SECTION V Working Through a Rules-based International System

8/7/2019 SECTION V Working Through a Rules-based International System

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SECTION V: Working Through a Rules-based International

System

Effective international institutions are essential for promoting respect for

human rights and the rule of law. The UK works in international institutions

including the UN, the EU, the Commonwealth, the Organization for Security

and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Council of Europe to encourage

the implementation of human rights standards and to strengthen the

international response to human rights violations. We also believe tha t these

organisations could do more to promote human rights and democracy .

We work to improve the implementation by UN member states of their human

rights obligations under the major UN human rights treaties. We encourage a

more effective UN contribution to promoting human rights in practice and

press the UN to address all human rights violations. We play a prominent role

in the UN Human Rights Council. We give strong support to the UN special

rapporteurs, who are tasked by the Human Rights Council to e xamine,

monitor, advise and publicly report on human rights issues or abuses in

particular countries, and to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human

Rights.

The EU is founded on a commitment to human rights, democracy and the rule

of law. This was embedded in its founding treaties and reinforced in 2000

when the EU proclaimed the 2000 Charter of Fundamental Rights as a

political declaration. The Charter was re-proclaimed in 2007 and accorded

treaty status by the Treaty of Lisbon. With the entry into force of the Treaty of

Lisbon, the 2007 Charter became legally binding in December 2009.

We support the work of the EU to promote human rights both within its 27

member countries and in its external relations. We agree with High

Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice -

President of the European Commission Catherine Ashton when she told the

European Parliament in December, that human rights should be the silver


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thread that runs through all of our external action and a gold standard of our

foreign policy.

The UK sees the Commonwealth as an important partner for promoting

human rights. The Singapore Declaration of Commonwealth Principles of

1971 set out the principle that all citizens enjoy equal rights, including the right

to frame the society in which they live through free and democratic political

processes. These principles were affirmed in the Harare Declaration in 1991,

which included a commitment by member states to respect fundamental

human rights. We are determined to strengthen the Commonwealths effort to

promote democratic values and human rights.

The OSCE is the largest regional security organisation in the world. It has

56 members including the EU, the US, Russia and countries of Central

Asia and the Southern Caucasus. We support the OSCEs work to

promote regional stability through three dimensions of security, covering

political and military work, economic and environmental activity , and the so-

called human dimension, encompassing human rights, de mocracy,

fundamental freedoms and the rule of law.

The Council of Europe works to promote human rights, democracy and the

rule of law across Europe. With 47 members, itworks through a system of

peer review under which member states review each other against their

legal commitments. The UK assumes the chair of the Council of Europe at

the end of 2011. We will use our chairmanship to push for reform of the

European Court of Human Rights.

United Nations

The Human Rights Council adopted more than 70 resolutions on a wide range

of issues in 2010. We participated actively in all negotiations, working for

strong human rights outcomes.


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The UN Human Rights Council improved its response to situations of concern

in 2010. Special sessions of the Council on Haiti and Ivory Coast at the start

and end of the year focused on the human rights of the people in both

countries and, in the case of Haiti, helped direct the UN technical assistance

in support. Both sessions benefited from the active role played by Latin

American and African countries.

The Council kept its focus on countries of concern. It passed resolutions on

Burma and DPRK, confirming the mandates of special rapporteurs. The

Councils vote to extend the mandate of the independent expert on

Sudanensured that he was able to assist the whole of the country during the

referendum on the future of the South. The Council also agreed to continue

the mandates of the special rapporteurs forCambodia, Somalia and Haiti. At

its June session the Council adopted resolutions on the human rights

situations in Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan. At the same session we joined

more than 50 UN members in signing a cross-regional statement expressing

concern about the human rights situation in Iran.

The US, which joined the Council in 2009, has given an impetus to its work,

including by establishing a mandate for a Special Rapporteur on Freedom of

Association and Assembly in September. At the same session we supported

a Mexican initiative to create a Working Group on the Eli mination of

Discrimination against Women. Both mandates were agreed by consensus.

This should encourage the mandate holders to go about their work with

purpose.

At the September session we initiated a resolution to renew the mandate of

the Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery. This was adopted

by consensus and with an increased number of co-sponsors. This

demonstrates the priority that UN members attach to tackling modern-day

slavery and their appreciation for the work of Special Rapporteur Gulnara

Shahinian. Minister of State Jeremy Browne welcomed Ms Shahinian to the


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UK on 2 December, when he had the opportunity to discuss, and put on

record, our support for her work.

