Dag Hammarskjöld Library at Uppsala University
Human Rigths Defenders
- © United Nations
In 1998 the General Assembly adopted the Declaration of Human Rights Defenders. It is an important step, recognizing the importance and legitimacy of the work of human rights defenders, as well as their need for better protection.
On the recommendation of the Commission on Human Rights a Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders was appointed
in 2000 to support the Declaration. The mandate calls upon the the Special Representative to gather information on the situation of human rights defenders in all parts of the world, to make recommendations on better protection, and to report to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly.
Documentation
The official web site of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders at the UN official web site, section Human Rights, provides background information and full text documents and reports.
The Special Representative submits an annual report to the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council. Recent reports are posted at the official web site of the Special Representative, section Annual Reports.
Full text documents of the investigations of the Special Rapporteur are posted at the official web site.
Databases and Indexes
The reports to the Human Rights Council can be accessed through the Charter Body database at the UN official web site, section Human Rights.
The UN Library online catalogue UNBISnet contains reports, documents and articles related to UN activities with links to full texts for recent years. Subject search can be performed using relevant terms from the UNBIS THESAURUS.