HRC54 - Human Rights bodies and mechanisms (Item 5) - EU Statement
United Nations Human Rights Council
54th session
11 September to 13 October 2023
EU Statement
Human Rights bodies and mechanisms (Item 5)
Mr President,
The candidate countries North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Ukraine, Republic of Moldova and Bosnia and Herzegovina*, the potential candidate country of Georgia, and the EFTA country Liechtenstein, member of the European Economic Area, as well as Armenia align themselves with this statement.
This year we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which has inspired the adoption of more than seventy human rights treaties. It remains a valid basis today to set a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. This celebration provides us with an opportunity to underscore that the recognition and promotion of Human Rights is indispensable in securing the achievements of all the fundamental pillars of the United Nations. The EU remains firmly committed to this declaration and supports the commitment of the High Commissioner to restore worldwide consensus on the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of human rights to confront the existential challenges that humanity faces.
The EU firmly supports the independence and integrity of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and its key role in asserting the centrality of human rights in building and sustaining peace, in preventing and halting violations, supporting accountability as well as in fostering sustainable development and humanitarian responses. We welcome the increasing number of presences in the field and reject any efforts aiming to discredit or weaken the OHCHR in its pursuit of ensuring that all individuals can fully enjoy their human rights.
The Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures have proven to be one of the most valuable components of the UN Human Rights system as they give advice to States on how to fulfil our obligations under international law, translate the resolutions adopted by the Council into progress on human rights on the ground and offer a lifeline for many victims and their families. We also want to reiterate our strong support for the UPR Mechanism, for its universality with the participation of all UN Member States and its efficacy in prompting, supporting and expanding the human rights promotion and protection system on the ground. We underline the importance of its follow-up and implementation. We encourage further efforts to create a virtuous circle where the Special Procedures, Treaty Bodies, and UPR build upon their respective work and actively seek opportunities for greater collaboration and synergy among them. We also acknowledge the work of the UN Advisory Committee and we constructively cooperate with the UN Human Rights system and its mechanisms and urge the other states to do the same.
The EU strongly condemns any form of intimidation, harassment, and reprisals, both online and offline, by State and non-State actors, against those who seek to cooperate, cooperate or have cooperated with the UN, its representatives and mechanisms in the field of human rights, and calls on all states to create and maintain a safe and enabling environment in which civil society organizations and human rights defenders can operate free from hinderance and insecurity.
The EU is deeply concerned about the lack of adequate, predictable and sustainable funding of the UN’s human rights bodies and mechanisms, including the Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures. We call upon the Secretary General to ensure sufficient funding from the regular budget for the Human Rights pillar. We encourage all United Nations member nations to fulfill their financial responsibilities and obligations.
Mr President,
Last week, in his opening address to the General Assembly, the UN Secretary General highlighted that Human Rights – political, civil, economic, social and cultural – are key to solving many of the world’s interlinked problems. He also highlighted gender equality in a time where women’s rights and freedoms are being denied or rolled back. We concur with the Secretary General that the promotion and protection of human rights is the answer to challenges such as deepening inequalities, extreme poverty, conflicts, risks generated by new technologies and triple planetary crisis and they should be at the center of multilateral action.
Thank you.
* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.