Clément Nyaletsossi VOULE, a national from Togo, has been appointed as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association in March 2018. Prior to his appointment, he led the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) work to support human rights defenders from States in transition and coordinated the organization’s work in Africa as the Advocacy Director.
A Special Rapporteur is an independent expert appointed by the Human Rights Council to examine and report back on a country situation or a specific human rights theme. This position is honorary and the expert is not United Nations staff nor paid for his/her work.The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association examines, monitors, advises and publicly reports on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association worldwide.
In October 2010, the Human Rights Council adopted resolution 15/21 establishing the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association for an initial period of three years. The Council extended the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for an additional period of three years in September 2013 (resolution 24/5), June 2016 (resolution 32/32) and July 2019 (resolution 41/12).
Mr Clément VOULE also worked as Secretary-General of the Togolese Coalition of Human Rights Defenders, as a campaigner for the Togolese Coalition for the International Criminal Court and as Secretary-General of Amnesty International section in Togo.Since 2011, Clément has been an Expert Member of the Working Group on Extractive Industries, Environment and Human Rights Violations of the African Commission on Human and People’s Right.
A longtime activist and jurist, Mr. Voule has supported State and civil society efforts to develop
and adopt specific laws for the protection of human right defenders and he has contributed to the publication of the Model law for the recognition and protection of human rights defenders and a human rights defenders guide to the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights.
Mr. Voule has a degree on Fundamental Rights from Nantes University and a Masters Diploma on International Law in Armed Conflict from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, University of Geneva.
Currently, he holds positions in Geneva in the field of human rights.
Follow him on Twitter at @cvoule.
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