 2012 agreed on a Multi-Country Sustainable Development to report to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and Framework (MSDF), which was signed by Jamaica in the Human Rights Committee, has not been con- 2016. The MSDF integrates a human rights perspec- verted into a standing entity. In 2017, OHCHR took tive and a monitoring and evaluation framework with steps to support the Government in establishing a human rights indictors. In the case of Jamaica, an database to monitor the implementation of recom- overview of recommendations that were issued by mendations issued by the international human rights the UPR and the human rights treaty bodies under all mechanisms. Limited progress was also made in this four MSDF outcomes was also integrated. The MSDF respect. was drafted during four regional UN working groups uu Positive response to special procedures mandate- in accordance with the four outcome areas. OHCHR holders requests to visit the country (EA 6) participated in each of the working groups by con- Over the past four years, the Government failed to tributing human rights information and reviewing the issue a standing invitation to the special procedures different drafts of the document. and decided to only accept visit requests from inter- national experts on a case-by-case basis. Although Widening the democratic space Jamaica approved a visit of the Working Group on uu The Government and the Office of the Public De- fender, in consultation with civil society stakehold- 9 Deployed through the UNDG Strategy for the Deployment of ers, implement the road map for the establishment Human Rights Advisers.

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of a NHRI that is compliant with the Paris Principles justice and victim support as well as the experiences (EA 1) of similar commissions in investigating human rights During the year, OHCHR supported the develop- violations and follow-up on recommendations. In ment of a proposed structure for the conversion of parallel, OHCHR cooperated with the Independent the Office of the Public Defender into a national hu- Commission of Investigation on the organization of man rights institution (NHRI), in full compliance with a Regional Use of Force Conference in 2017, which the Paris Principles. The proposal was shared with included the participation of police oversight enti- the Cabinet and the Ministry of Justice. OHCHR ties from 12 Caribbean countries, and was aimed at provided detailed information on the structures of developing a regional policy model on the use of various NHRIs and comparative analyses on related force. In December, the Independent Commission legislation. The Office also worked with civil society prepared a draft that will be shared with the par- partners to strengthen their advocacy for the crea- ticipating oversight entities for approval by relevant tion of a NHRI and assisted them in their submissions government entities. to the Public Defender and the Ministry.

Early warning and protection of human rights in Paraguay situations of conflict, violence and insecurity Year established 2010 uu National Strategic Action Plan for Ending Gender- Based Violence is implemented (EA 1) Staff as of 31 December 2017 1 In December, the national Strategic Action Plan for Ending Gender-Based Violence was launched. The Action Plan integrates a human rights perspective Results into its narrative part and throughout its monitoring and evaluation framework. It also includes an annex Strengthening international human rights of relevant recommendations issued by the human mechanisms rights treaty bodies and the UPR in relation to Ja- uu Increased compliance and engagement of the maica. OHCHR, together with UNDP, provided assis- State in the follow-up to international recommen- tance in reorganizing the monitoring and evaluation dations (EA 6) framework to reflect a results-oriented matrix that In 2014, the Government of Paraguay launched SI- addresses the capacity gaps of duty-bearers and MORE, an online database for following up on the rights-holders in the prevention of gender-based vio- recommendations issued by the international hu- lence and in the protection of victims, investigations, man rights mechanisms. It is also accessible to the prosecutions, enforcement, data collection and co- wider public, thereby contributing to increased ordination. Most of the indicators recommended by transparency and accountability. Developed with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women the technical support of OHCHR, SIMORE has been were integrated into the framework. used to facilitate the development of State reports to uu Commission of inquiry is established and functions the international human rights mechanisms, includ- in line with international human rights standards ing the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimina- (EA 1) tion against Women and the Universal Periodic Re- The West Kingston Commission of Inquiry was active view (UPR). In December 2017, a revised version of between 2014 and 2016. In June 2016, it presented the tool (SIMORE Plus) was launched, which enables its report to the Governor General of Jamaica. The users to link and monitor the implementation of the Commission was established following the recom- recommendations issued by the international human mendation of the Public Defender in his report on rights mechanisms with the relevant Sustainable De- the 2010 events in Tivoli Gardens, a garrison neigh- velopment Goals and Paraguay’s achievement of bourhood in West Kingston, where more than 60 those Goals. individuals were killed by security forces in an at- uu Increased number of rights-holders and civil soci- tempt to detain a known criminal gang leader for his ety actors acting on their behalf making use of the extradition to the United States. The UN in Jamaica special procedures and the UPR (EA 7) offered its support to the Government and the Com- With the technical support of OHCHR, civil society mission on a wide range of matters, including logis- organizations submitted approximately 20 reports in tics, but the Government only requested assistance anticipation of Paraguay’s second cycle of the UPR. and support in the funding of services for victims and NGOs also submitted eight shadow reports to the the community of Tivoli Gardens, which UNDP im- human rights treaty bodies and 25 communications plemented. OHCHR held several informal meetings to the special procedures. During the reporting pe- with Commissioners to provide information about riod, OHCHR trained NGOs on the reporting guide- international legal standards related to transitional lines of the international human rights mechanisms

