Human Rights Council Hears Presentation of Reports and Begins General Debate on Technical Assistance and Capacity Building

22 March 2021

The Human Rights Council this afternoon began its general debate on technical assistance and capacity building after hearing the presentation of reports of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the situation of human rights and technical assistance in Afghanistan and on technical cooperation programmes, and the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Technical Cooperation in the Field of Human Rights.

Mahamane Cissé-Gouro, Officer-in-Charge of the Field Operations and Technical Cooperation Division of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, presenting the High Commissioner’s report on the situation of human rights and technical assistance in Afghanistan, noted that while Afghanistan should have moved closer towards peace, civilians continued to suffer and lose their lives due to increased violence. The conflict remained among the deadliest in the world. During the reporting period, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan had documented 7,850 civilian casualties. For the seventh year in a row, more than 3,000 civilians were killed. The best way to protect civilians was to stop fighting. The deliberate killing of human rights defenders and journalists had been particularly egregious in the last few months and since the start of the Afghanistan peace negotiations.

On technical cooperation programmes, Mr. Cissé-Gouro said human rights advisers were currently deployed in 45 countries. In 2020, more than 1,400 technical cooperation activities were carried out around the world, adapting to COVID-19 and the use of new technologies. Young people should be at the centre of sustainable solutions for development and peace. Building knowledge of human rights indicators and promoting a human rights-based approach to data collection was crucial to encourage evidence-based policies to reinforce equality and non-discrimination. He listed programmes in a number of countries, noting that these were only isolated examples of the wide-ranging technical cooperation work of the Office.

Azita Berar Awad, Member of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Technical Cooperation in the Field of Human Rights, noted that the Board’s report before the Council today covered its fifty and fifty-first sessions held in May and November 2020 respectively. In its meetings, the Board paid particular attention to the integration of human rights in United Nations programmes, policies and practices at the country level. The Board’s discussions with States, resident coordinators, teams and national partners had revealed the extent to which the human rights technical advice by the human rights advisers was well recognized and highly appreciated.

Afghanistan, speaking as a concerned country, noted that the conflict in Afghanistan continued to take a heavy toll on the nation and undermined social and economic progress. The COVID-19 pandemic had further aggravated these challenges. The National Policy on Prevention of Civilian Casualties had been a guiding tool in efforts to reduce civilian harm during military operations. Despite the Government’s efforts, widespread violence by the Taliban and other terrorist groups against Afghan civilians continued to inflict immense suffering.

In the ensuing general debate, speakers said there was no doubt that the promotion of human rights was the responsibility of States - but the role of the Human Rights Council could not be overlooked. Speakers noted that the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action called on all partners, including the United Nations, to increase the resources available to States to promote human rights. Speakers expressed concern that since the start of the Afghan peace negotiations, civilians continued to bear the brunt of the armed conflict, with almost half of the casualties being women and children. Regretting that countries had been coerced to accept technical assistance, some speakers said such an approach risked undermining the imperative of dialogue and cooperation at the Council.

Speaking were Finland on behalf of a group of countries, Portugal on behalf of the European Union, Pakistan on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Countries, Cameroon on behalf of the Group of African States, Mauritius on behalf of a group of countries, Azerbaijan on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, Brunei on behalf of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Libya on behalf of the Group of Arab States, Bahrain on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Pakistan on behalf of a group of countries, Germany, France, Venezuela, Libya, Indonesia, Philippines, Russian Federation, Togo, Netherlands, Burkina Faso, Pakistan, India, Bahrain, Nepal, China, United Kingdom, Sudan, Malawi, Cuba, Bulgaria, Finland, Qatar, Estonia, Iraq, Jordan, Australia and Sweden.

The webcast of the Human Rights Council meetings can be found here. All meeting summaries can be found here. Documents and reports related to the Human Rights Council’s forty-sixth regular session can be found here.

The Council will next meet at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, 23 March to continue the general debate under agenda item 10 and thereafter to start taking action on draft resolutions. The forty-sixth regular session of the Human Rights Council will conclude on Wednesday, 24 March.

General Debate on Technical Assistance and Capacity Building

Reports

The Council has before it the report of the High Commissioner A/HRC/46/69 on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, and technical assistance achievements in the field of human rights

The Council has before it the annual report of the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Technical Cooperation in the Field of Human Rights A/HRC/46/70 on an update on the work of the Board of Trustees of the Fund since the previous report.

Presentation of Reports

MAHAMANE CISSÉ-GOURO, Officer in Charge of the Field Operations and Technical Cooperation Division of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, presenting the High Commissioner’s report on the situation of human rights and technical assistance in Afghanistan, noted that while Afghanistan should have moved closer towards peace, civilians continued to suffer and lose their lives due to increased violence. The conflict remained among the deadliest in the world. During the reporting period, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan had documented 7,850 civilian casualties. For the seventh year in a row, more than 3,000 civilians were killed. More women were killed in 2020 than any year on record - the best way to protect civilians was to stop fighting. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights reiterated their call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. The deliberate killing of human rights defenders and journalists had been particularly egregious in the last few months and since the start of the Afghanistan peace negotiations. Civil society and media had an important role to play, the Afghan people needed their voices and opinions, and the Government needed to provide them with space to operate, while anti-government forces must stop targeting them.

