GENEVA – Former United Nations Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai will be in Geneva June 6-9, 2017, for the release of his final four reports to the Human Rights Council, and for a handful of side-events. The reports – a thematic report mapping the achievements of civil society, country reports on his visits to the United States and the United Kingdom in 2016, and a communications report – will be presented by his successor, Annalisa Ciampi. The new Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association is scheduled to start her interactive dialogue with the Council at 15:00 on June 6. It may continue from 15:00 on June 7 as well. The presentation will take place at the Palais des Nations, Room XX; it will be broadcast live on http://webtv.un.org/. Thematic report: Mapping the achievements of civil society Kiai’s sixth and final thematic report to the Council maps and quantifies the myriad ways in which civil society has improved societies globally in the past decade: protecting civil and political rights, advancing development objectives, moving societies towards freedom and equality, achieving and upholding peace, regulating corporate behaviour, protecting the environment, delivering essential services, and advocating for economic, social and cultural... Continue reading →
Issue No. 27 of the Assembly and Association Briefing, the newsletter of Maina Kiai, UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. In this our final issue: • Kiai completes term as Rapporteur, hands over mandate to Annalisa Ciampi • A thank you message from former Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai – and news on work yet to come • Kiai launches FOAA Online! – a web-based collection of legal arguments on assembly and association rights • Special Rapporteur files interventions in South Africa and Zimbabwe cases • Venezuela: allow peaceful protests and investigate killing of demonstrators • UN experts urge Russia to drop Jehovah’s Witness lawsuit which threatens religious freedom • Russia: “Immediately release detained peaceful protesters” • UN rights experts urge lawmakers to stop “alarming” trend to curb freedom of assembly in the US • Ahead of referendum, UN experts warn Turkey about impact of purge on rights • UN experts urge United Arab Emirates: “Immediately release Ahmed Mansoor” • Belarus: expert decries of violence against protestors, demands release of all detained • Hungary urged by UN expert to reconsider new law targeting Central European University • Maina Kiai’s Testimony... Continue reading →
Dear friends and partners, Yesterday marked my last day as UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association – a bittersweet occasion to be sure, but also one that marked the first step in a new journey. I’m writing to express my sincerest and deepest thanks to each and every one of you who has interacted with the mandate since 2011. Your work, input and dedication was crucial in helping the mandate accomplish so much in its first six years of its existence. Your efforts truly made the mandate yours – a vehicle of the people it’s supposed to represent. It was inspiring to work with all of you, and I hope to have the chance to do it again soon. I also hope that you will be just as engaged with my successor, Ms. Annalisa Ciampi, who takes up her functions as Special Rapporteur today. I am also writing to give an overview regarding what will become of mandate-related work and communications. Our website, freeassembly.net, will continue to be live and accessible for the foreseeable future. Regular updates will continue at least through the end of June, as the UN releases my final thematic report (on civil society’s contributions over the years) and final country reports (on the USA and UK visits). I hope the site continues to serve as a valuable... Continue reading →
