– As delivered –

Statement by H.E. Mr.?Melitón Alejandro Arrocha Ruíz, Permanent Representative of Panama and Vice-President of the 蘑菇视频 General Assembly, on behalf of H.E. Mrs. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of the 73rd Session of the 蘑菇视频 General Assembly

2 November 2018

 

Excellencies,

I welcome the President of the Human Rights Council, Ambassador Vojislav ?uc, who will present the General Assembly with the Human Rights Council report contained in documents A/73/53 y A/73/53/Add.1.

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the remarkable efforts of Ambassador ?uc to improve the methods OF work of the Council.

Since I assumed the Presidency of the General Assembly, I have insisted in the importance of making the United Nations more relevant to everyone.

And, to achieve this goal, the work of the Human Rights Council is essential.

Since its creation, as a subsidiary body of the General Assembly, the Human Rights Council continuously contributes, through its various mechanisms, procedures and resolutions, to the development of the international human rights law.

Furthermore, the Council’s work is essential in regards of the situation of human rights around the world.

In that sense, I would like to highlight the Universal Periodic Review as a fundamental mechanism to follow the progress and challenges of human rights and fundamental freedoms in all countries.

 

Excellencies,

Protecting human rights is indispensable if we are to achieve the main aspiration of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: eradicating poverty, in all its forms and dimensions.

In this way, the work of the Human Rights Council contributes to the efforts of the General Assembly to fulfill the 2030 Agenda and the objective of leaving no one behind.

We must continue the efforts to improve both coordination and synergy amongst the various bodies and mechanisms of the United Nations System, avoiding the duplication or overlap of work.

 

Excellencies,

Next December, the General Assembly will summon two plenary meetings to commemorate the seventieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the twenty fifth anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action and the twentieth anniversary of the Declaration on the right and responsibility of individuals, groups and organs to promote and protect the universally recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms.

These events offer a unique opportunity to transmit a clear message to the world about the importance of strengthening the human rights system of the Organization, including the Human Rights Council, and to reassert that the dignity and rights of all persons, without any discrimination, must be protected.

Thank you.