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Workshop for the development of human rights indicators in relation to Paraguay’s National Plan of Action on the Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities. © OHCHR/Paraguay

and promoted their engagement with the special sued by the international human rights mechanisms, rapporteurs on mission to Paraguay. the Bill to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination, in- uu Enhanced systematic engagement by the UNCT tended to regulate article 46 of the National Con- with international human rights mechanisms (EA 11) stitution (which establishes the principles of equality With OHCHR’s technical assistance, the United Na- and non-discrimination), has not yet been approved. tions Country Team (UNCT) submitted reports to The discussions for a friendly settlement agreement the human rights treaty bodies, to the UPR and ad- between the Paraguayan State and the Ayoreo To- dressed the special procedures on several occa- tobiegosode People began in February 2017, within sions. During the past four years, OHCHR undertook the framework of their petition to the Inter-American advocacy and provided assistance to the UNCT Commission on Human Rights. Specifically, the in- through trainings and the sharing of relevant docu- digenous community is calling for their ancestral ments and reports, which enhanced its capacity to rights to be returned, for the establishment of health promote human rights and integrate a human rights- and education programmes and the protection and based approach. Moreover, the United Nations De- promotion of other human rights. In November, the velopment Assistance Framework 2015-2019, which Government initiated discussions on a draft agree- the UNCT designed with OHCHR’s support, was ment. OHCHR participated in this process as an ob- structured in areas related to civil and political rights; server and facilitator until November 2017. economic, social and cultural rights; and environ- uu Civil society supports participatory mechanisms to mental rights, all of which included relevant human enhance equality and counter discrimination, par- rights indicators. ticularly against indigenous peoples, women, per- sons with disabilities and LGBTI persons (EA 5) Enhancing equality and countering discrimination Throughout the reporting cycle, OHCHR carried out uu Legislation and policies against all forms of dis- various activities to strengthen the capacities of civil crimination increasingly comply with international society actors and empower them to participate in standards, particularly in relation to women, LGBTI public processes that affected their rights. For exam- persons, persons with disabilities and indigenous ple, a series of workshops on rights-based commu- peoples (EA 4) nication were held to enhance the advocacy skills of In line with various recommendations issued by the organizations and ensure inclusive communication human rights treaty bodies, the Congress adopted without discrimination. The capacity of persons with a comprehensive law protecting women against disabilities was also strengthened, through a series all forms of violence, including feminicide, in 2016. of trainings and workshops, leading to the develop- OHCHR supported the development of the Law ment by NGOs of a draft law for the establishment of through a series of actions and activities, including a National Independent Mechanism for the Human the dissemination of the Latin American Model Pro- Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Furthermore, in tocol for the investigation of gender-related killings 2016, OHCHR organized the first seminar for human of women. Despite several recommendations is- rights defenders to strengthen the coordination and

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protection capacities of more than 200 defenders In 2015, OHCHR worked with the National Preven- from diverse sectors. The Office also promoted a tive Mechanism to raise awareness about the follow- human rights culture across the country through a up to international recommendations related to the number of campaigns, including art, film and photog- protection of victims of torture. This cooperation in- raphy contests. cluded the presentation of a joint publication on the realities of confinement in Paraguay, which provided Combating impunity and strengthening an assessment on the abusive use of preventive de- accountability and the rule of law tention. uu The national justice system, particularly the Su- preme Court of Justice, increasingly applies inter- Integrating human rights in development and in the national human rights norms and standards, espe- economic sphere cially in relation to torture and ill-treatment and the uu Development and poverty reduction policies in- deprivation of liberty (EA 1) creasingly promote and protect human rights, OHCHR provided trainings on the rights of persons especially those relating to land, education, non- with disabilities and the prevention of torture. As a discrimination and gender equality (EA 1) result, the capacity of approximately 150 judges and With the technical support of OHCHR, the Secretar- staff of the judiciary to implement Paraguay’s com- iat for Social Action designed a set of human rights mitments in relation to the recommendations issued indicators related to poverty, economic, social and by the international human rights mechanisms was cultural rights and social protection, which were improved. Their capacity to combat violence against linked to the social programmes implemented by the women was also enhanced, particularly regarding Secretariat and included in a publication launched in the investigation of cases of gender-based violence, October 2017. This represents the first national expe- through targeted training and dissemination of the rience on the development of human rights indica- Latin American Model Protocol for the investigation tors linked to the Sustainable Development Goals. of gender-related killings of women. In addition, the Office facilitated a training of trainers uu Functioning protection and accountability mecha- programme on human rights and poverty eradica- nisms to prevent and monitor the investigation of tion strategies and developed a trainer’s manual. In allegations of torture and ill-treatment and viola- total, 28 staff members of the Secretariat followed tions of the rights of persons deprived of their lib- this programme, who have in turn trained more than erty (EA 3)

