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UNITED NATIONS Press Release |
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COMMISSION ON
HUMAN RIGHTS ELECTS BUREAU FOR 2006 SESSION |
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16 January 2006 High Commissioner for Human
Rights Hopes Crucial Role of the Commission in the Field of Human Rights
Will Be Embodied in the Human Rights
Council The Commission on Human Rights today held a meeting in which it elected its bureau for its 2006 session. Manuel Rodriguez Cuadros of Peru was elected as Chairperson by acclamation. The Vice-Chairpersons elected were Roger Julien Menga of the Congo; Zohrab Mnatsakanian of Armenia; and Paul Meyer of Canada. The Rapporteur elected was Sunu Mahadi Soemarno of Indonesia. Louise Arbour, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the discussion on the reform of the United Nations human rights system had evolved in a most significant manner, culminating with the World Summit and its outcome document. Everyone eagerly awaited the outcome of the negotiations on the establishment of a Human Rights Council, which were currently taking place in New York. She strongly valued the Commission's heritage and believed that it should be honoured and carried forward in the most appropriate manner. She also very much hoped that the crucial and defining role that the Commission had had in the field of human rights for six decades would continue to be embodied in the newly-created Council. Mrs. Arbour said she wished to highlight the crucial role played by the special mechanisms in past decades, a system which was developed by the Commission over the years and which should be transferred to the Human Rights Council when established. The new Council should rightly build on the achievements of the Commission, particularly in preserving and nurturing a particularly close relationship with civil society through national institutions and non-governmental organizations. It should also be able to address human rights violations wherever there may occur and, in this connection, the setting up of a universal review system might prove to be a valuable tool in reducing the potential for polarization and politicization. Another asset would be for the Council to be able to meet more frequently and in an easier manner than in the current setting. The incoming Chairperson of the Commission, Ambassador Rodriguez Cuadros, said it was a great honour for Peru and for himself to be elected as the Chairperson of the sixty-second session of the Commission. The Commission on Human Rights was today perhaps facing the most decisive moment of its existence since it was created in 1948. The contributions of the Commission were many. He hoped that the process leading to the end of this historical cycle of the Commission and to the creation of the Human Rights Council would enhance the human rights protection system, make it more effective and close to the victims, and distance it from any kind of political manipulation. The outgoing Chairperson of the Commission, Makarim Wibisono of Indonesia, said it had been a great honour to serve as the Chairman of the Commission for the past year, not only due to the vital function of the Commission for the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide, but also because of the historic changes which were affecting this institution. The 2006 session of the Commission is scheduled to be held from 13 March to 21 April. |