We were concerned by General Assembly and Human Rights Council

resolutions in 2010 recognisinga right to sanitation. Rights are legal

obligations, created by treaty or customary international law. We recognise a

right to water as a part of the right to an adequate standard of living in the

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, but we do

not believe that there is sufficient legal basis to recognise a self -standing right

to sanitation distinct from other rights such as the right to health. We

abstained on the General Assembly resolution and disassociated from the

resolution in the Council. We hope to work with the lead sponsors of these

resolutions and the UN independent expert on the issue of human rights

obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation in 2011 to

agree a mandate that will ensure the important work of the independent

expert continues. Our legal position does not undermine our support for

addressing sanitation issues. The UK is the biggest donor to low-income

countries for basic systems of water supply and sanitation.

We were at the forefront of action to defend the ability of NGOs to contribute

to open discussion in the Council. This was particularly evident in our

interventions in support of NGOs attempts to raise awareness of

discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.

Despite improvements in the Councils performance, it is difficult for us to

achieve our objectives. The UK and like-minded states are in a voting

minority and have to work hard to persuade other members that the UN

should address human rights situations in specific countries. We believe that

this is essential to the Councils credibility. We hope that the G20 countries

will play a greater role in the promotion of human rights in future.

A review of the Human Rights Council began at the end of 2010 which is due

to conclude in the late summer of 2011. We would like the review to make the

Council more effective. We have made recommendations to achieve this,


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including giving special rapporteurs and other independent mechanisms a role

in convening the Council and allocating them more time to report at Council

sessions. We will continue to take every opportunity to promote institutional

changes that will strengthen the Councils performance. However, we are

realistic about our chances of success.

The UKs membership of the Human Rights Council will expire in June 2011

after the maximum permitted two consecutive terms. We have announced

that we will run again for membership in 2013. In the interim, we will remain

actively engaged in the Councils work and in shaping the EUs approach .

In addition to its main sessions, the Council met in February, May and

November to conduct reviews of 48 UN member states human rights records.

Overall the Universal Periodic Review system is working well, allowing serious

consideration of human rights developments in countries under review. The

majority of states took the process seriously; submitting national reports;

fielding high-level and expert delegations; working with civil society partners in

preparation for and in follow up to the review; and remaining open and self -

critical.

Some member states however sought to manipulate the review process,

either by stacking the speakers list with friends ready to praise their

performance, such as Egypt in February, or by avoiding a clear response to

recommendations, such as DPRK in March. We were disappointed that

Lebanon used its review in November to air Middle East political issues,

distracting attention from its own human rights performance. We will be

seeking further refinements to the review process to make it the most effective

multilateral mechanism possible for the promotion of human rights.

While some member states, such as Angola, Qatar, Kazakhstan, Iraq and

Bahrain, implemented their review recommendations, others, such as Iran,

Egypt and Laos, failed to do so. A full assessment of the review process will

come as member states are reviewed for a second time, starting in 2012. We

are encouraging member states to report back to the Council at the half -way


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point between reviews. To show leadership we provided a progress report on

the implementation of our review recommendations to the March Council

session.

We took further steps to ensure that officials of the Foreign and

Commonwealth Office (FCO) are able to strengthen the UKs input into

country reviews. Our embassies and high commissions have engaged

governments and civil society before, during and after reviews. We have

increased our assistance to governments and NGOs to support the

implementation of recommendations. For example, in 2010 we provided

financial support to Save the Children to work with NGOs in Sierra Leone and

other countries ahead of their reviews in 2011, and to Article 19 to follow up

with Mexico on its freedom of expression recommendations. Our High

Commission in Freetown and our Embassy in Kathmandu met local NGOs to

discuss priorities ahead of the 2011 reviews of Sierra Leone and Nepal. Our

High Commission in Luanda met representatives of the Angolan government

after its review in March to discuss its recommendations. We are paying for a

visit of Angolan government officials to the UK in 2011.

At the 65th session of the UN General Assembly in 2010 we were pleased

that so many member states joined in condemning human rights abuses in

Burma, Iran and DPRK. We hope that the countries concerned will take heed

of this strong message from the UN membership. The General Assembly is

the UNs only universal membership human rights body and allows the worlds

smaller nations which do not have the capacity to run for a seat on the Human

Rights Council to express their views. We were pleased that Irans attempt to

prevent voting on the resolution dealing with its human rights record was

soundly defeated.

We welcomed the opportunity to engage the Organisation of the Islamic

Conference on their resolution Combating defamation of religions. We hope

to continue this exchange in 2011. We believe that the concept of

defamation of religions is incompatible with international human rights law.

