Geneva – Morocco is keen to leave its mark on the work of the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC), over which it holds the presidency this year, said Ambassador Omar Zniber, Morocco’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office at Geneva and current president of the HRC for 2024.
“Morocco’s presidency has one fundamental objective, namely to leave its mark on the rationalization and efficiency of the work of the HRC,” Zniber told MAP in an interview on the occasion of the opening of the HRC regular session on Monday.
Seven co-facilitations are already underway as part of the Moroccan presidency, pointed out the ambassador, who expressed his awareness of the ‘extremely sensitive’ nature of his mission at the head of the HRC, particularly his ‘responsibility to ensure that the debate is held within the framework of a calm dialogue marked by mutual respect and compliance with the rules of procedure.”
In addition to issues relating to efficiency and rationalization, the Moroccan presidency, he detailed, is
marked by other co-facilitations concerning, in particular, the reform of the Council aimed at “reviewing the statutes of this body and making proposals to the United Nations General Assembly.”
The HRC Chairman also mentioned in particular a co-facilitation on new technologies, which will focus on ways of using digital technology in the Council’s work, and another on gender parity.
“On this point, we can be delighted to have achieved something: the establishment of an advisory body, for the first time under the Moroccan presidency, which will be made up of world-class personalities and whose list is already ready,” the diplomat explained.
This project will be officially launched on September 30 by the Moroccan presidency, he added, noting that this body’s mission will be to get the entire UN ecosystem working, both in Geneva, New York, and elsewhere, so that gender parity is “scrupulously respected at the decision-making level, in the hierarchy, and in the sharing of consequences.”
Another equally importa
nt co-facilitation concerns accessibility for people with disabilities. “This is a major human rights issue on which we are working, and the Moroccan Presidency hopes to leave its mark by setting up a platform with guides,” Zniber added.
He also mentioned the co-facilitation dedicated to improving the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process, a mechanism for peer review of human rights.
As part of his commitment to advancing the priorities of the HRC presidency since Morocco began its term at the head of the Council, the ambassador recalled the holding last week of a major international meeting on the impact of artificial intelligence on the enjoyment of human rights, with the participation of Directors-General of international organizations, including Unesco, for the ethical dimension, and the International Telecommunication Union to “talk about the digital divide, which is giving rise to major concerns in terms of development, access to education, and medicine.”
He noted that Morocco is making this issue
“a priority, on par with the impact of climate change on people’s lives, which “not only destroys living conditions but also drives human mobility,” as evidenced by the United Nations’ worrying figures on this subject.
The agenda for the 57th regular session of the HRC in Geneva promises to be extremely full, according to Mr. Zniber, who had already announced 32 draft resolutions for this session, as well as the examination of country situations and the appointment of new mandates.
During its five-week session, the Council will examine over 80 reports submitted by the UN Secretariat and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, human rights experts, and other investigative bodies on a wide range of topics, as well as the human rights situation in almost fifty countries.
Source: Agence Marocaine De Presse