Adopts International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; Decides to Hold Special Session on Situation of Human Rights in Palestinian occupied territory The Human Rights Council has concluded...

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,...

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...

Hears Statements from Ministers and Other Dignitaries from 21 Countries The Human Rights Council this afternoon concluded the first day of its high-level segment, hearing from Ministers and other dignitaries from Sri Lanka, Luxembourg, Gabon, Serbia, France, Morocco, Brazil, Germany, the Republic...

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...

The first session of the Human Rights Council, which the President of the General Assembly Jan Eliasson says will herald a new beginning for the promotion and protection of human rights, will be held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva from 19 to 30 June 2006. Mr. Eliasson, United Nations...

The first meeting of the newly established Human Rights Council opens in Geneva on Monday, 19 June, marking a new beginning for United Nations efforts to promote and protect fundamental freedoms worldwide. This inaugural session, set to last until 30 June, will bring together high-level...

MARKS 'NEW BEGINNING' FOR HUMAN RIGHTS PROMOTION, PROTECTION NEW YORK, 9 May 2006 - The General Assembly today, in what its President called a new beginning for the promotion and protection of human rights, elected the first 47 members of the newly-created Human Rights Council.Following three...