Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities, Progress For All: International Women's Day!

Today, 8 March, celebrates International Women's Day! Today, in many countries throughout the world, women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political. It is an occasion for looking back on past struggles and accomplishments, and more importantly, for looking ahead to the untapped potential and opportunities that await future generations of women.

In recognition of this important anniversary, the theme of this year's International Women's Day is "Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities: Progress for All". 

"Gender equality and women's empowerment are fundamental to the global mission of the United Nations to achieve equal rights and dignify for all... But equality for women and girls is also an economic and social imperative. Until women and girls are liberated from poverty and injustice all our goals - peace, security, sustainable development - stand in jeopardy." 
                                         - Secretary General Ban Ki-moon

Shirin Ebadi on Iran: 'Hit the regime, not the people'

According to The National, Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian Nobel prize-winning lawyer, has urged the international community not to ignore Tehran's violations of human rights as it tries to impose new sanctions over Iran's nuclear weapons programme.

In an interview with The National, she said sanctions should not burden the Iranian people but penalize companies that have helped the regime tackle and censor the opposition Green Movement.

At a conference of the United Nations Women's Commission in New York, she said, "I oppose any sanctions that are to the detriment of the Iranian people. But not giving visas to politicians or an embargo on arms is not to the detriment of the people."

Again we see human rights take the backseat to security issues.

A Couple's Story of Being Gay in Uganda

In following the anti-homosexuality bill introduced to Parliament in Uganda, I thought I would provide you with an article I read in TIME today on 'Being Gay in Uganda: One Couple's Story'.

Special Report by WFUNA: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights introduces her Annual Report to the 13th Human Rights Council

On Thursday, 4 March, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, presented the Annual Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to the Human Rights Council (HRC). This was followed by an interactive dialogue with the High Commissioner in which countries expressed their concerns over the geographic imbalance in the staff of the Office of the High Commissioner, the right to development with a focus on the impact of the global economic and financial crisis, and human rights relating to issues of migrants, racial discrimination, xenophobia and gender inequality.

The High Commissioner highlighted a few outstanding country cases, including the treatment of journalists and human rights defenders in Sri Lanka and the arbitrary arrest of demonstrators in Iran as well as responding to questions and issues raised by delegations on the thematic priority of migration and the promotion of a human rights-based approach to this. The Commissioner said that the Office would place a great importance on eliminating racial discrimination against migrants, particularly in regards to economic, social and cultural rights.

On the right to development, the Commissioner stressed that this continued to be a high priority for her Office, specifically aimed at protecting and promoting this right through its mainstreaming. The Office planned to expand advocacy and outreach operations in order to integrate the right to development into the work of the Office and its outreach mechanisms.

On human rights and gender, the Office was addressing de jure and de facto discrimination against women and was working to enhance accountability and combat trafficking while monitoring violations of women's rights at the field level.

The Council concluded the interactive dialogue with the High Commissioner on 5 March, following which it will begin with the thematic reports from the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Pragmatism? Politics?: France's Change of Attitude

On Wednesday, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev concluded his 3-day state visit to Paris. According to TIME, "he virtually cinched an unprecedented military deal, bagged a significant gas contract and watched his French host, President Nicolas Sarkozy, dismiss American and European misgivings about his embrace of Moscow by treating Medvedev like his newest best friend forever". 

TIME reported, "Gone are Sarkozy's early promises to make a respect of human rights and democracy central to all French foreign relations... France is now eager to work with Russia on common security and economic interests - and it doesn't want to hear any sniping or criticism from other countries, s'il vous plait."

Is this part of France's re-imaging itself? Part of its new identity? What do you think? Pragmatism? Politics? Or..?

Special Report by WFUNA: Human Rights Responses to the Global Economic and Financial Crisis

During the 4th day of the 13th Session of the Human Rights Council (HRC), the Centre for Economic and Social Rights (CESR) and ESCR-Net held a side-event dedicated to the impact of the global economic and financial crisis on the realization of human rights.

Panelists discussed how human rights obligations can and should influence responses to the financial and economic crisis. At the forefront was the question of the role of the Human Rights Council in the follow-up of the UN Conference of the World Financial and Economic Crisisright to development (mainly through its commitment to contribute to the Open-Ended Working Group of the UN General Assembly).  and of the impact of the crises on the

Participants proposed a number of views and recommendations to both the international community and the HRC. Some attendees recommend to continue to review and analyze the impacts of the financial and economic crisis on human rights, incorporating broad civil society participation, at the HRC's next session; to strengthen the capacity of human rights institutions at regional and global levels to effectively monitor the impact of the global financial crisis on human rights; to engage in policy dialogue with organizations holding economic policy mandates; and to appoint representatives from inter-governmental organizations with a human rights mandate to the ECOSOC panel of experts on the world financial crisis once this body is established. Read more here.

Special Report by WFUNA: The Impact of the Global Economic and Financial Crises

The Human Rights Council held its panel discussion on the economic and financial crises. Ms. Pillay Navanethem commended the HRC for its initiatives to highlight the impact of the impact of the crises on human rights.

A year ago, the Council held its 10th Special Session on the financial crisis. Today, there is a hope that the global economy is continuing its recovery. But, the impact of the financial crisis on human rights is yet to be estimated. Unfortunately the unemployment rate is still growing and the number of people living in poverty will continue to increase.

Appalling statistics have caused the international community to look for a solution. The Council needs to address how it can prevent social stratification and protect the poor and marginalized, providing them with access to basic services and resources and should. Moreover, following the discourse of Francisco Santos Calderon, Vice-President of Colombia, countries are encouraged to avoid protectionism and should open their markets in order to promote economic growth.

