23rd session of the
Human Rights Council
Item 3
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
Interactive Dialogue
Statement delivered by Enrica Barago
Thank you Mr. President,
CIVICUS warmly welcomes the report of the Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression. We wish to stress once again the fundamental importance of Freedom of Opinion and Expression not only as a fundamental right per se, but also as an essential prerequisite for the promotion and protection of all other human rights.
Mr Special Rapporteur, as emphasized in your report, the lack of security in the field of communications has a chilling effect on victims of all forms of violence and abuses; victims who may later be reluctant to report to the authorities fearing double victimisation. The right to privacy being unequivocally recognised as a fundamental human right, could you please elaborate on the absence of an explicit definition of this right in the existing international human rights instruments knowing that this relative legal vacuum has a direct impact on the enforcement of this right.
CIVICUS is also alarmed by the persistence of laws with vague and broadly conceived provisions as well as by the establishment of inadequate standards as far as the internet and other new communication technologies are concerned. These provisions not only undermine the right to privacy but also have a direct impact on other fundamental rights, thus increasing the exposure of individuals to violations and abuses.
As stated in your analysis, human rights defenders and political activists in many countries reported having their phone calls and e-mails monitored, and their freedom of movement significantly limited. The lack of a clear and robust legal framework dramatically increases the risk for human rights defenders as well as journalists, to be subjected to arbitrary surveillance.
Through the Civil Society Watch project, CIVICUS relentlessly monitors the negative developments and policies affecting Civil Society around the globe.
In Bahrain, the authorities have sped up their crackdown on online activists: on the 15th of May 2013, five bloggers were tried separately for "criticising the King of Bahrain" on Twitter and for, I quote, "misusing the right of free expression". Bahraini activist Nabeel Rajab was secluded on May 2013 after having announced over the phone to his own wife that he had witnessed the savage torture of 8 young political activists by army officers at the Jaw prison, in the capital Manama. Since then, there have been several attempts to silence Mr Rajab, and he is still detained as we speak. In Colombia, as recently as 2012, 158 aggressions of journalists have been reported including one murder. On the 1st of May 2013, a gunman fired at a car driven by Ricardo Calderón, a leading Colombian investigative journalist.
Mr Special Rapporteur, admittedly, the existing Human rights mechanisms have been slow to address the challenges and human rights implications of rapidly developing Internet and other new technologies. Nonetheless, states do have an imperative obligation to promote and protect the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression, and to provide an effective legal frame to prevent further violations of this right. Hence, states need to revise their national laws regulating modalities of surveillance in accordance with human rights standards.
I thank you for your attention.