By Oforiwa Darko
Human rights defenders play a critical role in many countries in persuading organizations to protect specific rights of individuals or a section of the population. But in their line of duty, they suffer multiple violations of their basic rights such as arbitrary arrests, illegal detentions, acts of torture, inhuman treatment, lack of the right to counsel, among others. Between 2015 and 2019, the UN recorded at least 1,940 killings and 106 enforced disappearances of human rights defenders, journalists, and trade unionists across 81 countries.
To establish a roadmap to put in place a legal framework to protect their line of work, Human Rights Defenders across the African Continent have met officials from Civil Society Organizations, CSOs and National Human Rights Institutions in Accra. The two-day workshop is also to help bridge their roles to protect human right defenders and take stock of the implementation of the Marrakech Declaration.
Made decades ago, the Marrakech Declaration and Paris Summit declaration calls for National Human Rights Institutions to create an enabling environment for CSOs to thrive as well as contribute to the promotion and protection of Human Rights Defenders. AfricanDefenders, DefendersDefenders, Gender Centre for Empowering Development, GenCED Ghana, National Human Rights Institutions in collaboration with Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice of Ghana, therefore created a common platform to champion the common agenda.
The Executive Director of DefendDefenders, Hassan Shire said that the consultative process being carried out would help monitor civic space and the situation of human rights defenders, supports the establishment of protection mechanisms for human rights defenders and promote positive narratives on the work of human rights defenders.
“It is important to ensure the safety of human rights defenders and protect their rights. Also, we have to apply a gender perspective when approaching the issue of human rights defenders”.
The Executive Director of Gender Centre for Empowering Development (GenCED), Esther Tawiah noted that human rights defenders everywhere especially women should be able to freely and safely execute their functions without any restrictions.
“Women who are Human Rights Defenders are raising their voices frequently at great personal risk to stand up against all forms of violence and conflict. It is therefore necessary for National Human Rights Institutions, CSOs and all human rights defenders to collaborate to enhance their protection globally”.
Through our joint efforts, we can all help to respond to the gender-based risks that women human rights defenders can face when standing up for justice and equality, she further added.
Madam Mercy Larbi, the Deputy Commissioner of Human Rights and Administrative Justice, CHRAJ, emphasized that the multi-stakeholder dialogue is timely to help push for the establishment of a legal framework to address all issues confronting Human Rights Defenders.
“Every citizen should adopt a zero-tolerance approach towards violence, threats and intimidation against Human Rights Defenders. CHRAJ would also strive to collaborate with National Human Rights Institutions and CSOs to promote and protect Defenders rights in all jurisdictions.
The UN Declaration of Human Rights Defenders recognizes that everyone has rights and responsibilities within the community and encourages everyone to be a defender of human rights. After nearly two decades of negotiations, the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders was adopted by consensus at the General Assembly in 1998. The Declaration commits UN member states to safeguard the right of everyone to promote, protect, or strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms through peaceful means.