Inputs to the Questionnaire:The Situation of Human Rights Defenders 1. Submission category ‘Who is participating in this survey? a. State b, National Human Rights Institution ¢._ International or inter-governmental organi d. Other, specifically The Attorney General's Office, the Office of the Ombudsman, the Ombudsperson for Children’s Office and the Mauritius Police Department have partly replied to the questionnaire and their replies have been combined. Additionally, we understand that the National Human Rights Commission will be submitting its input directly to the Special Rapporteur. 2, Situation of human rights defenders in which location(s) This survey is conducted regarding the situation of human rights defenders in the following place(s}; a. Asingle state b. More than one state, specifically ‘The Republic of Mauritius. 3. Context What is the relevant social, economic and political context which affects the situation of human rights defenders? The Human Rights Institutions, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), the Office of the Ombudsman, the Ombudsperson for Children (OCO}, and the Independent Police Complaint Commission (IPCC), are funded by the Government and they are independent. 4. Human Rights Community How many non-governmental organizationsoperate within the State? How many of theseare activeon human rights issues? In which way these organizations are connected with each other and the concerned State? As at February 2017, there were around 340 non-governmental organisations affiliated with the Mauritius Council of Social Services (MACOS). As an umbrella organization for NGOs, MACOSS seeks to promote social and community development and voluntary actions through non-governmental organisations. It strengthens its members by initiating communication, collaboration and networking among NGOs andbetween NGOs and Government and the private sector, primarily through meetings, workshops, consultations and institutional development activities. MACOSS also facilitates its member organisations and strengthens their organisational capacity. 5. Human Rights Defenders How are human rights defenders recognized by the State? Are there any specific legal or policy frameworks that recognize human right defenders and/or their rights and responsibilities? a) It is increasingly recognized that human rights defenders are important actors in building necessary social consensus for economic reforms and long term development, in promoting effective governance by fostering transparency and accountability of public institutions, and in efforts to fight inequality and exclusion The Constitution of the Republic of Mauritius provides, at Chapter IX, for the establishment of an Office of the Ombudsman. The mandate of the office is to investigate anyaction taken by any officer or authority in the exercise of administrative functions of thatofficer or authority, in any case in which a member of the public claims or appears to have sustained injustice in consequence of maladministration. TheOmbudsmandoesso through independent, objective and impartial investigations. For complaints falling outside the jurisdiction of the Office of the Ombudsman, the complainants are informed accordingly and are directed to the authority concerned. The Ombudsman has a duty to make an Annual Report to the President concerning the discharge of his functions, Reportwhich is also laid before the National Assembly. ‘The creation of the Ombudsman Institution dates back to 1968 when Mauritius became Independent and adopted a New Constitution. The Ombudsman Act was passed in 1969. b) The Ombudsperson for Children's Office of Mauritius is the first of its kind in Africa. The Ombudsperson for Children Act (OCA 2003) came into force on 20 November 2003 on the occasion of the Universal Children's Day. The Ombudsperson for Children's Office (OCO) was established in the same year. ©) The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) is a body corporate established under Section 27(1) of the EOC Act, and became operational in April 2016. The Equal Opportunities (Amendment) Act was enacted in November 2017. The amendment makes provision for the prohibition of discrimination in employment on the grounds of a person's criminal record, both at recruitment and promotion level, where a person’s criminal record is not relevant to the nature of his employment.d) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) was established under the Protection of Human Rights Act 1998 for the better protection of human rights, for the better investigation of complaints against members of the police force, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. The Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Act 2012 aimed at restructuring the National Human Rights Commission so as toenhance its role as a key institution in the protection and promotion of human rights at thenational level. It also provides for a change in the composition of the Commission andmakes better provision with regard to the recruitment of its staff. The Act provides for theNational Human Rights Commission to operate through three divisions, namely the HumanRights Division, the Police Complaints Division and the National Preventive MechanismDivision. The mandate of the Commission has been broadened and its new functions havebeen aligned with the Paris Principles, The new set up Is operational as from 1 July 2013. €) The Independent Police Complaints Commission Act was proclaimed in April 2018 and the IPCC is already operational. The IPCC investigates into complaints, other than acts of corruption or money laundering offences, made against police officers in the discharge of their functions. Since then the Police Complaint Division is no longer operational at