Quote

"The Human Rights Council, (…) 12. Also calls upon States to ensure that defamation and libel laws are not misused, in particular through excessive criminal sanctions, to illegitimately or arbitrarily censor journalists and interfere with their mission of informing the public, and where necessary to revise and repeal such laws, in compliance with States’ obligations under international human rights law."

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UNHRC: Resolution 39/6 on Safety of Journalists, para. 12

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Resolution 39/6 on Safety of Journalists

Summaries

Defamation laws should only be used to protect individuals, never to prevent criticism of the government or institutions.
There should be a range of remedies available in the case of defamation, respecting the requirement that all remedies be proportional.