Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has had profound political, economic, social and health consequences for all countries. It has inflicted enormous human suffering, brought about large-scale economic disruption, and intensified closure of civic space. Over the past two years, the pandemic has been connected to a reversal in progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and has negatively impacted implementation of its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

It is crucial in the wake of the pandemic that the international community, including States and other actors, make the commitments needed to ensure sustainable development and build durable and resilient political, economic, social and health systems.¹ For this to be possible, however, the world cannot simply return to ‘business as usual’.²  A paradigm shift is required, one in which decision-makers come to be truly responsive to people’s wants, needs and rights.

To achieve this transformative change, the Special Rapporteur has called on States to harness the power of social movements and respond to popular calls for reforms.³ Whether fighting for climate justice, advancing gender, racial and economic equality, or protecting democratic freedoms, social movements around the world have shown the courage to challenge the status quo and to work towards a truly equitable and sustainable future. They have shown this courage despite facing increasing violence and repression, in particular as a result of their exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. For his report to the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association will explore the impact of social movements in achieving progress towards more equal and sustainable societies, and how threats and attacks to freedoms of peaceful assembly and association affect them. The report is intended to illustrate the value that social movements bring in efforts to building a more sustainable future beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. It will provide recommendations to States and other actors on how to support social movements and integrate their efforts into build back better policy agendas.

Key questions and types of input sought

The questionnaires below solicit information with a view to assisting the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in preparing his report.

Kindly note that there are two separate questionnaires. Please answer only the questionnaire that corresponds to your position – UN Member State or civil society.

All responses received will be made public in October 2022, when the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association presents his report to the General Assembly. Civil society respondents may request that their submissions remain confidential if they so wish. Please clearly state in your response if you would like your submission to remain confidential.

How and where to submit inputs

Completed questionnaires should be e-mailed to freeassembly@ohchr.org. We will be accepting submissions until 10 June 2022.

Questionnaire for Member States: English
Questionnaire for civil society: English