Hon. Philip Monthy and Hon. Wallace Cosgrow attended a session aimed at the reinforcement of the Role of Parliamentarians of the Member States of the ‘Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie’ in the process of the Universal Periodic Review of the United Nations Human Rights Council. The session took place in Geneva, Switzerland from the 5-6th September 2022.
As part of its Universal Periodic Review the United Nations Human Rights Council examines the human rights situation of each UN member state every four and a half years. Each state under review receives specific recommendations to strengthen the promotion and protection of human rights at the national level. There has been growing international consensus on the importance of the role of parliaments in the promotion and protection of human rights. Aware of this observation, the Human Rights Council is multiplying initiatives aimed at strengthening the parliamentary contribution to its work and to its Universal Periodic Review, hence such a session which took place earlier this month.
The workshop combined presentations, debates and practical exercises (case studies and good practices) on different themes relating to human rights. Around thirty-eight participants representing the parliaments of the following 19 countries: Andorra, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Egypt, Greece, Haiti, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Mauritania, Moldova, Niger, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principes, Seychelles, Togo, Tunisia and Vanuatu were present at the workshop.
It is to be noted that Seychelles received technical support from the UN on the Universal Periodic Review in 2020 through a virtual training. This resulted in Seychelles being able to submit its 3rd cycle of the review in March 2021 by the Minister for Tourism & Foreign Affairs, Mr. Sylvestre Radegonde and the report was reviewed at the 38th session of the Human Rights Council in May 2021.