We oppose discrimination against individuals on the grounds of religion or


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belief. But we believe that intolerant and xenophobic views should be

challenged in open debate and tackled in law only when they restrict the right

to freedom of religion or constitute incitement to religious or racial hatred. We

were pleased that an increasing number of member states moved away from

supporting this resolution in the General Assembly in November. We worked hard to secure increased support for the resolution promoting a

global moratorium on the use of the death penalty presented at the General

Assembly by a cross-regional group of member states, including the EU. EU

resolutions on the elimination of all forms of religious intolerance and on child

rights, the latter tabled jointly with the group of Latin American countries, were

passed by consensus, showing again a unity of purpose. We were very

disappointed that the language condemning killings on the basis of sexual

orientation was initially voted out of a resolution on extrajudicial, summary or

arbitrary killings, and we joined successful US-led efforts to have it restored to

the text.

The UK has national experts, who work independently of the UK Government,

on three of the treaty-monitoring bodies set up under UN human rights

treaties: the Human Rights Committee; the Sub -Committee on Prevention of

Torture; and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Dis crimination. In

2010 the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture expanded from 10 to 25

members, to reflect the growing number of states party to the Optional

Protocol to the Convention against Torture. On 23 December the

International Convention for the P rotection of All Persons from Enforced

Disappearance entered into force. The UK is confident that it has

comprehensive laws to prevent disappearances in the UK, and hopes to sign

the convention soon. On 7 August the UK ratified the Optional Protocol to t he

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. This allows individuals

in the UK to submit complaints to the Committee on the Rights of Persons

with Disabilities. We consider that the treaty -monitoring bodies are an

essential element in the UN human rights system and will remain actively

engaged in discussions to improve their effectiveness.


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We gave strong support to the operational structures of the UN in 2010. We

provided more than 2.5 million of voluntary, unearmarked funding to the

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in addition to our

contribution to the regular budget, and a further 500,000 to UN torture

prevention work. In statements to the Human Rights Council and General

Assembly, we welcomed the work of the High Commissioner and her Office

and welcomed the appointment in May of a new Assistant Secretary -General

for the Office in New York, former Croatian Justice Minister Ivan Simonovic.

We want him to explore how the Office might better integrate human rights

into wider UN peace and security, development and humanitarian work. The

Offices presence in the field expanded in 2010, for example with the opening

of a country office in Guinea following a deterioration in the human rights

situation. We support this effort to ensure greater global coverage and have

supported its activities on the ground.

The European Union

The EUs economic size, including its role as the worlds biggest aid donor,

means that the EU has considerable influence to encourage respect for and

implementation of human rights and democracy standards. The EU already

has a wide range of mechanisms at its disposal to promote human rights,

including more than 40 human rights dialogues with third countries; human

rights clauses in political and economic agreements with third countries;

sanctions; and project funding and development aid. With the entry into force

of the Treaty of Lisbon in December 2009, the EU has a range of new

structures through which it can pursue its human rights objectives. The High

Representative has also spoken forcefully of the EUs commitment to

promoting human rights and democracy in its external action.

We want the EU to have an effective and lasting impact in promoting human

rights globally. This means that human rights must be integrated across the

whole spectrum of the EUs foreign policy agenda. By assessing existing EU


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policies and tools, ensuring greater coherence between EU instruments and

policies and increasing transparency, we believe the EU can improve its

human rights work. We therefore engaged energetically with the EU in 2010,

including through the strategic review of the EUs external action on human

rights in October where we pushed for the EU to be more efficient and visible .

We work with the EU to make a difference to the human rights enjoyed by

people across the globe. Through focused EUs policies and use of its levers,

the EU can exert its influence and work with third countries to help them to

respect and uphold their international human rights obligat ions. For example,

trade with the EU is very attractive to third countries, and provides a key lever

for the EU to encourage third countries to respect the international human

rights treaties which they have signed or ratified. Among the various trade

options within the EU, the Generalised System of Preferences Plus (GSP+)

offers incentive arrangements to vulnerable countries that have ratified and

implemented 27 conventions on human rights, labour rights, environment and

good governance principles. GSP+ privileges may be withdrawn for violations

of human rights after a full investigation, as in the case of Sri Lanka in

August.

EU member states have agreed eight sets of common human rights policies

which provide the framework or principles for lobbying and other activity by

the External Action Service and member states. These policies cover the

death penalty; torture; human rights defenders; human rights dialogues with

third countries; childrens rights; violence against women; children in armed

conflict; and international humanitarian law. Although these are not legally

binding they express the EUs political commitment to carry out systemic and

sustained action in these specific areas. They also serve as a framework for

protecting and promoting human r ights in third countries. Under this

framework, the EU has frequently spoken out on particular cases or areas of

concern and has also lobbied many governments on their human rights

records and on individual cases. Under the guidelines, the EU convened ta lks

with a wide range of third countries in 2010, including Tajikistan, Georgia,

Colombia, Russia and the US.


