GENEVA (15 September 2023) – The UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, will conduct an official visit to Algeria from 16 to 26 September 2023. During his visit, Voule will assess compliance with the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, including the legal framework relating to these rights, and the challenges and opportunities for the protection of these rights. The expert will focus on the ability of civil society organisations, labour unions and political parties to operate freely, as well as measures to protect the right of peaceful assembly. Voule will meet Government officials, members of the legislature and the judiciary, monitoring bodies, and members of the UN country team, among others. He will also meet with civil society actors, journalists, academics, lawyers, trade unions, and political parties. Voule will visit Algiers and other locations. The Special Rapporteur will hold a press conference at 12 pm (local time) on 26 September at the United Nations House in Algiers (41 Rue Mohammed Khoudi, El Biar, Alger 16003). Access will be strictly limited to journalists. Interested journalists are encouraged to register in advance by email to: unic.algeria@unic.org. The Special Rapporteur will submit a comprehensive report on the visit to the Human Rights Council in June 2024. Mr. Clément Nyaletsossi Voule was appointed Special Rapporteur on the right to peaceful assembly and freedom of association by the United Nations Human Rights Council in March 2018. Prior to his appointment, he led the Africa programme of the International Service for Human Rights. Mr. Voule has 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 - Togo. Since 2011, Mr. Voule has been an expert member of the Working Group on Extractive Industries, the Environment and Human Rights Violations of the African Commission on Human and Peoples" Rights. His mandate covers all countries and was renewed in 2022 by Resolution 50/17 of the Human Rights Council. 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:Algeria For more information and media requests, please contact Ms. Bethany Hender (+41 76 281 9813 / bethany.hender@un.org and hrc-sr-freeassembly@un.org) For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts, please contact Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org) Follow news related to the UN’s independent human rights experts on Twitter @UN_SPExperts The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association is on Twitter: @cvoule Concerned about the world we live in? Then STAND UP for someone"s rights today. #Standup4humanrights and visit the web page at http://www.standup4humanrights.org