The Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association

A/HRC/RES/15/21No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 3Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, published in 2010.

What other versions does this mandate have?

6 versions · 2010–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/HRC/RES/59/4

2025A/HRC/RES/59/4The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of associationLatestCompare with previous version
2022A/HRC/RES/50/17The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of associationCompare with previous version
2019A/HRC/RES/41/12The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of associationCompare with previous version
2016A/HRC/RES/32/32The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of associationCompare with previous version
2013A/HRC/RES/24/5The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of associationCompare with previous version

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

18 topics

Advisory Services Civil and Political Rights Civil Society Coordination Within UN System Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Elections Freedom of Association Gender Equality Human Rights Advancement Human Rights Violations Information Exchange Laws and Regulations Minorities Non-Governmental Organizations Report Preparation Right of Assembly Special Rapporteurs Technical Cooperation

What does this mandate say?

18 operative paragraphs

Calls upon States to respect and fully protect the rights of all individuals to assemble peacefully and associate freely, including in the context of elections, and including persons espousing minority or dissenting views or beliefs, human rights defenders, trade unionists and others, including migrants, seeking to exercise or to promote these rights, and to take all necessary measures to ensure that any restrictions on the free exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are in accordance with their obligations under international human rights law;

Calls upon the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to assist States to promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, including through the technical assistance programmes of the Office, at the request of States, and to cooperate with relevant bodies of the United Nations system and other intergovernmental organizations to assist States to promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association;

Encourages civil society, including non-governmental organizations and other relevant stakeholders, to promote the enjoyment of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, recognizing that civil society facilitates the achievement of the aims and principles of the United Nations;

Recalls that, in accordance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association can be subject to certain restrictions, which are prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, public order (ordre public), the protection of public health or morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others;

Decides to appoint, for a period of three years, a special rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association whose tasks will include:

To gather all relevant information, including national practices and experiences, relating to the promotion and protection of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, to study trends, developments and challenges in relation to the exercise of these rights, and to make recommendations on ways and means to ensure the promotion and protection of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in all their manifestations;

To incorporate in his or her first report an elaboration of the framework, including seeking the views of States, through which the mandate holder will consider best practices, including national practices and experiences, that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, taking into account in a comprehensive manner the relevant elements of work available within the Council;

To seek, receive and respond to information from Governments, non-governmental organizations, relevant stakeholders and any other parties who have knowledge of these matters, with a view to promoting and protecting the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association;

To integrate a gender perspective throughout the work of the mandate;

To contribute to the provision of technical assistance or advisory services by the Office of the High Commissioner to better promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association;

To report on violations, wherever they may occur, of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, as well as discrimination, threats or use of violence, harassment, persecution, intimidation or reprisals directed at persons exercising these rights, and to draw the attention of the Council and the High Commissioner to situations of particularly serious concern;

To undertake his or her activities such that the present mandate will not include those matters of specific competence of the International Labour Organization and its specialized supervisory mechanisms and procedures with respect to employers’ and workers’ rights to freedom of association, with a view to avoiding any duplication;

To work in coordination with other mechanisms of the Council, other competent United Nations bodies and human rights treaty bodies, and to take all necessary measures to avoid unnecessary duplication with those mechanisms;

Calls upon States to cooperate fully with and assist the special rapporteur in the performance of his or her tasks, to provide all necessary information requested by him or her, to respond promptly to his or her urgent appeals and other communications and to consider favourably his or her requests for visits;

Invites the High Commissioner, relevant special procedures of the Council and human rights treaty bodies to pay attention, within the framework of their mandates, to the situation of persons whose right to freedom of peaceful assembly or of association has been violated;

Requests the special rapporteur to submit an annual report to the Council covering activities relating to his or her mandate;

Requests the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner to provide all the human and financial resources necessary for the effective fulfilment of the mandate by the special rapporteur;

Decides to continue its consideration of the issue of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in accordance with its programme of work.

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Who created this mandate?

What other versions does this mandate have?

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What does this mandate say?

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