We use various third-party cookies to provide social media features and to analyze our traffic. Please use the options below to manage your cookie settings. You can change your cookie settings at any time. Please be aware, if you deny cookies, certain features of our website may not work.
This will apply to all services
Google Analytics
YouTube
Geneva Academy
26 February 2019
Our Research Fellow Dr Jonathan Andrew represented the Geneva Academy at a two-day workshop on digital space and the protection of freedom of association and peaceful assembly in Africa organized by the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL), Civil Society Reference Group (CSRG) and the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) .
This workshop provided an opportunity for civil society organizations, trade unions, NGOs and human rights defenders from more than 20 countries in Africa to share their expertise and experiences of freedom of peaceful assembly and association (FoAA) online with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Clément Voule.
Dr Andrew facilitated the discussions in the different sessions of the workshop and documented information pertinent to the UN Special Rapporteur’s upcoming report to the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on the right to FoAA in the digital era.
Participants notably examined key definitional issues relating to assemblies and association online and discussed new features and practices brought about by mobilization in the digital sphere. The discussion also focused on the impacts of new online platforms on civil society, human rights defenders, media and other groups and movements in Africa.
They also discussed their experiences of specific threats and challenges faced when exercising these rights in the digital age, including the emergence of restrictive laws, state surveillance, criminal defamation suits, and the role played by the private sector in promoting the right to FoAA in the digital era.
Participants provided examples of good and bad practices across the continent and discussed how the private sector can effectively respond to the challenges facing civil society to meet and associate online.
Participants presented recommendations to relevant stakeholders including African states, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Special Rapporteur, the private sector/industry, and civil society.
These inputs will inform the preparation of the UN Special Rapporteur's upcoming thematic report to the HRC on the right to FoAA in the digital era.
‘The workshop proved particularly insightful with regard to documenting testimony relating to specific regional concerns of citizens’ access to Internet resources, and the subsequence hindrance of their ability to mobilize and assemble peacefully to raise concerns within communities in Africa’ underlines Dr Andrew.
News
Geneva Academy
Our Geneva Human Rights Platform offered, in collaboration with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, a three-day executive training course for Geneva-based diplomats on the functioning of UN human rights mechanisms and negotiation practices at the multilateral level.
News
Via its DHRTTDs Directory, the Geneva Human Rights Platform provides a comprehensive list and description of such key tools and databases. But how to navigate them? Which tool should be used for what, and by whom? This interview helps us understand better the specificities of the new highlight of the directory: UPR Info's Database
Training
Adobe
This training course will examine how the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights have been utilized to advance the concept of business respect for human rights throughout the UN system, the impact of the Guiding Principles on other international organizations, as well as the impact of standards and guidance developed by these different bodies.
Training
Adobe
Participants in this training course, made of two modules, will examine the major international and regional instruments for the promotion of human rights and the environment, familiarizing themselves with the respective implementation and enforcement mechanisms.
Project
Victoria Pickering
This project aims at providing support to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association Clément Voulé by addressing emerging issues affecting civic space and eveloping tools and materials allowing various stakeholders to promote and defend civic space.
Project
Adobe Stock
This project addresses the human rights implications stemming from the development of neurotechnology for commercial, non-therapeutic ends, and is based on a partnership between the Geneva Academy, the Geneva University Neurocentre and the UN Human Rights Council Advisory Committee.
Publication
Geneva Academy
Publication
Geneva Academy
