The Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in the Context of Peaceful Protests

A/HRC/RES/25/38No 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 2014.

What other versions does this mandate have?

8 versions · 2012–2024

This is an older version — the most recent is A/HRC/RES/56/10

2024A/HRC/RES/56/10The promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protestsLatestCompare with previous version
2022A/HRC/RES/50/21The promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protestsCompare with previous version
2020A/HRC/RES/44/20The promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protestsCompare with previous version
2018A/HRC/RES/38/11The promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protestsCompare with previous version
2016A/HRC/RES/31/37The promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protestsCompare 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?

7 topics

Human Rights Human Rights Violations Law Enforcement Non-Lethal Weapons Public Demonstrations Report Preparation Right of Assembly

What does this mandate say?

21 operative paragraphs

Takes note with interest of the summary of the seminar on effective measures and best practices to ensure the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protests, held on 2 December 2013, prepared by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in accordance with Human Rights Council resolution 22/10;

Recalls that States have the responsibility, including in the context of peaceful protests, to promote and protect human rights and to prevent human rights violations, including extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, arbitrary arrest and detention, enforced disappearances and torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and calls upon States to avoid the abuse of criminal and civil proceedings or threats of such acts at all times;

Calls upon States to promote a safe and enabling environment for individuals and groups to exercise their rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, of expression and of association, including by ensuring that their domestic legislation and procedures relating to the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, of expression and of association are in conformity with their international human rights obligations and commitments, clearly and explicitly establish a presumption in favour of the exercise of these rights, and that they are effectively implemented;

Urges States to facilitate peaceful protests by providing protestors with access to public space and protecting them, without discrimination, where necessary, against any form of threat and harassment, and underlines the role of local authorities in this regard;

Underlines the important role that communication between protestors, local authorities and officials exercising law enforcement duties can play in the proper management of assemblies, such as peaceful protests, and calls on States to establish appropriate channels in that regard;

Urges States to pay particular attention to the safety and protection of women and women human rights defenders from acts of intimidation and harassment, as well as gender-based violence, including sexual assault, in the context of peaceful protests;

Reaffirms that States must take all appropriate measures for the safety and protection of children, including while they exercise their rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, expression and association, including in the context of peaceful protests;

Calls upon all States to pay particular attention to the safety of journalists and media workers covering peaceful protests, taking into account their specific role, exposure and vulnerability;

Urges all States to avoid using force during peaceful protests and to ensure that, where force is absolutely necessary, no one is subject to excessive or indiscriminate use of force;

Calls upon States, as a matter of priority, to ensure that their domestic legislation and procedures are consistent with their international obligations and commitments in relation to the use of force in the context of law enforcement and are effectively implemented by officials exercising law enforcement duties, in particular applicable principles of law enforcement, such as the principles of necessity and proportionality, bearing in mind that lethal force may only be used as a last resort to protect against an imminent threat to life and that it may not be used merely to disperse a gathering;

Affirms that nothing can ever justify the indiscriminate use of lethal force against a crowd, which is unlawful under international human rights law;

Calls upon States to investigate any death or significant injury committed during protests, including those resulting from the discharge of firearms or the use of non-lethal weapons by officials exercising law enforcement duties;

Also calls upon States to ensure adequate training of officials exercising law enforcement duties and, where applicable, to promote adequate training for private personnel acting on behalf of a State, including in international human rights law and, where appropriate, international humanitarian law;

Encourages States to make protective equipment and non-lethal weapons available to their officials exercising law enforcement duties, while pursuing international efforts to regulate and establish protocols for the training and use of non-lethal weapons;

Underlines the importance of thorough, independent and scientific testing of non-lethal weapons prior to deployment to establish their lethality and the extent of likely injury, and of monitoring appropriate training and use of such weapons;

Stresses the importance of international cooperation in support of national efforts for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the context of peaceful protests, in order to raise the capacities of law enforcement agencies to deal with such protests in a manner that conforms to their international human rights obligations and commitments;

Underlines the necessity to address the management of assemblies, including peaceful protests, so as to contribute to their peaceful conduct, and to prevent loss of life of and injuries to protestors, bystanders, those monitoring such protests and officials exercising law enforcement duties, as well as any human rights violation or abuse;

Recognizes the importance of documenting human rights violations and abuses committed in the context of peaceful protests, and the role that can be played by national human rights institutions, civil society, including non-governmental organizations, journalists and other media workers, Internet users and human rights defenders, in this regard;

Urges States to ensure accountability for human rights violations and abuses through judicial or other national mechanisms, based on law in conformity with their international human rights obligations and commitments, and to provide victims with access to a remedy and redress, including in the context of peaceful protests;

Requests the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions to prepare, from within existing resources, a compilation of practical recommendations for the proper management of assemblies based on best practices and lessons learned and, in the preparation of the compilation, to seek the views of States, relevant United Nations agencies, in particular the Office of the High Commissioner and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, intergovernmental organizations, other relevant special procedures mandate holders, national human rights institutions, non-governmental organizations and other relevant stakeholders, such as practitioners, and to submit the compilation to the Human Rights Council at its thirty-first session;

Decides to continue its consideration of this topic, as well as next steps, at its thirty-first session under agenda item 3.

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