Council Adopts Programme of Work The Human Rights Council this afternoon held an interactive dialogue with the Chairperson of the Coordinating Committee of Special Procedures, the Vice-Chairperson of the fifty-seventh session of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights,…

Hears Statements from Non-Governmental Organizations The Human Rights Council this morning concluded its high-level segment, hearing statements by dignitaries from Slovenia, Senegal, Congo, Indonesia, Iran, Philippines, Togo, Cameroon, and Venezuela, as well as the Secretary-General of the Inter…

The Human Rights Council this afternoon adopted the agenda of the first session of the Council. The President of the Council, Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba of Mexico, said that although the programme of work had also been scheduled to be adopted, further time for consultations would be…

The Human Rights Council this morning began the third day of its high-level segment, hearing statements by dignitaries from Mozambique, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Algeria, Burundi, Maldives, Rwanda, Ecuador, Armenia, Georgia, Norway, Czech Republic, Albania, Bahrain, Malta and Denmark. Many speakers…

Hears Statements from National Delegations and Specialized Agencies The Human Rights Council this afternoon started its general segment, hearing a series of statements from national delegations, United Nations specialized agencies and other bodies. Speakers welcomed the creation of the Council…

Hears Statements from Ministers and Other Dignitaries from 16 Countries The Human Rights Council this morning continued its high-level segment, hearing statements from Ministers and other dignitaries from Bulgaria, the United Kingdom, Andorra, Croatia, Cuba, Estonia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia,…

The Human Rights Council this afternoon concluded the second day of its high-level segment, hearing statements on the role of the new body by dignitaries from the Holy See, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Timor-Leste, Mexico, Cyprus, China, the Russian Federation, Poland, Azerbaijan,…

Mr. President [Luis Alfonso de Alba], let me first congratulate you – or rather, let me congratulate the Council on choosing you as its first President. This choice augurs well indeed for the Council’s future work. We at UN Headquarters in New York know you well, from your time in the…

Following is the opening statement by Jan Eliasson, President of the General Assembly, to the first session of the Human Rights Council, which he delivered today at the Palais des Nations in Geneva: “I think we all agree that today we are all part of an historic occasion, the opening of the…

Following is the statement by Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba of Mexico, the President of the first session of the Human Rights Council, to the first meeting of the Council which opened today at the Palais des Nations in Geneva: “Almost 60 years ago, with the adoption of the Universal…