The Head of Protection Programs at the THRDC Adv. Paul Kisabo is presenting on the role of CSOs / HRDs and trade unions in promoting climate justice and human rights during a global consultation workshop held in Kampala, Uganda on 8th and 9th April 2024. 

Co-organized by DefendDefenders, ICNL, and the World Movement for Democracy, the workshop focuses on advancing the protection of freedom of assembly and association rights.

This workshop chaired by UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of peaceful assembly and association, Hon. Clément Voule, brings together 25 social movement activists, leaders, and representatives from regional human rights mechanisms.

The consultation focuses on main 3 objectives:

1) To build on and advance the recommendations made by the UNSR Clement Voule in his reports to the UN General Assembly on Social Movements and Climate Justice.

2) To identify emerging/new challenges and threats to the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association and devise recommendations on preserving the gains, to contribute to the UN SR’s upcoming report to the Human Rights Council.

3) To identify joint strategies and activities of the regional mechanisms and UNSR’s mandate to push back against the growing threats to the freedom of peaceful assembly and association rights, and enhancing the support for rights-

Apart from the CSOs in the African continent, the following regional mechanisms representatives have also participated: the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR), the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).