UAE pioneer, partner in global human rights decision-making: Expert – News

The state is a global model of equality and a model of interfaith dialogue and coexistence

A number of international human rights experts reiterated that the UAE is a pioneer in human rights and has become an important partner in promoting human rights around the world.

The experts noted that the UAE is also a partner in global human rights decision-making, in particular its three-time membership of the UN Human Rights Council, most recently for the 2022-2024 term, as well as its partnerships with relevant international organizations and parties.

In a high-level seminar held yesterday evening from Geneva via videoconference, experts said that the UAE is an outstanding global example of equality and interfaith dialogue and coexistence, and that its achievements in human rights have marked five milestones since its founding. ten years ago.

The seminar was held on the occasion of the release of the UAE Human Rights Shadow Report, in preparation for the review of the UAE’s formal report to the UN Human Rights Council in May next year.

Participants mentioned the UAE’s prominent role in global humanitarian work, especially its immediate response to the impact of the recent earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria, as well as its humanitarian efforts in many other countries, including Yemen.

During the seminar, experts spoke of the UAE’s outstanding achievements in supporting fundamental rights such as personal freedom, ensuring gender equality and equal opportunities, the rights of children, the elderly and people of determination, as well as labor rights, combating human rights, etc. Trafficking, terrorism, money laundering, etc.

Ayman Nasri, head of the Forum for Arab-European Dialogue and Human Rights, an entity with advisory capacity at the United Nations, stressed that the UAE’s record on human rights has been widely praised by the international community for its extraordinary achievements .

He said that the UAE has been a member of the UN Human Rights Council for three times and has become an important partner in international human rights decision-making.

Eric Gozlan, Co-Director of the International Council on Diplomacy and Dialogue, spoke of the UAE’s leadership on human rights, emphasizing that the country’s wise leadership has courageously decided to sign the Abraham Accords with Israel and is moving towards strengthening ties with Israel Bilateral relations in various fields.

He stressed that the UAE is also a global beacon of tolerance and coexistence, having hosted the historic fraternal meeting between Pope Francis, leader of the Catholic Church, and Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif. The country also recently opened the Abrahamic Family House, a mosque, church and synagogue complex in Abu Dhabi, which will serve as an interfaith space to spread tolerance and peace.

He emphasized that the UAE has proved that tolerance and peace are interlinked and go hand in hand, and today it is a pioneer of tolerance and peace, setting a unique example for the world. Gozlan added that this UAE example proves that there can be no tolerance without peace and no peace without tolerance.

Human rights expert Dr. Manal Masalmi spoke about the UAE’s efforts in women’s empowerment, highlighting that the UAE has succeeded in integrating women in society in a unique way and that the country has developed an innovative strategy to strengthen the role of the family and its empower.

Dr. Abdul-Jabbar Al-Tayeb, President of the Bahrain Association of Jurists, said that human rights issues touch many fields, including climate and digitalization, which we previously thought were far from human rights.

Issa Rashid Al Arabi, Adviser to the President of the Arab Federation for Human Rights (AFHR), confirmed that the UAE has made remarkable progress in human rights since its establishment.

The shadow report is a report prepared by non-governmental organizations in response to the official reports submitted by the member states of the Council to the UN Human Rights Council on a regular basis, and the frequency is once every four years.

Official authorities, expected to do so, submit reports on developments in the human rights situation in so-called shadow reports, before submitting official reports in which each country talks about its human rights record. This is a parallel report to the official report of the country concerned.

More than 13 Arab, European and international human rights organizations and 17 experts from around the world participated in the preparation of the report, which is closer to an independent reading of the UAE’s forthcoming official document.