HRC elections: As civil society demands an effective and responsive Council, candidates share their pledges

Update (16 September): all questions to candidate States – both those present at the pledging event and those who declined or did not respond to the invitation – can be found here.

On 4 September, State candidates to the Human Rights Council joined an online event during which they were asked to outline their commitments and plans, should they be elected. 

Of 19 candidates, 12 were represented at the event: Cyprus, Marshall Islands, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Thailand, Czechia, North Macedonia, Colombia, Mexico, Iceland, Spain, and Switzerland, and 7 declined, did not reply to the invitation or did not attend the event: Benin, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Gambia, Kenya, Saudi Arabia and Bolivia.

Candidate States’ pledges:

Colombia’s representative emphasised that, in seeking its first ever seat on the Human Rights Council, the State was aiming at implementing its policy of total peace, promoting an environment of dialogue and participation to enhance the resolution of conflicts through peaceful methods, based on the UN Charter and international law. Colombia also highlighted the importance of political representation of women.

Cyprus’ representative highlighted that the country’s historical experience demonstrated its values of security and promotion of human rights. The representative shared the government’s belief that small States have an essential role to play in the international community and emphasised that Cyprus was well aware of the commitment that being elected on the Human Rights Council implies. 

Czechia’s representative also referred to the country’s national history, stating that ‘our story is a human rights story’ and emphasising the achievement of independence from previous authoritarian regimes. Czechia referred to its previous participation in the Human Rights Council, and focused on emerging digital technologies, which the representative said needed to be addressed in the international legal order. 

Iceland’s representative highlighted that, if elected, the State would aim to drive action on a broad range of issues and that civil society and all stakeholders would be included. Iceland said that the Council must be more responsive to emergencies and that it would emphasise a thematic focus on women and girls, on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression of sexual characteristics (SOGIESC), on children and the environment, all while it would continue efforts internally to ratify the remaining human rights treaties. 

The Marshall Islands´representative mentioned that, if elected, the State would follow through with what was achieved in their first term, and their national commitments, such as the creation of a national mechanism for implementation and reporting of obligations and recommendations emanating from international human rights mechanisms. At the international level, the Marshall Islands would continue building bridges with civil society.

Mexico’s representative emphasised the State’s role in creating the Human Rights Council back in 2006. Mexico also shared that the feminist focus of the Mexican foreign policy, as well as other thematic focus such as Indigenous peoples, migrant people, and people living with disabilities, would be implemented.

The Republic of North Macedonia shared its pledge to uphold international human rights standards, law and democracy, to focus on the 2030 agenda and to support a culture of diversity, respect and inclusion. Its priorities include women and girls, disabilities and discrimination, as well as a safe, clean and sustainable environment. 

Qatar’s representative mentioned that the State would continue to be a proactive member of the international community, and also continue efforts internally to attain important reforms, particularly in the area of inclusive representation in institutions. 

The Republic of Korea’s representative indicated that the State would continue to lead efforts in the Human Rights Council on two important resolutions on technologies and local governments. The representative also mentioned that Korea had withdrawn its reservations on certain international human rights instruments and was assessing whether to ratify others. 

Spain’s representative mentioned gender equality, sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI), as well as economic, social and cultural rights as priorities, as well as the fight against death penalty, the protection of human rights defenders and the right to care of elderly people. 

Switzerland‘s representative mentioned three key topics that would be prioritised if elected: making the Human Rights Council more responsive to emerging situations, developing international standards, and capacity building. The representative also highlighted the importance of implementing Univeral Periodic Review (UPR) recommendations. 

Thailand’s representative also mentioned the need for the Council to be more effective and responsive to emergencies, as well as constructive dialogue among States and civil society as a key pillar of the State’s pledge.  Thailand also referred to national human rights policies that had been enacted and that would continue to be enacted, should the State be elected. The representative further stated that Thailand is part to 8 out of the 9 core human rights treaties. 

