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Bonavero Institute - UNESCO International Judicial Symposium on Freedom of Expression
On 29 September 2023, the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) organised an International Judicial Symposium on Freedom of Expression.
Held in Mansfield College, the Judicial Symposium convened 15 Chief Justices, Justices and high-level judges from the five regions of the world, as well as from all Regional Human Rights Courts and Community Courts, namely from the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the European Court of Human Rights, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the East African Court of Justice, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice and the Caribbean Court of Justice.
The Judicial Symposium served as a platform for Justices and high-level judges representing courts, with a combined jurisdiction of over 4 billion people, to discuss how to further strengthen Rule of Law and Freedom of Expression, cornerstones of democratic societies. The discussion also focused on the main challenges arising from the digital environment, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and technological developments.
During the proceedings, participants expressed support to the UNESCO Judges’ Initiative, highlighting that programmes of capacity building, inter-jurisprudence dialogue and knowledge sharing should continue and be reinforced.
It was an honour and pleasure for the Bonavero Institute to partner with UNESCO in hosting this important gathering of senior judges from around the world to discuss important questions concerning the promotion of the rule of law and freedom of expression.
This symposium created a unique opportunity to gather insights from justices from national and regional courts on freedom of expression and the rule of law in an changing environment. The conversations will greatly benefit to the ongoing work of the UNESCO Judges’ Initiative for the years to come.
The 10th anniversary of the Judges’ Initiative was officially celebrated during the Judicial Symposium on Freedom of Expression, co-hosted by UNESCO and Bonavero Institute at the University of Oxford on 29 September 2023, as part of the International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI) celebration held on 28 September 2023.
The Judges’ initiative, which was born in Latin America in 2013, has become a global programme over the years and has reached the mark of 35,000 judicial actors engaged, from 160 countries.
The report on the Judges’ initiative published in English, French and Spanish, and the video explainer: How can the judiciary protect freedom of expression? In the same languages, bring testimonies of the key partners such as Bonavero Institute for Human Rights and are illustrative of the outreach and achievement of this global initiative to foster the rule of law and freedom of expression.
