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Statement
on the Inauguration of the UN Human Rights Council
Human
Rights Trust of Southern Africa (SAHRIT)
July 13, 2006
The Human Rights Trust
of Southern Africa (SAHRIT) welcomes the establishment of the Human
Rights Council pursuant to the United Nations resolution A/RES/60/251,
which was adopted by the UN General Assembly in March this year.
The Human Rights Council replaces the Commission on Human Rights,
which had lost its credibility and effectiveness as world body for
the promotion and protection on human rights, and becomes the main
UN forum for dialogue and cooperation on human rights. It will focus
on assisting states to meet their human rights obligations through,
inter alia, dialogue, capacity building and technical assistance.
It will also make recommendations for development in international
human rights law.
In this regard SAHRIT
calls upon all countries, intergovernmental bodies, nongovernmental
organizations and other stakeholder to support the Human Rights
Council and ensure that it is an effective and efficient body for
the promotion and protection of human rights throughout the world.
To this end, SAHRIT supports the call by the Secretary-General of
the United Nations, Mr. Kofi Annan, that the Council's work should
mark a clean break from the past, and that should be apparent in
the way it develops and applies the universal periodic review mechanism;
and in its willingness to confront hard issues and engage in difficult
discussions, where these are necessary to remedy or to prevent human
rights violations. As aptly noted by the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights, Ms. Louise Arbour, great hopes have been placed
in the new Council, which should herald the way to a new period
of affirmation of the ideals and standards of human rights, towards
a period that would ensure their effective implementation.
SAHRIT therefore calls
on all members of the Council not only to ensure that they respect
and fulfil voluntary pledges and commitments with regard to the
promotion and protection of human rights, which they made before
their election to the Council, but also to ensure that all countries
are made to account for their human rights performance. They must
discharge their duty objectively and impartially, and consider each
case on its merits rather than be swayed by political and such other
undue considerations. Their main concern must the protection of
citizens against human rights violations. The Council must therefore
be immune to the ills that inflicted the former Commission, such
as politicisation of human rights issues, block voting and double
standards. Rather, the work of the Council must be guided by the
principles of universality, impartiality, objectivity and non-selectivity,
constructive international dialogue and cooperation, with a view
to enhancing the promotion and protection of all human rights, pursuant
to paragraph 4 of United Nations resolution A/RES/60/251.
SAHRIT also
welcomes the recognition of the role of non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) in paragraph 11 of the said resolution, and that the Council
should ensure the most effective contribution of NGOs, among other
stakeholders, in the work of the Council. It is pleasing to note
that the UN and AU have acknowledged the fact that NGOs are a major
force in the promotion and protection of human rights, hence provision
has been made for them to participate in the work of the former
UN Commission on Human Rights and the work of the African Commission
on Human and Peoples' Rights.
SAHRIT therefore joins
other NGOs who have made calls for a greater role of NGOs in the
work of the new Council. In the light of this, SAHRIT is dismayed
by remarks made by the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary
Affairs, Hon. Patrick Chinamasa, at the inaugural session of the
Council. Minister Chinamasa unjustly accused NGOs involved in human
rights and governance work as instruments of the foreign policy
of developed countries, with the objective of destabilising and
interfering with the political processes in Zimbabwe, indulging
in opposition politics and undermining the sovereignty of the country.
This untrue and unfortunate statement clearly reflects how the Minister
has misunderstood the crucial and positive watchdog role that NGOs
play in the areas of human rights and governance. That the Minister
went on to call on the Council to ban foreign funding to NGOs involved
in human rights and governance work, at a time when people's hopes
for greater promotion and protection of human rights have been raised
with the inauguration of the Council, is a cause for serious concern
and it raises questions as to the government's commitment to its
human rights obligations.
SAHRIT urges the Government
of Zimbabwe to follow the example that has been set by both the
UN and the AU in the recognition and the acknowledgment of the role
played by human rights NGOs in the promotion and protection of human
rights in Zimbabwe.
SAHRIT further
urges the Government of Zimbabwe to engage in confidence building
mechanisms so as not to alienate human rights NGOs whose role in
the development of Zimbabwe is very critical. This alienation of
human rights NGOs by the Government of Zimbabwe will serve no other
purpose other than to deepen the suspicions between the Government
of Zimbabwe and human rights NGOs a situation which is totally undesirable
for the development of Zimbabwe as a nation.
Visit the SAHRIT fact
sheet
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