Geneva, 30 April 2020
Ambassador Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger,
President of the United Nations Human Rights Council
Palais des Nations
Geneva
Ms Michelle Bachelet,
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Palais Wilson
Geneva
Re: Ensuring civil society’s right to participation within the context of the virtual meetings established due to the COVID-19 pandemic - Contributions from the Latin American perspective.
Your Excellencies,
The members of the ONG-LAC group, as well as other organisations that collaborate with this network, wish to thank the High Commissioner and the Human Rights Council for undertaking every effort to ensure the full functioning of the UN Human Rights System, including via the use of virtual mechanisms. We understand that the Human Rights Council and the Office of the High Commissioner are currently considering this option as a viable means to continue their important work despite the constraints imposed by the current situation.
We believe that one of the potential benefits of these virtual mechanisms would be a broader participation of civil society from different countries that also interact with the UN Human Rights System. However, drawing from our experience as organisations working in Latin America and the Caribbean, we wish to draw your attention to certain aspects that require careful consideration regarding the risks that the virtualisation of international space of governance may entail. We hereby share several concrete recommendations in order to ensure that the HRC and the OHCHR continue to function through virtual meetings in accordance with their respective mandates, guaranteeing civil society’s effective participation in particular, and especially by enabling the participation of the sectors most affected by human rights violations in these contexts as well the organisations that support them. In the framework of this discussion, we would like to acknowledge the existing inputs from civil society organisations, in particular the insights contained in the “Survey on civil participation in times of COVID-19” compiled by ISHR and shared with the HRC Presidency.
In many communities and regions of the world, including in Latin America and the Caribbean, people do not have Internet access or they must leave their homes in order to reach an internet spot, which is impossible to do in these times of confinement. Moreover, in many places the internet connection is scarce or unstable, whilst this may allow for basic use such as sending and receiving emails, it is impossible to follow a meeting for an extended period of time. This situation does not only affect participation within the meeting itself, but it also limits the prior preparation between organisations with ECOSOC status and the grass-roots organisations they support and for whom they serve as a communication channel with the UN system. Accessibility to virtual spaces and discussion can also be hindered by language barriers and time-zones differences.
Furthermore, many civil society organisations are operating in oppressive regions or contexts, under the close scrutiny of States and other actors. These settings imply considerable digital risks that can compromise the security of information, communication and thus, the safety of the persons or civil society organisations involved. The lack of full Internet access further exacerbates this vulnerability.
It is crucial to clarify what HRC and OHCHR rules of procedure will be applied for virtual debates, including the status of the decisions and agreement that will be made during these sessions.
Among other aspects, the following measures should also be adopted:
• Set deadlines with sufficient advance notice for meetings: many people do not have the time or means to have internet access on a daily basis, therefore meetings should be arranged well in advance, upon consultation with civil society organisations and with the necessary background documentation readily available.
• Time choice of the meetings: people will be based in different time zones, it is therefore important to convene the meetings at times that will best ensure representative and effective participation of civil society from different regions of the world.
• Clarity and transparency in the prior establishment of the norms that will regulate the meeting, within a reasonable timeframe: details on the registration process for people to participate; what is the data protection and privacy policy applied by the digital platform used for the meeting; how will the participants be identified on the digital platform; how does one request the permission to speak and how will the list of speakers be defined; what is the speaking time for each intervention; will comments or questions be made in parallel via the chatroom; if so, will these contributions be documented as part of the meeting’s deliberations; will it be possible to use presentations or videoclips. Likewise, the technical requirements needed in order to participate in the meeting must be indicated with sufficient advance notice.
• Spanish translation of background documentation: online communication can hinder the understanding of information which is why we believe that it is fundamental that background documents or drafts to be discussed in the meetings are translated well in advance and sent with the meeting notice, as early as possible.
• Guarantee sessions with simultaneous interpretation: the meeting notice should provide detailed instructions on how to access the debate in different languages. In some cases and for some events, an assessment should be made as to whether it may be more worthwhile to organise regional meetings. For Latin America and the Caribbean region, this would imply that the meeting may be held in Spanish and would be easier to arrange at a more relevant time for the participants.
• A basic minimum of interventions must be guaranteed for different sectors of civil society and with sufficient speaking time, thus ensuring that their voices and messages as well as diverse views are included in the meetings. The restriction of civil society intervention to just some organisation that generally already have a strong and well-established relationship with the UN Human Rights System may exclude diverging voices whose opinions are important to be included in order to assure the democratic process.
• Written contributions: due to the time constraints of the sessions, especially the informal meetings for which a formal contribution system does not exist, it is important to allow for participants to send their inputs on the topic in writing, without limiting their contributions to what is shared in the duration of the online session. These contributions must be taken into account during the discussions.
• Human Rights Defenders: it is essential to guarantee safe participation mechanisms for human rights defenders that do not endanger their physical or online security, or expose them to intimidation and reprisals by State and non-State actors. This includes: measures that enable a prompt follow-up to cases of reprisals; States must make public commitments to refrain from perpetrating acts of reprisals or impede connections to virtual meetings; participation modalities that mitigate the risks concerning the identification of participants and the use of videocameras.
