HRC54 - Item 3 General Debate - EU Statement
United Nations Human Rights Council
54th Session
Item 3 General Debate
Briefing by ECOSOC President and Chair of PBC; presentation of SG/HC thematic reports, reports of WG right to development and WG private mil. sec. companies
EU Statement
Mr. President,
I have the honor to speak on behalf of the European Union.
The candidate countries North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania*, Ukraine and Republic of Moldova, and the potential candidate country Georgia align themselves with this statement.
The European Union thanks the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for the reports under Item 3, as well as the President of the Economic and Social Council. We thank the reports of the Working Group on right to development and the Working Group on private military and security companies.
The EU reaffirms its strong and unequivocal opposition to the use of death penalty at all times and under all circumstances. As the High Commissioner stated during the Biennial High-Level Panel Discussion on the Question of the Death Penalty last February, it is profoundly difficult to reconcile the death penalty with human dignity and the right to life. The death penalty is indeed a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. It is ineffective from the point of view of crime prevention and, above all, it is irreversible. All European Union member States have abolished it and reaffirmed their commitment in Art. 2 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU as well as in Protocols No. 6 and 13 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. We welcome the abolishment of death penalty in Ghana, Equatorial Guinea and Zambia, as well as positive trends in Malaysia, Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire and Sri Lanka. The accelerated pace at which countries from all regions, with different legal systems, traditions, cultures and religious backgrounds, have abolished the death penalty in recent decades is encouraging, as well as the support for the General Assembly resolution on a moratorium. We call on all States who have not yet abolished the death penalty to establish a moratorium. We particularly remain highly concerned by the use of capital punishment against children and persons with psychosocial disabilities and persons belonging to minorities, including LGBTI persons.
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic posed many challenges to the full realization of human rights, including a shadow pandemic of sexual and gender-based violence, and has exemplified the limitations of our health, education, employment, and social protection systems, . Protecting, respecting and fulfilling economic, social and cultural rights is fundamental to combatting inequalities and for the reduction of poverty. The non-discrimination principle is anchored in the EU construction and it is essential in transformative action to achieve an inclusive, gender and age-responsive, and sustainable and better future for all.
The EU reiterates its strong commitment to achieving sustainable and inclusive development and to implementing the 2030 Agenda. Unfortunately we are currently lagging behind. A wide array of developments, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the unlawful war of aggression of Russia against Ukraine, persistent security and humanitarian crisis and of climate change, including implications on food security, means that we are even further from reaching our goals. A holistic answer is needed to ensuring that no one is left behind. The EU and its 27 Member States have a development cooperation presence in all regions and across all sectors.
We share the High Commissioner’s view that effective climate change mitigation and adaptation measures are crucial for a just and human-rights based transition to a green global economy. Recent catastrophic events remind us of the ongoing climate crisis and its impact on human rights, economies and societies. The EU is fully committed to the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals and their translation into economic policies. The EU Just Transition Mechanism aims to address the socioeconomic impact of the transition to a low-carbon economy and environmental legacy problems.
The EU believes that the full realization of all human rights for all is a pre-condition to achieve inclusive and sustainable development. The right to development is rooted in the universality, indivisibility, interrelation, and interdependence of all human rights. While States have the primary responsibility for the full realisation of human rights, individuals are the central actors, drivers and beneficiaries of the development process. On Draft international covenant on the right to development further discussions are necessary, in a setting where a larger UN membership is present. We are convinced that development contributes to the enjoyment of other human rights, while achieving development is not a necessary condition for respecting human rights, nor could lack of development progress ever justify human rights violations.
On the 25th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights Defenders, civil society space it is of the utmost importance that we counter shrinking civic and democratic space. Increasing hostility and violence are used against human rights defenders, particularly environmental human rights defenders and Indigenous human rights defenders. The EU stresses the importance of the protection of human rights defenders for the promotion of human rights without fear of reprisals, intimidation or threats of any kind. The EU continues to promote the full, equal, meaningful and effective participation and leadership of Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous women in particular.
We reaffirm the importance of a human rights-based approach when developing policies and programmes to reduce preventable maternal mortality and morbidity and ensure access to sexual and reproductive health –care services. We take note with appreciation of the technical guidance and tools produced by the Office of the High Commissioner in partnership with the World Health Organization. We remain concerned that major global crisis, including the COVID-19 pandemic as reported by the High Commissioner, have disproportionately affected women and girls, especially women in rural areas, women living in poverty and Indigenous women. We have to prevent the risk that future health emergencies divert attention and prioritization of resources from ensuring access to sexual and reproductive health-care- services.
We also note that multiple human rights challenges result from the world drug problem and acknowledge the role of UNODC in monitoring the situation, develop strategies on international drug control and recommend measures to address the problem.
Finally, we thank the report of the Working Group (OEIGWG) on Private Military and Security Companies (PMSCs) The EU will continue to engage constructively in the proceedings of the OEIGWG in view of elaborating an international regulatory framework
I thank you.
* North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.