A statement calling on the United Nations to appoint a special rapporteur on democracy has been signed by more than 80 civil society organizations, networks, think tanks and research institutions as well as numerous individuals from across the world, united by their commitment to human rights and democracy.
Fully Endorsed by V-Dem
The statement released today is fully endorsed by V-Dem Institute and project, and states that “democracy is threatened and authoritarianism is on the rise”. In this situation, the UN “needs to do more to strengthen human rights and democracy”, the statement says.
“In a time when democracy is challenged by autocracies and undermined in many democracies, the proposal of a UN rapporteur on democracy deserves urgent and serious consideration. It is fully endorsed by the V-Dem Project and its’ Steering Committee”, says professor Staffan Lindberg, Director, Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem) at the University of Gothenburg.
The new rapporteur position would be created by the UN’s Human Rights Council in Geneva and be “mandated to investigate the state of democracy around the world.”
75th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The joint appeal is made ahead of the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that is coming up on 10 December 2023. Like-minded organizations, policy-makers and individuals are invited to sign on here.
The statement points out that the new mandate can be based on UN resolutions that identify and support democratic principles. This includes the “central democratic principle” that “public authority must derive from the will of the people” which is expressed in Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Rapporteur to Investigate State of Democracy
The proposed UN Special Rapporteur on Democracy, assisted by an independent advisory board, would “examine challenges and opportunities related to the realization of democracy”. This would include, among other things, looking into “constitutional and institutional arrangements such as checks and balances; effectiveness of parliaments; free, fair and competitive elections and election environments; political participation including of minorities and women; direct and deliberative mechanisms; as well as civic space and freedoms.”
The new mandate would “go beyond and complement” existing mandates operating under the Human Rights Council. The statement asks “all governments that are committed to democracy” to support its establishment.
Signees from every part of the world
Apart from V-Dem, initial groups that endorsed the appeal include ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (Indonesia), Asia Democracy Network (Thailand), CIVICUS (South Africa), Democracy International (Germany, USA), Democracy Without Borders (Germany), European Partnership for Democracy (Belgium), HuMENA for Human Rights and Civic Engagement (Lebanon), Nigeria Network of NGOs (Nigeria), Olof Palme International Center (Sweden), Parliamentarians for Global Action (USA), Red Latinoamericana y del Caribe por la Democracia (Colombia), Sapari (Georgia), The May 18 Foundation (South Korea) and Universidad Austral - CIDEIPP (Argentina).
The full list of signees can be found here.
In addition to the endorsing organizations, the list of initial supporters includes over 180 individuals, among them numerous human rights and democracy defenders and scholars as well as more than 25 parliamentarians from across the world.
Links
- Call for a United Nations Special Rapporteur on Democracy (in English, French, Spanish)
- List of endorsements
What is a Special Rapporteur
Since 1980 special rapporteurs have played an indispensable role in providing accountability for human rights obligations within the United Nations system. They are unpaid independent experts that do not represent any state, region, or partisan constituency. Their monitoring role includes conducting fact-finding missions. They provide a means for accountability by receiving and reviewing individual and collective complaints of violations of human rights obligations, following up with states or their own accord to provide redress. Moreover, their advisory capacity allows states access to expert opinion before violations occur. Democracy is a complex and multivarious right that would especially benefit from an independent expert special rapporteur able to fulfill these and other functions.