A/HRC/11/4 page 5 5. The Special Rapporteur will continue to pursue the provisions outlined in the resolution in addition to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and other relevant international and regional instruments, which continue to provide the legal framework for the mandate. II. ACTIVITIES OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR A. Analysis of information, communications and trends 6. For the effective implementation of his mandate, the Special Rapporteur focuses on information received from a variety of sources, including Governments; local, national, regional or international governmental and non-governmental organizations; associations of media professionals and writers; and trade unions. The communications received from various sources are a means to identify trends, reiterate issues already discussed in previous reports and bring to the attention of the international community a number of policies, practices and measures having an impact on the respect for freedom of opinion and expression. 7. Information received is a significant indicator of the degree of implementation of the right to freedom of opinion and expression in a given country. The Special Rapporteur may also decide to take initiative motu proprio on issues of general concern that he considers relevant to his mandate. 8. The majority of cases received by the Special Rapporteur concern threats, aggressions, harassment, murder or other sorts of attacks on the physical and psychological integrity of journalists, students, human rights defenders and unionists in retaliation for the exercise of their right to freedom of opinion and expression. In many cases, these attacks are linked to the repression of peaceful protests conducted to express disagreement with a particular governmental policy, at the national or local level, or with the actions of large corporations. While the extent of the repression, its duress and length may substantially vary, allegations received are not confined to countries where the political, social and economic situation is particularly difficult, but also concern violations occurring in transitional or long-established democracies. 9. Analysis of communications also shows a large number of cases of prosecution or imprisonment of individuals including media professionals on charges of defamation, libel and slander, despite the decriminalization of these offences by some countries. Another important trend in many regions has been the adoption of legislation that unduly limits freedom of expression by fostering State interference in editorial independence; by creating subjective licensing procedures that are used to close media outlets; by restricting the ability of journalists, particularly foreign correspondents, to perform their work freely; and by imposing severe limitations on the operation, including funding, of civil society organizations. 10. From 5 December 2007 to 31 December 2008, 433 communications were sent on behalf of the Special Rapporteur, 365 of which were signed jointly with other special-procedures mandate-holders. The geographical division of the communications was as follows: 30 per cent in Asia and the Pacific; 20 per cent in Africa; 20 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean; 17 per cent in the Middle East and North Africa; and 13 per cent in Europe, North America and Central Asia.