the NHRC. 6. Specific categories of human rights defenders Are specific categories of human rights defenders recognized by the State? How has the State responded to the situation of women human rights defenders and other categories of human rights defenders facing particular risks and challenges? a) In November 2017, the Ministry of Justice, Human Rights and Institutional Reforms (MIHRIR) was created and the portfolio of Human Rights was transferred from Prime Minister's Office to the newly created Ministry. Additionally, a Human Rights Secretariat and the National Mechanism for Reporting and Follow-Up (NMRF)have been set up since December 2017under the aegis of the new Ministry. This new framework aims to ensure that Human Rights obligations are fully met, periodic reports and mid-term Review /Progress Reports are submitted in a timely manner after thorough consultations with all parties concerned. Furthermore, it ensures a better coordination among Ministries in respect of the implementation of recommendations and decisions and enables a thorough monitoring of Human Rights issues. b) Government has set up of a Human Rights Secretariat and a National Mechanism for Reporting and Follow Up (NMRF)under the aegis of the MJHRIR to () havea better coordination between different institutions; (ii) have a closer monitoring of Human Rights issues; (iii) ascertain that the reports are submitted in a timely manner; and(iv) ensure their implementations, The NMRF covers all the Human Rights Mechanisms namely Treaty Bodies, the Universal Periodic Review and Special Procedures and will also include the outcomes, recommendations, decisions, and views. Human Rights Institutions and several NGOs are also members of the NMRF Committee and they have the opportunity to discuss Human Right issues and find the most appropriate solutions to Human Rights issue. ©) Government cooperates with many NGOs through grants in support of their activities, for the effective enjoyment of human rights (such as education, health, environment), in particular by vulnerable persons (such as persons with disabilities, persons with HIV/AIDS, the elderly, women, children prisoners), d) The Ombudsperson for Children's Officedealsspecifically withthe rightsof children, The Ombudsperson for Children has to promote compliance withthe Convention on the Rights of the Child. According to Section 5 of the OCA 2003 regarding abjectsof the office of the Ombudsperson for Children shall: ‘ensure that the rights, needs and interests of children are given full consideration by public bodies, private authorities, individuals and associations of individuals; ‘© promotethe rights and best interests of children; ‘© promotecompliance with the Convention. 7. Specific protection of rights What measures does the State take to protect and promote the rights recognized in the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders: a, The Right to freedom of peaceful assembly b, The Right to freedom of asso . The Right to access to information and participation d._ The Right to freedom of opinion and expression fe. The Right to develop and discuss new human rights ideas {The Right to an effective remedy g The Right to access funding n Human rights defenders enjoy the same rights as any other citizen in Mauritius including rightsentrenched in chapter Il of the Constitution of Mauritius, The Constitution makes provision under section 17 for redress to be afforded to any individual whose rights under chapter Il have been, are being or are likely to be contravened. There is also the possibility of challenging acts of public bodies in Court by way of applications for judicial review on grounds of illegality, "Wednesbury unreasonableness", abuse of powers and procedural impropriety. There are also a number of human rights institutions which an aggrieved individual can resort to: the National Human Rights Commission, the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Ombudsperson for Children, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, the National Preventive Mechanism, Division of the National Human Rights Commission. There is also the possibility of addressing minor petitions to the Attorney General.‘Mauritius is governed by the Constitution which is the Supreme Law of Mauritius,national laws, Registration of Association Act amongst others. Mauritius has also signed and ratified several United Nation Conventions. Periodic Reports are submitted to the different Treaty Bodies including periodic reports on the Rights of the Child as highlighted by the Ombudsperson for Children, 8,Implementation of the Declaration What steps has the state taken to implement the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders? Has the state made public commitments to the Declaration and/or the right to defend human rights? What good practices in relationto the implementation of the Declaration have been developed in the state (including by other actors) that should be disseminated to a wider audience? (i) The State has established human rights institutions such as the National Human Rights Commission to promote and protect human rights. {ii) An Independent Police Complaints Commission has recently been set up with a view ‘to enquiring into all complaints of breaches of human rights by Police officers; and, Human rights defenders are authorized to hold peaceful assemblies. {iv) Dissemination of Human Rights information have been done both by different Ministries and Human Rights Institutions either jointly or on their own initiative. Some details are as below: ‘* From 2011 to 2017, The Prime Minister's Office in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, the National Development Unit, the National Human Rights Commission, the Ombudsperson for Children, and the Equal Opportunities Commission have carried out sensitisation sessions on human rights in all Citizen’s Advice Bureaus around the island. Some 4160 participants from NGOs, women’s associations, vulnerable groups have so far been sensitized. '* Asseries of TV programme on Human Rights in order to sensitise the population about their rights were broadcast on TV from 2013 to 2015. © Human Rights information is accessible on the Human Right Portal (http://humanrights.govmu.org) and is now maintained by the newly created Ministry of Justice and Human rights in December 2017. The website of the Ministry will be redesigned to be to allow for a better dissemination of human rights information * The proceedings of the National Assembly are broadcasted live since 2017.