Media advisories Special Procedures

UN expert on Afghanistan to visit Canada

18 October 2024

GENEVA – The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, will visit Canada from 20 to 26 October 2024.

Bennett will meet with a range of stakeholders to discuss the ongoing human rights crisis in Afghanistan and the ways in which the Government of Canada can continue to stand for the human rights of the people of Afghanistan.

The Special Rapporteur will visit Ottawa to meet with representatives of the Government of Canada. He will also travel to Toronto. He will engage with diverse groups of Afghans, including refugees who have been resettled in Canada since the Taliban seized power in August 2021. He will meet Afghan human rights defenders, including women human rights defenders, journalists, experts, and organisations supporting those who have fled Afghanistan, as well as Canadian civil society organisations.

Mr Richard Bennett is the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan.

The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

For inquiries and media requests, please contact: hrc-sr-afghanistan@un.org

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts please contact Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org) or John Newland (john.newland@un.org)

Follow news related to the UN’s independent human rights experts on X: @UN_SPExperts.

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