Author Archives: Press
Interested in an Exciting International Human Rights Career? Come Work With Us!
3 September 2020. The Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD) is seeking a Legal Officer to begin working with us as soon as possible. We are looking for a successful, highly motivated person who will work from Halifax, Canada. The successful applicant will be rewarded with exciting legal work in countries all over the world, … Continue reading
Hong Kong: Joint Statement on the Decline of Press Freedom
19 August 2020. The Centre for Law and Democracy has joined a number of other organisations in issuing a Joint Statement condemning the adoption, on 30 June 2020, of the new national security law by the top legislative body in China and the subsequent active use of the law by Hong Kong authorities. These actions … Continue reading
Final Regional Report on Law and Policy Environment for Civic Space: Sub-Saharan Africa
11 August 2020. Today, CLD is releasing its fifth and final regional report in its series on the law and policy environment for civic space globally, covering seventeen countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. It highlights legal restrictions which pose more serious risks to the ability of civil society to operate freely in each country, with the … Continue reading
Regional Report Series on Law and Policy Environment for Civic Space: Middle East and North Africa
4 August 2020. CLD has released its regional report on the legal environment for civil society in the Middle East and North Africa. The report, the fourth in our global series, highlights laws and policies in the region which prevent civil society from organising, meeting, fundraising, advocating, researching, expressing their opinions and otherwise operating. The … Continue reading
Regional Report Series on Law and Policy Environment for Civic Space: Latin America
28 July 2020. CLD today released the third regional report in our global series on the law and policy environment for civic space. The report focuses on nine countries in Latin America, highlighting laws and policies which restrict the ability of organisations to establish themselves and obtain funding, to conduct activities safely and to engage … Continue reading
Regional Report Series on Law and Policy Environment for Civic Space: Europe and Central Asia
21 July 2020. Today, CLD released a report on the legal environment for civil society in the Europe and Central Asia region. This report is part of a series evaluating laws which enable or restrict civil society from engaging freely in basic activities, including researching, advocating, fundraising and organising. By highlighting laws which are problematic, … Continue reading
#HoldTheLine Coalition Calls for Criminal Tax Charge to be Dropped as Maria Ressa Returns to Court
20 July 2020. CLD is one of 78 organisations who have formed a coalition in support of Maria Ressa and independent media in the Philippines. Today, the #HoldTheLine Coalition released the following statement: #HoldTheLine Coalition Calls for Criminal Tax Charge to be Dropped as Maria Ressa Returns to Court The #HoldTheLine Coalition demands the Philippines … Continue reading
Launch of Regional Report Series on Law and Policy Environment for Civic Space: Asia Pacific
14 July 2020. Civil society can only flourish if a country has put in place an enabling legal environment that supports organisations’ right to organise, communicate, research, advocate and fundraise freely. In recent years, global observers have expressed increasing alarm at the growing number of legal burdens and restrictions that governments are imposing on civil … Continue reading
Joint Submission to the Universal Periodic Review of Myanmar Raises Freedom of Expression Concerns
9 July 2020. CLD and 12 other organisations have highlighted ongoing concerns with freedom of expression in Myanmar in a Joint Submission to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Myanmar. The UPR process is conducted by the United Nations Human Rights Council and involves a review of human rights issues in a given country. The … Continue reading
#HoldTheLine: 60 organisations, including CLD, call for support for Maria Ressa and media in the Philippines
9 July 2020. CLD is one of 60 organisations and supporters who have formed a coalition in support of Maria Ressa and independent media in the Philippines. Ressa is a prominent Filipino-American journalist and founder of the news website Rappler. On 15 June 2020, she was convicted of cyber-libel along with her former Rappler colleague … Continue reading
Civil Society Statement on Myanmar’s Internet Shutdown
22 June 2020. CLD has signed a civil society statement calling for an end to the shutdown of all mobile internet access in Myanmar’s Rakhine and Chin States. The 21 June marked the first anniversary of the shutdown, now the longest in the world. The full statement and list of signatories is available here.
Executive Summary of CLD’s Report on the Right to Information during Health Emergencies in Arabic, English, French and Spanish
16 June 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has raised challenging new questions about the extent to which States may restrict human rights during public health emergencies. Some States have chosen to restrict the normal rules governing the processing of requests for information, while others have tried to continue to respond to requests. Those that have introduced … Continue reading
Maintaining the Right to Information During Health Emergencies
27 May 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has created both significant burdens for governments, as they are called upon to protect citizens’ health and minimise the economic impact of the pandemic, and significant operational challenges, as many staff are working from home. Many States have responded by imposing limits on the right to information while others … Continue reading
Puerto Rico: Right to Information Laws Adopted Recently are Weak
6 May 2020. An assessment of two laws adopted recently in Puerto Rico to establish a legal right to access information held by government reveals the laws are very weak, according to an Analysis published today by the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD). According to the RTI Rating (www.RTI-Rating.org), the two laws – the … Continue reading
2020 Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and Elections
30 April 2020. Today, the specialised mandates tasked with promoting and protecting freedom of expression at the UN, OAS and OSCE launched their annual statement, the Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and Elections in the Digital Age. The Joint Declaration, which was drafted with the assistance of the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD), … Continue reading
Join Special Rapporteurs for Online Launch of Joint Declaration
27 April 2020. The special international mandates (special rapporteurs) on freedom of expression will launch their 2020 Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and Elections in the Digital Age at 09:00 EST (New York time) on 30 April. Join them for this online event by registering here (login information will be provided following registration). “The … Continue reading
Mauritius: “Fake News” Arrest for Political Satire Not Legitimate
17 April 2020. Rachna Seenauth was arrested on 15 April 2020 for posting a humorous message on Facebook about the Mauritian Prime Minister and the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The arrest was based on the grounds that the post was “false” and hence a breach of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act. … Continue reading
CLD Joins Statement on Human Rights During the COVID-19 Pandemic
15 April 2020. CLD has joined the following statement on human rights during the COVID-19 pandemic: A call for human rights oversight of government responses to the COVID-19 pandemic Regard for human rights is essential in times of crisis. Human rights principles provide a valuable framework for government action and establish crucial safeguards against abuses. … Continue reading
COVID-19 Update: Tracking Changes to Right to Information Laws
2 April 2020. The Centre for Law and Democracy has added a page to the RTI Rating (containing information about national right to information laws) which tracks the changes that have been made to right to information (RTI) laws in response to the COVID-19 pandemic (https://www.rti-rating.org/covid-19-tracker/). The aim is to provide a central repository of … Continue reading
Pakistan: Filing of Legal Brief in Contempt of Court Case
17 March 2020. The Islamabad High Court in Pakistan has asked for help from experts in determining a number of questions relating to the law of contempt of court and media reporting on ongoing court cases. Late last week, the Institute for Research, Advocacy and Development (IRADA), with support from the Centre for Law and … Continue reading