Sri Lanka: UN expert to assess
rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association
GENEVA (16 July 2019) UN Special Rapporteur Clément
Nyaletsossi Voule will visit Sri Lanka from 18 to 26 July 2019 to assess rights
to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the country.
“We have seen a commendable effort
to expand civic space in Sri Lanka, the establishment of strong and independent
institutions, and noticeable strides towards truth and reconciliation in the
country,” Voule said. “I hope that my visit will aid in the further
strengthening of public freedom, at a conjuncture where the country has had to
face important challenges, including the recent and tragic Easter terrorist
attacks.”
The Special Rapporteur will visit
Colombo, along with provinces in the North, South and East of the country.
During his nine-day visit, the expert will meet with Government officials,
representatives of the judiciary, legislature, media, civil society and trade
unions, as well as with the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. He will also
meet representatives of the United Nations system and other international
organisations, along with other stakeholders in the country.
Voule said he would assess a number
of issues related to the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and
association, including their intersection with the implementation of the 2030
Sustainable Development Goals, limitations placed on these rights in the
context of counter-terrorism and emergency legislation, and the exercise of
these rights in online spaces.
The Special Rapporteur will hold a
press conference at 2:30 pm on 26 July at the United Nations Compound, 202-204
Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 00700, to present his preliminary observations.
Access to the conference will be limited to journalists.
The independent expert will present
a comprehensive report on his visit to the 44th session of the Human Rights
Council in June 2020.
ENDS
Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, from
Togo, was appointed as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right topeaceful assembly and association in March 2018. He is a legal expert and
currently works in Geneva in the field of human rights. He is an associate
researcher at the Geneva Academy of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. Prior to
his appointment, he led the work of the International Service for Human Rights
(ISHR). Mr. Voule also worked as Secretary General of the Togolese Coalition of
Human Rights Defenders, as campaigning officer for the Coalition for the
Togolese International Criminal Court and as Secretary General of the Amnesty
International section in Togo. Since 2011, Mr. Voule has been an expert member
of the Working Group on Extractive Industries, Environment and Human Rights
Violations of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights.
The Special Rapporteurs are part of
what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special
Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights
system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and
monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or
thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures experts work on a
voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their
work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in
their individual capacity.
UN Human Rights, Country Page - SriLanka
For more information and media
requests please contact:
Support to the mandate: Mr Jack
Pope (+41 22 917 9278 [+94 762 38 26 87 during the visit],
spdconsultant@ohchr.org)
For media registration for the
Press Conference, please contact: Ms Kaushalya Kathireson,
kaushalya.kathireson@one.un.org
For media inquiries related to
other UN independent experts please contact: Mr Jeremy Laurence, UN Human
Rights – Media Unit (+41 22 917 9383 / jlaurence@ohchr.org)
Follow news related to the UN’s
independent human rights experts on Twitter @UN_SPExperts.
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