The outbreak of the Coronavirus is placing a great strain on democracy and the rule of law.
While the question of democracy and the rule of law in crisis has been around for quite some time, the misuse of personal data, the surge in fake news, extensive surveillance, and human right violations amid COVID-19, have all further undermined faith in the democratic process and the idea of equality before the law. In a similar manner, the recent adoptions of emergency laws and decrees worldwide in the face of an unseen threat have exacerbated doubts in the promptness and robustness of political responses in the world’s democracies.
Additionally, existing inequalities resulting from unequal socio-economic opportunities have excluded millions from democratic decision-making, and consequently, added an additional layer of complexity.
Our Wednesday ‘Right On’ web chat will address ways to tackle the global health crisis without undermining democratic practices and will reflect on the consequence of COVID-19 on the future of democracy and the rule of law.
Join our discussion on Wednesday, 22nd April at 13:00 UTC (15:00 CEST).
For more information about Right On, and to register, visit the dedicated webpage.
Speakers for this event include:
- Ms Ilze Brands Kehris (Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights; Head of the UN Human Rights Office in New York)
- Ms Annika Ben David (Sweden’s Ambassador at large for Human Rights, Democracy, and the Rule of Law)
- Ms Annika Silva-Leander (Head of the Democracy Assessment and Political Analysis (DAPA) unit, which produces International IDEA’s Global State of Democracy Report)
- Prof. Yuval Shany (Member of the UN Human Rights Committee; Lecturer at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights)
- Moderator: Mr Felix Kirchmeier (Manager of Policy Studies, Geneva Academy; Executive-Director of the Geneva Human Rights Platform)
- Moderator: Mr Marc Limon (Executive-Director of the Universal Rights Group (URG))
About Right On
The ‘Right On’ initiative emerged out of the interest to provide an agile response to changes brought about by the Coronavirus outbreak.The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted many aspects of our lives, including the global conversation on human rights which is very much needed, in particular at a time when many fundamental human rights and freedoms are being challenged by emergency measures enacted in response to the virus outbreak. To read more about Right On and its partners, visit the dedicated webpage.
