20/ POLICING ASSEMBLIES IN AFRICA: Guidelines for the Policing of Assemblies by Law Enforcement Officials in Africa 19.1.1. The grounds under which such restrictions may be imposed by law enforcement authorities shall be clearly laid out by law. 19.1.2. Negotiation and mediation shall be employed prior to imposition of conditions in the course of assemblies, where feasible. 19.1.3. Any limitations imposed shall be clearly communicated. 19.1.4. Any limitations imposed must be based on a clear evidence base and calculation of risk, and satisfy the requirements of legality, necessity, proportionality and nondiscrimination. 19.1.5. Where law enforcement agencies deem that limitations should be imposed during the course of an assembly, they must provide alternatives to assembly organisers and participants, which are consistent with the right to assemble freely with others. This includes alternatives that facilitate an assembly within the sight and sound of the target audience. 19.2. If assembly organisers and/or participants do not comply with conditions imposed before or during the assembly, the response by law enforcement officials must be legal, proportionate, necessary and non discriminatory. 19.3. Law enforcement agencies must not disperse assemblies simply for technical violations of limitations or restrictions without other serious cause, and any dispersal should be based on the obligation to make continuous assessments of the situation. 20. De-escalation 20.1. All action taken by law enforcement officials during the management of assemblies where participants are not acting peacefully must satisfy the requirements of legality, necessity, proportionality, freedom from discrimination and equality before the law, and accord with regional and international human rights standards. 20.2. Operational commanders must continuously monitor assemblies with the aim of identifying and pro-actively addressing issues as they arise. Their response to any situations must give priority to de-escalation tactics that favour the presumption of the right to assemble freely with others, such as open communication, negotiation and dialogue with assembly organisers and participants. The tactics must demonstrate flexibility in the enforcement of restrictions and limitations on an assembly, and tolerance for individual conduct that does not comply with restrictions, limitations or terms of notification. Deescalation tactics must also take into account the potential adverse influence that the visible escalation of law enforcement tactics can have on the way in which an assembly develops. 20.3. Law enforcement officials should be trained to differentiate between individual and group behaviour, and to identify and remove specific persons identified as acting in an unlawful or violent manner while continuing to facilitate the enjoyment of the right to assemble freely with others for all other persons. 20.4. Crowd control strategies, such as containment, should be implemented with precaution, be lawful and proportionate, and never amount to collective detention. Containment tactics must allow for exit routes for assembly participants and observers who want to leave the assembly. APCOF Guidelines on policing assemblies TEXT.indd 20 12/04/2017 17:07:44