Illustration: AtticMedia for ISHR
ISHR responded to the UN Human Rights Committee’s call for input regarding a draft General Comment on Article 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (‘ICCPR’) on the right to freedom of association, focusing on the rights of human rights defenders and civil society’s engagement with multilateral fora.
ISHR’s submission to the Human Rights Committee highlighted that human rights defenders face heightened and growing risk and that their freedom of association should be interpreted in light of existing international standards such as the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders as well as the ‘Declaration +25’ (a civil society supplement building on the UN Declaration).
ISHR emphasised both the negative duty of States not to interfere with defenders’ right to associate, as well as their positive duty to ensure the right to assemble peacefully, join and participate in NGOs, communicate with non-governmental or intergovernmental organisations, pursue their work free from stigmatisation and criminalisation, and seek funding from a variety of sources. The submission noted the particular importance of ensuring that defenders exercising their right to freedom of association are afforded an enabling environment in which to work.
ISHR also zeroed in on the freedom of association in the context of civil society actors’ participation in multilateral fora. Drawing on reports of the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, ISHR raised concerns in particular regarding the practices of the UN Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations.
ISHR urged the Human Rights Committee to clarify States’ obligations regarding civil society participation at the multilateral level, including facilitating such participation, refraining from creating obstacles to it, preventing and addressing reprisals, and accountability through investigations and remedies.
The Committee’s call for input and the full text of ISHR’s submission is available here.
Over 90 organisations call on the Syrian transitional government and Member States of the Human Rights Council to ensure that any decisions affecting the future of the Commission of Inquiry are firmly anchored in tangible improvements in the human rights situation in Syria.
On the third anniversary of the conflict in Sudan, NGOs urge the international community to act urgently to save lives in Sudan.
Chinese human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng has reunited with his family in Beijing after completing a three-year prison sentence, imposed in violation of international law, on 13 April 2026.
