The escalating situation in Syria and the international community’s timid response dominated the opening of the Human Rights Council’s (the Council’s) March session in Geneva on 27 February. At the end of its first meeting, the Council decided by consensus to hold an further ‘urgent debate’ on the situation in Syria on 28 February, despite signs of dismay by the Russian Federation and Cuba.
As the crisis in Syria entered its twelfth month, Member States gathered at UN headquarters in New York on Monday for a meeting of the General Assembly plenary to consider the deteriorating human rights situation. This is the first time the General Assembly has responded to a country specific situation outside the Third Committee[1] since the creation of the Human Rights Council.
A new report on the implementation of United Nations human rights recommendations in Colombia is being launched today (Friday 27 January) by the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR).
On 10 October 2011, the Working Group on the UPR reviewed the human rights record of Uganda, and criticised the Government for the criminalisation of the LGBTI community, the use of the death penalty, and the alleged use of torture by the police. The Ugandan head of delegation Mr Henry Okello-Oryem, Minister of State for International Affairs, stated that the culture and traditions of the country legitimise the existence of provisions criminalising same-sex relations and allowing capital punishment.
On 13 October 2011, the Working Group on the UPR examined the human rights situation in Haiti. Haiti’s review was originally scheduled for May 2010, but had been postponed on request of the delegation following the devastating earthquake of January 2010.
On 26 September 2011 the Human Rights Council (the Council) held a general debate on the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied territories. Mr Bacre Ndiaye, Director of the Human Rights Council and Special Procedures Branch, introduced two reports under agenda item 7. The first was in response to Council Resolution 16/32 which requested the Secretary-General present a report on progress made in the implementation of the recommendations of the Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict.
On 28 September at the 18th session of the Glossary Link Human Rights Council, Independent Expert, Mr Shamsul Bari, presented his report on the situation in Somalia. Mr Bari began by pointing out that in the few months since completing his report the situation has worsened. Recent droughts in the Horn of Africa have further exacerbated the famine in Somalia. In combination with the ongoing armed conflict, the result is the worst case of human deprivation in Somalia that Mr Bari has reported on in the past three years.
The interactive dialogue with the Independent Expert on Sudan took place over the 19th and 20th of September at the 18th session of the Glossary Link Human Rights Council (the Council). The dialogue began with a presentation from the Independent Expert, Mohamed Chande Othman, of his report on the human rights situations in Sudan and the newly established State of South Sudan.
On 12 July 2011, the General Assembly held an informal interactive dialogue to discuss the Secretary-General’s third report on ‘the responsibility to protect’*: “The Role of Regional and Sub-regional Arrangements in Implementing the Responsibility to Protect”. The report follows previous informal interactive dialogues and reports on R2P in 2009 (“Implementing the responsibility to protect”) and 2010 (“Early warning, assessment and the responsibility to protect”).
Lucy Asuagbor, la Rapporteure Spéciale sur les défenseurs des droits de l'homme de la Commission Africaine des droits de l'homme et des peuples, a participé le 19 juillet 2011 à un panel de discussion sur la protection des défenseurs des droits de l’homme au Burundi.
Défenseurs des droits de l'homme lancent un appel a coopération a leurs gouvernments pour donnner un suivi effectif à l'EPU
Vingt deux défenseurs des droits de l’homme de la République Démocratique du Congo, du Rwanda et du Burundi se sont retrouvés du 11 au 14 juillet en atelier de réflexion sur la participation de la société civile dans la mise en œuvre des recommandations formulées à l’égard de leurs pays respectifs par le mécanisme de l’Examen Périodique Universel du le Conseil des droits de l’homme des Nations Unies - respectivement en 2008, 2009 et 2011.
On 9 June 2011, the Human Rights Council (the Council) held an interactive dialogue with the Commission of Inquiry (the Commission), which was created under Council resolution S-15/1 adopted at the Council’s 15th special session. The Commission was mandated to investigate all alleged violations of international human rights law in Libya and present a report to the Council's 17th session.
Over the last six months, the General Assembly met in many informal plenary meetings to discuss aspects of the review of the status of the Human Rights Council. In a welcome move, the co-facilitators of the New York review process (Liechtenstein and Morocco), supported by States, invited NGOs to participate during the process.
On 10 May 2011 the delegation of Sudan appeared before the UPR working group to address its human rights record in both the North and South regions. The delegation, headed by the Minister of Justice Mohamed Bushara Dosa, was comprised of representatives from both regions. During his introductory remarks Mr Dosa referenced the peace agreement between the North and South. He acknowledged that full peace would not be possible until a lasting solution was found for Darfur.
The UPR Working Group examined the human rights record of Sierra Leone on 5 May 2011. The five-person delegation was headed by Mr Franklyn Bai Kargbo, Attorney General and Minister of Justice. During his introductory statement, the Minister discussed his country's positive human rights achievements, including in the area of gender equality, with 30 percent representation of women in parliament.
The Working Group on the UPR examined Somalia's human rights record on 3 May 2011. The State was represented by a four-person delegation, and headed by Ms Zahra Mohamed Ali Samantar, State Minister at the Office of the Prime Minister, Transitional Federal Government (TFG). During the introductory statement, the Somali delegation depicted a highly unstable political climate where the Government has limited control of its territory. This was commonly used as an explanation for the lack of human rights protection in the country.
On 7 and 8 March 2011, the Human Rights
Council (the Council) held a clustered interactive dialogue with Mr Jeremy
Sarkin, Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on enforced or involuntary
disappearances, El Hadji Malick Sow, Chairperson of the Working Group on
arbitrary detention, and Mr Chaloka Beyani, Special Rapporteur on the human
rights of internally displaced persons.
Both Working Groups expressed specific
concern about reprisals against persons communicating with their mandates,
