Kara Eyrich
Adviser for ECOSOC
New York, New York
October 14, 2021
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Special Rapporteur, for your continuous efforts to advance freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.
We share your concern regarding increased attacks on individuals’ rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of association.
In Iran, protests in July over water shortages spread across the country. Instead of respecting the right of Iranians to peacefully assemble, we saw disturbing reports that security forces fired on protesters, resulting in multiple deaths.
In the People’s Republic of China, the government denies the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of association as a matter of state policy, most notably in Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and Tibet.
In Cuba and Venezuela, authorities actively silence independent voices both online and offline. In Nicaragua, the Ortega-Murillo regime is arresting democratic actors and denying the Nicaraguan people a meaningful choice through free and fair elections.
Mr. Special Rapporteur: How can the international community confront the growing threats to our freedoms?
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