A/HRC/39/41
Coalición contra la impunidad travelled to Geneva to take part in the review o f Ho n d uras
by the Human Rights Committee. The defenders provided information t o t h e Co mmit t ee
regarding the murder of well-known environmental and human rights defender, M s. Bert a
Cáceres in March 2016. In response the head of the Honduran delegation d is credit ed t h e
information and later made public statements, including to Honduran media outlets, that the
information provided by civil society to the Human Rights Committee on the death of
Ms. Cáceres was false and misleading.
49.
On 6 July 2017, the President of the Supreme Court of Justice read a public
statement on behalf of the Government, whereby it accused 50 civil society organizations 11
of having delivered false information to experts of the Human Rights Committee on the
progress in the investigation of Ms. Cáceres’ murder, and that it does not accept, “that b ad
Hondurans and national and foreign organizations…bring false or misrepresented
information to damage the country with dangerous interests.” The same co mmu n icatio n
was delivered by the Ministry of the Presidency in Honduras on 6 July 2017. On 18 Ju ly
2018 the Chair of the Committee met with the Government, who assured the Chair t h at n o
reprisals would occur.
50.
The Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights visited Honduras in Ju ly 2017
and raised allegations of reprisals with the Government.
12.
Hungary
51.
On 21 June 2017, three special procedures mandate holders addressed t h e alleg ed
targeting of Budapest-based international disability rights non-governmental org anisatio n
Validity (formerly Mental Disability Advocacy Centre) following the release of a public
report in May 2017 on allegations of human rights violations at the Topház social care
institution (HUN 372017). Validity also brought these issues to the at tentio n o f OHCHR
and to the Human Rights Committee when it considered the sixth periodic report of
Hungary held in March 2018 (see CCPR/C/HUN/CO/6 para. 21 and CCPR/C/SR.3464 an d
3465. Since the release of the report, the Government has reportedly tried to d eleg it imize
the work conducted by Validity, threatening the organization that it would o p en crimin al
proceedings as well as intimidating its staff members. On 17 July 2017 a Validity
representative was reportedly summoned by police in connection with t h e in v est ig at ion .
Validity are of the view that their targeting is related in large part to their advocacy with the
United Nations human rights mechanisms.
52.
Further, it was reported that among objections by Member States to non governmental organisations participation in the Conference of States Parties to th e Un it ed
Nations Convention against Corruption in Vienna in November 2017, was an at t emp t t o
block the participation of K-Monitor, a Hungarian anti-corruption non-governmental
organisation. There were reported efforts to place obstacles in the way of the particip at io n
by the conference of organizations working on issues related to corruption by au th orit ies.
The Bureau of States Parties of the Conference, voted against the objection of the State and
applied rule 17 paragraph 2 of the Rules of Procedure of the Conference in relat io n t o t h e
participation of non-governmental organizations (see CAC/COSP/2017/14, para. 25). While
K-Monitor was able to resume their participation, there are concerns that the objection
seemed to be a reprisal for cooperation with the United Nations in regard to its anticorruption advocacy.
11
28
Coalición Contra la Impunidad integrated by: Asociación Arcoiris - Asociación de Jueces por la
Democracia (AJD) - Asociación Intermunicipal de Desarrollo y Vigilancia Social de Honduras
(AIDEVISH) - Asociación por una Ciudadanía Participativa (ACI-PART ICIPA) - Centro de
Derechos de Mujeres (CDM) - Centro de Estudios de la Mujer Honduras (CEM-H) - Centro de
Investigación y Promoción de Derechos Humanos (CIPRODEH) Colectivo Gemas - Colectivo
Unidad Color Rosa - Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos de Honduras (COFADEH) Comité por la Libre Expresión C-Libre - Comunidad Gay Sampedrana para la Salud Integral Convergencia por los Derechos Humanos de la Zona Nor Occidental Crisálidas de Villanueva Equipo de Reflexión, Investigación y Comunicación (ERIC) - Feministas Universitarias Frente
Amplio del COPEMH - Foro de Mujeres por la Vida - Foro Social de la Deuda Externa y Desarrollo
de Honduras (FOSDEH) - Movimiento Amplio por la Dignidad y la Justicia (MADJ) - Movimiento
de Mujeres por la Paz Visitación Padilla - Red de Mujeres Jóvenes de Cortés Red de Mujeres Unidas
de Colonia Ramón Amaya Amador - Red Nacional de Defensoras - T ribuna de Mujeres contra los
Femicidios.
GE.18-13325