Contesting Human Rights Defenders at the United Nations Human Rights Council

Human rights defenders (HRD) are facing shrinking spaces. The United Nations Human Rights Council (Council) is one of these potentially shrinking spaces. At the Council, there exists significant contestation over HRD and their role in human rights protection. Resolutions on HRD are facing contestation including lengthy debates and record-setting numbers of amendments by opponents of HRD initiatives. This paper uses theories of contestation from international relations to examine how Member States both advocate for and against HRD at the Council. Case study analysis including participant observation and elite-level interviews are used to examine strategies used by Member States. The paper finds that both advocates and proponents use a multitude of strategies aimed at defending or defeating the validity and application of HRD resolutions. This type of contestation matters for HRD because it eventually impacts the ability of defenders to promote and protect human rights on the ground.