ICNL: Report on “Closing Civic Space for Climate Activists”

June 2020 – originally published here

This briefer, presented by ICNL and ECNL, outlines some of the common legal and extralegal measures used to target civil society actors working on climate justice. Many of these measures violate international and regional law, and threaten civil society’s ability to function and find solutions to urgent global environmental challenges. Surveillance, freedom of expression, and digital threats to climate activists may increase as a result of COVID-19, as states enact emergency measures that further enhance their powers. Similarly, restrictions on assembly rights may outlast the pandemic, and states must be careful to ensure that climate, environmental, and other forms of activism remain fully protected in line with international law.

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