SA will play its part in ensuring human rights for all
With a seat on the Human Rights Council, the country will honour its historic commitment to equality among races.
OEngagement will continue to be guided by commitment to principles of international co-operation, peaceful settlement of disputes and respect for the rule of international law
n Tuesday the UN General Assembly in New York will elect new members of the Human Rights Council (HRC) — a 47member UN body headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. In 2020, SA ran for the HRC seat for 2023-2025 and its campaign was endorsed by the AU at the 39th ordinary session of the executive council held in Addis Ababa on October 14-15 2021. SA’s campaign has also been supported by various countries around the wider world. In the forthcoming elections, SA will be seeking a fifth term in the HRC after having served two consecutive terms as a founding member of the council from 2006 to 2010 and a further two from 2014 to 2019.
The HRC — established in 2006 as the successor to the Commission for Human Rights — is a subsidiary body of the UN General Assembly. At the core of its mandate is the responsibility to work with governments to promote and protect human rights and ensure these rights are realised and enjoyed by all people across the world.
SA attaches immense importance to the work of the HRC and will co-operate with other governments and partners, including civil society, to advance human rights and fundamental freedoms, not only in SA but across the globe.
SA’s quest for membership in the HRC is informed by the commitment made by its people, in the words of the constitution, to “build a united and democratic SA able to take its rightful place as a sovereign [and responsible] state in the family of nations”. With these words the people of SA wanted to send a clear message to the world that they are committed to playing a constructive role in global politics and in the creation of an international society based on respect for human dignity, the advancement of all human rights, the rule of law, justice, accountability, democracy and good governance.
As a member of the HRC, SA will pay attention to all issues that resonate with its priorities, such as the advancement of the rights of women, children and persons with disabilities; the elimination of gender-based violence; promoting access to quality health care; and development of binding laws to regulate the activities of multinational corporations and other business enterprises — for example, in mining — which impact on the ability of people to enjoy human rights.
The UN has drawn attention to the shocking reality “that the international community continues to tolerate (massive and direct) breaches of
economic, social and cultural rights which, if they occurred in relation to civil and political rights, would provoke expressions of horror and outrage and would lead to concerted calls for immediate remedial action”.
More than 700-million people, or 10% of the world’s population, live in extreme poverty, most in sub-Saharan Africa, largely forgotten by the powers that be. SA will therefore put emphasis on the need to treat all human rights — civil, political, economic, social and cultural — on an equal footing since they are indivisible, interdependent and interrelated.
Given the different and sometimes conflicting views of countries in the HRC, SA will focus on the need to preserve the mandate of the HRC to avoid the persistent attempts by some countries to politicise its work and deal with issues on its agenda based on double standards and in a selective and divisive manner.
One of the important programmes on the HRC agenda is to fully implement the commitments made by governments to fight racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerances. This commitment was made at the World Conference Against Racism held in Durban in 2001. Since that conference SA and the Africa Group in Geneva and New York have been working to ensure the decisions taken in Durban are implemented.
To this end, SA will continue championing the resolutions in the HRC and in the UN General Assembly, highlighting the responsibilities of governments, societies and individuals around the world to fight racism in all its manifestations, including racial discrimination against and the profiling of Africans and people of African descent in law enforcement and other programmes of
social administration.
SA’s decision to go back into the HRC is also inspired by the need to promote human solidarity and for the international community to work together to protect human rights and resolve the common problems facing humanity.
As a beneficiary of international support during apartheid, SA will continue to support and call for the right to self-determination of the people of Palestine and Western Sahara. In addition SA will advocate for an end to the imposition of unilateral coercive measures by some western countries on developing countries.
From SA’s perspective, the imposition of these measures has a detrimental impact on the enjoyment of human rights by citizens of affected countries.
In the HRC — as in all other multilateral organisations — SA’s engagement will continue to be guided by its commitment to principles of international co-operation, peaceful settlement of disputes, respect for the rule of international law, the development of Africa and the promotion and protection of human rights.