Ashraf AboArafe
Her Excellency the President of the Human Rights Commission, Dr. Hala bint Mazyad Al-Tuwaijri, affirmed the Kingdom’s determination to move forward towards achieving the best global levels in promoting and protecting human rights within the framework of its Vision 2030.
This came during her address in an opening statement to the United Nations Human Rights Council in the interactive dialogue session within the fourth round of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the Council in Geneva.
She said: The Kingdom’s government views the universal periodic review mechanism with great importance by dealing seriously with this mechanism, starting with the submission of its national reports, and creating effective national mechanisms to follow up on the implementation of recommendations, involving stakeholders, and participating with delegations that include high-level representatives from various stakeholders. Endorsing and implementing most of the recommendations presented to the Kingdom during the previous three review rounds, indicating that the implementation rate reached 85% of the total number of recommendations presented during those rounds, amounting to (450) recommendations.
Her Excellency the President of the Human Rights Commission explained during the opening statement that during the period covered by the report, the Kingdom achieved historical and qualitative reforms and developments in various areas of human rights within the framework of the “Kingdom’s Vision 2030,” which was consistent with international standards in the field of the right to development and in addition to them, as it stems from The principle that human beings should be the focus, subject and beneficiary of development. These three reforms included all levels: legislative, judicial, executive, procedural and all human rights and their subjects, which is considered an application of the principle of the complementarity and indivisibility of human rights.
The head of the Human Rights Commission confirmed that the reforms and developments achieved in accordance with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 in the field of human rights exceed 100 reforms, and these reforms did not stop even in the most severe circumstances that occupied the world, such as what happened during the Corona pandemic, noting that an effective legal and institutional framework has been built. To promote and protect human rights, as work was done to enhance the efficiency of practices by ensuring their consistency with the legal framework that is consistent with regional and international human rights standards, especially those that fall within the scope of the Kingdom’s obligations under the human rights conventions to which it has become a party.
Al-Tuwaijri confirmed that the Kingdom has witnessed many reforms and developments, including legislation and regulations. With the aim of promoting and protecting human rights, these reforms and legislation represented a qualitative leap.
She pointed out that the field of women’s rights and empowerment received the largest share of the reforms and developments that were achieved during the period covered by the report, with more than (50) reforms, and that the field of eliminating violence against women and girls received an amendment to the system of protection from abuse on (March 9, 2022 AD).
She added that with regard to the field of children’s rights and the recommendations presented in this aspect, Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s initiative to protect children in the cyber world 2020 was launched, and the National Family Strategy was launched, which includes (39) initiatives that combine to promote and protect children’s rights.
With regard to the recommendations related to the right to work and workers’ rights, His Excellency the President of the Human Rights Commission said that the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 contributed to strengthening the work environment in the Kingdom and making it attractive, competitive and based on a human rights-based approach, noting that education in the Kingdom is compulsory for those who are six years old. to fifteen years, noting that the launch of the human capabilities development program aims to build an integrated educational journey.
She stressed that through the universal periodic review mechanism that was established with the establishment of this Council to address the challenges faced by the previous Human Rights Commission by applying the same standards to all countries; I take this opportunity to stress the importance of adhering to the principle of the complementarity and indivisibility of human rights and giving them the same weight of attention, and the correct implementation of the principle of “universality of human rights,” which should accommodate the commonalities among peoples in a way that contributes to the promotion and protection of human rights in all countries of the world, regardless of their different and diverse cultures.
The interactive dialogue session to discuss the Kingdom’s report on the Universal Periodic Review witnessed an active dialogue in which a number of Council member states praised during the review the achievements of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 in terms of a qualitative development leap in the field of supporting and protecting human rights.
The universal periodic review is one of the most important mechanisms followed by the Human Rights Council at the United Nations. With the aim of reviewing the implementation of the organization’s member states’ implementation of their human rights obligations every four years, it also provides an opportunity for participating states to present their measures taken to improve the situation of human rights and overcome the challenges facing their enjoyment.
The Universal Periodic Review, established by the United Nations General Assembly in March 2006 under Resolution 60/251, also aims to urge States to promote, protect, support and expand human rights in every country.
