A/HRC/40/60 Women human rights defenders with disabilities 66. Women defenders with disabilities often have a harder time defending their rights because of their disabilities and the effects on their standard of living. Depending on the disabilities and barriers in society they live with, they may face obstacles to communication, social interaction and access to information and spaces of dialogue, as well as financial precarity. They may need reasonable accommodations and specific support to enable them to conduct activism, such as accompaniment, human and/or technical support and transportation assistance. Those with disabilities such as autism may not perceive danger signals and may be more vulnerable to violations and abuses. Women journalists and lawyers 67. Women journalists and lawyers face high risks, often because, exposing issues and challenging those in power, they are highly visible. In 2018 alone, three journalists were victims of targeted attacks – Leslie Ann Pamela Montenegro del Real was killed in Mexico, Maharram Durrani in Afghanistan and Wendi Winters in the United States. In 2017, Reporters Without Borders notes, 10 women journalists were killed, often as they persevered in the face of threats, harassment and intimidation. Women lawyers are sometimes accused of protecting criminals or stigmatized for defending the rights of marginalized minorities, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons and those of other diverse orientations and gender identities. They are sometimes subjected to genderbased discrimination by colleagues and judges and mistreated by the police. Women human rights defenders in prominent and leadership positions 68. Women leaders who represent their groups and speak out on issues tend to be targeted for their visibility – not only to silence them but also to discourage broader dissent. 69. In the Philippines, Senator Leila de Lima has been in detention since February 2017 for denouncing President Rodrigo Duterte’s War on Drugs, which has led to violence, extrajudicial killings and human rights violations. 25 She has been held on politically motivated, non-bailable charges for violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002; while in detention, she has been subject to restrictions. 70. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Maria Lourdes Sereno was unseated in May 2018 by a Supreme Court decision widely considered unconstitutional. 26 Ms. Sereno had objected to President Duterte’s policies on drugs and martial law, after which he publicly pushed for her resignation. When she refused to resign, he pushed for her impeachment, even ordering Congress to remove her. Also in the Philippines, awardwinning journalist Maria Ressa, chief executive officer of the news website Rappler, has been indicted on tax evasion charges, in what is considered political persecution in response to critical reporting on the Government. Women human rights defenders in conflict and post-conflict situations and living under occupation 71. Women often find it more challenging to promote and protect rights when they live in insecure and unstable environments. Where non-State actors dominate, State authorities may have little power or control. Religious non-State actors may impose restrictions on behaviour and dress, subjecting women to discipline for perceived infractions. 72. For example, women living in Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh) face restrictions that make it difficult and dangerous to engage in public spaces, much less in human rights activism. In Afghanistan, women defenders have been displaced from several provinces because of Taliban attacks, affecting their level of engagement. In Yemen, they have experienced verbal and physical violence, and militant groups have 25 26 Amnesty International, “Philippines: drop politically motivated charges against Senator de Lima and ensure her immediate and unconditional release” (27 August 2018). Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines, “Statement of the Commission on Human Rights on the Supreme Court decision to oust Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno”, (15 May 2018). 13