Media advisories Special Procedures

UN expert on situation of human rights defenders to visit Brazil

05 April 2024

GENEVA (5 April 2024) – The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, will conduct an official visit to Brazil from 8 to 19 April 2024.

During her visit, Lawlor will assess the environment for human rights defenders in the country and the extent to which they can carry out their work freely and without fear. She will look at the risks faced by human rights defenders, including in specific cases, and examine laws, policies and practical measures that affect them.

The Special Rapporteur will meet with federal and regional authorities, as well as a wide range of human rights defenders, including members of civil society, grassroots organisations, indigenous peoples, quilombola communities, lawyers and journalists.

The expert will travel to Brasilia and the states of Bahia, Pará, Sao Paolo and Mato Grosso do Sul to meet with government officials, human rights defenders and other stakeholders. The visit is taking place at the invitation of the Government.

Lawlor will hold an online press conference on 19 April at 10:00 local time in Brasilia. Access will be strictly limited to accredited journalists.

The Special Rapporteur will present her report to the Human Rights Council in March 2025.

Ms. Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders

The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

UN Human Rights country page: Brazil

For more information and media requests please contact Sophie HELLE (+41 22 917 56 69) or write to hrc-sr-defenders@un.org

For media enquiries regarding other UN independent experts, please contact Maya Derouaz (maya.derouaz@un.org) and Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org).

Follow news related to the UN's independent human rights experts on X: @UN_SPExperts

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