Statement by Václav Bálek, President of the Human Rights Council, to the Meeting of Ministers’ Deputies of the Council of Europe

9 February 2023.

Ambassador Ragnhildur Arnljótsdóttir,
President of the Ministers’ Deputies,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is with great honour and pleasure that I speak to you in my capacity as President of the United Nations Human Rights Council. I wish to thank Ambassador Arnljótsdóttir for the invitation to take part in this meeting today.

This year marks the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the thirtieth anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, a milestone that calls on us to reflect on the historic rules and norms we set ourselves and commit ourselves to continue upholding them.

As a fellow Ambassador working within a multilateral human rights body, I do not need to explain to you the importance of our roles fostering and strengthening human rights. The Human Rights Council is the premier inter-governmental human rights body. We use dialogue and collective decision-making to draw global attention to human rights situations. And when needed, we establish mechanisms to recognize human rights violations as early as possible and to recommend effective and tailored plans to address them. This is why regional organization, like the Council of Europe, are essential. Your monitoring and advisory capacities are invaluable for technical cooperation and capacity building, as well as redress.

Ultimately, the Human Rights Council, like the Council of Europe, will succeed when its members are empowered to do so. Where these bodies choose to focus reflects the seriousness of current human rights situations as well as the will of our members to take action to protect human rights.

Let me therefore focus on what the Human Rights Council has achieved, and looking ahead, how we can deliver.

This past year, as you all know, was a time of significant geopolitical tensions and conflict, particularly in Europe. We are consequently living in a more complex and multipolar environment. Where this has led to deadlocks in some bodies, the Human Rights Council has continued to thrive. The Council has shown it can consider and address new human rights situations as they arise, while at the same time broadening its agenda to consider emerging and complex thematic issues.

Through its three regular sessions in 2022, the Council adopted 100 resolutions, decisions and President’s statements. 67 of these were adopted without a vote. This shows that consensus continues to exist for the majority of human rights issues. These figures also show the desire of our members to ensure the Council continues to function, even where disagreements exist. Last year, the Council heard the reports of 14 country-specific and 45 thematic special procedure mandate holders, and from 10 investigative mechanisms. In all, the Council engaged in over 120 interactive dialogues and panels. Finally, the Council held two urgent debates – on Ukraine and on women and girls in Afghanistan – as well as two special sessions – in May, also on Ukraine, and in November, on Iran with special attention given to women and girls.

This dynamism is essential to ensure the Council fulfils its prevention mandate. Responding swiftly, flexibly and transparently to emerging issues gives our mechanisms a chance to engage in constructive dialogue and cooperation to minimize human rights violations.

The Council has also shown a willingness to consider new and complex human rights issues. At its last regular session, the Council adopted resolutions on “neurotechnology” and on “new and emerging technologies in the military domain”. Studies in these areas will be developed by the Council’s think tank - the Advisory Committee - and will touch on areas like artificial intelligence. The Council has also furthered norms in emerging areas like the environment. The Council adopted a resolution on the “nuclear legacy of the Marshall Islands” and appointed the first Special Rapporteur on human rights and climate change. And following the Council resolution on the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, the UN General Assembly and the COP27 climate summit both adopted texts affirming this right. The Council also progressed work from its new mechanisms aimed at addressing racism, in relation to law enforcement and relating to persons of African descent.

I bring these examples to your attention because of your own specific work in these important thematic areas. I encourage you to continue to engage with us on all these issues. Building on our respective expertise, we can further global human rights issues.

Let me emphasize the word “global”. As a United Nations body, it is important that the Human Rights Council reflects its global membership and its mandated principle of objectivity. Taking an inclusive approach is essential, to ensure any actions are seen as credible and legitimate, and to give the best chance for lasting progress on complex human rights issues. In practice, this means making a good faith effort to look beyond local or regional priorities, particularly where there may be perceptions that some human rights issues or situations are seen as secondary.

In your own engagement, including with Human Rights Council mechanisms, I encourage a broad and inclusive approach. There is potential for the work of the Council of Europe to have a global reach by allowing others to use the substantial work of your monitoring and advisory bodies. This includes your engagement with the Human Rights Council’s special rapporteurs, independent experts and working groups that monitor, examine, advise and publicly report on a range of thematic issues as well as human rights situations in specific countries. I believe that all 46 members of the Council of Europe, have now established a standing invitation to thematic special procedure mandate holders, which I thoroughly commend.

Broad and deep engagement applies also to the Universal Periodic Review, which continues to have a 100% participation rate among States. An open and inclusive dialogue by your members when under review is essential, as is your participation in other country reviews. I understand the High-level Reflection Group of the Council of Europe has made recommendations to institutionalize your links with the UN and the Human Rights Council. I believe this is worthy of consideration.

Inclusivity is also about participation, by all parts of society. This includes NGOs and human rights defenders, who play an essential role as a voice for victims of human rights abuses. In 2022, the Council heard over 2,400 oral interventions from NGOs. These interventions help us to speak the language of people outside of what we call the Geneva “bubble”. You can enlighten me whether a Strasbourg “bubble” similarly exists - I expect so. From my end, virtual participation and reducing barriers to in-person attendance, are essential to ensure vulnerable groups are being heard. And in the spirit of two-way dialogue, we must convey our work where the public will listen, including on social media.

Excellencies,

Looking ahead, the Human Rights Council has a busy workload for the year. The fifty-second session of the Council will open on 27 February, which will include the high-level segment with more than 100 dignitaries expected to participate. UN Secretary-General António Guterres and several Heads of State have confirmed their participation, as have many of your own ministers and your Secretary-General, Marija Pejčinović Burić.

The session will stretch over five and a half weeks, reflective of the steady increase in mandates created by the Council. Nine panel discussions will be held, including on topics like: the death penalty, the rights of the child and the digital environment, support systems for persons with disabilities, the right to development, and racial discrimination. The Council will hold interactive dialogues with 21 thematic and country specific special procedure mandate holders and 2 Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General. It will also consider 18 country reports and oral updates relating to human rights situations across the world. Finally, the Council is expected to adopt many resolutions at the end of the session, and appoint a number of special procedure mandate holders, including the first Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation.

In all likelihood, the Council’s programme of work will continue to increase throughout the year. None of us expect the substantial human rights challenges facing our world to subside overnight. The decision of your members to hold the fourth Summit of Heads of State and Governments, the first in many years, reflects the historic times we live in. So, we need to ensure the tools we have are fit for purpose. The dynamism of the Human Rights Council has allowed it to flourish but this has placed increased demand on the capacity of our delegations, particularly small States and least developed countries. This is why my Presidency will place an emphasis on improving efficiency, allowing all participants to more substantively engage on the issues that we must consider.

Let me conclude by reflecting on our shared goal - the promotion and protection of human rights. Human rights issues are not centered in one part of the world, even if we are naturally inclined to focus on that which is closest and most immediate. But delivering on human rights globally requires an agile and multi-layered protection ecosystem, one which we have created over time, that interlinks national, regional and international bodies. Whether providing technical cooperation, developing norms, or gathering evidence for investigative or review mechanisms, these bodies must reinforce each other and stay relevant. The Human Rights Council and the Council of Europe are key, with expertise, experience and authority that can deliver results. But our continuous efforts are needed, to ensure we are as effective as the world needs us to be.

Thank you