Human rights defenders and the shrinking space for civil society

Side-event at the 25th session of the UN Human Rights Council
Frontline
Human rights defenders and the shrinking space for civil society

Opening Remarks by Ms. Navi Pillay, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

 Geneva, 10 March 2014
Palais des Nations, Room XXIII

Colleagues, Friends,

It is a pleasure to be invited by Frontline to participate in this meeting on human rights defenders.

This is a subject of tremendous importance and almost equally ofoutrage.

It seems that we learn almost weekly about reprisals against human rights defenders : killings, threats, harassment, smear campaigns and arrests. Laws and administrative measures strip civil society actors of their independence. And all too often, women defenders are targeted disproportionately, whether by State actors or by social forces.

These are the actions of insecure and desperate leaders. Strong, sustainable societies rest on the consent of the governed. Leaders increase their impact when they enable the participation of all actors in society, and promote and protect their human rights and dignity.

Time and again, as I have travelled as High Commissioner, I have been honoured to meet individuals of enormous dignity, whose courage and fierce determination to strive for justice has been truly inspirational. They may be people of modest background and humble means, but their perseverance -- often at great personal risk – is truly moving.

The stories of these human rights defenders continue to inspire me and will stay with me forever. It is because of their example, and the results of their work, that so many of us have become involved in human rights ourselves.

Let us learn from and actively promote practices that inspire, inform and educate people about how they can participate effectively, so as to claim their inalienable human rights and hold leaders to account.

Sustainable societies rely on decision making processes that involve both deep and widely inclusive public participation. This fundamental truth applies not only to national and global arenas but also to our families and communities.

We must continue working to ensure that civil society actors are able to go about their work freely and independently. This work will involve both restraining the forces that oppress civil society, and seeking to enhance the space in which civil society participates.  Widening the democratic space will be one of the six thematic priorities that will guide the work of OHCHR over the next four years, and I hope that many of you will join us as we focus on this endeavour.

Let me conclude these remarks by paying tribute to our Front Line colleagues for their tireless work. Above all, we must honour all the defenders around the world whose names may not be known to us, but for whose endeavours we, and all those who work for human rights, remain profoundly grateful.

Thank you.