GENEVA (25 April 2018) – The Human Rights Council will hold a panel discussion on Friday, 27 April to celebrate the centenary of Nelson Mandela in the context of promoting and protecting human rights through social justice, reconciliation and democratic ideals. 

At its session last month, the 47-member Council decided to convene a half-day event to celebrate the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela, who would have turned 100 on 18 July this year.  The Council resolution, sponsored by South Africa, requested that the meeting be held on 27 April, the day that, in 1994, Mandela and millions of South Africans cast their votes for the first time in a fully representative democratic election.

Participants will focus their statements on Nelson Mandela’s lifelong struggle for freedom, human rights and human dignity, equality and justice, and his role as a champion for the promotion and protection of all human rights. 

The Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Kate Gilmore, will deliver concluding remarks and the President of the Human Rights Council, Vojislav Šuc (Slovenia), will chair the meeting.

Location:  Room 20, Palais des Nations, Geneva
Time and date: 15.00 – 18.00, Friday, 27 April (Geneva time, GMT +1 hour)

Panellists:

• Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations (by video

message);

• Kate Gilmore, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights;
• Thomas Qwesi Quartey, Deputy Chairperson of the African Union;
• Christian Leffler, Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service;
• Zamir Akram, Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on the Right to

Development;

• Amb. Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko, Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations Office at Geneva

The event is open to the media and will also be webcast live at http://webtv.un.org

Additional information on the intersessional panel can be found on the dedicated webpage for the event - http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/Pages/PanelNelsonMandela.aspx

For more information and media requests, please contact Rolando Gómez at +41 (0) 22 917 9711 /  rgomez@ohchr.org , Sarah Lubbersen at +41 (0) 22 917 9689 /slubbersen@ohchr.org or Cédric Sapey at +41 (0) 22 917 9751 /csapey@ohchr.org

To learn more about the Human Rights Council, visit: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/Pages/Home.aspx#tabbedItem1

UN Human Rights Council, follow us on social media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UNHRC
Twitter: https://twitter.com/UN_HRC
YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/c/UNHumanRightsCouncil