The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (the Commission), meeting in its 80th Ordinary Session, held virtually from 24 July to 2 August 2024 :
Recalling the mandate of the Commission to promote and protect human and peoples‘ rights in Africa, by virtue of Article 45 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Charter);
Recalling also Articles 10 and 11 of the African Charter guaranteeing the right to freedom of association and assembly;
Further recalling Article 62 of the African Charter which states: ‘Each State Party undertakes to submit every two years, from the date of entry into force of the present Charter, a report on the legislative or other measures taken to give effect to the rights and freedoms recognized and guaranteed in the present Charter’.
Bearing in mind its Resolution ACHPR/Res.69(XXXV) 04 on the situation of human rights defenders in Africa and the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders;
Also bearing in mind Resolutions ACHPR/Res.319 (LVII) 15 and ACHPR/Res.406 (LXIII) 18 concerning respectively the elaboration of guidelines on Freedom of Association and Assembly in Africa and the creation of a support group for the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and Focal Point on Reprisals in Africa for the promotion and monitoring of the effective implementation of the guidelines on Freedom of Association and Assembly in Africa;
Recognising the importance of the Special Rapporteur and his support group in contributing to the work of the Commission for the better protection of human rights, in particular freedom of association and assembly;
Acknowledging also that the absence of guidelines for the preparation of reports on freedom of association and assembly hampers the monitoring of States Parties' compliance with the provisions of the Charter and contributes to the limitation of civic space on the continent;
Convinced of the imperative need to assist and guide States in the process of preparing periodic reports in order to ensure that all aspects of the rights to freedom of association and assembly set out in Articles 10 and 11 of the Charter are covered;
The Commission :
1- Decides to elaborate guidelines that orient States Parties on the information they should include in their periodic reports on freedom of association and assembly, over a period of one (1) year, starting on 2 August 2024 ;
2- Decides to entrust the task of drafting the said Guidelines to the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and focal point on Retaliation in Africa in collaboration with the Support Group for the promotion and monitoring of the effective implementation of the Guidelines on freedom of association and assembly in Africa.
Done virtually, on 2 August 2024
