A/HRC/42/48 has been shrinking for many years in all parts of the world. In this regard, the enjoyment of the rights to freedom of opinion and expression (including access to information), freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association is an important barometer of the extent of a safe and conducive environment, including in the context of summits and meetings of global governance spaces, which have been the subject of major protests in previous years (and to a lesser extent today). 36. Likewise, civil society actors are potentially vulnerable to acts of intimidation and reprisal by State and non-State actors because of their participation, or attempt to participate, in decision-making processes of the global governance spaces studied in the present report. The Independent Expert did not receive reports of any instance of reprisal in the course of its preparation. He nevertheless wishes to remind States in general of their responsibility to investigate any allegation of reprisal received, provide redress and prevent reoccurrence. The Independent Expert hopes that, should an act of intimidation or reprisal occur and a member State of the global governance space refuse to take action on it, other member States of the global governance space, along with, when relevant, OECD, the World Bank and IMF as guests of the spaces, would denounce the offending member State. D. Structural and practical obstacles to access, inclusivity and the ability to influence the decision-making processes of global governance spaces 1. Access (a) Procedural and effective access 37. One of the main defining features of the functioning of global governance spaces such as G7, G20 and BRICS is the absence of a permanent secretariat. However, the semiinformality of the process, valued by member States first and foremost for its flexibility, constitutes a significant challenge for public participation, especially as the procedures for participation are left to the discretion of the country holding the presidency. 38. The Independent Expert was informed repeatedly that only a very small number of civil society actors actually knew the rules and procedures governing public participation in these spaces, let alone which official in their home countries to contact to get involved in the process. It is predominantly a relationship-based process, between civil society representatives and officials from relevant ministries in the member States of the global governance spaces who have existing good working relationships. 37 For other organizations that were able to participate, access came by chance as one of their partners guided them on how to navigate the process. Furthermore, since host countries are better connected with local civil society organizations, they may not conduct as much outreach to civil society in other relevant countries. Such an approach is not sustainable, nor conducive to meaningful participation by a wide and diverse range of civil society. The Independent Expert is aware that guidelines on participation in the Civil 20 engagement group are being formulated by its steering committee, an initiative that he welcomes. 39. In some groups, such as G20 and BRICS, access by civil society is also disputed, whereas the business sector is reportedly given greater prominence. As highlighted by several interlocutors, the privileged position of businesses in some of these spaces creates the perception that Governments are more beholden to corporations than to constituents. 38 40. During the Canadian G7 presidency in 2018, NGOs were granted access to the media centre during the leaders’ summit, as a sign of openness and transparency. However, at the time of writing, civil society organizations had been informed that they would not be given such access during the G7 leaders’ summit in France.39 37 38 39 10 See, for instance, the submission by Atsuko Miwa, Co-Chair, Civil 20 Japan 2019, and Director, Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center. See, for instance, the submission by Transparency International. See www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/IOR3005272019ENGLISH.PDF.