A/HRC/37/51 These challenges dangerously reinforce each other, leading to a downward spiral of marginalization and the posing of ever greater obstacles to the effective exercise of their rights. Such restrictions and controls must be reconsidered in ongoing discussions on the rights of people on the move and sustainable approaches to migration. The role of human rights defenders advocating for the rights of people on the move must be a core element of renewed commitments to, and action plans and monitoring regimes for, people on the move. B. Recommendations 66. The Special Rapporteur recommends that States: (a) Take all measures to protect the right to life, liberty and security of person of people on the move and those who defend their rights; (b) Recognize publicly the important role played by defenders of people on the move and the legitimacy of their work; and condemn publicly all instances of violence, discrimination, intimidation or reprisals against them, and emphasize that such practices can never be justified; (c) Enable people to promote and protect human rights regardless of their immigration status; in particular, people on the move and those who defend their rights should be able to exercise, inter alia, their right to freedom of information, freedom of expression, freedom of association and freedom of assembly; (d) Ensure that perpetrators of crimes against people on the move and those who defend their rights – including employers, law enforcement officials, traffickers, and criminal gangs – are held accountable for their actions and brought to justice; (e) In relation to the rescue of persons at sea specifically, observe legal provisions as contained, inter alia, in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, and the Convention on the Law of the Sea; ensure that people are not criminalized for rescuing people at sea, and that masters of vessels sailing under their flag observe rules regarding rescue at sea; and allow vessels in distress to seek haven in their waters, granting those on board at least temporary refuge; (f) Ensure that all human rights defenders in exile benefit from the prohibition of refoulement to persecution, as articulated in the Convention relating to the status of refugees and other international instruments and customary international law; (g) Ensure that national protection mechanisms for human rights defenders at risk are accessible to defenders of people on the move, including by increasing training of staff involved in protection about and outreach to defenders of people on the move; (h) Ensure that visa regimes and other policies and practices do not undermine temporary international relocation initiatives for human rights defenders, and more fully operationalize policies that provide for humanitarian visas for human rights defenders at risk; (i) Ensure that people on the move and those who defend their rights have access to justice and to effective remedies through national courts, tribunals and dispute-settlement mechanisms, regardless of their immigration status; ensure that they are not threatened with or subject to arrest, detention or deportation when reporting crimes, labour rights violations, and other forms of human rights violations; and ensure they have the necessary support for pursuing remedies through effective access to justice in national courts, tribunals and dispute-settlement mechanisms, with the support of unions (where applicable), interpreters and legal assistance; (j) Ensure that national law and administrative provisions and their application facilitate the work of all actors providing humanitarian assistance to and 17