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The EU has an agreed common position on Burma, enshrined in the set of

targeted restrictive measures against the military regime, which were renewed

again in a Council Decision in April. The EU issued a strong statement after

the November elections and tabled the tough and wide ly supported UN

resolutions on Burma in both the Human Rights Council and the General

Assembly. As local EU presidency in Rangoon, the UK also played a key role

in lobbying heavily on behalf of the EU for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi.

The EU has been active in highlighting Irans human rights record in 2010. It

has focused particularly on death penalty including the threatened execution

of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, who was originally sentenced to death by

stoning for adultery. In July, the High Representative publicly condemned

executions in Iran, including the sentence of Ms Ashtiani. At the end of 2010

Ms Ashtiani still faced the possibility of execution on charges of murder. The

EU will continue to monitor closely and lobby on her case. The EU also co-

sponsored the Iran human rights resolution at the UN General Assembly

which passed with the biggest margin fo r eight years, with a wide range of

countries in support.

With support from several other member states, we also took a leading role in

pushing for the EU to improve its work on lesbian, gay, bisexual and

transgender (LGBT) rights. Working closely with other member states and

NGOs, we helped the Spanish presidency develop an LGBT toolkit, loosely

based on our own FCO toolkit. The EU LGBT toolkit, adopted by EU

ministers, gives practical guidance to EU diplomats in third countries on

working with international and civil society organisations and local

governments to promote and protect LGBT rights. The European Council

also agreed conclusions on child labour and on democracy in 2010, helping to

promote awareness and action on these important issues .

EU enlargement

The European Union is founded upon the values of respect for human

dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human


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rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. It also

stipulates that any European state that respects and is committed to

promoting these values may apply to become a member of the EU. EU

enlargement is therefore a powerful mechanism for helping to improve human

rights records in countries wishing to join the EU.

The Government is a strong supporter of EU enlargement, and is committed

to supporting the membership aspirations of any European country that meets

these criteria, and its right to progress towards membership on the basis of its

own merits. We will encourage the EU to conclude accession negotiations

only when we are confident that a candidate country is able to meet the

political, economic and legal obligations of membership. These include the

protection of human rights. Furthermore, we will be active in determining h ow

the membership criteria are met, for example, by setting benchmarks which

tackle important issues at an early stage in the process. We will also work

within the EU to influence the allocation of EU pre -accession assistance to

ensure that aspirant countries tackle effectively and at an early stage those

issues that matter most to us, including human rights violations.

In 2010 we provided technical support to human rights reform in candidate

and pre-candidate countries in order to help these countries meet EU

standards. We worked with the government ofCroatia to improve court

administration by introducing modern case management techniques to reduce

the backlog of cases and improve the quality of court service. We also

supported the Croatian governments introduction of a national probation

system to reduce prison populations and improve offender community

reintegration. We will undertake similar future projects under the auspices of

the EU twinning mechanism to introduce a probation service in Croatia and to

strengthen their capacity to manage a sexual offender database.

We lobbied hard to achieve comprehensive benchmarks under Chapter 23 of

Croatias accession negotiations dealing with the judiciary and fundamental

rights. As a result of this, Croatia is taking steps to ensure it has an

independent and efficient judicial system. For example, the government has


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adopted new legislation that strengthens judicial independence and the case

backlog has been further reduced. Croatia is strengthening its fig ht against

corruption at all levels, as demonstrated by the indictment in December of

former Prime Minister Sanader on corruption charges. Croatia is improving

the handling of domestic war crimes trials, strengthening protection for

minorities, and settling outstanding refugee return issues. The revised

constitution now explicitly lists all 22 national minorities and the governments

self-imposed 2008 benchmark for the provision of 1,400 accommodation units

for refugees under its housing care programme has been met. We also

helped to ensure that full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal

for the former Yugoslavia is a requirement for closure of this chapter.

Although Croatia is making progress on human rights issues, work remains to

be done. The EU will continue to monitor these areas in 2011 and in March

will produce a report on Croatias progress under Chapter 23. We will

continue to support and monitor th is progress and will ensure that Croatia is

upholding EU human rights standards and has met the requirements of the

chapter, before agreeing to its closure.

