The rights to assemble, demonstrate, protest and gather together are essential to democracy. They are a central means for people to collectively express their views and needs, contribute to social, cultural and political discourse, and hold authorities to account.
However, freedom of peaceful assembly is under pressure globally, both in the physical and the online space. As people take to the streets, meet up or gather online to preserve rights and create better society, they are confronted by various challenges.
One of the key challenges is the use of excessive, disproportionate and discriminatory force by the authorities policing the assemblies (e.g., unlawful arrests, use of lethal weapons to disperse protests, etc.). Another challenge consists of the increasing use of digital technologies – including artificial-intelligence driven devices – to monitor assemblies (e.g., live facial recognition cameras, phone-tracking, predictive emotion-recognition devices, etc).
Further and tighter restrictions to protests and gatherings are to be expected across the world even as COVID-19 pandemic related lockdowns are eased. Various crisis on the horizon such as the economic downturn remains critical, and the ongoing wars are triggering social unrest. Such developments have negative impact both on the practical exercise of the right of peaceful assembly and on the way this is monitored.
1. Implementation of the General Comment no. 37 on Article 21, ICCPR: The milestone UN document, adopted in July 2020, creates safeguards for emerging protest practices such as assemblies held online and in private spaces, and condemns negative trends of use of disproportionate force, internet disruptions and attacks on media, watchdogs or vulnerable groups. ECNL engaged in the drafting of the Comment from the beginning (find out more about our work and the process that led to the Comment here) and is now working with our partners to help boost awareness of the specific innovative protective standards acknowledged by the GC so that they can use these new standards in litigation before national or international courts. Marcia V.J. Kran, expert member of the UN Human Rights Committee said: “I expect the outreach you are doing, in such an accessible format, will reach many rightsholders. This work is commendable.”
2. Upholding standards for advocacy and litigation: ECNL supports the efforts of various UN-level human rights mechanisms to create better standards for freedom of peaceful assembly. The UN Human Rights Council at its 44th session adopted a resolution (44/20) that will enhance protection of participants in peaceful protests especially regarding the use of new technologies, prevention of undue surveillance and enabling online protests. ECNL submitted written contributions and worked to ensure that the final text includes progressive language. We also provide input to follow-up processes on how the right to peaceful assembly has been regulated or otherwise implemented during the pandemic.
Assembly Repository: Our online collection of UN and regional materials on freedom of assembly.
3. Assisting activists in national/local advocacy efforts: ECNL provides support to CSOs in the countries where restrictive provisions on assembly are tabled or enforced. Specifically, we offer to draft legal opinions to assess whether such restrictive proportions or their implementation are in breach of international human rights standards – which support CSOs in their advocacy or litigation. We also help them identify the best strategic approach for their advocacy and our potential direct or indirect engagement in it. In case their advocacy would benefit from the involvement of international institutions (e.g., the UN treaty bodies’ review mechanisms, the EU legal avenues, international courts, etc.), we can also facilitate contacts and access to such institutions and their protection mechanisms. (Read more about our legal analyses of proposed bills in Denmark and the UK).
ECNL works with organisations in the Eastern Partnership and Balkan region to monitor laws and protests so that they can identify shortcomings in the legal framework and report violations. For the new circumstances the pandemic brought on the right to free assembly, we continue the exchange and offer relevant discussions on emerging issues. We create tools, build capacity and support advocacy for reform to counter the growing restrictive tendencies.
We create monitoring tools and methodologies that are based on international standards, but are tailor-made to partners' specific needs and capacities. ECNL also helps partners monitor challenges posed to assembly rights by COVID-19 restrictions and has launched joint thinking about assemblies in the online space and how to best monitor them.
Monitoring the Right to Free Assembly reports from the year 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
ECNL has brought together a diverse group of local CSOs, activists and lawyers in an informal network to facilitate peer-to-peer exchanges and share progressive approaches. We also facilitate connections to other European or issue-specific networks (such as digital rights groups) and institutions (such as ODIHR and the UN Special Rapporteurs or the Human Rights Committee.) We organise tailored trainings, offer mentoring sessions to provide targeted support on priority issues and develop brief background materials on emerging and relevant issues.
ECNL supports partners to engage in legal reform processes to improve existing practices around freedom of assembly. We support them develop their own advocacy strategies, construe arguments and tactics to push back against restrictions and respond to potential openings. We do so by providing them with comparative legal expertise, guidance on advocacy materials prepared, strategic advice and by bringing their voices to global and regional institutions on assembly. We most recently provided financial support to our partners in:
