10th of December 2020
International Human Rights Day is a great opportunity to commend all the efforts to ensure the rights and equity not just equality of our communities every day and draw attention to the remaining problems.
In 2020 the COVID pandemic exacerbated the situation with human rights and hit disadvantaged and marginalized groups the hardest. People who use drugs have been particularly at risk due to curfews, increased police control, limited access or closure of harm reduction services and decreased funding. Thanks to the efforts of international community lack of access to health services were addressed by the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health and International Network of People who Use Drugs launched #PeersInThePandemic global campaign calling for reforms to harm reduction and treatment systems in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Civil society stepped in to meet the needs of communities where the state is absent, ensuring the uninterrupted provision of harm reduction and social services during the quarantine, launching legal aid projects, and developing system of protection and support for women using drugs in case of domestic violence and human rights violations.
During the crisis the work of the human rights protection mechanisms is crucial. In March 2020 UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies called for human rights approach in fighting COVID-19. At the same time nearly all UN Treaty Bodies sessions scheduled for 2020 have been postponemed or cancelled. The situation varies from Committee to Committee, most of the Committees hold online sessions and accepts communication from civil society but the participation of NGOs is limited, and state party reviews have been postponed to 2021. The situation with the Committee Against Torture (CAT) is particularly bad as it cancelled all the sessions. Consequently, the report to CAT on the provision of harm reduction services to people who use drugs, in particular to those deprived of their liberty, and disproportionate fines for drug law offences in Kyrgyzstan, that EHRA together with Agora International Human Rights Group and «Harm Reduction Network» Association prepared was not accepted by the Committee. Amnesty International together with 522 organizations all over the world initiated the letter to the UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies and the Human Rights Treaties Branch of the OHCHR concerning their functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to that, for International Human Rights Day the Observatory on the Universality of Rights (OURs) Working Group launched the Statement endorsed by 245 organisations and 83 individuals demanding that states and the UN take action to strengthen and defend the Special Procedures.
Despite the challenges that the OHCHR and the UN are undergoing a number of human rights treaty bodies have issued specific recommendations to States on a human rights-based response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, OHCHR published a Toolkit of treaty law perspectives and jurisprudence in the context of COVID-19.
When even the international human rights protection mechanisms fail, international and regional civil society becomes stronger and more united and we have to continue documenting cases of violations.
Together with international colleagues we demand from international human rights protection bodies to resume their work and address human rights violations in countries.