In Serbia, where minorities remain under-represented in public institutions

and public companies, we funded several election-related and capacity-

building projects to strengthen Bosniak and Albanian minority rights. Among

other achievements, these projects have led to the setting up of an Albanian

national minority council and a multi -ethnic local government in Bujanovac in

southern Serbia and more balanced representation of Albanians in state - and

local-level institutions. In 2011 we will continue to communicate the

achievements of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

of which many Serbs still have limited understanding; support the work of the

Regional Council for Reconciliation; and strengthen protection for LGBT and

ethnic minority rights.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina we promoted human rights in a range of areas,

including improving access to justice and reconciliation; helping ensure that

war crimes cases are dealt with impartially and effectively; improving prison


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management in line with European best practice; supporting the identification

of missing persons; supporting the promotion of human rights; strengthening

civil society organisations and their role in policy dialogue; and strengthening

independent and investigative media. Specific projects included enhancing

the effectiveness of the State Prosecutors Office on Srebr enica-related war

crimes and supporting the International Commission on Missing Persons. We

worked closely with EU member states, including on implementing the EUs

Human Rights Defenders Strategy and designing a local strategy to combat

violence against women.

In 2011, we will focus on improving the ability of Bosnia and Herzegovina

institutions to implement legislation and tackle human rights violations more

effectively. This includes implementation of the 2008 National War Crimes

Strategy and the State Law on Missing Persons, as well as building the

capacity of the Bosnia and Herzegovina justice and security institutions. We

will support the Bosnia and Herzegovina authorities work to ensure an

efficient and sustainable system for processing war crime s cases before the

State Court and State Prosecutors Office, particularly focusing on crimes

committed in Srebrenica area.

Despite the adoption of a human rights strategy and action plan in 2009,

Kosovo made limited overall progress during 2010. However , progress was

made on the return and re-integration of minority communities in Kosovo, a

subject on which we worked closely with the government of Kosovo. April

saw the completion of a UK-funded project, managed and implemented by the

UN Development Programme, which enabled nine Kosovo-Serb families to

return to the village of Softaj/Softovic. We also funded an income generation

project for returnees from the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities and

supported the strengthening of the rule of law in Kos ovo through the

secondment of expert staff to the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo

(EULEX), including two judges, three prosecutors and the head of the

organised crime unit.


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In 2011 we will continue to support Kosovan efforts to improve the human

rights situation; for example, by working with the Kosovan Ministry of

Communities and Returns on a returns project in the historic town of Prizren.

This is the first urban returns project in Kosovo and it will reconstruct homes

for 10 returning Kosovo-Serb families and refurbish homes for up to a further

10 families.

In Macedonia in 2010 we addressed the lack of a legal and institutional

framework within the prison management system by supporting the

introduction of the UKs Offender Assessment System to Macedon ian prison

staff and a feasibility study on the applicability of a probation service in

Macedonia. Both initiatives were designed to reduce the load on

overcrowded prisons and improve prison management. We also worked with

the Macedonian Young Lawyers Association to strengthen judicial practice in

the fight against corruption and organised crime, through a project to enhance

the efficiency of the Macedonian judiciary that will ensure free and efficient

access to justice services.

We supported the multi-ethnic fabric of Macedonia through continued

insistence on the full implementation of the Ohrid Framework Agreement. We

encourage all political parties to adhere to its spirit, in particular in the areas

of: language, education, decentralisation of budgets , interethnic relations and

religion. The UKs public administration effectiveness project enables more

transparent and effective management within the civil service, including on

recruitment of minorities under the provisions of the Framework Agreement .

Our work in Albania has focused on transparency, democracy and equality.

We have funded a high-level mentoring project which works closely with

judges to improve the efficiency and transparency of the Albanian Supreme

Court. We also pushed for a settlement to the long-standing political impasse

between the government and the opposition. In addition, we worked with the

British Council to promote diversity and equality in Albania. The London 2012

Diversity Champion David Morris visited Albania in 2010, and the Embassy

will again support the British Councils Inclusion Week in April 2011. Our


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support has helped the Inclusion Week to achieve a markedly higher profile

for disability issues in Albania, as demonstrated by an unprecedented

publicrally of disabled peoples groups in Tirana as well as action from the

Tirana authorities to improve wheelchair access across the city .

We continued to support Turkeys EU accession process and strongly

encouraged them to make progress with their reform agenda. The Se ptember

Constitutional Reform referendum was a positive step and demonstrated wide

support for judicial and military reform. We will continue to emphasise to the

Turkish government the importance of swift and effective implementation of

the reform package.

