Speaking at the opening of the high-level segment of the 55th ordinary session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Mr. Zniber indicated that the reform project is the subject of a careful assessment of positive achievements and gaps in terms of effectiveness and agenda, in view of the decision on reform taken by the United Nations General Assembly.
Morocco’s permanent representative in Geneva, who was elected president of the HRC in January, noted the impact of the UN liquidity crisis on the HRC and its mechanisms, particularly in terms of flexibility in the organization of meetings and the use of hybrid means to manage HRC events.
The 55th session, which is the longest since the creation of the Council, will address several challenges that must be addressed in a climate of confidence, in order to achieve tangible progress in human rights, despite the significant impact geopolitical crises, he noted.
Mr. Zniber insisted on the need for a balance between civil and political rights, on the one hand, and economic, social and cultural rights, on the other hand, because these rights are indivisible.
In this context, the president of the HRC reviewed the impact of issues of food security, health and the environmental crisis on the effective enjoyment of human rights, highlighting the new challenges posed by access to technologies and the digital divide in the implementation of rights.
Mr. Zniber opened the 55th session of the HRC, which runs until April 5, in the presence of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, President of the UN General Assembly Denis Francis, Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Volker Türk, and the Swiss Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ignazio Cassis.
The Council will consider more than 100 reports presented by the United Nations Secretariat and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, human rights experts and other investigative bodies on numerous topics and covering the human rights situation in nearly 45 countries. In total, the HRC will hold 23 interactive discussions with special procedures mandate holders.
The Council, which currently has 47 member countries, will examine several reports relating to the right to housing, food, the environment, as well as issues related to climate change and the situation of human rights defenders. ‘Man.
In addition to the issue of racial discrimination and xenophobia, the HRC will address the issues of children in armed conflicts and people with disabilities.