PRESS RELEASE
OF COUNCIL OF EUROPE: "MEMBER STATES MUST PROTECT AND SUPPORT
THE WORK OF HUMAN RIGHTS
DEFENDERS"
[04/11/08] After a two-day round table with human rights
activists from
all parts of Europe, Commissioner Hammarberg, stated that "human rights
defenders should be seen as key partners in governmental endeavours to
promote
and protect the rights of individuals".
"Such defenders are carrying out very
valuable work to raise
awareness among the population about human rights" said the
Commissioner. "They
point at gaps and deficiencies in the national policies and protection
systems
and they can also assist authorities in addressing these and finding
solutions."
During the round table, human
rights activists and
journalists from all over Europe have shared with the Commissioner their
experiences of obstacles and problems in their daily work of promoting
human
rights for everyone in their respective countries.
"I am concerned about the many methods
used to impede the work of
human rights defenders" he continued. "I have received reports about
outright threats to their lives, legal or administrative harassments
and
conditioning state funding to not issuing public reports. I am deeply
worried
about instances of pressure from officials and other individuals to
silence or
dissuade applicants or their legal representatives from bringing cases
to the
European Court of Human Rights."
The 2008 Declaration on Council
of Europe action to
improve the protection of human rights defenders and promote their
activities
reinforced the mandate of the Commissioner and his possibilities of
promoting a
conducive working environment, including raising individual cases with
Governments, in close cooperation with the United Nations Special
Rapporteur
and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. The Declaration designated the
Commissioner
as the main regional mechanism to strengthen the protection of human
rights
defenders and their activities.
"Human rights defenders work on a wide
range of issues. We must ensure
that their work is not only protected, but supported by both national
authorities and international organizations" he concluded.
In their Declaration
adopted at the end of the round
table, human rights defenders called upon Council of Europe member
States to
enhance the support to the Commissioner's work.
*Azerbaijan was represented at the
roundtable by Azeri human rights defenders Shahin
Abbasov, Arzu Abdullayev, Eldar Zeynalov and Emin Huseynov (Institute
for
Reporters’ Freedom and Safety Director).
(link: http://www.coe.int/t/commissioner/News/HRDefenders_en.asp
)
DECLARATION
OF
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
4/11/08 We fifty-five human
right defenders from different parts of the
European continent met in a roundtable organized by the Commissioner
for Human
Rights on 3-4 November 2008 at the headquarters of the Council of
Europe in
Strasbourg. We shared with him our concerns and the obstacles we face
on a
daily basis in our work in defending the human rights of other persons
in our
countries.
We welcome the opportunity
provided by the Office of the Commissioner
for Human Rights to interact and create an effective network of human
rights
defenders throughout Europe, based on solidarity, good communication
and the
capacity to react rapidly in urgent situation in defense of each
other’s
rights.
We strongly support the
Commissioner’s efforts and we call upon him to
strengthen and expand his activities in support of us and our work. We
call
upon member states of the Council of Europe to support him politically
and
financially in this endeavor, which is at the heart of his mandate.
More resources are needed to
allow the Commissioner to effectively
promote an enabling and conducive environment in which all human rights
standards of the Council of Europe are respected and a reality in
Europe.
(link: http://www.coe.int/t/commissioner/News/DeclHRD_en.pdf
)