A/HRC/39/41 accountability mechanisms, in cooperation with the Inter-American Development Bank. The Unit is completing compliance reviews and monitoring several cases of intimidation and reprisals for engagement with UNDP, including in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Malawi, Panama and Uganda.14 19. In the context of protection of civilians, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations has reinforced a policy commitment to the principle of “do no harm” in its cooperation with communities and civil society. The force commanders, in cooperation with civilian components, must ensure that threat assessments and situational awareness are informed by regular engagement with communities and civil society groups, such as youth and women’s groups, which affirms their accountability for ensuring that such engagement does not expose any persons to harm. IV. Ensuring access to the United Nations, its representatives and mechanisms in the field of human rights 20. Civil society organizations make an indispensable contribution to the work and purposes of the United Nations, which would be impossible without their having access to international meetings at United Nations premises and the ability to engage directly with the human rights mechanisms. Indeed, the Economic and Social Council acknowledges the breadth of their expertise and their capacity to support the work of the United Nations (see resolution 1996/31). 21. The Assistant Secretary-General has addressed concerns about the use of accreditation and security procedures to hinder people from speaking out in a number of United Nations forums at Headquarters. There have been attempts by some diplomats to block the participation of certain civil society representatives in United Nations events, meetings or conferences, including attempts to thwart the accreditation of NGOs, especially those doing human rights work, through various manoeuvres. Further, OHCHR has repeatedly received reports indicating that individuals at United Nations meetings have been unwillingly filmed or photographed, or that their statements in closed sessions were secretly recorded, creating a climate of intimidation that may deter members of civil society from participating in proceedings. 22. According to the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, which provides secretariat support to the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations, which considers applications for consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, in 2018 over 4,800 organizations had consultative status and the demand for that status remained high, with new applications increasing by 19 per cent in 2017 (see A/HRC/38/18, para. 19). At its resumed session in May 2018, the Committee had before it 472 applications, of which 244 were deferred from previous sessions. They recommended 209 for consultative status and deferred 233. Another 27 applications were closed owing to the failure of the applicants to answer questions 23. Consultative status confers access to the United Nations and many of its mechanisms, and several stakeholders have raised concerns about the large number of deferrals and perceived lack of transparency in decisions on consultative status. Continuous deferral of applications has in some cases amounted to de facto rejections and has targeted civil society organizations that work on human rights-related issues (see A/HRC/38/18, para. 20). 24. In my previous report I addressed the role of the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations and welcomed the positive efforts of the Committee to increase transparency, which have made some of its deliberations available via webcast. I also note the first consultation held between members of the Committee and NGOs in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council in June 2018 on the contribution of NGOs to the work of the Council and its subsidiary bodies, including on improving the access of NGOs to the United Nations. I again call on the Committee to apply the criteria for assessing 14 6 See https://info.undp.org/sites/registry/secu/SECUPages/SECUSummary.aspx.