A/HRC/31/66 (d) States should provide the necessary support to, and sufficient oversight of, the authorities involved in the management of assemblies, at all levels of government. This includes sufficient training and necessary financial and human resources; (e) Political and other leaders should publicly recognize that there is room for differences of opinion and promote a culture of tolerance. B. Every person has the inalienable right to take part in peaceful assemblies 18. Because international law recognizes an inalienable right to take part in peaceful assemblies, it follows that there is a presumption in favour of holding peaceful assemblies. Assemblies should be presumed lawful, subject to the permissible limitations set out in article 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.8 The protection of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly extends only to those assemblies that are peaceful. In determining whether an assembly is protected under this right, the peacefulness of an assembly should be presumed,9 and a broad interpretation of the term “peaceful” should be afforded.10 Regard must be given to the manner in which the assembly is held and to the intentions of the participants. 19. The right to freedom of peaceful assembly includes the right to plan, organize, promote and advertise an assembly in any lawful manner. Any restrictions on such activities should be considered as a prior restriction on the exercise of the right. Restrictions on freedom of association and of expression may also effectively serve as a restriction on freedom of peaceful assembly. 20. The right to freedom of peaceful assembly is held by each individual participating in an assembly. Acts of sporadic violence or offences by some should not be attributed to others whose intentions and behaviour remain peaceful in nature. 11 21. Freedom of peaceful assembly is a right and not a privilege and as such its exercise should not be subject to prior authorization by the authorities. State authorities may put in place a system of prior notification, where the objective is to allow State authorities an opportunity to facilitate the exercise of the right, to take measures to protect public safety and/or public order and to protect the rights and freedoms of others. Any notification procedure should not function as a de facto request for authorization or as a basis for content-based regulation. Notification should not be expected for assemblies that do not require prior preparation by State authorities, such as those where only a small number of participants is expected, or where the impact on the public is expected to be minimal. 22. Any notification procedure(s) should not be overly bureaucratic, and should be subject to a proportionality assessment.12 The notice period should not be unreasonably long, but must allow sufficient time for relevant authorities to prepare appropriately for the assembly. The notification procedure should be free of charge (see A/HRC/23/39, para. 57) and widely accessible. 8 9 10 11 12 6 See A/HRC/23/39, para. 50, and OSCE, Guidelines, para. 30. See A/HRC/20/27, para. 26, and A/HRC/23/39, para. 50. Manfred Nowak, UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: CCPR Commentary (Kehl am Rhein, Engel, 2005), p. 487. European Court of Human Rights, Ziliberberg v. Moldova, application No. 61821/00, 4 May 2004. See A/HRC/20/27, para. 28, and Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Second Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Americas (2011), para. 137.