NOON BRIEFING HIGHLIGHTS
Spokesperson for General Assembly President Csaba Kőrösi
United Nations Headquarters, New York
Monday, 27 February 2023
Stephane will be out shortly. Today’s guest will be Ross Smith, Deputy Country Director for Syria, World Food Programme.
HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL
President Csaba Kőrösi is in Geneva today.
He spoke at the opening of the 52nd regular session of the Human Rights Council, alongside Human Rights Council President Václav Bálek, Secretary-General António Guterres, and Hight Commissioner Volker Turk.
The session, as you know, began with a moment of silence in honour of the victims of the recent earthquake in Türkiye and Syria.
In his remarks, President Kőrösi said this year was the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights… and the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action.
And while there are reasons to celebrate, any festivities are clearly superseded by the reality of a world in a state of disarray, with unprecedented, cascading, and interlocking crises.
The world has not yet recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 70 countries in debt distress, women and girls marginalized, and the world off track to achieve the 2030 Agenda.
Armed conflicts are on the rise, including an aggression by a permanent member of the Security Council against a neighbouring State, effectively paralysing the Security Council.
The Human Rights Council, like the General Assembly, is at a crossroads, the President said.
He advocated for a transformation, a fundamental shift in how interlocking crises are managed.
Nowhere was this more apparent than in tackling climate change, which threatens human rights, food, health, adequate housing, and self-determination.
Integrating the grim reality of climate change with human rights, the General Assembly recognised that access to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a human right.
The President has called on the Human Rights Council to help move this discussion forward, given that quote “all human rights have their origin in political recognition.”
Human rights violations exists in every country, the President continued, no country has a perfect record.
In times of crisis, Governments must prioritise.
The crises faced are human crises, and quote “solutions that do not respect human rights are not solutions at all.”
He said that we will only have transformation when Governments and individuals assume our responsibilities to fulfill human rights.
That is why the President will continue to urge the General Assembly to mainstream human rights throughout its work.
Quote – “My hope is that by addressing the crisis of trust head-on, putting the rule of law front and centre, we will pave the way for the transformation that our societies and our institutions desperately need in this time of crises.”
The full remarks are online and in your inboxes: https://www.un.org/pga/77/2023/02/27/human-rights-council/
CIVIL SOCIETY
Just a short time ago, the President met with in a town hall with Civil Society Organizations.
Before that, he briefed Member States and Heads of the Geneva-based International Organizations on his priorities, the mandates of the General Assembly, and how he sees the General Assembly’s work between now and September.
BILATERALS
The President had bilaterals today.
In addition to the names I’ve already mentioned, the President today met with the Foreign Minister of the Swiss Confederation, Mr. Ignazio Cassis.
He also met with the Director-General of the UN Office in Geneva, that’s Ms. Tatiana Valovaya.
As well as with the Executive Director of UNITAR, Assistant Secretary-General Nikhil Seth.
TOMORROW
Looking to tomorrow, I wanted to highlight that the President will speak to the Geneva press corps on the UN Water Conference and other issues. He will take questions.
The press conference will take place at 9:15AM ET. It will be webcast on UN WebTV at https://media.un.org/index.php/en/asset/k19/k19tmjd7jw .
The President has a long list of bilaterals tomorrow.
In the evening, he will give the keynote address on “Crisis management and transformation for the UN we need” hosted by the Geneva Diplomatic Club, Global Studies Institute of the University of Geneva and the Forum Suisse de Politique Internationale.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Here in New York, the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction – known as the BBNJ – is in session for a second week. Those discussions are live thanks to UN WebTV and UNTV.
QUESTIONS
There were no questions for the Spokesperson.
