A/HRC/34/23 D. Cooperation in relation to specific challenges experienced by civil society and human rights defenders at the national level 90. A panel on cooperation in connection with specific challenges gave members of civil society the opportunity to speak out about such challenges to their work as reprisals, threats, executions, the shrinking of democratic space, restrictions on journalists and the media and the adoption of restrictive legislation. 1. Good practices 91. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights informed workshop participants of the development of a joint early warning mechanism with the United Nations, as well as joint public hearings and press releases. 92. The Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights indicated that the African Commission had adopted many resolutions on the protection of human rights defenders. The Commission maintained a database with information on reprisals and periodically drafted a sessional report on the situation of such persons. 93. The Uganda Human Rights Commission received complaints from human rights defenders under threat. It had signed a memorandum of understanding with civil society organizations and established a desk to deal with cases involving human rights defenders, providing solutions to their problems and holding regular and consultative meetings. 94. The national human rights institution of Cameroon indicated that it conducted training sessions for civil society organizations. It also monitored the implementation of the recommendations made during the universal periodic review and by special procedure mandate holders. In addition, it monitored conditions in detention centres and cooperated with national committees with a general human rights mandate. 2. Challenges and lessons learned 95. The key challenges noted by the participants included the following: (a) The frequent use of antiterrorism laws, which restricted the democratic space in which civil society operates, to prosecute political activists, bloggers and journalists who express views critical of Governments; (b) The lack of political will to adopt legislation and use tools to protect human rights defenders, the frequent delays involved in registering NGOs and restrictive laws on NGO funding; (c) The lack of long-term support and resources for civil society, including budgetary constraints that affected the participation of civil society in the universal periodic review; (d) The imposition of criminal penalties on human rights defenders, including for libel, slander and defamation, which hampered their work. It was reported that the number of threats and acts of intimidation and reprisal, including violations of the right to life was rising. In some countries, environmental activists received threats made by persons working for private companies or public authorities involved in illicit activities. 13