NAIROBI – Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai has filed an amicus curiae brief before the High Court of Kenya in Nairobi, arguing that protesters’ assembly rights were violated when they were prevented from staging an anti-corruption protest in front of the President’s official residence in 2015. The protesters, led by activist Boniface Mwangi – who is the petitioner in the case – planned to march from a nearby park to the residence, where they would present a petition acting the President to act firmly on the issue of corruption. The march was to take place on International Day Against Corruption, Dec. 9, 2015. The group notified authorities of their proposed route, but the request to march to Gate A of State House, the presidential residence, was denied. No reasons were provided. In his brief, the Special Rapporteur asserts that international law protects the right of protest organizers to choose the location of their assembly – whether it is static or mobile. Thus, any restriction imposed on the location must meet the stringent requirements under international law for “legitimate restrictions” to the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. That is, they must be: (1) in conformity with the law; (2) designed with a legitimate government aim in mind; and (3) necessary in a democratic... Continue reading →
NAIROBI/GHENT/STRASBOURG – Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai has joined with Ghent University’s Human Rights Centre to file a third party intervention in four cases before the European Court of Human Rights. The cases, Mahammad Majidli v. Azerbaijan (no. 3) and three other applications, concern the exercise of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly in Azerbaijan. At issue is the Court’s interpretation of Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which enshrines the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. The submission from the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, and the Human Rights Centre, calls upon the Court to clarify its jurisprudence on the right to freedom of assembly and to establish “clear and strong protective standards.” “States are increasingly limiting the right to freedom of assembly using justifications such as ‘unauthorized assemblies’ or ‘unlawful assemblies’ with consequent measures such as administrative and criminal sanctions,” the authors write. “The cases before the Court provide an excellent opportunity for the Court to clarify the use of these notions and measures in light of the legal protection guaranteed by Article 11 of the Convention.” The brief focuses on the need to... Continue reading →
NAIROBI/SUCRE, Bolivia - Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai has filed an amicus curiae brief in the Constitutional Court of Bolivia, arguing that a national law and an executive decree regulating the operations of non-governmental organizations breach the international right to freedom of association. The brief, which was submitted on May 13, 2015, was the first official court filing in the UN expert’s project to advance the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association through the use of litigation in national and regional courts. The project began in Oct. 2014 and aims to encourage the application of international law norms at the domestic level. In March 2013, Bolivia adopted the controversial law on legal personality, despite many analyses indicating that it contravened international law. In June 2013, the equally contentious implementing Supreme Decree followed. Late last year, the “Defensor del Pueblo” filed a petition with the Constitutional Court of Bolivia (Tribunal Constitucional Plurinacional de Bolivia), to challenge two specific provisions it deems unconstitutional. In the analysis of the Special Rapporteur these provisions indeed “unjustifiably restrict the right to freedom of association under international law, standards and principles”. The first challenged... Continue reading →
Maina Kiai is nearing the completion of his fourth year as the inaugural UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association – leaving him with two years before he departs the mandate. Over the last three-plus years, Kiai has strived to actively protect and promote the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, through his reports, through official and unofficial country visits, and by meeting and consulting with as many stakeholders as possible. It has been an exciting and productive four years, but there remains much work to be done. Despite increased international awareness of the issues, for example, many governments are growing increasingly restrictive when it comes to regulating their citizens’ abilities to enjoy the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. As he prepares to enter the final two years of his mandate, the Special Rapporteur would like to hear from you – both in evaluating past work, and in shaping work for the future. Tell us what you think We’d like to hear your views. What has the mandate done well? Where has it come up short? What types of reports would you like to see? What should be the mandate’s strategic focus for the final two years, and how should the Special Rapporteur addressing these... Continue reading →
The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are among the most fundamental human rights in international law. Today, however, they are increasingly under assault by repressive governments. From the Global North to the Global South, States are harassing activists, spying on their citizens, breaking up protests, erecting legal obstacles for civil society organizations, and generally closing off civic space. In October 2014, UN Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai launched a new project designed to combat this trend in a different way: Through the use of strategic litigation, particularly litigation that emphasizes international law in attempting to protect civic space. On Oct. 16-17, the Special Rapporteur invited lawyers from all over the world to discuss how to move the project forward. This video (also embedded below) provides an overview of the Special Rapporteur’s new project, the workshop, and the ideas of the nearly 20 lawyers from 11 countries who participated. The primary aim of the project is to provide technical assistance and advisory services for public interest litigation on assembly and association issues, with a view to increasing such litigation and encouraging the application of international law norms at the domestic level. The Special Rapporteur also plans to submit amicus... Continue reading →
NAIVASHA, Kenya – The push to apply international standards in domestic and regional court cases requires a strategic, coordinated and multipronged approach by lawyers and civil society if it is to succeed, according to participants in a workshop organized this week by UN Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai. The workshop, which was held Oct. 16-17 in Naivasha, Kenya, gathered nearly 20 lawyers from 11 countries to discuss best practices for litigating cases dealing with the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. It was the first event in the Special Rapporteur’s new project focused on enhancing assembly and association rights through the use of strategic litigation. The project aims to provide technical assistance and advisory services for public interest litigation on assembly and association issues, with a view to increasing such litigation and encouraging the application of international law norms at the domestic level. The Special Rapporteur also plans to submit amicus briefs in a handful of relevant cases, where he can highlight international norms and principles. The Special Rapporteur emphasized that project is worldwide in its scope. “Assembly and association rights are under siege in every region of the world: east and west, north and south,” said Kiai, who is the Special... Continue reading →
Global trends show increasingly shrinking space for civic organizations and actions, as well as significant threats to the exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. In an effort to help reverse these trends, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association has begun a new project that will focus on protecting these rights via litigation in national and regional courts. The project, which is supported by the government of Norway, will focus first on providing technical assistance and advisory services for public interest litigation on assembly and association issues, with a view to increasing such litigation and encouraging the application of international law norms at the domestic level. The Special Rapporteur also plans to submit amicus briefs in relevant cases, where he can highlight international norms and principles. The project will begin in earnest with a two-day experts consultation in mid-October. The consultation, which will take place in Kenya, will convene lawyers from a diverse range of countries and legal traditions with an eye towards exchanging ideas and learning from each other’s experiences on the successes and challenges of such litigation. The Special Rapporteur recognizes the importance of involving all arms of... Continue reading →