* The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) provides more informal training through talks and short videos on human rights and torture. Talks are given to recruits and to officers already in post, especially those in charge of police stations. The National Preventive Mechanism Division of the NHRC sensitises prisons officers on the need for a human rights approach towards detainees during meetings and visits to Prisons. The Istanbul Protocol is used as a reference document and source of materials for training, 9. Challenges facing the state What are the main challenges facing the state in protecting the rights of human rights defenders and in implementing the Declaration? Human Right defenders (especially NGOS) may have different objectives and which may be different and diverging. Mauritius has a multi-cultural character and due consideration must be given to its social fabric. 10, Recommendations: Has the State received and/or implemented any recommenda ns on human rights defenders made by UN or regional bodies (eg. UPR, special procedures, treaty bodies, etc.)? Mauritius gives due consideration to all recommendations made by UN or regional bodies and endeavor to implement same. Numerous actions are taken to bring legislative amendments and policies to that regard. You may wish to refer to previous reports and interim documents submitted to the UN which are available online. However, the Ombudsperson for the Children’s Office submitted the following: UNCRC Concluding Observations: Mauritius - 2006 The Committee welcomes the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in 2001 as well as the Ombudsperson for Children's Office (OCO) in December 2003. While acknowledging the valuable work of the OCO in the area of investigations and awareness-raising, the Committee is concerned about the limited human and financial resources allocated for its effective functioning, It is further concerned that the staff of OCO are seconded from other government departments, hence limiting its total independence. 17. The Committee recommends that State Party ensure that adequate human and The OCO has recruited four full-fledged investigators paid by the State. A fifth one will be appointed soon. The OCO may recruit additional staff through the Public Service Commission pendingfinancial resources be allocated to the Ombudspersons for Children’s Office. The Committee also recommends that the State Party strengthen the OCO by allowing it to recruit qualified and trained staff. It further recommends that the OCO be systematically included in the review of any laws and policies pertaining to children. UNCRC General Observation - 2013 ‘The Committee recommends that the State Party recruit additional qualified investigators for the Ombudsperson for Children’s Office, to receive, investigate and address complaints by children effectively and in a child-sensitive manner, ensure the privacy and. protection of victims, and undertake monitoring, follow-up and verification activities. The Committee recommends that the State Party encourage the Office to carry out awareness-raising programmes in all parts of the country, including campaigns for the dissemination of information on children’s rights to the general population, including adults working with children. In addition, the Committee recommends that the State Party continue raising awareness about the existence of the Office and its functions, and provide adequate resources to the Office to enable it to carry out its mandate effectively. allocation of funds in the budget. The OC is regularly consulted on matters relating to children Through its affiliation with the Association des Ombudsmans et Mediateurs de la Francophonies (AOMF), the officers have benefitted from specialized in the field of child rights. ‘The OCO receives funding from the National Budget to carry out awareness raising campaigns on the rights of the child and related issues. 11. Good Practices and pledges In commemoration of the 20'* anniversary of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, what future actions and /or commitments to the protection and recognition of the importance of human rights defenders are you able to make? Are there any good practices or key issues that you can identify that would be important to disseminate on the 20" anniversary? The submission of the Ombudsperson for Children’s Office (OCO): ‘At the OCO it is a practice to listen to the views of children in all matters concerning them, irrespective of their living situation or whether they have certain disabilities or they are inconflict with the law and deprived of their liberty. We firmly believe that all human rights defenders must listen to the views of children in all matters concerning them. 12. Other Information Is there any additional information that the Special Rapporteur should consider about the situation of human rights defenders? No. 13. Contact Information Please provide contact information for the individual pa