This page summarizes cases raised with Chile by the Special Rapporteur between May 1, 2011, (when the Special Rapporteur took up his functions) and February 28, 2017 (the date of the last public release of communications). Communications are released to the public once per year. This page also contains observations on these communications and on responses received from Chile. Communications and observations are divided into sections based upon which observation report they originally appeared. Each communication is referenced as urgent appeal (UA), allegation letter (AL), joint urgent appeal (JUA) and joint allegation letter (JAL) – the hyperlinks lead to these documents. This is followed by the date the communication was issued, as well as the case number and the State reply (also hyperlinked if available). Summaries and communications are published only in the language of submission (in the case of Chile, Spanish). First Report (May 1, 2011 to March 15, 2012) Joint urgent appeal, 23/08/2011. Case no. CHL 4/2011. State Reply: 26/10/2011; 15/11/2011. Alegaciones de uso desproporcionado de la fuerza y detención de manifestantes. Joint allegation letter, 23/01/2012. Case no. CHL 1/2012. State Reply: None to date. Alegaciones de restricciones a la libertad de expresión, y de reunión... Continue reading →
Issue No. 21 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 issue: • Kiai tells Human Rights Council that fundamentalist intolerance is degrading assembly & association rights • Kenya: UNSR tells court that 2015 protest ban violated assembly rights • Contribute to the UNSR’s next report: FoAA rights in the context of labor • Human rights must gain new momentum at World Humanitarian Summit • Problem of closing civic space creeps into UN NGO Committee • Rapporteurs urge India to repeal law restricting NGO’s access to foreign funding • UN expert deplores harsh sentencing of Tajikistan opposition leaders and warns of radicalization • Egypt: Worsening crackdown on protests • UN human rights experts urge Cambodia to stop attacks against civil society • Iran: Denial of adequate medical treatment to political prisoners unacceptable • ‘A travesty of justice’ – UN experts condemn conviction of prominent Iran activist • China: Newly adopted Foreign NGO Law should be repealed, UN experts urge • Somalia: Experts alarmed over growing persecution against trade unionists • Kazakhstan clampdown on land reform... Continue reading →
GENEVA – The phenomenon of fundamentalism is fueling growing intolerance worldwide, which poses a grave threat to the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, United Nations expert Maina Kiai told the Human Rights Council today in presenting his latest report on religious, free market, political, and nationalist or cultural fundamentalism. “The concept of fundamentalism cannot be limited to religion,” cautioned the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. “It can and should be defined more expansively, to include any movements – not simply religious ones – that advocate strict and literal adherence to a set of basic beliefs or principles.” “At its core, this report is about the struggle between tolerance and intolerance,” Mr. Kiai stressed. “The people of the world speak some 7,000 languages, practice 270 major religions, live in 193 UN Member States and belong to thousands of cultures. But we share only one planet,” the human rights expert said. “We will not always agree. But tolerance towards our differences is the only way to make sure that they do not boil over into violence, oppression and conflict.” For the Special Rapporteur, the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are the... Continue reading →
GENEVA – United Nations Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai is in Geneva this week to present his latest reports to the 32nd session of the UN Human Rights Council. Kiai’s presentation to the Council on June 17 will be his last as Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association (his final report to the Council will be presented by his successor in June 2017). Kiai will present two reports covering his country visits to Chile and the Republic of Korea and a third focusing on the impact of fundamentalism on assembly and association rights (FOAA rights). A fourth report contains his observations on the mandate’s official communications with UN Member States and replies between March 1, 2015, and February 28, 2016. The June 17 presentation will take place at the Palais des Nations, Room XX; it is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. The session will be broadcast live on http://webtv.un.org/. Thematic report: Fundamentalism and FOAA rights Kiai’s fourth thematic report to the Council examines the role that that fundamentalist ideologies play in restricting assembly and association rights. Although fundamentalism is often defined in exclusively religious terms, the Special Rapporteur takes a much broader view of the concept in this report. He argues that... Continue reading →
Issue No. 17 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 issue: • UN experts warn that Brazil anti-terrorism law may threaten fundamental freedoms • Kiai urges European Court to establish “clear and strong standards” on assembly rights • Burundi: Experts urge Security Council to follow resolution with ‘concrete’ steps • Bangladesh NGOs: Kiai warns against proposed funding bill • Special Rapporteur urges Chile to scrap proposed ‘identity check’ bill • High time to protect sexual and reproductive rights defenders in the Americas • Civil society needs ‘new tactics’ to reverse shrinking space, Special Rapporteur tells Asia-Pacific activists in Seoul • Background reports compare laws on businesses and CSOs in 34 states • Freedom of association and assembly: By the numbers • Special Rapporteur news in brief: November-December 2015 • World briefing: Freedom of assembly and association in the news For a link to the newsletter, click on the image at right or click here (4.1MB file) or here (6.8MB full resolution file). To subscribe to our newsletter, please drop us a line at info@freeassembly.net with the subject line... Continue reading →
