Democracy Under Threat: Joint Declaration of Experts On Protecting The Right To Freedom Of Peaceful Assembly In Times Of Emergencies

16-09-2022

Beatrice Serra

International Justice and Human Rights Researcher

Global Human Rights Defense

September 15th marked the anniversary of the International Day of Democracy, which the UN Office for Partnerships in collaboration with the UN Democracy Fund decided to celebrate by hosting a discussion as part of the SDG Roundtable series. The event focused on the crucial importance of advancing and protecting media freedom, not only as a fundamental key aspect of democracy but also as indispensable for the achievement of SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. (United Nations, 2022)

In times where democracy values and principles are increasingly under threat, recalling the importance of protecting our democracies is crucial. Indeed, while the mid-1970s was characterized by a wave of democratization worldwide, from Africa to Asia to Europe, in the last decade we are experiencing the opposite process. The major trend is now towards authoritarianism, or what it is called “democratic backsliding”. (Aridi, 2020) In 2022, Democracy Indices revealed allarming data. According to Freedom House, “the present threat to democracy is the product of 16 consecutive years of decline in global freedom”, with “some 38 percent of the global population living in Not Free countries, the highest proportion since 1997”. (Repucci, Slipowitz, 2022) 

On this day, experts from the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR), the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) released a joint Declaration, recalling that "States must, at all times, respect the people’s rights to assemble and communicate their grievances, express opposition, challenge policies and advance ideas. Only by inclusion of the plurality of voices, can democracy thrive, and more sustainable solutions to ongoing and emerging crises be found”. Such an intervention appeared necessary in light of the increased use of emergency situations by governments to suppress freedoms around the world, in particular freedom of assembly. In this regard, the experts highlighted the fundamental role of “civil society, human rights defenders and social movements in recovering from emergencies; such as for building back better and ensuring a human rights-oriented recovery from the COVID-19 global pandemic”. (Joint Declaration On Protecting The Right To Freedom Of Peaceful Assembly In Times Of Emergencies, 2022)

Sources and Further Readings:

African Commission for Human and Peoples’ Rights (September 15, 2022), Joint Declaration On Protecting The Right To Freedom Of Peaceful Assembly In Times Of Emergencies, African Commission Press Release, retrieved on September 16th, 2022,  from https://www.achpr.org/pressrelease/detail?id=654. 

1. Aridi (September 3, 2020), How democracies are now ‘backsliding' in countries from Russia to the United, Science, retrieved on September 16th, 2022,  from https://www.science.org/content/article/how-democracies-are-now-backsliding-countries-russia-united-states. 

1. Repucci, A. Slipowitz (February 2022), FREEDOM IN THE WORLD 2022 - The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule, Freedom House, retrieved on September 16th, 2022,  from https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/2022-02/FIW_2022_PDF_Booklet_Digital_Final_Web.pdf. 

United Nations (2022), International Day of Democracy - 15 September, Protecting Press Freedom for Democracy, United Nations, retrieved on September 16th, 2022,  from https://www.un.org/en/observances/democracy-day.