THE ADVOCATE 229
VOL. 79 PART 2 MARCH 2021
NEWS FROM
LAWYERS’ RIGHTS
WATCH CANADA
By Catherine Morris*
“FIRST THEY IGNORE YOU”: ATTEMPTS TO THWART HUMAN RIGHTS
ADVOCACY
“First they ignore you. Then they ridicule you. And then they attack you …
And then they build monuments to you,” said U.S. labour rights leader
Nicholas Klein in 1918.1 A century later, this pattern of responses continues
to impede the work of human rights advocates. Headlines are easily gener-
ated by extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, or jailing and tortur-
ing of advocates. These grave violations are often preceded by more easily
disregarded or more easily forgotten methods of silencing human rights
defenders (sometimes referred to simply as “defenders” below). Despite
such attempts to halt the efforts of defenders, the legal research, education
and advocacy of Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada (“LRWC”) contribute to
saved lives, restored liberty, or positive decisions and changes in laws, poli-
cies and practices. LRWC’s open files illustrate its continued contributions
in face of these challenges, as set out below.
“First They Ignore You”
Recommendations made by human rights defenders are often ignored or
omitted in minutes of proceedings or reports. Letters to governments may
not be answered at all, or responses may be perfunctory. This does not
mean governments have not noticed letters or statements: “victims of
human rights abuses and their advocates continue to report that LRWC’s
work is vitally important to achieving justice in individual cases, providing
a source of hope in the interim”.2
* Catherine Morris is the pro bono executive director of LRWC. She has been a volunteer with LRWC for two decades and
serves as its main representative to the UN Human Rights Council.