In UN human rights forums, African States have a reputation for voting as a bloc, obstructing human rights, and defending the sovereignty of developing countries. Indeed, in 2011, Bertrand Ramcharan, a respected human rights scholar and a former acting UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, complained that the African and Asian Groups, which together occupy 26 of the Human Rights …
Parmi les forums des droits humains à l’ONU, les États africains ont la réputation de voter en tant que bloc, obstruant les droits humains et défendant la souveraineté des pays en développement. En effet, en 2011, Bertrand Ramcharan, un spécialiste respecté des droits humains et ancien Haut-Commissaire en exercice (par intérim), s’est plaint que les groupes africains et asiatiques, qui …
Human rights analysis of high level speeches during the general debate of the UN General Assembly Each fall, the world leaders descend upon New York to speak at the general debate of the UN General Assembly (GA). The world’s presidents, prime ministers, foreign ministers, and assorted dignitaries are allotted fifteen minutes each to discuss the global crises and trends that …
As UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed stated during her address to the Council last March , ‘Human rights are an intrinsic part of sustainable development—and sustainable development is a powerful vehicle for the realisation of all human rights.’ The adoption of the 2030 Agenda in 2015 signalled a fundamental shift in the UN’s development paradigm—from one traditionally based on a flawed orthodoxy overemphasising economic growth to a broader understanding of development, which takes into account …
The SDGs are mostly aligned with human rights objectives — to emphasise this, the UN human rights mechanisms are showing a willingness to hold states accountable to their SDG commitments. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are renewing the debate on the relationship between human rights and development. In 2005, Philip Alston famously described the relationship between the Millennium Development Goals …
En su mayor parte, los ODS coinciden con los objetivos de derechos humanos; para enfatizar esto, los mecanismos de derechos humanos de la ONU han manifestado su voluntad de hacer que los Estados rindan cuentas de sus compromisos con respecto a los ODS. Los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) están renovando el debate sobre la relación entre los derechos …
There are strong connections between human rights monitoring and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Indeed, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development ‘seeks to realise the human rights of all.’ So it should not come as a surprise to learn that the Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI)’s metrics tracking country performance on the provisions of the core human rights treaties [1] are …
This post is the third in a series of blogs produced by the URG-NYC team to take stock of the implementation of the UN reforms, which were adopted in the past 18 months. This post covers reforms to the peace and security pillar. Objectives All of the reforms are intended, to varying degrees, to modernise the UN, to streamline and …
Guiding States on how to prevent and respond to torturous forms of abuse of power or position is what the UN Convention against Torture is all about. Yet, despite torture being long condemned and the prohibition recognised as a jus cogens international norm, there continue to be grave abuses perpetrated in many countries and in all regions. In others, lack …
This post is the second in a series of blogs produced by the URG-NYC team to take stock of the implementation of the UN reforms, which were adopted in the past 18 months, and provides an update on perhaps the most opaque series of reforms: changes to the UN management system. Objectives All of the reforms are intended, to varying …
