Daniel Cloney has worked in the field of international human rights since 2010.
At Regent’s, he is Senior Project Research Fellow at the Research Unit of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.
As one of the United Nations Special Procedures mechanisms, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief prepares annual thematic reports to the UN Human Rights Council and UN General Assembly; engages in direct communications with States regarding issues of concern, undertakes two annual country visits, and other activities aimed at strengthening respect for freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) globally.
Alongside providing research for these core activities of the mandate, Daniel manages a number of additional thematic projects. These include activities aimed at strengthening and harmonising standards across the United Nations treaty body system and regional human rights systems, and promoting engagement with freedom of religion or belief standards in sustainable development.
In addition, Daniel is Research and Course Assistant on the GIC+ Project: Religious Leadership and LGBTQ+ Rights. On the GIC+ Project, Daniel assists with planning and development of the Research Project, along with the development of learning materials and the long-term evolution of the project.
Prior to working with at Regent’s, Daniel carried out extensive research, advocacy, and capacity-strengthening on protection of human rights defenders, along with roles in grantmaking, project management, and strategy development. He has collaborated in this regard with organizations including Front Line Defenders, the Office of the High United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Peace Brigades International, Tactical Technology Collective, Digital Freedom Fund, and the Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation (Hivos).
Daniel holds a Master of Studies with distinction in international human rights law (New College, m. 2020), and was awarded the inaugural Prof. Christof Heyns Memorial Prize from the Faculty of Law. He is currently undertaking doctoral research on queerphobic violence in international human rights law at New College. His broader research interests relate to the intersection of queer theory, security studies, and international law.
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Selected Publications
Books
- Holistic Security: A Strategy Manual for Human Rights Defenders. https://holistic-security.org/
Articles and Research Papers
- Stephanie Hankey, Daniel Ó Cluanaigh, Rethinking Risk and Security of Human Rights Defenders in the Digital Age, Journal of Human Rights Practice, Volume 5, Issue 3, November 2013, Pages 535–547, https://doi.org/10.1093/jhuman/hut023 https://academic.oup.com/jhrp/article/5/3/535/2188773
- D. Ó Cluanaigh, 'A Critical Lens on the Protection of Sexual and Gender Minorities under International Human Rights Law,' Opinio Juris: http://opiniojuris.org/2022/12/06/a-critical-lens-on-the-protection-of-sexual-and-gender-minorities-under-international-human-rights-law/
- Book Review: 'Protecting Human Rights Defenders at Risk' by Alice M. Nah, Security Dialogue: https://blogs.prio.org/SecurityDialogue/2021/06/book-review-protecting-human-rights-defenders-at-risk/
- A. Hache and D. Ó Cluanaigh, ‘Impulsar los derechos digitales para defender los derechos humanos y ambientales. El programa de Defensores Digitales’ in José Candón-Mena and David Montero-Sánchez (eds) Del Ciberactivismo a la Tecnopolítica: Movimientos Sociales en la era de Escepticismo Tecnológico. Comunicación Social 2021. https://www.comunicacionsocial.es/libro/del-ciberactivismo-a-la-tecnopolitica_133473/