1059 Results
Quotes
Quotes based on international documents, law, and treaties- "In the context of access to information, Member States should: (a) Enact clear laws, regulations and policies that guarantee the proactive disclosure of information held by public bodies, including those exercising public functions, and provide a general right to request and receive such information, subject only to clearly and narrowly defined exceptions in accordance with international human rights law and standards; guarantee the right to access information held by private bodies where it is essential to the exercise or protection of human rights; and provide a right to appeal to an independent body for any refusal to disclose information."
- "Member States should: a. ensure an enabling legal framework and a conducive political and public environment for human rights defenders, enabling individuals, groups, civil society organisations and national institutions for the protection and promotion of human rights (NHRIs) to freely carry out activities, on a legal basis, consistent with international law and standards, to strive for the protection and promotion of all human rights and fundamental freedoms."
- "Member States should: (…) c. remove any unnecessary, unlawful or arbitrary restrictions to civil society space, in particular with regards to freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression."
- "Member States should: (…) f. ensure timely and transparent public consultations in policy development and draft legislation, especially where it may affect civil society."
- "Member States should take effective measures to protect civil society space, in particular to: a. prevent violations of the rights of human rights defenders including smear campaigns, threats and attacks against them, and other attempts to hinder their work."
- "The European Parliament, (…) 3. Is deeply concerned that the closing down of civil society space in developing countries is being carried out in increasingly complex and sophisticated ways, which are harder to tackle and imposed through legislation, taxation, funding limitations, increased bureaucracy, reporting and banking requirements, the criminalisation and stigmatisation of CSO representatives, defamation, all forms of harassment, online repression and internet access limitations, censorship, arbitrary detention, gender-based violence, torture and assassination, in particular in conflict-stricken states; insists on the necessity of tackling governmental and non-governmental tactics of marginalising critical voices."
- "The European Parliament, (…) 6. Insists that states have the primary responsibility and are under the obligation to protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms of all persons, and have a duty to provide a political, legal and administrative environment conducive to a free and functioning civil society, in which free and safe operation and access to funding is ensured, including through foreign sources."
- "The Assembly calls on all member States to: (...) 10.2. review and repeal or amend legislation that impedes the free and independent work of NGOs and ensure that this legislation is in conformity with international human rights instruments regarding the rights to freedom of association, assembly and expression (...)."
- "The Assembly calls on all member States to: (...) 10.5. ensure that NGOs are effectively involved in the consultation process concerning new legislation which concerns them and other issues of particular importance to society, such as the protection of human rights."
- "The Assembly calls on all member States to: (...) 10.6. ensure an enabling environment for civil society, in particular by refraining from any harassment (judicial, administrative or tax-related), negative public discourse, smear campaigns against NGOs and intimidation of civil society activists."
- "States have a positive obligation to foster a favourable environment for freedom of expression, offline and online, in which everyone can exercise their right to freedom of expression and participate in public debate effectively, irrespective of whether their views are received favourably by the State or others. Such an environment encompasses the rights to privacy and data protection, and the right to access information on issues of public interest held by public bodies that is necessary for the exercise of the right to freedom of expression."
- "States should encourage social media, media, search and recommendation engines and other intermediaries which use algorithms, along with media actors, regulatory authorities, civil society, academia and other relevant stakeholders to engage in open, independent, transparent and participatory initiatives that: – improve the transparency of the processes of online distribution of media content, including automated processes."
- "States should encourage social media, media, search and recommendation engines and other intermediaries which use algorithms, along with media actors, regulatory authorities, civil society, academia and other relevant stakeholders to engage in open, independent, transparent and participatory initiatives that: (...) – implement the principle of privacy by design in respect of any automated data processing techniques and ensure that such techniques are fully compliant with the relevant privacy and data protection laws and standards."
- "States should make particular efforts, taking advantage of technological developments, to ensure that the broadest possible diversity of media content, including general interest content, is accessible to all groups in society, particularly those which may have specific needs or face disadvantage or obstacles when accessing media content, such as minority groups, refugees, children, the elderly and persons with cognitive or physical disabilities. This implies that such media content should be made available in different languages and in suitable formats and that it should be easy to find and use."
- "Temporary special measures must be discontinued when their desired results have been achieved and sustained for a period of time."
- "The term “measures” encompasses a wide variety of legislative, executive, administrative and other regulatory instruments, policies and practices, such as outreach or support programmes; allocation and/or reallocation of resources; preferential treatment; targeted recruitment, hiring and promotion; numerical goals connected with time frames; and quota systems. "
- "Where needed, States must also protect participants against possible abuse by non-state actors, such as interference or violence by other members of the public, counterdemonstrators and private security providers."
- "States must respect and ensure counterdemonstrations as assemblies in their own right, while preventing undue disruption of the assemblies to which they are opposed."
