Marrakesh, October 30 (QNA) – HE Chairperson of the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) and President of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) Maryam bint Abdullah Al Attiyah has called on all members of the Global Alliance and its partners to join forces to work as one team to advance human rights around the world.
Delivering the closing speech before the annual meeting of the Global Alliance of Arab Human Rights Institutions, which was held in Morocco, HE Maryam bint Abdullah Al Attiyah said that GANHRI will hold its 14th International Conference in October 2023 and will be hosted by one of the national institutions of the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI).
She stressed the significance of this conference as a very important global gathering of national human rights institutions and their partners, noting that such meetings, which bring together members and partners under one roof, provide an opportunity to build bridges of communication and to exchange experiences and information.
On the sidelines of the annual meeting of the coalition, HE Maryan bint Abdullah Al Attiyah held meetings with heads of regional networks that are members of the coalition, during which they discussed ways of supporting the coalition for human rights around the world and exchanged experiences between members of the coalition, in addition to supporting the protection and promotion of human rights defenders.
The President of GANHRI discussed with HE Chair of ENNHRI Sirpa Rautio updates on the work plan and preparation for the 14th International Conference of the Global Alliance, identifying potential topics, and guiding the election process in the European region to identify the hosting institution. They also discussed the Global Action Plan to support the protection and promotion of human rights defenders and civic space.
HE Al Attiyah said that the global action plan is an integral part of the framework for implementing the 2020 strategic plan of the coalition and its four regional networks, noting that the strategic plan focuses on the role of the coalition in supporting the strengthening of national human rights institutions and promoting and documenting the exchange of practices and experiences among members of the coalition.
Meanwhile, Al Attiyah stressed, during a meeting with HE President of the Network of African National Human Rights Institutions Dr. Evaristo H. Mogwadi the important role of the heads of the four networks of the Alliance in implementing the Alliance’s strategy and global plan, within the framework of the governance of the Global Alliance. She listened to the priorities of the African region, and also shared a brief overview and expected outcomes of the meeting.
She stressed the need to encourage governments to ratify international human rights treaties and the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, and to provide advice on their implementation, as well as to establish national protection systems and to monitor and report restrictions on civil space, by collecting classified and relevant data, in addition to contacting international and regional human rights systems in support of human rights defenders and implementation of recommendations.
Al Attiyah explained that the main office of the Global Alliance will sponsor the implementation of the Global Action Plan and will be responsible for managing, directing, and coordinating the process of implementing the plan’s actions, to ensure that its objectives are achieved in line with the implementation of the Alliance’s strategic plan.
Her Excellency also met with HE President of the Americas Network for Human Rights Raquel Caballero de Guevara to congratulate her on her appointment as Head of the Ombudsman Office in El Salvador. She also affirmed the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions’ continuous support for building the network of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights in the American continent.
In this context, HE the Chairperson of NHRC and President of GANHRI met with HE Chan Un Park, representative of the President of the Asia Pacific Network for Human Rights, and listened to the challenges of the Asia-Pacific region.
Al Attiyah explained that one-third of the coalition members in the various regions face cases of threats and acts of intimidation against their institutions, members, and employees. National human rights institutions are also facing increasing challenges that impede their work in many different ways, including reducing their budget, which drains the resources that they need to carry out their work.
She noted that many national human rights institutions face various forms of threats to their independence, emphasizing the importance of building the confidence of human rights defenders through the work of independent and effective national human rights institutions, as well as through public support for human rights defenders, communicating with them and their networks, and organizing discussions on human rights-related challenges facing the future of civil space and human rights defenders, in addition, to support of the development and adoption of legislation and policies as well as the care and protection of human rights defenders.
HE Maryam bint Abdullah Al Attiyah held a joint meeting with the General Secretariat of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions, whose General Secretary is Amna Ayyash, and the Alliance’s office in Geneva, managed by Catherina Rose. During the meeting, they discussed the agenda of the annual meeting, agreed on the key messages of the meeting and coordinating and reviewing bilateral meetings.
(QNA)