Navigating our global challenges through human rights

Delivered in Italian.

Captain Regents,

Distinguished parliamentarians,

My thanks to the Captain Regents for this invitation.

It is a great honour to be here with you on this very special occasion.

The Declaration of the Rights of Citizens is the bedrock of the Sammarinese constitutional order.

A solemn compact between citizens and government, ensuring the responsible use of power and essential freedoms for all.

A compact firmly grounded in principles of international law, including human rights.

Recognising the precedence of international human rights treaties over national legislation.

The solid foundations of its constitutional order have been critical for San Marino to thrive in the past 50 years.

Similarly, for the international community, respect for the fundamental principles of international law is absolutely vital.

This a truth that too many, dangerously, seem to be forgetting.

We now have 59 conflicts raging around the world, including in Europe. The basic rules of conduct of hostilities seem increasingly to be disregarded.

We also see deeply corrosive polarization within and between countries, widening inequalities, shrinking civic space, the challenges posed by new technologies and the all-encompassing threat from the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.

Rather than coming together to address these global challenges, the new normal appears to be escalation, geopolitical wrangling, and few or feeble attempts at peace. I am also very worried about rising hate speech, the dehumanization of the “other”, scapegoating, loss of complexity and nuance, and fault-lines being drawn on migration issues, on climate issues, on gender or sexual orientation. There is a narrowing of the political space for agreeing on effective, coordinated approaches and, above all, on solutions.

We urgently must find the resolve to return to the basic tenets of the international order.

This calls for reinvigorated action on all human rights everywhere.

Last year we marked the 75^th anniversary of the landmark Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The source of our rich framework of international human rights law.

The bold and necessary vision of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has driven many remarkable advances over the last 70 years – and remains as relevant now as ever.

This message came through, resoundingly, during our Human Rights 75 Initiative.

Over 140 States pledged specific and transformative action on human rights, including San Marino.

Why?

Because, even – or especially – in a time of discord and disarray, human rights remain our shared heritage.

Fundamental principles that form the connective tissue of effective governance at the national level and of multilateralism – traversing every policy area and “future-proofed”.

Human rights provide us with a ready road map to find principled and effective solutions to some of our biggest challenges. Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, on protecting our environment, on ending violence and on harnessing responsibly the extraordinary potential of the digital age.

Solutions that work precisely because they place the human being – in all our wonderful diversity – at the centre of policies and action.

Solutions that enable States to rise above the ideological fray and the pitfalls of short-term transactional-ism to arrive at a better, mutual understanding – removing obstacles to collaboration.

On conflicts, for example, we know that a rights-based approach to peacemaking and peacebuilding strengthens the chances of ending seemingly intractable violence.

In Colombia, for example, the involvement of the UN Human Rights Office in the peace negotiations ensured that the voices of victims, including women, were meaningfully included in shaping the 2016 Accord.

This reinforced the legitimacy of the accord, as well as its ability to address longstanding human rights issues around discrimination and violence against women, Indigenous Peoples and people of African descent. Issues that cannot be ignored if the country is to continue to move forward.

In Colombia, Nepal and many other countries, human rights principles are also providing a clear roadmap for transitional justice processes.

Processes that are essential for a reckoning with the past that can support healing, reconciliation and rebuilding.

Colleagues and friends,

The urgency of the climate emergency is brought home to me, over and over, in my conversations with so many communities who feel already its punishing impacts as extreme weather events become commonplace, bringing with them destruction, displacement and death. The climate crisis is a human rights crisis. It is as simple as that.

To meet this existential challenge, we need not just action to stop and reverse climate change. We also need a fundamental shift in our economies so that we prioritize and invest better in both people and planet. My Office has developed a model of a “human rights economy” to support such a shift. This sets out how all economic policies can and should be guided by the need to uphold human rights. All human rights, from the right to life, to the right to education, the right to food to the right to freedom of expression, and the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment itself.

By letting human rights obligations guide decisions on where and how to prioritize spending, a human rights economy would provide the guardrails necessary to tackle unsustainable consumption and production practices.

Ensuring national budgets are sufficiently resourced for climate action and that wealthier States step up to meet their responsibilities towards global funds.

Demanding an end to harmful fossil fuel subsidies.

And underscoring the inclusion of a diverse range of voices in shaping climate policy, particularly those most affected by environmental harm – a diversity that brings with it the breadth of knowledge and experience necessary for effective policies.

Despite the scale of the tasks ahead, I am hugely encouraged by the incorporation of the right to a healthy environment in the domestic law of over 80 per cent of UN Member States.

A right, as many of you will be aware, that was recognised by the General Assembly in 2022, confirming what was already self-evident.

And I note that the Declaration we are celebrating today requires the Republic to safeguard the natural environment.

I am also encouraged by the remarkable wave of rights-based litigation on climate policies, including the recent European Court of Human Rights ruling in favour of a group of Swiss women.

Such cases will, undoubtedly, have a ripple effect far beyond the countries directly concerned.

Indeed, I am inspired every day by the ingenuity and dedication of the countless actors who are part of the human rights movement globally.

As I am humbled by the sheer courage of human rights defenders.

In human rights we have a powerful message of hope.

And a call to action; a reminder that every one of us can make a contribution to realise a world as it should be – more peaceful, fair and sustainable.

My Office is entrusted by States to act as the guardian of human rights globally.

A mandate that involves painstaking human rights monitoring, investigating and reporting work, often in extremely difficult conditions.

We do not shy away from calling out human rights violations publicly where necessary.

But we also act as a bridge, within societies and between States, to support the dialogue needed to navigate complicated, contentious and emerging issues through a rights-based approach.

In all of our efforts we count on the support of governments everywhere.

Rights are not a competitive endeavour.

No country has a perfect record.

All of us can learn from each other.

And every State benefits from self-reflection, as well as the willingness to look forward.

In this spirit, I hope that this celebratory year will be as much a moment for building forward as well as looking back with pride on this country’s constitutional achievements.

I welcome San Marino’s ongoing engagement with international human rights. mechanisms, recognising the particular resource challenge this creates for smaller States.

I hope the upcoming Universal Periodic Review will be a timely opportunity to identify areas for prioritized action.

And I hope this anniversary also bolsters engagement throughout San Marino on human rights.

In the spirit of the pledges made at Human Rights 75.

Especially in relation to young people, whose insights are crucial for navigating our many dilemmas and choices today.

And who need to see that political systems are genuinely responsive to their concerns and aspirations.

Friends,

I am optimistic that we can more than meet the challenges ahead.

If we hold true to our universal values in human rights.

And if we keep open the spaces for dialogue.

This message is at the core of my vision statement, Human Rights as the Path for Solutions, published earlier this year, which draws on the rich conversations during our Human Rights 75 Initiative.

I hope the signposts it sets out will enrich discussions towards the Pact for the Future – a once-in-a-generation opportunity to refashion global governance for the needs of tomorrow that will be adopted by UN Member States in New York in September.

Every State has a role to play in advancing dialogue and action on rights globally, in the service of dignity and freedom for all and the search for solutions to shared challenges.

Indeed, it has always been my experience that smaller States, such as San Marino, are among the staunchest contributors to multilateralism – understanding as you do that we are all part of one global community.

We need more voices at the table. And we need more creative, new alliances.

I look forward to San Marino being part of that collective journey.

Thank you.