The procedural rights of those detained were hardly respected - a non-coercive interviewing model of suspects must be implemented. This moment was particularly crucial for Afghan women, and their meaningful participation in the peace process must be ensured. The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission played a crucial role despite their staff being directly targeted. The Afghanistan peace negotiations were an historic opportunity for parties to the conflict to consider the irreversible loss the war had had on the people. New thinking could save thousands of families from suffering. Parties to the conflict must acknowledge the harm caused to victims and address their rights to truth, justice, compensation and reparation. A sustainable peace settlement must be inclusive of all who lived in the country.

Mr. Cissé-Gouro, providing a summary of technical cooperation programmes on behalf of the High Commissioner, welcomed the establishment of offices in Niger and Sudan and said a request from Burkina Faso had been added. Human rights advisers were currently deployed in 45 countries. In 2020, more than 1,400 technical cooperation activities were carried out around the world, adapting to COVID-19 and the use of new technologies. Highlighting a few examples of the results achieved, he said Sudan, with the support of the country office, had taken significant steps such as eradication of harmful traditional practices towards women and girls, elimination of discrimination against women in law, and the prohibition of the death penalty against children. In Maldives, as in numerous countries across all regions, the new United Nations Development Cooperation Framework was being finalised, supporting efforts of the country’s commitment to leave no one behind.

Young people should be at the centre of sustainable solutions for development and peace. Building knowledge of human rights indicators and promoting a human rights-based approach to data collection was crucial to encourage evidence-based policies to reinforce equality and non-discrimination. The Office’s technical support in 13 countries was establishing collaborative platforms improving data around groups left behind. In Serbia, an inclusive consultative process with persons with disabilities had led to a public strategy and Action Plan that was largely compliant with United Nations standards. In South Africa, judicial capacity was strengthened with regards to gender stereotypes. In Spain, individuals detained for migration-related offences were released and migration detention centres on the mainland were closed. These were only isolated examples of the wide-ranging technical cooperation work of the Office.

AZITA BERAR-AWAD, Member of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Technical Cooperation in the Field of Human Rights, noted that the Board’s report before the Council today covered its fiftieth and fifty-first sessions held in May and November 2020 respectively. In its meetings, the Board had paid particular attention to the integration of human rights in United Nations programmes, policies and practices at the country level. The Board’s discussions with States, resident coordinators, teams and national partners had revealed the extent to which the human rights technical advice by the human rights advisers was well recognized and highly appreciated. The Board was also very pleased to note the positive impact achieved through the Office of the High Commissioner's “surge initiative”, which aimed to enhance economic expertise with a human rights perspective and to foster partnerships. The Board also welcomed the “Practical Guidance on Maximising the Impact of the Universal Periodic Review at Country Level” issued by the Office, following the Secretary-General’s Call to Action for Human Rights. The Board was particularly gratified about the increase in voluntary contributions.

Statement by Country Concerned

Afghanistan, speaking as a country concerned, noted that the conflict in Afghanistan continued to take a heavy toll on the nation and undermined social and economic progress. The COVID-19 pandemic had further aggravated these challenges. The National Policy on Prevention of Civilian Casualties had been a guiding tool in efforts to reduce civilian harm during military operations. Despite the Government’s efforts, widespread violence by the Taliban and other terrorist groups against Afghan civilians continued to inflict immense suffering. Targeted killings of religious scholars, journalists, civil society activists, government officials, and healthcare personnel had risen sharply in recent months. Afghanistan supported the strengthening of independent and impartial monitoring and documentation of incidents of civilian casualties. In December 2020, a Joint Commission for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders was established, tasked with developing a national mechanism and coherent plan for the protection of human rights defenders.

General Debate on Technical Assistance and Capacity Building

Speakers commended the Office’s continued technical and financial support to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan’s human rights section. It was regrettable that civilian casualties had not decreased significantly despite the Afghanistan peace negotiations and global calls for a ceasefire, including the Secretary-General’s call for a global humanitarian ceasefire in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Regretting that countries had been coerced to accept technical assistance, some speakers said such an approach risked undermining the imperative of dialogue and cooperation at the Council. Each programme should have its own periodic evaluation mechanisms to ensure adequate adjustments were made when needed. The provision of technical assistance at the request of States concerned was a responsibility of the Office, speakers stressed. In that context, equal importance should be given to civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

Thematic mandate holders also had a lot to contribute to technical cooperation. Stressing the importance of cooperation and consent of States concerned, speakers said the Council should not allow States to impose unilateral coercive measures. For years, there had been mandates going to salaries and travels, resulting in outcomes on the ground that were not meaningful. Several speakers touted the merits of the Voluntary Fund by describing the ways in which they had benefited from it. Priority should be given to the implementation of accepted Universal Periodic Review recommendations, as speakers reiterated that technical cooperation must be complementary to the review process. Urging those present to cede vaccine nationalism, speakers called for the inclusion of health innovation in technical assistance. It was essential to refrain from internal interference in the name of technical cooperation - avoiding politicisation was paramount.

Link: https://www.ungeneva.org/en/news-media/meeting-summary/2021/03/afternoon-human-rights-council-hears-presentation-reports-and