21 October 2021
Washington DC/Geneva/Vienna/Banjul (20 October 2021) - The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Protection and
Promotion of Freedom of Opinion and Expression, the Organization for Security
and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Representative on Freedom of the Media, the
Organization of American States (OAS) Special Rapporteur on Freedom of
Expression and the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR)
Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information today
issued their 2021 Joint Declaration.
International human rights experts of the United
Nations and regional organizations today denounced the rising tide of
dangerous, hateful public statements coming from some politicians and public
officials.
“Such rhetoric is dangerous because it spreads
intolerance and divisiveness, denies established facts, eroding trust in
democratic institutions, undermining human rights, and threatening or
encouraging attacks on journalists, human rights defenders, and putting
minorities at risk,” they said.
“Political statements enjoy a high level of protection
under international law, and that places a responsibility on politicians and
public officials to uphold the rule of law, human rights, media freedom,
intercultural understanding, and public trust in democratic systems of
governance” noted the independent experts.
“Freedom of expression and the right to information
require on the one hand strong protection for open and inclusive debate on
matters of public interest and on the other hand, acceptance by political and
public officials that by virtue of their positions their official conduct and
some aspects of their private lives are legitimate objects of close public
scrutiny.’
The Experts launched a 2021 Joint Declaration on
Politicians and Public Officials and Freedom, calling States to foster
independence, diversity and pluralism in the media, social media companies to
ensure their content moderation rules, systems and practices meet international
human rights standards. Noting that politicians and public officials play an
important role in shaping public debate and opinion, the Declaration calls on
politicians and public officials to refrain from dangerous hateful public
statements.
Joint Declarations by the free speech rapporteurs have
been adopted annually since 1999, covering current universal challenges to
freedom of expression.
Contacts
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