GENEVA (25 June 2024) – A UN expert warned today that the role of independent justice systems in protecting participatory governance has come under attack from political actors who seek to limit or control judicial systems, including through ad hominem attacks by political leaders and the criminalisation of prosecutors, judges, and lawyers. In her second report to the Human Rights Council, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Margaret Satterthwaite, set out a taxonomy of Government efforts to control judicial systems – from curbing bar associations and manipulating administrative functions to capturing courts and criminalising or attacking justice operators. The report also explores the vital role played by the legal professionals who comprise the justice system ­– judges, prosecutors, and lawyers, as well as community justice workers – in safeguarding democracy, in the 2024 context in which nearly half the world’s population will vote. “Justice systems promote and protect a fundamental value that undergirds participatory governance: the rule of law,” the Special Rapporteur said. “This principle insists that all people, even state actors, are subject to the same laws, applied fairly and consistently. “I call on Member States to do more to revitalise public trust in justice institutions and to defend justice actors and their indispensable role in safeguarding democracy,” she said. Ms. Margaret Satterthwaite, Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers. She was appointed as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers by the Human Rights Council in October 2022. Professor Satterthwaite is an international human rights scholar and practitioner with decades of experience in the field. She is a Professor of Clinical Law at New York University School of Law. The Experts 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 of any government or organisation and serve in their individual capacity. For further information and media requests, please write to hrc-sr-independencejl@un.org For media enquiries regarding other UN independent experts, please contact Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org) or John Newland (john.newland@un.org). Follow news related to the UN"s independent human rights experts on Twitter @UN_SPExperts.