Member States contributing to the discussion mentioned that full employment is not possible without providing the merited social security, which should become the absolute priority of any national policy. All countries agreed that the UN should target employment for all. In addition, the speakers of the panel agreed that the total expenses cannot be decreased by slashing social aid. Read more here.

Special Report by WFUNA: Human Rights Commission begins its 13th Session with High-Level Segment

The Human Rights Council opened its 13th Session High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, in her opening statement said that in order to counter deeply-rooted and chronic human rights conditions in many countries, five years ago the UN had initiated a process of reform that proposed several innovations including the creation of the Human Rights Council to replace the Commission. The Council is a conceived forum where responses to inequality, repression and impunity can be crafted and advocated to build a world in larger freedom. The High Commissioner's view of the Council would help the international community to assess whether the fundamental principles of this body's mandate had been solidly and consistently upheld. on 1 March 2010, hearing from 17 high-level dignitaries. The

In the afternoon, the Session heard statements from six dignitaries under its High-Level Segment and then held a high-level panel discussion on the impact of the global economic and financial crisis on the effective enjoyment of all human rights.

On 2 March 2010, the Council continued its high-level segment. Statements were heard from the Philippines, Switzerland, the UK, Vietnam, Korea and Serbia. This was followed by a panel discussion on the draft declaration on Human Rights, Education and Training.

In the afternoon of 2 March, the high-level segment continued, hearing from another 14 dignitaries who raised a number of issues such as the 2011 Review of the Council and its mechanisms and what it should focus on, as well as the lack of progress on the elimination of racism around the world, and who highlighted national efforts to promote and protect human rights.

On 3 March, the Council continued with hearing addresses by 13 dignitaries who outlined a number of human rights issues that required ongoing attention from the Council, such as racism and poverty, aggravated by the financial and economic crises, continued violations of the rights of women and girls, including female genital mutilation, human rights education and training, and the interplay between freedom of expression and new media and technology. 

The afternoon of 3 March saw the conclusion of the HRC High-Level Segment, hearing addresses by countries highlighting the measures they had undertaken to improve the human rights situation at a national level. The Council then began its General Segment, during which Member States' representatives expressed their views on the Council's achievements and highlighted their priorities in the context of the upcoming five-year review of the Council's functioning.

Increasing Awareness on Trafficking: UAE

Despite the various instruments implemented to combat the international sex trade, and programs to create awareness, the number of victims trafficked has risen. In the past decade, approximately 30 million women and children have reportedly been trafficked from Southeast Asia alone for sexual exploitation and sweatshop labor.

According to The National, Dubai is attempting to crack down on trafficking. For instance, law officers are being urged to scrutinize for possible cases of sex trafficking.

A training programme run by the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking (NCCHT) and led by Paul Holmes on behalf of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), has, over the past four days, focused on identifying, helping and protecting victims.

According to Fiona el Assiuty, the project manager of the IOM's regional multi-action programme, more awareness about trafficking for sexual exploitation is needed. She said that the UAE has taken "huge steps" in efforts to combat trafficking over the past five years, including the introduction of federal anti-trafficking legislation, as well as the establishment of the NCCHT and shelter for victims. "It is clear that the UAE is sincere in its efforts to combat the phenomenon."

According to Mrs. Gulnara Shahinian, the Special Rapporteur on Contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences, forced labor is not addressed effectively by member states. This is definitely a step in the right direction! One can hope that other countries will follow suit.

Progress on the right to sanitation: the Peepoo!

Sanitation is a fundamental human right. It is a human right and of human dignity.

In addressing what Catarina de Albuquerque, the UN independent expert on the issue of human rights obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation, calls a sanitation crisis, a Swedish entrepreneur is "trying to market and sell a biodegradable plastic bag that acts as a single-use toilet for the urban slums in the developing world". According to The New York Times, the bag, called the Peepoo, is the brainchild of Anders Wilhelmson, an architect and professor in Stockholm. According to Mr. Wilhelmson, "Not only is it sanitary, they can reuse this to grow crops." 

After successfully testing it for a year in Kenya and India, he said he plans to mass produce the bag this summer. He reportedly plans to sell it for about 2 to 3 cents - comparable to the cost of an ordinary bag.

13th Session of the Human Rights Council Opens!

On Monday, 1 March, the Human Rights Council opened its 13th Regular Session at the Palais des Nations (UN) in Geneva. The session will be held for four weeks during which 20 mandate holders will report on their thematic areas and a number of studies and reports will be presented. Read more here.

I will be posting on topics under discussion and updates on events during the council as reported by interns at WFUNA at the UN in Geneva. Stay tuned!

UN rights experts urge Uganda to redouble efforts to shelve anti-homosexuality bill

In November 2009, I reported on a new bill that was being presented before the Ugandan Parliament proposing a death penalty for homosexuality and "serial offenders" and a life sentence for "touching a person with homosexual intent".

Today, at the United Nations in Geneva, a media statement, entitled Uganda: last chance to shelve Anti-Homosexuality Bill should not be missed, warn UN human rights experts, was released. "With its third and final reading imminent before the Ugandan Parliament, two UN Special Rapporteurs voiced their deep concerns about the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which, if adopted, would have an extremely damaging impact on the important and legitimate work of human rights defenders in the country, and would curtail fundamental freedoms."

Margaret Sekaggya, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, and Frank La Rue, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, stressed, "The Bill would not only violate the fundamental rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Ugandan people, but would also criminalize the legitimate activities of men and women, as well as national and international organizations, who strive for the respect for equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

The independent experts, UN human rights chief, Navi Pillay, and the UN Special Rapporteur on health, Anand Grover, "urge Parliamentarians to refrain from adopting this draconian Bill". Read more here.