What were the main developments, achievements and flash-points at the Human Rights Council in 2022? What were the Council’s principle outputs and what kind of impact did the body and its mechanisms have on the on-the-ground enjoyment of human rights? Did members of the Council cooperate with the international human rights mechanisms, and with OHCHR, over the past twelve months? …
‘Technology is not neutral.’ This statement increasingly represents the consensus position of technologists, human rights campaigners, ethicists, and political scientists. According to this emerging consensus, technology itself can in fact be instilled with certain values –either in line with or contradictory to human rights norms. This simple conclusion is not merely descriptive, however, but also empowering. It empowers us –in …
On 8-9 June 2022, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (Peace and Human Rights Division, and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation), with the support of the Universal Rights Group, convened a meeting of bilateral and multilateral development partners in Montreux, Switzerland, to consider the contribution of human rights and development cooperation to the prevention of crises and conflicts. …
The report explores definitions of accountability, the complementarity between criminal and human rights accountability, victim-centred perspectives, as well as challenges and opportunities for securing greater accountability for human rights violations. It also addresses the implications of the emergence, development, and deployment of targeted human rights sanction regimes for international accountability efforts.
The eighth annual yourHRC.org Guide to the Human Rights Council elections provides comprehensive at-a-glance information on the 2022 Council elections (which are scheduled to take place on 11 October at the General Assembly in New York), when States from all regions will compete to win seats for new three-year membership terms (2023-2025). In particular, the Guide aims to promote transparency …
The eighth Glion Human Rights Dialogue (Glion VIII), organised by the Governments of Switzerland and Liechtenstein, and the Universal Rights Group (URG), in partnership with the Permanent Missions of Fiji, the Marshall Islands, Mexico, and Thailand, was held on 16-17 May 2022 and focused on the topic: ‘The right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment – what does it mean for States, for rights-holders, and for …
‘Environmental human rights defenders’ (EHRDs) are individuals or groups who peacefully protect the environment and the human rights that depend upon it from the unsustainable use of natural resources, climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. Through their determination and perseverance, EHRDs have achieved numerous successes in protecting the Planet and the human rights of all people. The vital work of …
Over the last two years, the Alliance for Land, Indigenous, and Environmental Defenders (ALLIED) worked closely with defenders and local organisations in five countries: Brazil, Colombia, Kenya, Mexico, and the Philippines to examine the effectiveness of support mechanisms. In addition to workshops in each country, ALLIED and local partners interviewed individual defenders and created case studies of their experiences to …
As climate change impacts our everyday lives, livelihoods, and ecosystems, significantly harming the world’s most vulnerable populations, thousands of individuals and groups have raised their voices to call upon world leaders, the private sector, and the public to take bold action to protect the planet and its people. They have formed a heterogeneous and diverse global movement that has been …
What were the main developments, achievements and flash-points at the Human Rights Council in 2021? What were the Council’s principle outputs and what kind of impact did the body and its mechanisms have on the on-the-ground enjoyment of human rights? Did members of the Council cooperate with the international human rights mechanisms, and with OHCHR, over the past twelve months? …
