The right to freedoms of peaceful assembly and of association is recognized in international human rights law, namely under Article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Articles 21 and 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Freedoms of association and peaceful assembly are key pillars in democratic systems and in credible electoral processes, and all citizens should be able to fully enjoy these participation rights. Through the practice of these civil liberties, social movements and civil society have pursued social justice and equality throughout history, and have been able to advance the human rights agenda. A historical example is the suffragist movement, which allowed women to obtain the right to vote in many countries. 

In its first thematic report to the Human Rights Council in 2018, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association identifies a number of global trends affecting the exercise of these rights, including:  

• Use of legislation to suppress the legitimate exercise of freedom of peaceful assembly and association;
• Criminalization, indiscriminate and excessive use of force to counter or repress peaceful protest;
• Repression of social movements;
• Stigmatization of and attacks against civil society actors;
• Restrictions targeting particular groups;
• Limitations of rights during electoral periods;
• Negative impact of rising populism and extremism; and
• Obstructions encountered in the digital space. [1]  

In line with these findings, International IDEA’s Global State of Democracy Indices show worrying trends in the evolution of freedom of association and peaceful assembly worldwide. According to this research, between 2005 and 2015, 14 analyzed countries improved their freedom of association and peaceful assembly, while 22 countries saw a decline in this area. The CIVICUS State of Civil Society Report 2018 found that most countries in the world are seeing “serious, systematic problems with their civic space”, with shrinking space for civil society even in countries where it had not been seen before.[2] 

Global restrictions to the rights of association and peaceful assembly, as well as shrinking civic space, have a particularly negative impact on the work of women’s associations. The Special Rapporteur’s report shows concern about “the use of police violence, harassment and judicial intimidation against assemblies held by women in different parts of the world.” 

Across the globe, LGBTI persons, among other minority and marginalized groups, suffer from discrimination, unequal treatment and harassment in the exercise of their rights to association and peaceful assembly, generally in the broader context of shrinking civic space and democratic backlash.[3] “LGBT groups often face discriminatory restrictions and bans on holding public gatherings. LGBT pride marches have been banned in some cities; in others, where marches have gone ahead, the authorities have failed to take effective measures to protect participants, leading to violent attacks by neo-Nazi groups and other extremists.”[4]