Some professionals in the cultural field

Cases

Relevant SG report

From Country

Country Geolocation

Latitude: 51.919438

Longitude: 19.145136

From Region

UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report

Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?: No

Reported trigger of reprisal: some professionals in the cultural field were beginning to engage in self-censorship to protect themselves and their institutions; In her response, the Special Rapporteur stated that mandate holders “often do not disclose the names of the sources of their information, particularly when people fear reprisals” and that “in the cultural sector in Poland there was some fear of being seen talking to me because of fear of reprisals.” 73 She named, for example, reprisals with regard to employment in the cultural sector or being able to receive funding.

Engagement with UN body

Type of attempted engagement

Meeting with UN officials during country visit / with locally present UN officials

Reprisal information: some professionals in the cultural field were beginning to engage in self-censorship to protect themselves and their institutions; In her response, the Special Rapporteur stated that mandate holders “often do not disclose the names of the sources of their information, particularly when people fear reprisals” and that “in the cultural sector in Poland there was some fear of being seen talking to me because of fear of reprisals.” 73 She named, for example, reprisals with regard to employment in the cultural sector or being able to receive funding.

Types of reprisals suffered

Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?: No

Government response content: The Government of Poland at the Human Rights Council regretted that the report’s conclusions had been drawn based on “one-sided statements by unspecified interlocutors, unsupported by any concrete evidence.”

Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?: No

Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?: No

Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?: Yes