- "Law enforcement officials involved in policing assemblies must respect and ensure the exercise of the fundamental rights of organizers and participants, while also protecting journalists, monitors and observers, medical personnel and other members of the public, as well as public and private property, from harm."
- "Any use of force must comply with the fundamental principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, precaution and non-discrimination applicable to articles 6 and 7 of the Covenant, and those using force must be accountable for each use of force."
- "The Special Rapporteur calls upon States in times of elections: (…) (c) To ensure that no one is criminalized for exercising the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, nor is subject to threats or use of violence, harassment, persecution, intimidation or reprisals."
- "Principle of respect for privacy 1. Public authorities shall have respect for privacy, particularly when processing personal data. 2. When public authorities are authorised to process personal data or files, particularly by electronic means, they shall take all necessary measures to guarantee privacy. 3. The rules relating to personal data protection, notably as regards the right to have access to personal data and secure the rectification or removal of any data that is inaccurate or shall not have been recorded, shall apply to personal data processed by public authorities."
- "In order for the remedy of a violation to be effective, it must be provided in a timely and appropriate manner. This is particularly important in the electoral context due to the time-sensitive nature of the fast-paced process."
- "Electoral disputes should be subject to prompt review. While there is no set standard for time limits, good electoral practice recommends three to five days, although longer deadlines may be allowed for the highest courts. Likewise, in challenges against election results, it is advisable that the final resolution of all complaints and appeals take place within two months, maximum."
- "Standard complaint forms, either physical or online, also offer complainants the guidance on the elements required for filing. Developing filing standards that are clear and accessible to all election stakeholders gative bodies in processing complaints impartially and effectively. "
- "Due to the unique nature of election complaints, investigators must make their decisions in a timely fashion and in accordance with the rules, policies, and procedures that govern the electoral process."
- "The principle of prompt investigation is important because election processes and results are time-bound, evidence may be time-sensitive or subject to destruction following an election, and impunity for electoral offenses may linger from one electoral cycle to the next if not dealt with in a timely manner."
- "The principle of effective investigation is directly linked to the fact that individuals must have accessible and effective remedies in place to protect their political rights."
- "Given that there are legally specified periods for each electoral phase, decisions must be both timely and definitive. This implies that conflicts must be resolved before the conclusion of each respective phase of the electoral contest (e.g., any questions arising around the validity of an electoral candidate must be resolved conclusively before the electoral registration period has been completed)."
- "Electoral judicial proceedings should be timely, that is, a decision should be reached promptly and expeditiously within the legally established periods or stages of the electoral process. A decision taken outside this time frame may be unfair, and would make it impossible to correct the damage done to some electoral rights."
- "Reasonable deadlines should be provided for bringing challenges (generally shorter than those for civil litigation and other branches of administrative law). These need to balance the time required by the person alleging harm by a particular electoral act or decision to take stock of its content and scope and to gather the evidence, on the one hand, against the need to obtain a timely resolution, given that electoral processes proceed in stages that cannot be changed or interrupted."
- "Violence against women in politics, as all forms of gender-based violence, constitutes a violation of human rights and is a form of discrimination against women prohibited under international human rights standards, under which States have due diligence obligations to prevent, investigate and punish acts of violence against women, whether they are perpetrated by State or non-State actors. States, therefore, have a duty to eradicate and prevent acts of violence against women in politics."
- "The Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations to States: (a) Adopt and implement legislation prohibiting and criminalizing violence against women in politics or incorporate adequate provisions into existing laws on eliminating violence against women, consistent with international and regional human rights standards. That includes laws to prohibit sexism, harassment and other forms gender-based violence against women in politics, public life and parliament. Laws must be comprehensive enough to cover new forms of violence, including online or ICT-facilitated violence against women. "
- "The Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations to States: (...) (c) Strengthen the legislative basis for gender parity in all branches and at all levels of government to guarantee women’s full participation in political and public life in compliance with international and regional human rights standards, applying, when necessary, temporary special measures, such as quotas and other measures, to accelerate progress towards the equal participation of women in political life."
- "As many incidents of violence against women in politics occur during electoral processes, electoral stakeholders are encouraged to: (a) Electoral management bodies: monitor and report violence against women in elections, analyse voter and candidate registration procedures to prevent the erection of barriers to women’s participation; ensure that voting arrangements guarantee women’s safety in registration centres and polling stations; integrate information about violence against women in politics and elections and respective mitigation measures into training programmes for electoral administrators; and ensure that early warning systems for election violence and electoral security assessment address gender-based forms of violence."
- "States should recognize online and ICT-facilitated violence against women as a human rights violation and a form of discrimination and gender-based violence against women, and duly apply core international human rights instruments."
- "Internet intermediaries should uphold the principle that human rights are protected online, and voluntary accept and apply all core international human rights and women’s rights instruments with a view to contributing to universal human rights protection and achieving the empowerment of women, and the elimination of discrimination and violence against them in digital space."
- "Intermediaries should ensure data security and privacy, and ensure that the use of data is in compliance with international human rights law and has the fully informed consent of data providers."
