The activity aimed at strengthening the human rights protection system in Guinea-Bissau was held as part of a PBF project from March 13-15 in connection with the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the UDHR. A total of 50 CSO and media representatives, including 19 youth, from Bissau and the regions took part. The participation of women, both in number (24) and in actual involvement in the discussions, was striking and recognized.

As the country prepares for legislative elections in June 2023, Mr. Anthony Ohemeng-Boamah, UN Resident Coordinator in Guinea-Bissau, emphasized in his opening speech the links between elections and human rights. He stressed that "CSOs play a central role in democratic societies, especially in monitoring human rights. The UN Resident Coordinator also called for special attention to be paid to avoiding electoral rhetoric that instrumentalizes ethnic or racial issues.
In his intervention, the representative of the network of CSOs working on election monitoring indicated that "every part of society would benefit from an environment conducive to free, fair and inclusive elections. SHhe challenged the audience to take democracy beyond periodic elections, including through respect for human rights, confidence building, and gender equality.

In the course of the discussions, participants mentioned the risks they have encountered or still encounter at the local level. These include misinformation through social media, vote buying, distortion of tribal beliefs, and harmful traditional practices to influence votes as well as local political and religious influencerspressure.
These risks are exacerbated by the intensification of political polarization and the proliferation of hate speech, the climate of mistrust towards of political leaders and, institutions, including those that conduct elections, as well as the judicial system that may be called upon to arbitrate a dispute. In this context, participants expressed concern that the environment is not conducive to peaceful, credible and inclusive elections, and that instead of being a high point of democracy, elections become a catalyst for conflict.

In this context, participants expressed their concern that the environment is not conducive to peaceful, credible and inclusive elections, and that instead of being a high point of democracy, elections become a catalyst for conflict.
As a support to In addition to the different sessions, the participants received the OHCHR manual on international human rights standards for elections (2022) translated into Portuguese and printed with the support of the Portuguese Cooperation (Instituto Camões).

This training will provide a roster of CSO representatives who can share lessons learned with colleagues and partners in Bissau and the regions, as well as facilitate sessions on human rights monitoring at other election-related workshops planned for the coming weeks throughout the country.