U.N. Human Rights Council

Why in news?

• India was re-elected to the U.N. Human Rights Council for the 2022-24 term on 15^th October 2021 with an overwhelming majority in the General Assembly

More about the news:

• The 76th UN General Assembly held elections on 15^th October 2021 for 18 new members of the U.N. Human Rights Council who will serve for a period of three years, starting in January 2022.
• India got 184 votes in the 193-member assembly, while the required majority was 97.

About UNHRC:

• The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations.
• It is responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on them.
• The UNHRC was established by the UN General Assembly on 15 March 2006 to replace the UN Commission on Human Rights.

Structure:

• The headquarters of UNHRC is in Geneva, Switzerland and meets for three or more sessions per year.
• The Council will have a President and four vice presidents representing regional groups in the Council. They are responsible for all procedural and organizational matters related to the Council.

Composition:

• The Council is made up of 47 UN member states, which are elected by the UN General Assembly.
• The members of the Council shall serve for a period of three years and shall not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms.
• The membership is based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats are distributed among regional groups Group of African States (13), Group of Asia-Pacific States (13), Group of Eastern European States (6), Group of Latin American and Caribbean States (8) and Group of Western European and other States (7).
• As of January 2021, 119 of the 193 U.N. member States will have served as a member of the HRC

What does UNHRC do?

Advisory Committees:

• To do its work, the Human Rights Council gets help from groups of experts. They are called ‘Advisory Committees’.
• Sometimes, the Human Rights Council also works with other experts who have knowledge about a particular right or a particular country, called ‘Special Procedures’.

Universal Periodic Review (UPR):

• All Council members and U.N. member states are required to undergo a Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
• It examines a member’s fulfillment of its human rights obligations and commitments.
• The review is an intergovernmental process that facilitates an interactive dialogue between the country under review and the UPR working group

PRACTICE QUESTION:

With reference to ‘U.N. Human Rights Council’, consider the following statements:

1. Members of UNHRC are elected by the UN General Assembly

2. The members of the Council shall not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer