A/HRC/39/17 monitor attacks against indigenous peoples, providing consistent indications that these countries represent particularly worrying situations; authorities of these countries have repeatedly been urged to take action to improve the protection of indigenous peoples but have failed to do so. 43. The situations in the countries named above are particularly worrisome; however, patterns of concern are also found in other countries, and it should be emphasized that the number of reported attacks do not provide the full picture as the ability to report cases is affected by several factors. Among these are the remoteness of indigenous communities, access to means of communication, linguistic diversity and lack of recognition of indigenous peoples as such. The strength of the national human rights civil society groups and the extent to which local human rights organizations liaise with indigenous organizations are other factors which affect reporting. It must be presumed that in large parts of the world, a significant number of attacks against indigenous defenders go unreported and never figure in the media. 44. While the killing of indigenous defenders represents the worst human rights violation, such attacks tend to occur in the context of violence and threats against them and their communities, including enforced disappearances, forced evictions, judicial harassment, arbitrary arrests and detention, limitations to the freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, stigmatization, surveillance, travel bans and sexual harassment. 45. Although some global estimates exist of the number of defenders who have been killed, there is no such information available on the extent to which judicial harassment and criminal charges are levied against indigenous peoples. The criminalization of indigenous peoples occurs in a variety of contexts and relies on a multitude of penal provisions. Commonly, criminal charges are brought against indigenous peoples who oppose largescale projects and seek to inform and organize their communities, demanding access to information and the right to participate in consultations and to give their free, prior and informed consent. Leaders are targeted as a strategy to supress and silence the entire community. 46. Several situations where private entities have provided false information or filed unsubstantiated allegations against defenders have been brought to the attention of the Special Rapporteur. Reports indicate that judges and prosecutors have contributed to the misuse of criminal law by accepting false testimony, issuing warrants without sufficient evidence, allowing unfounded prosecutions to advance and improperly interpreting the law to incriminate indigenous defenders. While legislators may not be directly involved in criminalization, they contribute through the adoption of laws that unduly punish expressions of rights such as freedom of expression and assembly or pass legislation that includes vague definitions of criminal offences, including serious offences such as terrorism.9 The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has raised concerns over biases and stereotypes in the reasoning in national jurisprudence regarding prosecutions of indigenous peoples under antiterrorist legislation in the case of the Mapuche people in Chile.10 47. Prior to the presentation of criminal charges, defamation and smear campaigns are often directed through social media against indigenous peoples, their leaders and communities, accusing them of being anti-development and acting against the national interest. Hate speech based on racism and discrimination fuels such discourse. In the worst cases, social media portray indigenous peoples as members of criminal gangs, guerrillas, terrorists and threats to national security. Defamation campaigns are often developed by business actors (see A/HRC/39/17/Add.2, para. 67), with the overt or covert support of corrupt government officials whose financial interests are affected by indigenous peoples’ defence of their lands. 9 10 10 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Report on the Criminalization of the Work of Human Rights Defenders, paras. 57 and 63−71. Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Norín Catrimán and others v. Chile, judgment of 29 May 2014, para. 228.