INTERNATIONAL DAY IN SUPPORT OF VICTIMS OF TORTURE

Please find the UN  Secretary General's message for the International Day in support of Victims of Torture:

"As we mark International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, I call on Member States to step up efforts to assist all those who have suffered from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. 

This year is also the 25th anniversary of the Committee against Torture. This body -- along with other UN human rights mechanisms such as the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and the Special Rapporteur on Torture -- is vital to strengthening a victim-oriented approach that also includes a gender perspective. This effort was further strengthened by the adoption this year of a UN Human Rights Council resolution focussing on the rehabilitation of torture victims.

I urge all Member States to accede to and fully implement the Convention against Torture and support the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture.  Let us work together to end torture throughout the world and ensure that countries provide reparation for victims.

Ban Ki-moon"

HUMAN RIGHTS AND POST-2015 DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

“HUMAN RIGHTS MUST BE AT THE CENTRE OF THE POST 2015 AGENDA” affirmed UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navy Pillay, in her Open Letter to all Member States on Human Rights and Post 2015 Agenda on the 6^th of June, 2013.

According to the High Commissioner, “some of the most celebrated Millennium Development Goals success stories since 2000 are now sites of mass protest decrying widespread deprivation, repression and inequalities masked by the narrow models of economic analysis that have characterized development approaches in the pre-2015 period. The message is clear: economic growth is not an adequate measure of development.

Rather, equality matters, the environment matters and human rights matter. So do good governance and anti-corruption. The real test, to a growing global population demanding a life of dignity, is the degree to which they are able to enjoy freedom from fear and want, without discrimination.”

WORLD REFUGEE DAY

Every 60 seconds, eight persons in the world are forced to leave their home and properties to escape terror and persecution. We celebrate today the World Refugee Day, remembering the about 43 million refugees in the world. 

We invite you to visit the UN webpage dedicated to the issue for studies, statistics and awareness raising  campaigns.

Draft Resolutions, Decisions & President's Statements of the 23 Session of the Human Rights Council

This is the List of Resolutions and Decisions taken during the 23rd Session of the Human Rights Council. Please click of the link below to find the texts and the votes records:

Texts and votes records
(if you are requested to sign in USERNAME: hrc extranet; PASSWORD: 1session)

A/HRC/23/L.1    The deteriorating situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic, and the recent killings in Al-Qusayr

A/HRC/23/L.2    Assistance technique à la Côte d’Ivoire dans le domaine des droits de l’homme

A/HRC/23/L.2 Rev.1 Assistance technique à la Côte d’Ivoire dans le domaine des droits de l’homme Rev.1

A/HRC/23/L.3    Assistance technique à la République Centrafricaine dans le domaine des droits de l’homme

A/HRC/23/L.4    Renforcement de la coopération technique et services consultatifs en Guinée

A/HRC/23/L.5    Role of Freedom of Opinion and Expression in Women’s Empowerment

A/HRC/23/L.6    Enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights

A/HRC/23/L.7    The right to education - follow up to Human Rights resolution 8.4

A/HRC/23/L.8    Trafficking in persons, especially women and children - effort to combat human trafficking in supply chain of business

100 DAYS TO THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE

Today, 13 June 2013, we start the 100-day count-down to the International Day of Peace, which is celebrated on 21 September each year.
We want to share with you the message that the Secretary-General has issued for the day, in which he calls governments, civil society, and other stakeholders to support peace-related projects, as well as other relevant information on the International Day of Peace and the theme of the year: Education for Peace.

WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOUR

Today is the World Day against Child Labour. 

You can find statistics, surveys and resources about this sad phenomenon still affecting more than 200 million children in the world in the ILO (International Labour Organization) website: http://www.ilo.org/ipec/Campaignandadvocacy/wdacl/2013/lang--en/index.htm

Women’s rights addressed at the 23rd Session of the Human Rights Council

“There can be no equal societies, development and peace if women and girls remain discriminated against and marginalized.”  – This was a statement made by Ms. Navi Pillay (United Nation High Commissioner for Human Rights) in her opening remarks for the Annual Full Day Discussion on Women’s Rights on the 5^th of June at the United Nations in Geneva. In the days preceding, the Human Rights Council also discussed the Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women as well the Report of the working group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice.

"YOUTH EMPOWERMENT: WHICH STRATEGIES?" IIMA and VIDES presenting their best practice at the UN.

 On June 4th, at the United Nations in Geneva, IIMA and VIDES Human Rights Office organised, in collaboration with the Permanent Mission of Uruguay and with the co-sponsorship of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and of Permanent Missions of Costa Rica, France and Holy See, the side event: “Youth Empowerment: which strategies?”. The side event’s goal was to invite all the participants, especially States, to reflect on how young people can become real protagonists of their lives and catalysts for social change.   

The Ambassador of Uruguay, Laura Dupuy Lasserre, presided over the Side Event as moderator. The panel was composed by: the Ambassador of Costa Rica, H.E. Christian Guillermet, the Apostolic Nuncio H.E. Mgr. Silvano Tomasi,  the Vice Minister of Labour and Social Security on the Uruguayan Government Dr.Nelson Loustaunau, the Human Rights Officer Mr.Christian Courtis of the Office of the High Commissioner  for Human Rights (OHCHR), the Child and Youth Advisor of OHCHR Ms. Imma Guerras, Ms. Maria D’Onofrio of VIDES International, the Assistant Director General for Policy of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Mr. Josè Manuel Salazar, Ms. Molly Kaniampadickal, and Mr. Thomas Vattathara of IIMA India.

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY 2013

“Think.Eat.Save: Reduce Your Foodprint”

We would like to celebrate the World Environment Day 2013 through the Message of UN Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon:

"We live in a world of plenty, where food production outstrips demand, yet 870 million people are undernourished and childhood stunting is a silent pandemic.  To create the future we want, we must correct this inequity.  We must ensure access to adequate nutrition for all, double the productivity of smallholder farmers who grow the bulk of food in the developing world, and make food systems sustainable in the face of environmental and economic shocks.  This is the vision of my Zero Hunger Challenge, launched last year at the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development.

One way to narrow the hunger gap and improve the well-being of the most vulnerable is to address the massive loss and waste inherent in today’s food systems.  Currently at least one third of all food produced fails to make it from farm to table.  This is foremost an affront to the hungry, but it also represents a massive environmental cost in terms of energy, land and water. 

The Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education presents its report to the Human Rights Council

The 31^st of May, the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, Mr. Kishore Singh, was held during the 23^rd session of the Human Rights Council (item 3).

The report of Mr. Singh focused on the justiciability of the Right to Education which aims to identify different ways to enforce this right through the establishment of judicial and quasi-judicial mechanisms at the national and international level. In fact, he stressed how the improvement of access to justice for all victims of violations of the right to education should be considered a priority by Member States. He paid special attention to the access to education for vulnerable and marginalized groups as well as the need to progressively improve quality of education and equality of opportunity in education. The importance of partnerships with civil society actors and the media was also highlighted.