22-11-2023
The 54th regular session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) concluded recently. As a hub civil society organization that enjoys consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Beijing NGO sent a delegation to attend the session in Geneva from September 19 to 23. Delegates of New Sunshine Charity Foundation participated in the session in person, and delegates of Beijing Women’s Federation and the Hong Kong SAR delivered pre-recorded video speeches. Their remarks covered a range of topics such as the right to development, equality in employment, and adolescent mental health.
On September 20, local time, Jiao Yutong, Vice President of the BPAFFC, delivered a speech in the Expert Mechanism – Online Dialogue with Civil Society Organizations. He shared the progress made in key areas such as poverty reduction and climate change in the past two years since China put forth the Global Development Initiative, and pointed out that peace and development are the theme of the times. In order to promote the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda, he called on all sectors of society to build consensus and make joint efforts and urged NGOs around the world to forge and strengthen ties, practice multilateralism, and prioritize people's livelihoods in cooperation.
Beijing Women’s Federation recommended Shi Yan, Executive Director of Shared Harvest (Beijing) Agricultural Development Co., Ltd., to give a speech online. As a representative of women entrepreneurs, she believes that women enjoy many advantages in the agricultural sector, and rural women not only take care of their family but also engage in agricultural production. In view of various challenges and obstacles to women's development, she called on different sides to strengthen cooperation, pay attention to the protection of rural women's rights and interests, and protect and support human rights in pursuing high-quality development.
Chen Xingjia, head of the Project Department of New Sunshine Charity Foundation project, delivered a speech in Geneva, showing his concern about mental health problems such as adolescent depression. As NGOs in China are working to build a social support system, he hoped that more individuals and organizations could pitch in and strengthen international cooperation so that adolescent mental health problems can be seen, understood, and tackled as soon as possible.
In her online speech, Yang Yung Yung, Director of the Hong Kong Federation of Women, said that since the introduction of the National Security Law for Hong Kong, cooperation between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland has made steady progress, which is beneficial to the long-term prosperity of Hong Kong. Development and security are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. She hoped that the international community could view matters more objectively and comprehensively.
Since it was awarded consultative status with the ECOSOC in 2016, Beijing NGO it has organized delegations to participate in 15 sessions of the UNHRC, and the speeches cover a range of hot topics in key areas such as protection of women's and children's rights and interests, equality in employment, response to climate change, ecological conservation and environment protection, sustainable development, the right to health, the right to cultural services, and international solidarity. Beijing NGO will continue to support member organizations and experts and scholars in related fields to contribute Chinese wisdom in international affairs and global governance, share Beijing's experience and tell Beijing’s stories in the international arena, and promote people-to-people connectivity between China and other parts of the world.
Background Information (from the website of the UNHRC)
What is the Human Rights Council?
The Human Rights Council is a part of the United Nations. It works to make sure that all people know about their rights, and all people can use their rights.
For example, everyone has the right to live, be treated fairly, go to school, and have a say in the way his or her country is run.
What does the Human Rights Council do?
• It makes sure that all people understand their rights.
• It makes sure that all people have the same rights.
• It checks if all people can use their rights.
• It checks what governments do to protect the rights of people in their countries.
• It checks if governments do what they agreed on at the United Nations.
• It helps people whose rights were taken away.
To do all the 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 know a lot about 1 right or 1 country. When this happens, we call it “Special Procedures.”
How does the Human Rights Council work?
The Human Rights Council started working in 2006. It decided rules for its work.
All countries at the United Nations take part in the work of the Human Rights Council. But only some countries make decisions. There are 47 countries making decisions in the Human Rights Council.
The membership shall be based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats shall be distributed as follows among regional groups: • Group of African States (13) • Group of Asia-Pacific States (13) • Group of Latin American and Caribbean States (8) • Group of Western European and other States (7) • Group of Eastern European States (6)
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.
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