States not reporting on attacks against human rights defenders undermines Sustainable Development Goal 16

Published by Brent Patterson on July 13, 2024July 13, 2024

Photo: SDG Goal 16 is to be reviewed at the 2024 SDG High Level Political Forum taking place from July 8-17 at the UN in New York City.

United Nations member states adopted the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 with the target of accomplishing them by 2030.

Sustainable Development Goal 16 promises to “promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.”

Indicator 16.10.1 measures: “Number of verified cases of killing, kidnapping, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention and torture of journalists, associated media personnel, trade unionists and human rights advocates in the previous 12 months.”

The International Land Coalition says: “Countries are expected to report on the number of verified cases of killing, kidnapping, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention and torture of human rights defenders (HRD).”

Their statement continues: “The official SDG Indicator data base reports 2,653 killings of HRD since 2015 and another 133 enforced disappearances.”

However, they highlight, in the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) of 162 countries, only 3 countries reported that at least one HRD had been killed or attacked, 7 countries reported zero cases, and 152 countries did not report at all.

The 22-page report A Crucial Gap 2023 discusses “the limits to official data on attacks against defenders and why it’s concerning.”

That report makes seven recommendations including: 1) States must develop and sustain mechanisms that collect and report data on attacks against HRDs, using this information to inform more effective policies and protection mechanisms to reduce attacks on these defenders, and 2) Reporting agencies and bodies must make the work of particularly vulnerable groups, including land, environmental and indigenous human rights defenders, more visible, highlighting the issues and challenges involved in this work and evaluating how existing supports to these groups can be improved.

The report also recommends: “Globally, it is essential to develop a database in line with 16.10.1 that captures – in a safe, participatory and inclusive way – the verified cases of killings, threats against and attacks on HRDs, especially defenders of land, environmental and indigenous peoples’ rights, with data generated by diverse actors at many levels.”

International processes and the protection of HRDs

PBI-Canada is following several international processes in relation to their commitments to HRDs including the Binding Treaty on business and human rights negotiations (October 21-25), the COP16 biodiversity conference (October 26-November 1) and the COP29 climate conference (November 11-24).

All these processes prompt concern.

While the Binding Treaty text may be the most inclusive, it is also being opposed by states including Canada, HRDs were only briefly mentioned in the COP15 biodiversity text, and there was no mention in the COP28 climate text.

While Indicator 16.10.1 of the SDGs specifies “human rights advocates”, we see the undermining of this measure when states fail to report on this through their Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs).

We continue to follow this.

Further reading: Will COP16 in Colombia strengthen Target 22 and spark text at COP30 in Brazil to protect environmental defenders? (PBI-Canada, May 22, 2024).

#HLPF2024 #SDG16