By Toby McIntosh
United Nations Secretary General António Guterres has rejected or deflected several proposals designed to combat legal impunity for crimes against journalists.
Guterres has “no plans” to name a special representative on the safety of journalists, as requested by 72 media groups, according in a statement by a UN spokesperson.
In addition, the statement sidestepped giving an opinion on a proposal to create a UN criminal investigation unit to look into cases of violence against the media.
This was one of several policy recommendations made by UN Special Rapporteur Agnes Callamard, who investigated the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The SG spokesperson said Callamard’s idea was directed to the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council, not to Guterres. Also, the responsibility for such investigations rests with national governments, not the UN, according to the Nov. 1 statement.
“This is a disappointing, unremarkable and unsurprising response,” Callamard told eyeonglobaltransparency.net.
The SG’s spokesperson was replying to four questions posed by EYE during research for an article published Nov. 1: UN Not Welcoming Proposals on Safety for Journalists; Soft Resolution Drafted.
The statement arrived on the eve of Nov. 2, the UN-declared International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists.
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“No Plans” for Special Representative
The idea of having the SG name a Special Representative for the safety of journalists, championed by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) since 2015, was termed “an interesting proposal.”
But the SG’s statement continued, “at present, there are no plans to announce such a position.”
Christophe Deloire, executive director of RSF, praised Guterres for some steps he has taken since he took office on Jan. 1, 2017, but said “this is not enough.”
It was not the first time that Guterres has rejected the special representative idea, Deloire said in an e-mail to EYE. Deloire he providing insight into Guterres’s thinking and his naming of a senior advisor as his point person on safety of journalists.
Deloire wrote:
When we met with him one month after he took office, and requested from him for the first time the appointment of a Special representative, Antonio Guterres answered that he was positive on the principle but that he would start with appointing a diplomat in his “intimate circle” to work on journalist’s safety.
This was a strong outcome of our campaign, since he appointed Mrs. Kang Kyung-wha, who left briefly after to become Minister of Foreign Affairs of South Korea. His political advisor Anna-Maria Menendez, a Spanish diplomat, took the responsibility. We have to thank Mr. Guterres for this action and congratulate Mrs. Menendez for her commitment and her achievements.
We do work closely with her and are able to notice that she does huge behind the doors work about concrete issues on the ground. We do believe that our campaign also encouraged the UN secretary general to appoint focal points on safety of journalists in UN agencies.
“These are undoubtedly steps forward,” Deloire said, “but this is not enough, as statistics unfortunately prove it.”
Deloire elaborated:
We have built a very large worldwide coalition, that considers that there remains a need for emergency reaction and coordination, with a strong political weight. It would not be legitimate that the international power relations prevents the UN from setting up a concrete mechanism to implement the international law. Without an improvement of the safety of journalists, none of the most crucial challenges of mankind will find any solution, including climate change, corruption, women discriminations, etc.
Callamard Proposals Deflected
The statement from the SG’s office about several proposals by Callamard passed off to others at the UN the responsibility for responding to her.
Regarding Callamard’s proposed creation of “a Standing Instrument for the Criminal Investigation,” the SG statement says:
This recommendation from the Special Rapporteur was made to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly (not to the Secretary-General). The Special Rapporteur seems to imply that these two intergovernmental bodies would have the authority to establish such a mechanism.
“This is a disappointing, unremarkable and unsurprising response,” Callamard told EYE.
She said further:
The responsibility to tackle effectively impunity for crimes against journalists is denied, rejected, or passed on to others. Of course it goes without saying that the UN and the UNSG in particular have a key role to play in responding to this global pattern, this global shame – as they do for all challenges to peace and security, and to all threats to the UN Charter and UN values.
Impunity is not a fatality or a curse. It is man-made. It is produced by our political systems. And it cannot be fought back by words alone.
The UN has a meaningful role to play in terms of criminal investigation as it has been recognised many times already including through the establishment if the International impartial Investigatory mechanism for Syria and Myanmar most recently. Further, we cannot keep using the same tools and expect different results.
I have proposed a new road map to address impunity for crimes against journalists. This includes an investigatory mechanism into their targeted killings. It is time for the UN and the UNSG to act and this requires innovation, strength and determination.
Investigation Is State Responsibility, SG Says
As to Callamard’s call for a follow-up criminal investigation into the Khashoggi killing, the SG’s statement says “the primary authority and responsibility to conduct criminal investigations lies with States.”
According to the statement:
A “criminal investigation”, as proposed by the Special Rapporteur in her report, takes place during the investigative stage of a criminal justice process. The primary authority and responsibility to conduct criminal investigations lies with States, which have jurisdiction, through the appropriate legal tools and institutions, to initiate and conduct investigations, as well as to adjudicate cases, as appropriate.
The response is not surprising, since no action has been taken since June, when Callamard submitted her report, but it suggests a fundamental objection to having the UN play a more investigatory role.
Callamard has argued that the fight against impunity requires evidence and that many state investigations are flaws. While the UN can’t bring criminal charges, it could gather information for national prosecutors or international bodies, she has said.
No Comment on Comprehensive Review Idea
The SG was neither supportive or dismissive of a Callamard proposal for a major examination of ways to combat attacks on journalists, noting that she said she was willing to lead it.
She asked for the UN to undertake “a comprehensive international review of best practices in the investigation, assessment and/or response to threats and risks and of the underlying national and international legal framework, including laws and jurisprudence.”
In reply, the SG statement says:
In her report, the Special Rapporteur notes that she “is prepared to take the lead in coordinating such a standard-setting exercises with other relevant Special Rapporteurs and the OHCHR.”
UN General Assembly Not Expected to Pick Up Torch
EYE has learned that neither RSF or Callamard’s ideas are contained in a resolution on the safety of journalists being prepared for General Assembly adoption.
The draft seen by EYE goes slight beyond the Assembly’s 2017 statement by chastising politicians who denigrate the press and by suggesting the creation of special investigatory units at the national level. But it makes no new recommendations for UN action.
The resolution was drafted by Greece on behalf of the 22-member coalition called the Group of Friends for the Protection of Journalists.
For more on the draft resolution and about the RSF and Callamard proposals, see EYE’s Nov. 1 article.
TEXT of the questions by EYE and Nov. 1 answers by UN spokesperson (italics).
- First, Reporters Without Borders and other media groups are asking the SG to name a Special Representative on the subject. What is your opinion of that proposal?
This is an interesting proposal; at present, there are no plans to announce such a position.
- Agnes Callamard has made a number of programmatic suggestions. She proposed creation of “a Standing Instrument for the Criminal Investigation.” Your comments please?
This recommendation from the Special Rapporteur was made to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly (not to the Secretary-General). The Special Rapporteur seems to imply that these two intergovernmental bodies would have the authority to establish such a mechanism.
- She asked for the UN to undertake “a comprehensive international review of best practices in the investigation, assessment and/or response to threats and risks and of the underlying national and international legal framework, including laws and jurisprudence.” Your thoughts?
In her report, the Special Rapporteur notes that she “is prepared to take the lead in coordinating such a standard-setting exercises with other relevant Special Rapporteurs and the OHCHR.”
- In addition, she sought a follow-up criminal investigation into the Khashoggi killing. I’m presuming that this has been effectively turned down?
A “criminal investigation”, as proposed by the Special Rapporteur in her report, takes place during the investigative stage of a criminal justice process. The primary authority and responsibility to conduct criminal investigations lies with States, which have jurisdiction, through the appropriate legal tools and institutions, to initiate and conduct investigations, as well as to adjudicate cases, as appropriate.
