A/HRC/54/61 the Regulation and Control of Non-Profit Organizations (No. 1115) and its arbitrary application. They expressed concern that this and other restrictive laws, including on counterterrorism and money laundering, were overly vague and misused to unnecessarily and disproportionately restrict the activities of civil society, including many long-term partners of the United Nations. Between May 2022 and April 2023, over 3,000 non-profit organizations, including NGOs, universities, professional associations and others, had their legal personalities arbitrarily cancelled for the alleged non-compliance with a number of laws and regulations, in particular the Law for the Regulation and Control of Non-Profit Organizations (No. 1115). 90. In its March 2023 report to the Human Rights Council, the Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua noted the escalation in February 2023 of the persecution against persons opposed to, or perceived as such by the Government and took measures to protect victims, witnesses and other sources who contributed to the report (A/HRC/52/CPR.5), including by withholding the names and identities of the victims and omitting most of the case studies (para. 41). On 3 April 2023, the Human Rights Council adopted resolution 52/2 on the promotion and protection of human rights in Nicaragua calling upon the Government “to prevent, refrain from and publicly condemn, investigate and punish any acts of intimidation or reprisal for cooperation with the United Nations” (A/HRC/RES/52/2). 91. On 23 November 2022, the Committee against Torture decided70 to publish the report of the May 2014 visit of the Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture to Nicaragua (CAT/OP/NIC/ROSP/1) due to the State party´s failure to cooperate with the two Committees, including noncompliance with Articles 12 and 14 of the Optional Protocol on the Convention against Torture. Among other things, the report noted fear of reprisals for engaging with the Subcommittee as well as incidents of reprisals. Observing a general fear of reprisals among person deprived of their liberty, the Subcommittee noted that even speaking with its delegation could lead to reprisals and identified a high risk of reprisals in places of detention visited in the North Atlantic and South Atlantic autonomous regions. The Subcommittee requested the urgent intervention of the national preventive mechanism, which found that reprisals had occurred and briefed the Subcommittee on action taken (paras. 100– 101). 18. Pakistan 92. On 6 February 2023, special procedures mandate holders addressed allegations of intimidation and reprisals against the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a civil society organization advocating for human rights, following its engagement in the fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Pakistan, which took place during the 42nd session of the UPR Working Group on 30 January 2023 (PAK 1/2023). 93. In July 2022, CSJ submitted a joint report with information about the situation of minority and religious groups in Pakistan. On 21 August 2022, while the UPR submission had not yet been made public, a news item appeared in one of the most widely circulated national newspapers claiming that CSJ’s UPR report was not accurate, was against national interests, and defamed the country on issues such as blasphemy laws and forced conversions. On 12 September 2022, the same newspaper published another article asking the Ministry of Interior to act against the CSJ for its involvement in “negative propaganda against Pakistan”. Following the second article, CSJ closed its office in fear of reprisals by State and non-State actors and one of its staff members resigned due to safety concerns (PAK 1/2023). 94. On 27 September 2022, the Lahore Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms sent a notice to CSJ convening a hearing and requesting documentation for its periodic renewal of registration. This notice referred to CSJ’s report to the UPR and the United Nations, claiming that CSJ went beyond its mandate. On 8 and 21 October 2022, CSJ received two more notifications from the Registrar concerning the scope of its work and activities and referring to the Societies Registration Act (1860). Following a petition by CSJ, on 16 December 2022 the Lahore High Court issued an order for interim relief, and scheduled 70 GE.23-15378 CAT/C/75/2. 35