Discussion: 

Switzerland was  questioned about the protection of the rights of older persons and its position about a new convention on the rights of older persons under the auspices of the Human Rights Council, to which it responded that its national legislation is sufficient to address these issues. 

Similarly, Spain was questioned about the ratification of the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers, the Convention on Enforced Disappearances and the individual communication procedures of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, to which it responded that their national legislation is sufficient to address these issues. 

Qatar was questioned as to the lack of inclusion of women in public life, including the Shura Council elections that took place in October 2021. In response, Qatar shared information about women’s right to vote. Qatar was also questioned about its excessive application of the death penalty. 

Czechia received a question on its double standard approach, reflected in its support for the action of the International Criminal Court (ICC) against the Putin regime for their acts in Ukraine, while being critical of the same work related to Israel. Czechia’s representative rejected the accusation of double standards and stated that the government supports both Ukraine and Israel in the current conflicts of aggression. 

Colombia was questioned as to their efforts related to Venezuelan migrants and also on cases of police brutality against people of African descent. On the former, the representative indicated that Colombia will be granting temporary residence permits to migrants for a period of 10 years, after which they could opt for permanent residence or citizenship. 

Thailand was questioned about a group of Uyghur refugees, which the State pledged to continue to care for until a viable solution for the group was found. This will include accommodation, healthcare and psychosocial services. Thailand also pointed out that the principle of non-refoulement had been included in their local legislation. 

Candidate States who did not attend the event also received questions: 

Saudi Arabia was questioned as to its commitment to human rights in light of several issues: for instance, UN fact finding experts have been constantly denied access to its territory; Saudi Arabia has also refused to engage with human rights mechanisms; and human rights defenders face constant reprisals. Saudi Arabia was further asked whether it would release all detainees and political prisoners charged for contacting human rights organisations, as well as all the detained women human rights defenders who were heavily sentenced for posting tweets. 

Kenya was asked about the mass demonstrations that happened last June, where, reportedly, human rights violations had been committed by police forces, and how the State would duly investigate these alleged crimes as well as prevent future acts of torture, and ensure accountability. It was also asked about its view on jurisprudence of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and of the African Court of Human Rights, and how the Government would ensure the implementation of their decisions. 

The Gambia was asked whether it would commit to applying principled support to country-specific initiatives on the basis of objective criteria, as well as to the incoming members’ pledges and ‘Irish Principles’. Furthermore, it was asked whether it would commit to protecting the rights of Gambian girls and women by rejecting  proposals to reverse or weaken the 2015 ban on female genital mutilation (FGM). 

Ethiopia was asked about measures taken to ensure effective investigations of all cases of harassment, attack and reprisals against human rights defenders, as well as about its efforts to ensure fair trials. Furthermore, Ethiopia was called out for resisting international scrutiny of violations within its territory, and was asked how, as a Council member, it would support international scrutiny of abuses, including domestically. 

The Democratic Republic of the Congo was asked about its commitment to improve access to the judicial system and avoid impunity in cases of violence against civil society. It was also asked about the major legal and institutional reforms to ensure the rights of victims of evictions due to mining investments. 

Bolivia was asked what concrete steps the Government would take to address the unresolved issue of enforced disappearances that occurred during the period of 1972-1980, and to ensure accountability, justice and reparations to victims’ families; reference was made to the Flores Bedregal v. Bolivia judgment of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and the Government’s lack of political will to enforce it. Bolivia was further questioned about its climate change policies, given its high rate of deforestation, and imports and illegal distribution of mercury.

At the time of writing, these are the 19 candidates seeking election: 

• African States: Benin, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, and Gambia. 
• Asia and the Pacific States: Cyprus, Marshall Islands, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia and Thailand. 
• Central and Eastern European States: Czechia and North Macedonia, 
• Latin America and the Caribbean States: Bolivia, Colombia and Mexico. 
• Western European and other States: Iceland, Spain and Switzerland.