Turkey has made progress in certain areas of human rights, but there is more

work to be done before it meets EU standards, particularly on freedom of

expression and the rights of ethnic and religious minorities. We support

Turkeys efforts to address these issues and in 2010 we agreed to fund the

largest ever number of human rights projects across the widest ever range of

issues in Turkey, including on LGBT, children, women and disability, and

helping refugees and asylum seekers better understand their rights and

access legal remedies. The year 2011 promises to be an important year for

Turkey. Several key pieces of legislation have been drafted and will pass

through the Turkish parliament, including on anti -discrimination, data

protection and human rights. There is a parliamentary election in June, and

should the current government retain power it has announced it will draft a

new constitution. This would give renewed impetus to Turkeys reform

programme. We will continue to encourage the government of Turkey to

make progress towards EU standards.

The European Neighbourhood Policy

The European Neighbourhood Policy is the EUs main framework for

engaging with the 16 countries which share its borders to the east and south.

Human rights and democracy are a central part of the policy. EU funding to

support reform in the neighbourhood is app roximately 12 billion for 2007

2013.


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Each year, the EU and partner countries agree action plans which detail

reforms in democratisation, human rights and the rule of law. Progress under

each action plan is monitored through sub -committees. Progress reports are

published annually.

The second round of the EUArmeniahuman rights dialogue took place on 7

December. This provided an opportunity for the EU to reiterate to Armenia

the importance of human rights as an essential element for Armenias

development into a fully democratic society.

On 15 June the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media commented

that amendments to the law on television and radio broadcasting in Armenia

were not sufficient to improve media pluralism. The EU encouraged the

Armenian government and legislators to continue to work closely with civil

society, the Council of Europe and OSCE experts to ensure that its

broadcasting law promotes media freedom and is in line with international

standards.

In March, the OSCEs Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights

issued its report on the conduct of the trials that took place in the aftermath of

the March 2008 post-election violence in Yerevan. The report revealed

shortcomings in Armenia's justice system and made a number of

recommendations. It is important that the Armenian government implements

these recommendations as part of its judicial reform programme.

Although Armenia has ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms

of Discrimination against Women and its principles are addressed in the

constitution, women continue to suffer significant discrimination in economic

and political life. On 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of

Violence against Women, the EU announced the launch of 10 new human

rights and democracy projects including one that aims to reduce gender -

based domestic violence in Armenia.


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In Azerbaijan, EU member states continued to express concern about the

restrictions to freedom of assembly, including in the run -up to the November

parliamentary elections. The High Representative shared the concern of the

OSCEs Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights that the conduct

of the elections was insufficient to constitute meaningful progress in the

democratic development of the country and called on the Azerbaijani

authorities to address these shortcomings. In November the EU welcomed

the release of the youth activist bloggers Emin Milli and Adnan Hajizada, but

expressed concern over Azerbaijans reluctance to implement the European

Court for Human Rights judgment on Eynulla Fatullayevs conviction for

alleged terrorism.

Association Agreement negotiations between the EU and Armenia and

Azerbaijan were launched in July. The first EUAzerbaijan Sub-committee on

Justice, Freedom, Security and Human Rights and Democracy took place

between 30 November and 1 December.

In Egypt, progress on human rights and democracy has been an important

principle of the EUEgypt Action Plan. The plan, which was adopted in 2007,

sets out priorities in the areas of strengthening democracy, judicial reform,

freedom of association and expression and the rights of women. However, in

2010 only limited progress was made in these areas. The state of

emergency, instituted in 1981, was renewed in 2010 and continued to present

a major obstacle to the full implementation of Egypts human rights

obligations, with provisions for administrative detention and curtailing the right

to assembly a particular concern. No amendments were made to the election

law in advance of the 2010 elections and the EUs offer of technical

assistance in this area was not taken up.

On 12 May 2010, the High Representative made a statement in response to

Egypts decision to extend the state of emergency and encouraged the

Egyptian government to take the steps needed to adopt an anti -terrorism law

fully compliant with international human rights standards. Following the

flawed elections in November and December, the High Representative


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released a statement on 6 December in which she raised her concerns about

reports of irregularities, as well as arrests of opposition activists .

We are working closely with the High Representative and EU partners to put

together a plan for long -term economic and institutional assistance to assist

Egypts orderly and peaceful transition to a civilian -led democratic

government, through free and fair elections .

In 2010 the government ofGeorgia approved constitutional changes reducing

the power of the president in favour of parliament, and started negotiations

with the opposition on further electoral reform. The Public Defenders Office

received increased government funding despite widesp read cuts elsewhere,

and continues to provide independent and critical advice. The government

also created human rights monitoring and protection units in various state

ministries. The local elections on 30 May marked evident progress towards

meeting OSCE commitments and other international standards. But the

OSCE mission and observers from individual EU member states noted

persistent shortcomings, notably in the legal framework.

