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HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL ELECTS BUREAU FOR FOURTH ANNUAL CYCLE
19 June 2009
The Human Rights Council has elected the new President and officers of the Bureau of the Council for its fourth annual cycle which begins today. 

At an Organizational Meeting held today, the Council elected by acclamation Alex Van Meeuwen of Belgium as the new President of the Human Rights Council. Four Vice Presidents were also elected: Hisham Badr of Egypt; Andrej Logar of Slovenia; Dyan T. Djani of Indonesia; and Carlos Portales of Chile. Mr. Badr was also elected as Rapporteur. The terms for the newly appointed bureau members will end on 18 June 2010.

In his opening statement, Mr. Van Meeuwen, after having paid tribute to his predecessors as well as High Commissioner Human Rights Navi Pillay for the support of her Office to the Council, said he would uphold the best practices of the Presidency as established by his predecessors, respecting opinions and convictions, as well as the right of everybody to speak their mind. The Council, he added, must assure the full and effective use of its instruments, like the special procedure mandate holders, independent experts and the new Universal Periodic Review mechanism. 

Also speaking at the meeting was the High Commissioner for Human Rights who thanked Ambassador Uhomoibhi for his “expertise, professionalism and personal warmth”, and noted the achievements made by the Council in its short history, such as the Universal Periodic Review process which will, by the end of 2011, have reviewed the human rights records of all 192 UN Member States and which has already been marked by significant progress. Ms. Pillay also highlighted the many country visits and a variety of human rights issues discussed at the Council in the context of interactive dialogues with special rapporteurs, which she said was quite unprecedented. “We must constantly ensure that the Council is well equipped to address emergencies, as well as chronic human rights situations, whatever the format of its discussions might be,”, she added. Before concluding, the High Commissioner underlined the importance for the Council “to continue to gather, with open-mindedness and frankness, a plurality of States’ views even those divisive and thorny issues that defy quick consensus and readily apparent solutions”. 

While welcoming the newly elected President and Bureau members, a number of States paid tribute to out-going President Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi for his “outstanding leadership” and ability to “build bridges” in the cause of defending human rights. 

Through his closing statement, Mr. Uhomoibhi asserted that with the membership of the Council came “weighty responsibilities” and that their actions or failures made a big difference in the human rights situations of peoples in many places across the world. “There can be no place so remote, no corner so dark that the United Nations human rights system should not reach”. He added: “There can be no justification for denying access to experts and officials appointed by the Council to investigate reported case of human rights violations”. He emphasized that “all violations of human rights, no matter where they occur, must be brought to the attention of the Council”, and they should be dealt expeditiously, transparently and in a non-discriminatory manner. 


Mr. Uhomoibhi said impunity was one of the greatest human rights challenges confronting the world today. “Impunity is no longer the domain of the state or its agents. Impunity is now rampant and widespread among individuals, business corporations, terrorist organizations, and other actors”, he stated. Moreover, he called on the international community and the human rights system to maintain a high state of vigilance against torture and all forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. Addressing the issue of poverty, the Ambassador called of States to continue to “advocate the eradication of poverty not as a favor, but as a right of the poor”. 

In conclusion, Ambassador Uhomoibhi said it was the collective duty of all States “to ensure that the Council lives up to its name and the standards expected of it. This is our duty. This is also the expectation of victims of human rights abuses”. 

The States who took the floor during the organizational meeting were Denmark (on behalf of the Western European and Other Group), Chile (on behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States), Egypt (on behalf of the African Group), Pakistan (on behalf of the Organization of the Islamic Conference), the United States, Mauritius, the United Arab Emirates (on behalf of the Arab Group), Brazil, China, Bahrain, Qatar, Tunisia, India, the Philippines, Morocco, Kyrgyzstan, Switzerland, Nepal, the Czech Republic, Indonesia, Algeria, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The International Services for Human Rights and the Arab Commission for Human Rights also took the floor. 

The twelfth regular session of the Human Rights Council will be held from 14 September to 2 October 2009. 

Membership of the Human Rights Council for Fourth Cycle (19 June 2009 to 18 June 2010):


Angola (2010), Argentina (2011), Bahrain (2011), Bangladesh (2012), Belgium (2012), Bolivia (2010), Bosnia and Herzegovina (2010), Brazil (2011), Burkina Faso (2011), Cameroon (2012), Chile (2011), China (2012), Cuba (2012), Djibouti (2012), Egypt (2010), France (2011), Gabon (2011), Ghana (2011), Hungary (2012), India (2010), Indonesia (2010), Italy (2010), Japan (2011), Jordan (2012), Kyrgyzstan (2012), Madagascar (2010), Mauritius (2012), Mexico (2012), Netherlands (2010), Nicaragua (2010), Nigeria (2012), Norway (2012), Pakistan (2011), Philippines (2010), Qatar (2010), Republic of Korea (2011), Russian Federation (2012), Saudi Arabia (2012), Senegal (2012), Slovakia (2011), Slovenia (2010), South Africa (2010), Ukraine (2011), United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (2011), United States of America (2012), Uruguay (2012) and Zambia (2011).