In its intervention at the opening of the 27th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, the Human Rights House Foundation (HRHF) warmly welcomed Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein as new High Commissioner, by the voice of HRHF’s Head of Advocacy and Geneva Office Florian Irminger. HRHF shared the challenges it can see ahead for the new High Commissioner for Human Rights:

  1. Firstly, the High Commissioner is a critical voice to hold human rights above political interests. HRHF expects the High Commissioner to always be principled and vocal, avoid double-standards, and hold powerful States as accountable for human rights violations as those you might identify as friendly ones;
  2. Secondly, HRHF sees a worrisome trend in the Office of the High Commissioner to neglect human rights violations in Europe. More attention needs to be paid at the highest level of your Office to restrictions to fundamental rights especially in the Russian Federation and the Republic of Azerbaijan. The authorities of Azerbaijan are indeed leading an unprecedented crackdown against civil society by arresting, one after the other, key critics of the country’s leadership, and to date your Office has stayed silent;
  3. HRHF strongly welcomes though the work of the Office since April in Ukraine. The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission has proven that the United Nations action is complementary to other international organisations, in this case especially the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The Mission has continuously put human rights at the centre of the attention, verified information and shed light on actions by those who hold weapons in the country. HRHF welcomes that the Mission has been clear in documenting violence by armed troupes supported by the Russian Federation in Ukraine. HRHF believes there is more to be done to ensure accountability for the killings, which took place in Kyiv during EuroMaidan. HRHF has requested that the Ukrainian government extend the mandate of the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigations (taking into account events in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine) and ratify the Rome Statute. As reported by the Mission, the so-called anti-terrorism laws adopted by the Ukrainian Parliament in August 2014 are in violation with international law. HRHF hence calls upon the High Commissioner to clearly state to the Ukrainian authorities that they will not secure Ukraine if they do not secure fundamental rights and accountability for human rights violations, including by an ICC investigation;
  4. Fourthly, HRHF believes that the Office of the High Commissioner needs to seriously review the tasks, mandates and priorities of its field presence. It should be key support to human rights defenders and on their side to protect them – our experience is too often the opposite.
On behalf of the 90 NGOs of the Human Rights House Network, we look forward addressing these challenges with the new High Commissioner. HRHF finally wishes to ensure the High Commissioner of its full support to reinforce the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, including by extending its ordinary budget.

High Commissioner’s first intervention at the Human Rights Council:

On Monday, 8 September, Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein made his first intervention as United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights, at the opening of the 27th session of the Human Rights Council:

Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (© afp.com – Fabrice Coffrini)“Twenty years ago, I was exposed to a cruel, pointless, war.  I was serving with the UN Protection Force in the former Yugoslavia, and learnt then a number of simple lessons. Violence at the extreme is so callous, so sickening and beyond the absurd, the human mind can barely edit into comprehensible thoughts what it sees.  No war is worse than another in this regard; all wars, big and small, reveal factories spewing the same wickedness.  And yet, astonishingly, the authors of the crimes themselves, and their supporting communities, will always believe their actions were somehow necessary, even if they knew they were also wrong.  Indeed, every individual, political party, association, ethnic, sectarian, or national group, or government discriminating and inflicting violence on others, believes that when doing so they are excused, or absolved, by circumstance or history.”

About the situation in Ukraine, the High Commissioner also made a few remarks:

“We remain concerned about the situation in Ukraine. OHCHR’s latest monthly report gives a full picture of current human rights challenges, especially in the east, where at least 3000 people have been killed since mid- April this year. The Council will specifically deal with this situation later in the session, and an official OHCHR report will be presented at that time. I must, however, reiterate that every effort must be made by both the Ukrainian government and the armed groups – as well as by neighbouring States, including the Russian Federation – to protect civilians in this deplorable conflict, and to ensure compliance with international law.”

Documents:

  • 27 HR Council dialogue with new High Commissioner

    HRHF intervention on 8 September 2014 at the Human Rights Council – dialogue with the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

    • Priorities at the 27th session of the Human Rights Council:

    • Our first priority at the Council is the human rights situation in Ukraine, which continues to be extremely worrying. Our intervention at the opening of the session underlined it. We will again take the floor in the dialogue exclusively on Ukraine with the High Commissioner on 23 September.
    • Our other country-priority is the unprecedented repression in Azerbaijan. “The Council cannot stay silent when in a country, one after the other, key critics of the country’s leadership get arrested, bank accounts of more than a dozen NGOs are blocked and their offices are being searched” says Anna Innocenti, HRHF’s International Advocacy Officer.
    • In the dialogue with the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, we will in particular address the situation of political prisoners in Azerbaijan.
    • Amongst many other issues, HRHF will focus on the announced resolution on space for civil society, as well as on issues such as the protection of journalists and reprisals against human rights defenders who cooperate with the United Nations.

    For more information at discussions at the 27th session of the Human Rights Council, have a look at the “Council Alert” for the 27th session prepared by the International Service for Human Rights.