GENEVA - United Nations Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai has published a legal analysis warning that pending changes to Chile’s criminal procedure code – which liberalize police powers to stop, search and identify people – may violate international law. Chile’s draft bill number 9985-07, which is currently being considered by lawmakers, proposes two significant changes to the country’s Procedural Penal Code (Código Procesal Penal). The bill would introduce a new provision in the law, article 12, giving police the general power to stop and check the identity of any person, without any indication or suspicion of a crime. A person failing or refusing to produce proof of identity could then be brought to the nearest police station, where they would face up to four hours of detention while additional identification procedures take place. The bill would also amend article 85 of the law to allow broader use of identity checks and searches in the context of a crime or suspected crime. “These provisions raise two significant questions under international law,” Kiai writes in the analysis. “First, since identity controls affect the human rights of the people concerned, when may they be used and how will authorities guard against abuses? Second, do the detention periods of eight (in the... Continue reading →
Issue No. 16 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 issue: • Kiai calls on Chile to eliminate “vestiges of dictatorship” detrimental to assembly rights • UNSR presents report to General Assembly, urges States to promote civil society by elevating its treatment to the same level as business • Experts urge Latin America and Caribbean: adopt trend-setting environmental agreement • UN expert urges Angola to release 14 activists detained for criticizing Government • Draft law threatens independence and existence of Kazakh NGOs, Kiai warns • Heyns and Kiai wrap up consultations for recommendations on facilitating assemblies • Freedom of association and assembly: By the numbers • Special Rapporteur news in brief: October 2015 • World briefing: Freedom of assembly and association in the news For a link to the newsletter, click on the image at right or click here (3.4MB file) or here (5.4MB full resolution file). To subscribe to our newsletter, please drop us a line at info@freeassembly.net with the subject line “subscribe to newsletter.” For other recent newsletters, see the links below: The Assembly and Association Briefing,... Continue reading →
(English) SANTIAGO/GINEBRA – El Relator Especial de las Naciones Unidas, Maina Kiai, instó hoy al Gobierno de Chile a eliminar "los vestigios de la dictadura" que van en detrimento de la libertad de reunión pacífica en el país, y a continuar con las reformas para que el país pueda "ocupar el lugar que le corresponde como un líder mundial en los derechos humanos". "Chile ha logrado grandes avances desde su retorno a la democracia hace 25 años", dijo el Sr. Kiai al final de la primera visita* al país de un experto independiente encargado por el Consejo de Derechos Humanos de la ONU de promover la realización de los derechos de la libertad de reunión pacífica y de asociación de todo el mundo. "Sin embargo, aún persisten vestigios de antaño que no tienen cabida en el Chile de hoy", señaló. "El fantasma de esa época acecha especialmente al sector de la seguridad, principalmente Carabineros de Chile —y específicamente las Fuerzas Especiales— en su función de custodiar los conflictos sociales y manifestaciones”. El relator expresó su preocupación sobre el manejo en la práctica de las protestas. Durante su visita, recibió información de numerosos y variados ejemplos de violaciones cometidas por la policía durante protestas, incluyendo la fuerza excesiva y el acoso... Continue reading →
(Español) SANTIAGO/GENEVA – United Nations Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai today urged the Government of Chile to eliminate “vestiges of dictatorship” that are detrimental to the freedom of peaceful assembly in the country, and continue reforms so that the country can “take its rightful place as a global leader in human rights.” “Chile has made enormous strides since its return to democracy 25 years ago,” Mr. Kiai said at the end of the first visit* to the country by an independent expert tasked by the UN Human Rights Council with promoting the realization of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association worldwide. “However, there are still remnants of yesteryear that have no place in the Chile of today,” he noted. “The ghost of this era looms particularly large over the security sector, chiefly the police—and specifically the Special Forces—and their function in policing social conflicts and assemblies.” The expert expressed concern about Chile’s practical management of protests. During his visit, he was informed of numerous and varied examples of violations perpetrated by police during protests, including excessive force and harassment of activists. A particularly disturbing example, he said, was the July 2015 killing of Nelson Quichillao, a copper... Continue reading →
(English) SANTIAGO DE CHILE – Quisiera agradecer al Gobierno de la República de Chile por haberme invitado a realizar aquí esta misión oficial, mi primera al continente americano. Veo esto como una señal positiva de la disposición del Gobierno a participar de un diálogo constructivo sobre los derechos a la libertad de reunión pacífica y de asociación, entre otros derechos humanos. Soy el cuarto Relator Especial de las Naciones Unidas a visitar Chile desde el mes de julio 2013, lo cual creo es indicio de la seriedad del Gobierno en su voluntad de cumplir con sus obligaciones acorde a la normativa internacional sobre derechos humanos. Quisiera además agradecer al Gobierno por su cooperación ejemplar en la organización de esta misión, particularmente a la luz del terremoto que golpeó a Chile el 16 de septiembre. La situación de emergencia resultante podría haber llevado a cancelar esta misión, pero no obstante, el Gobierno continuó adelante. He sostenido intercambios provechosos con miembros de los poderes ejecutivo, legislativo y judicial en Santiago, Valparaíso, Temuco y Copiapó. Además de haberme beneficiado inmensamente con la ayuda otorgada por el Instituto Nacional de Derechos Humanos (INDH). Les agradezco a todos por su tenacidad en asegurar que esta misión se haya podido... Continue reading →