Georgias Euro-Atlantic aspirations provide the EU and its member states with

a strong lever to promote reform, including in the field of human rights. A key

area of support has been in the justice sector, with a focus on the rule of law

and criminal justice reform. Other areas of EU activity include work to promote

media independence, electoral reform and participative democracy. An EU

Georgia human rights dialogue takes place bi -annually, providing a forum to

discuss trends and individual cases. But whilst some progress has been

made, there were continuing concerns over media freedom, electoral reform,

judicial independence, religious freedoms, prison conditions, and the rights of

internally displaced persons and minorities .

Continued political instability presented an obstacle to progress on human

rights in Moldova. Abuse of police powers remains a problem. Restrictions on

the freedom of assembly still exist and, although gender equality is enshrined

in law, women still frequently face discrimination. The rights of lesbian, gay,


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bisexual and transgender persons continue to face severe challenges and a

peaceful demonstration supporting the adoption of anti -discrimination laws

was prevented from taking place in Chisinau city centre by a court ruling in

April. There were, however, some positive developments in 2010. Mol dova

ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and the UN

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In January, Moldova

commenced negotiations on an EU Association Agreement, in the framework

of the Eastern Partnership. The EU Association Agreement includes human

rights requirements. The Moldovan government has no de facto control over

the Transnistria region, where the human rights record of the separatist

regime is particularly poor.

Despite considerable advances in the protection of human rights over recent

years in Morocco, the progress of reform slowed in 2010. We are particularly

concerned about media freedoms and the closure of a number of independent

publications. We continued to support Moroccos progress towards ratifying

the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and hope to see this

take place soon.

The Commonwealth

In August William Hague endorsed a strategy to reinvigorate the

Commonwealth. The strategy underlines the UKs com mitment to the

organisation and our determination to work closely with the Commonwealth

Secretariat, the wider network and fellow member states to strengthen it as a

focus for democracy, development and trade.

In 2010 we also supported the work of the Eminent Persons Group,

established at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2009 to

review and strengthen the work of the Commonwealth. The Eminent Persons

Group met for the first time in July and again in October. The Rt Hon Sir

Malcolm Rifkind MP is one of the 11 members chosen from across the


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Commonwealth. There will be two further meetings in 2011, and the groups

final report will be issued after the final meeting in March. Heads of state and

government will consider it in October at the Commonwealth Heads of

Government Meeting 2011 in Perth, Australia .

We are encouraging the Eminent Persons Group to recommend a new

Commonwealth Charter, a strengthened Commonwealth Ministerial Action

Group, and a modernised secretariat. We would like the Com monwealth to

be more active in upholding its core values. The Commonwealth Ministerial

Action Group should also react more quickly to events and have a wider

range of responses that allow it to address situations in a way that reflects the

nature and gravity of the violation. The Secretary-General should also be

mandated to make timely statements in support of Commonwealth values

when they are at risk. We also support the appointment of a Commonwealth

Commissioner for the Rule of Law, Democracy and Human Rights to advise

the Secretary-General and the chair of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action

Group on violations of human rights and international law .

Separately, the current members of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action

Group Ghana, Australia, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Namibia, Maldives,

Bangladesh, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago are carrying out a review of

the Group. All members agree that the Group is vitally important as a

custodian of the core Commonwealth values and that it should be proactive

rather than reactive and able to respond and take appropriate action when it is

satisfied that human rights violations have occurred in a Commonwealth

member state. Recommendations from this review will also be considered at

the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2011. We will work with

member states to ensure that the outcome is a stronger, more responsive

group.

In 2010 we supported the work of the Commonwealth Secretariats Human

Rights Unit in facilitating and strengthening member states engagement with

the UNs Universal Periodic Review process. This included part-funding a

project officer to facilitate sharing of expertise between Commonwealth


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member states on the review. In 2011 we will support the Secretariat as they

shift their focus away from helping member states to prepare for the review to

helping them implement the recommendations they receive during the review.

This will include regional seminars to enable Commonwealth countries to

discuss, develop and share good practices and le ssons learned.

We also worked with the Secretariat to strengthen electoral processes in

2010, by providing financial and in -country support for Commonwealth

observer missions and supporting the creation of the network for national

election management bodies.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe

The Government is a strong supporter of the Organization for Security and

Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the work of its Office for Democratic

Institutions and Human Rights, particularly its election observation

activities. In 2010, we funded British nationals to take part in election

observation missions in several OSCE states including Ukraine, Belarus,

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan and

Tajikistan. But we also support OSCE election observation across all

OSCE participating states and the Government will be considering the

OSCEs report on the UKs General Election in May in the context of wider

electoral reform.

In 2010 we worked to bolster human rights in the region. We supported the

work of the OSCEs independent human rights institutions, publicly

condemned serious human rights violations, sought to make OSCE

activities more focused on core human rights issues, and helped to protect

the important role of civil society in holding governments to account.

