A/HRC/33/19 acts, no matter how seemingly subtle or explicit, are without exception unacceptable and must be halted immediately and unconditionally, effective remedies provided and preventive measures adopted and implemented to prevent reoccurrence. 49. I reiterate the concerns expressed in my previous reports that, while it is the primary obligation of the State to protect those who cooperate with the United Nations in the field of human rights and to ensure that they may do so safely and without hindrance, the cases described in my reports seem to confirm that acts of intimidation and reprisal are often perpetrated by government officials of the State itself. I therefore call again on every State to take all measures necessary to prevent the occurrence of intimidation and reprisal, including by raising awareness. I urge governments to send clear messages to all State officials that such acts will not be condoned, and to ensure accountability if they do occur. 50. In that regard, I welcome continued efforts made by a number of Member States to continue to provide assistance to individuals and groups subjected to acts of intimidation and reprisals for their cooperation with the United Nations in the field of human rights, in particular by raising their cases during sessions of the Human Rights Council. I urge all States to follow up on the cases included in the present and previous reports and provide substantive responses where they remain outstanding. In that context, I recommend that the Council continue to devote sufficient time to the discussion of the present and future reports. 51. Furthermore, responses to acts of intimidation and reprisal by the United Nations system must be timely and coordinated in order to prevent initial warning signs from being overlooked and preventive steps that could have been taken left aside. In that regard, I welcome the continued efforts made by the different United Nations human rights mechanisms and representatives towards enhancing their response to all acts of intimidation and reprisal and the first positive outcomes reached. 52. In addition, recent developments seem to indicate that policies and practices that may hamper access to the United Nations, its representatives and mechanisms need to be addressed in more detail. That could be explored further in future reports. I encourage all United Nations mechanisms and representatives in the field of human rights to continue to follow up on cases of reprisals brought to their attention and report on such follow-up. 53. In 2009, the Human Rights Council decided to broaden the scope of my report to include not only cases of intimidation and reprisals related to cooperation with human rights mechanisms, but also cooperation with the United Nations system in the field of human rights as a whole. The information gathered in that context has underlined the seriousness of the issue of reprisals and its impact, which affects individuals and groups from all regions of the world. The pattern is increasingly addressed by various stakeholders within the United Nations system, including the President of the Council, the treaty bodies and the special procedures. Each of those stakeholders is developing specific tools and protocols to respond to it. All those initiatives are welcomed. However, they have also highlighted the lack of a coordinated response to the problem. 54. In the light of the increasing number of cases of reprisals, as evident in the present report, I intend to strengthen the collection of information on allegations of intimidation or reprisals for cooperation with the United Nations in the field of human rights by asking all parts of the United Nations system to report to me more regularly on such cases. In consultation with the High Commissioner for Human Rights, I will 16

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