• Internet access availability: in order to not exclude groups that are most affected by the digital divide, it is crucial for the HRC and OHCHR to consider measures to ensure that adequate access to Internet is provided. These include: the use of free-of-charge or low-cost technologies, with low data usage, safe and compatible with mobile phones; the use of regional and/or country offices as safe participation spaces; technical and financial support for civil society groups; and cooperation with the private sector in order to provide essential technologies and low-consumption videoconferencing services, securely and free-of-charge.
• Data protection and privacy: it is vital that existing safeguards be implemented and transparently communicated to guarantee the participants’ right to privacy and the protection of their data, in line with sound human rights standards.
To conclude, we would like to emphasise that we consider that virtual meetings cannot indefinitely replace face-to-face meetings and we therefore wish to reiterate that the accommodation of these sessions into the digital form must remain an exceptional measure. We do acknowledge the importance of building on the benefits provided by this format in the future, especially direct and remote participation through the use of videoconferencing. However, it is essential for face-to-face meeting not to be discarded in the HRC’s efficiency process, and that the modalities currently undertaken on the basis of exceptional circumstances do not set a precedent that could jeopardise the effective, diverse and safe participation of civil society.
The member organisation of the ONG-LAC coalition as well as others that collaborate with this network would like to thank you for your attention to this letter and remain at your disposal to solve any queries or further explain the aforementioned recommendations.
Yours sincerely,
ONG LAC Group:
Conselho Indigenista Missionário - CIMI
Dominicans for Justice and Peace
FIAN Internacional
Franciscans International
Instituto Internacional sobre Raza, Igualdad y Derechos Humanos (Raza e Igualdad)
International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)
Organización Mundial contra la Tortura (OMCT)
Peace Brigades International (PBI)
Red Internacional de Derechos Humanos (RIDH Suiza)
Organizations endorsing the letter:
ABColombia
Ação Franciscana de Ecologia e Solidariedade - AFES
Asesoría a Programas y Proyectos de Desarrollo - ASPRODE
Asociación B'elejeb' Tz'i'
Asociación Civil por la Igualdad y la Justicia (Argentina)
Asociación para una Ciudadanía Participativa (ACI PARTICIPA)
Capitulo Chile, Red Internacional de Derechos Humanos Europa Bruselas
Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)
Centro de Alternativas al Desarrollo – Colombia
Centro de Derechos Humanos de la Montaña "Tlachinollan"
Centro de Derechos Humanos Fray Francisco de Vitoria, O.P, A.C
Centro de Derechos Humanos Fray Matías de Córdova (Chiapas, México)
Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS)
Centro para los Derechos Civiles y Políticos (CCPR)
Centro por la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional (CEJIL)
Comisión Colombiana de Juristas
Comisión de Justicia, Paz e Integridad de la Creación
Comisión Mexicana de Defensa y Promoción de los Derechos Humanos
Comisión Permanente de Derechos Humanos de Nicaragua (CPDH)
Conectas Direitos Humanos
Corporación para la Defensa y Promoción de los Derechos Humanos Reiniciar (REINCIAR)
Espacio de Cooperación para la Paz
Feminista independiente
FIAN Colombia
FMSI Marista Bolivia
Fondo de Acción Urgente para América Latina y el Caribe - FAU-AL
Forum Syd
Fundación de Estudios para la Aplicación del Derecho - FESPAD
GuatemalanetzBern
Grupo de trabajo Suiza Colombia
Grupo Guatemalteco de Mujeres-GGM
Iniciativa Mesoamericana de Mujeres Defensoras de Derechos Humanos
Indepaz
JPIC Familia Franciscana de Guatemala
JPIC México
JPIC OFM El Salvador
Justicia Paz e Integridad de la Creación de la Familia Franciscana de Honduras
kolko e.V. - Menschenrechte für Kolumbien
Mesart
Movimiento Franciscano Justicia y Paz de Bolivia
Movimiento de Mujeres Indígenas Tz'ununija', Guatemala
Oidhaco - Oficina Internacional de los Derechos Humanos - Acción Colombia
Oxfam Colombia
Pax Christi International
Paz con Dignidad
Penca de Sábila de Medellín - Colombia
Pensamiento y Acción Social – PAS
Plataforma Internacional contra la Impunidad
Plataforma Suiza Colombia
Project on Organising Development Education and Research (PODER)
Radio Seybo
Red de Guatemala Berna
Red de la No Violencia contra las Mujeres-REDNOVI
Red Franciscana de Atención a Migrantes – Honduras
Red Franciscana para las Migraciones (Casa Peregrina del Migrante Santo Hermano Pedro, Guatemala)
Red Internacional de Derechos Humanos Europa Bruselas
Red Nacional de Organismos Civiles de Derechos Humanos "Todos los Derechos para Todas y Todos"
Red Nacional para la Defensa de la Soberanía Alimentaria en Guatemala REDSAG
Red por los Derechos de la Infancia en México
Representante Red Internacional de Derechos Humanos RIDH en Nicaragua y América Central
Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Servicios y Asesoría para la Paz A.C.
Serviço Interfranciscano de Justiça, Paz e Ecologia – SINFRAJUPE
Soldepaz Pachakuti
Terra de Direitos
Terre des Hommes Suisse
Unidad de Protección a Defensoras y Defensores de Derechos Humanos de Guatemala
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