UK officials from the Ministry of Justice worked closely with the OSCEs

Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights to help develop their


22/24

guidance documents to assist OSCE states enhance their capacity to

prevent hate speech and hate crimes. The UK is considered by many

independent observers to be a world leader in responding to hate crime

through legislative, political and criminal justice responses. We have also

been praised for the transparency of hate crime data and the close

relationships that government authorities have with civil society all

practices which UK officials have been able to share with the office and

OSCE states. UK officials, police and prosecutors have also assist ed the

office in capacity-building events in OSCE states, including Moldova and

Georgia, by providing training to counterparts on the lessons learned in the

UK and advising on effective criminal justice responses.

The most significant OSCE event in 2010 was the OSCE Summit in Astana

on 12 December, the first OSCE summit for 11 years. The UKs

delegation was led by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, accompanied by

Minister for Europe David Lidington. In Astana, they discussed human

rights issues directly with their counterparts from a number of OSCE states,

including Kazakhstan, as hosts, where there remain concerns about the

democratic process and freedom of the media in particular. Nick Clegg

also held meetings with Kazakh opposition leaders and NGOs.

In the Astana Summit Declaration, heads of states and government

reaffirmed all OSCE commitments and their responsibility to implement

them fully. The Declaration reaffirmed that states are accountable to their

citizens and to each other for the full implementation of their OSCE

commitments. It also acknowledged that more had to be done to

implement these commitments, in particular those on human rights and

fundamental freedoms.

As chair of the OSCE in 2011, Lithuania has set an ambitious work

programme with a particular emphasis on the safety of journalists, freedom of

expression on the internet, and freedom of the media. We very much support

this focus and are keen to see progress made on each of these issues across

the OSCE area. However, the background political dynamic in the OSCE


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remains a barrier to progress. Divisions remain among the participating

states over key principles, including democracy and free and fair elections

and on security issues ranging from arms control to the future of Georgia.

These problems will continue to define the context in which the OSCE

operates, and in which the UK operates within the OSCE, including our ability

to make progress on human rights.

Despite these difficulties the UK will continue to provide all possible support to

the OSCEs work in the field to protect and promote human rights. This will

be particularly important through 2011 in states such as Kyrgyzstan where

democracy remains fragile after significant national and political upheaval.

The UK will continue to give political and practical backing to the work of the

OSCEs institutions, particularly on election observation. We will also

continue to seek opportunities to update or strengthen OSCE commitments,

for example to reflect the significant impact of the digital age on freedom of

expression and association.

The Council of Europe

The UK contributed fully to the negotiations and final agreed Declaration at

the High Level Conference at Interlaken in February on reform measures to

improve the efficiency of the European Court of Human Rights. This

Declaration included a set of specific measures to be introduced by mid-2012.

In June, Protocol 14 to the European Convention on Human Rights came into

force. ThisProtocol streamlines the way certain cases are dealt with in the

Court and will contribute to the longer -term aim of reducing the backlog, and

the time taken to process cases.

We also championed an initiative on measures to combat discrimination on

the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity, which was adopted by

the Committee of Ministers on 31 March. This was a notable land mark, as it


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is the first international instrument to protect the rights of individuals from

discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity .

In July, talks began on EU accession to the European Convention on Human

Rights. This process will ensure that the institutions of the EU are covered by

the same human rights standards under the convention as all Council of

Europe member states. The successful conclusion of these negotiations will

complete a commitment in the Treaty of Lisbon.

In October, a high-level meeting on the Roma resulted in Council of Europe

member states adopting the Strasbourg Declaration on protecting Roma

across Europe. This Declaration included actions on discrimination,

citizenship, social inclusion and better joint working between international

organisations and Roma communities. The UK played a key role in bringing

together those with differing views.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, a key consultative and

advisory body in the organisation, held debates at its four regular meetings in

2010 on a number of human rights issues. Key outcomes from these debates

included recommendations urging Russia to stop terrorism in the North

Caucasus in line with human rights and calling on the authoritie s in Armenia

to revise media legislation.

Each of the 47 member states of the Council holds the chairmanship in turn

for six months. This is effectively the executive presidency of the

organisation. We will hold this position from November 2011 to May 2 012,

and the promotion and protection of human rights will lie at the heart of our

priorities. We will focus on reform of the European Court of Human Rights

during our chairmanship to ensure it fulfils its work appropriately and

effectively. We also want to see the conclusion of negotiations on the

Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and

Domestic Violence in 2011.

Documents

SECTION V Working Through a Rules-based International System