In a 2017 post on this site, Christof Heyns and Willem Gravett proposed the idea of external sessions for the UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies – they should meet at least once a year for part of the session outside Geneva, in order to ‘bring the system closer to the people’. This idea generated considerable interest, including in the recent report by the Geneva …
Note: This article is based on a keynote address delivered by H.E. Mr. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, High Commissioner for Human Rights, on Wednesday 30th June 2018, at the opening plenary of the fifth Glion Human Rights Dialogue, hosted by the Government of Switzerland and supported by the Universal Rights Group. First, let me make a few points about the Secretary General’s ongoing plans for reforming …
On Wednesday 28th February, the Human Rights Council marked the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 25th anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Plan of Action with a High Level Panel, as requested by Russian-led resolution 35/1. The discussion focused on the implementation of the provisions of these key human rights documents, including the benefits of enhanced international cooperation to that end. In a sign of renewed interest national-level compliance with …
An independent analysis of the High Level Segment of the Human Rights Council At the opening of the 37th session of the Human Rights Council, nearly one hundred world leaders (e.g. presidents, prime ministers, ministers) delivered high level speeches commenting on the state of global human rights in 2018, and presenting their country’s priorities for the year ahead. The Universal Rights …
The number of human rights recommendations made to Member States has increased rapidly over the past few years. To track progress with meeting these recommendations in a more systematic manner, a number of Member States have created specific tracking mechanisms and tools. In these efforts, they are increasingly turning to UN Country Teams for support. To enable UN field staff …
9th October, London The third cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) began in April of this year and will continue until 2021. At the end of the second cycle, the then President of the Human Rights Council, Ambassador Choi Kyong-lim, delivered a video message calling on member States to ‘ensure that the third cycle is one of follow-up and implementation’. Earlier this …
The ongoing process of strengthening the UN Treaty Body system provides a welcome opportunity to reflect on some of our hidden assumptions. The Treaty Bodies have over time gravitated towards Geneva, and it now appears to be the assumption that this is simply the way things should be done. Notwithstanding, we want to argue that reform of the human rights Treaty …
According to the preamble of the Constitution of Georgia, it is the will of all Georgian citizens to establish a democratic social order that guarantees respect for human rights – not in isolation – but through continued cooperation with other peaceful nations. Respect for fundamental human rights therefore represents not only an integral part of Georgia’s legal and political reality, …
The international human rights system has expanded significantly over the past twenty years, both in terms of new human rights treaties, as well as the mechanisms established to monitor and advise States on human rights promotion and protection. It has empowered individuals worldwide, including the most marginalised and disadvantaged, to claim their rights and seek redress. At the same time …
As is well known, since 1948 the UN has debated and set a wide canopy of universal human rights norms. Through the Universal Declaration, the two Covenants, and various human rights conventions, optional protocols, guidelines, and resolutions, the international community has produced thousands of words across hundreds of documents, stipulating, in some detail, what States should do to better promote …
