A/HRC/23/34 it must be made accessible to the public. A law may not confer unfettered discretion for the restriction of freedom of expression on those charged with its execution. Laws must provide sufficient guidance to those charged with their execution to enable them to ascertain what sorts of expression are properly restricted and what sorts are not.”30 (b) Prior censorship 57. An important issue relates to the question of whether prior censorship, occurring before the production or publication of an artwork, such as movies and theatre plays or public art, for the purpose of “proscribing content, prohibiting its public presentation, and/or preventing its creators from working towards its realisation”,31 is in accordance with international human rights standards. As a matter of principle, a negative answer must be given, in line with the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, who considers that prior-censorship bodies “should not exist in any country”,32 and the view of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which considers that States must “abolish censorship of cultural activities in the arts and other forms of expression”.33 58. Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights clearly states that freedom of expression shall not be subject to prior censorship but only to subsequent imposition of liability. In its judgement regarding the controversial movie The Last Temptation of Christ, the Inter-American Court found a violation of article 13 for this reason. Article 13 further states that public entertainment may be subject by law to prior censorship for the sole purpose of regulating access to them for the moral protection of childhood and adolescence. Thus, under this provision, censorship is understood as “regulating access” by children and adolescents only, and exclusively in the area of public entertainment. Regulations take various forms, and it is important that States always choose the least restrictive measure possible. 59. Responses to the questionnaire indicate that a number of States have prohibited censorship or prior censorship in their constitutions, albeit sometimes with limited exceptions. Many countries do not have censorship bodies mandated to decide on possible restrictions on artworks. However, this does not mean that censorship is not imposed by executive authorities.34 Moreover, in practice, bodies not entrusted with the responsibility of censoring artworks sometimes function as censorship commissions, with no information on their membership, rules of procedure and activities, and no appeal mechanisms. 35 60. Some States have established bodies authorized to issue distribution restrictions for the protection of children, in particular in the area of press, movies and entertainment software, while others have bodies mandated to overview electronic and print media, radio and television broadcasting, which also can have an impact on artistic freedoms. 61. In the view of the Special Rapporteur, prior censorship should be an exceptional measure, taken only to prevent the imminent threat of grave irreparable harm to human life or property. A system whereby content automatically requires official clearance before it can be released would be unacceptable, as its harm to freedom of artistic expression and 30 31 32 33 34 35 CCPR/C/GC/34,, para. 25. 2010 Arts Community Position Paper on Censorship and Regulation, Singapore, p. 3. A/HRC/20/17, para, 25. E/C.12/GC/21, para. 49 c). Submissions from Lebanon, Organización de Sindicatos de Artistas del Estato Espanol (OSAAEE), Prof. Shugurov. Submission from the Collectif Alger-Culture. 13