Fighting for the rights of indigenous women in Paraguay

Faustina Alvarenga, known as Tina, is an indigenous ing to official figures, it is estimated that there are some woman from the Guaraní people and one of the found- 47,000 children and adolescents living in such situations ing members and leaders of the Articulation of Indige- in Paraguay. nous Women of Paraguay (MIPY). She is an expert in the indigenous issues of Paraguay, specifically in relation In 1993, Tina was elected as a counsellor of the Cen- to a practice known as “criadazgo.” Under this practice, tral Department of Paraguay and in 2013 she ran for the poor families send their children to work as servants in Senate. She has been a teacher at the primary, second- the homes of families with more economic resources in ary and university levels for more than 20 years and is exchange for taking charge of the child’s basic needs, currently a consultant for various UN bodies and other including their education. international organizations. She had an active role in the development of dialogues with indigenous women, At only 10 years old, Tina’s parents sent her to live with which was an initiative of UN Human Rights and other a wealthy family in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay, UN agencies in Paraguay. The results of those dialogues about 800 kilometres from her family home, where she were documented in a publication containing relevant lived for eight years. Tina recalls that she “felt discrimi- proposals made by indigenous women on participation, nated against, excluded, isolated and lonely in many citizenship and non-discrimination, land rights and pri- moments. The uprooting was very strong in my case, be- or, free and informed consultation and consent. These cause I was told I was going to be treated as a daughter, activities contributed to strengthening the dialogue be- but they made me work as a maid, an unpaid one.” tween authorities and indigenous women and making their rights more visible. “Criadazgo” is considered one of the worst forms of child labour and a contemporary form of slavery. Accord-

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400 public servants and families on poverty eradica- sion for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CON- tion strategies since 2015. ADIS), in 2015, and endorsed through a Presidential uu Increased participation of rights-holders in the de- Decree, in 2016. Furthermore, based on OHCHR’s sign and monitoring of public policies, budgets and methodology and with the active participation of civil other initiatives in development and in the eco- society actors, a set of human rights indicators on nomic sphere (EA 5) persons with disabilities was developed, in October The Network of Human Rights Organizations (CO- 2017, and linked to the Action Plan and the Sustain- DEHUPY) continued to publish its annual reports on able Development Goals. the human rights context in Paraguay, which includ- uu Increased participation in public life of discriminat- ed some sections on the situation of economic and ed groups, particularly women, indigenous peo- social rights. The support provided by OHCHR dur- ples and persons with disabilities (EA 5) ing the reporting cycle enabled CODEHUPY and its A bill for the establishment of a National Independ- member organizations to enhance their monitoring ent Mechanism for the Human Rights of Persons with advocacy skills. Furthermore, due to the support re- Disabilities, which was developed by civil society or- ceived from OHCHR, the online database, SIMORE ganizations and CONADIS over a two-year process Plus, which links the recommendations issued by the and supported by OHCHR, was submitted to Con- international human rights mechanisms in relation to gress for review. Regarding indigenous populations, Paraguay with the Sustainable Development Goals between 2014 and 2015, OHCHR facilitated a series has been made available to civil society organiza- of dialogues with leaders of 19 indigenous commu- tions, which are also able to use this tool to monitor nities, enabling them to come up with proposals on their implementation. land, prior consultation and participation, which were shared with relevant Government authorities. In addi- Widening the democratic space tion, consultations with indigenous women were or- uu Policies, particularly of the National Secretary for ganized by OHCHR, in collaboration with the National the human rights of persons with disabilities, the Institute for Indigenous Issues, the Ministry of Women National Institute for Indigenous Issues and the and a number of UN agencies, in order to document Ministry of Education increasingly respect, protect proposals from indigenous women on issues such as and guarantee human rights standards (EA 1) participation, citizenship and non-discrimination, land The National Action Plan on the Rights of Persons and free and informed consent. The outcomes of the with Disabilities, developed with the active partici- consultations were included in a publication that was pation of civil society and the technical support of launched in December 2017 and handed to relevant OHCHR, was approved by the National Commis- authorities by indigenous women.

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