- "Internet intermediaries should ensure that all terms of service agreements and policies specifying the rights of users and all other standards and practices for content moderation and the processing and disclosure of user data are publicly available in clear, plain language and accessible formats."
- "Internet intermediaries should clearly and transparently provide meaningful public information about the operation of automated data processing techniques in the course of their activities, including the operation of algorithms that facilitate searches based on user profiling or the distribution of algorithmically selected and personalised content, such as news. This should include information on which data is being processed, how long the data processing will take, which criteria are used, and for what purpose the processing takes place."
- "Internet intermediaries should respect the rights of users to receive, produce and impart information, opinions and ideas. Any measures taken to restrict access (including blocking or removing content) as a result of a State order or request should be implemented using the least restrictive means."
- "Internet intermediaries should limit the processing of personal user data to what is necessary in the context of a clearly defined purpose, which is explicitly communicated to all users in a proactive manner. The processing, including collection, retention, aggregation, storage, adaptation, alteration, linking or sharing of personal data shall be based on the free, specific, informed and unambiguous consent of the user, with respect to a specific purpose, or on another legitimate basis laid down by law, as prescribed by Convention 108."
- "Users have the right to access their personal data and to obtain correction, deletion and blocking of it. Intermediaries should therefore provide them with relevant information at all stages of processing, using clear and plain language, especially where such information is addressed to children. Moreover, intermediaries should inform users clearly about the conditions under which they may exercise the right to personal data erasure, to object to the processing of data and to withdraw consent provided for the processing of personal data, following which all processing based on the consent of the user should be terminated."
- "Personal data are processed lawfully (with the unambiguous consent of the data subject or on the basis of law) for legitimate purposes and not in excess of such purposes, accurately and securely. These conditions apply also to profiling (personal data automatic processing techniques that collect and use information about an individual in order to identify, analyse or predict his or her personal preferences, behaviour and attitudes)."
- "There are effective processes enabling every individual to obtain, on request, information on the processing of his or her personal data and the reason underlying processing; to object to processing; to obtain, on request, rectification or erasure of the personal data; and to consent to, object to or withdraw consent to personal data processing or profiling. "
- "In line with the Convention 108 and according to Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)4 on the protection of human rights with regard to social networking services and Recommendation CM/Rec(2016)5 on Internet freedom, social network services should not process personal data beyond the specified purposes for which they have collected it. Electoral campaigning constitutes in most cases a distinct purpose for which distinct consent is required."
- "The Committee of Ministers therefore, under the terms of Article 15.b of the Statute of the Council of Europe, recommends that member States, in consultation with private sector actors and civil society, develop and promote coherent strategies to protect freedom of expression, access to information and other human rights and fundamental freedoms in relation to search engines in line with the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (...), in particular by engaging with search engine providers to carry out the following actions: (...) – enhance transparency in the collection of personal data and the legitimate purposes for which they are being processed; – enable users to access easily, and, where appropriate, to correct or delete their personal data processed by search engine providers; – develop tools to minimise the collection and processing of personal data, including enforcing limited retention periods, adequate irreversible anonymisation, as well as tools for the deletion of data."
- "Member States (through the designated authorities) should enforce compliance with the applicable data protection principles, in particular by engaging with search engine providers to carry out the following actions: – ensure that the collection of personal data by search engine providers is minimised. No user’s IP address should be stored when it is not necessary for the pursuit of a legitimate purpose and when the same results can be achieved by sampling or surveying, or by anonymising personal data. Innovative approaches promoting anonymous searches should also be encouraged; – ensure that retention periods are not longer than strictly necessary for the legitimate and specified purposes of the processing. Search engine providers should be in a position to justify with demonstrable reasons the collection and the retention of personal data. Information in this connection should be made publicly available and easily accessible; – ensure that search engine providers apply the most appropriate security measures to protect personal data against unlawful access by third parties and that appropriate data breach notification schemes are in place. Measures should include “end-to-end” encryption of the communication between the user and the search engine provider; – ensure that individuals are informed with regard to the processing of their personal data and the exercise of their rights, in an intelligible form, using clear and plain language, adapted to the data subject. Search engines should clearly inform users up front of all intended uses of their data (emphasising that the initial purpose of such processing is to better respond to their search requests) and respect the user’s right with regar to their personal data. They should inform individuals if their personal data has been compromised."
- "The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 15.b of the Statute of the Council of Europe, recommends that member States, in consultation with private sector actors and civil society, develop and promote coherent strategies to protect and promote respect for human rights with regard to social networking services, in line with the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (...), in particular by engaging with social networking providers to carry out the following actions: (...) − enhance transparency about data processing, and refraining from illegitimate processing of personal data. "
- "Companies that hold large amounts of users’ data should develop robust and meaningfully transparent privacy policies and processes in consultation with civil society and other stakeholders, consistent with their responsibilities to respect human rights."