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UN to endorse Bahrain’s human rights report
By mandeep singh
Published: 9th June 2008
THE United Nations Human Rights Council will today formally endorse a landmark report on Bahrain’s performance. Bahrain’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) will be endorsed at a meeting in Geneva.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Nazar Al Baharna is in the Swiss city for the meeting, at the head of a delegation of officials and non governmental organisation representatives.
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UN to endorse Bahrain’s human rights report
By mandeep singh
Published: 9th June 2008
THE United Nations Human Rights Council will today formally endorse a landmark report on Bahrain’s performance. Bahrain’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) will be endorsed at a meeting in Geneva.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Nazar Al Baharna is in the Swiss city for the meeting, at the head of a delegation of officials and non governmental organisation representatives.
The councilreviewed Bahrain’s report on April 7 and adopted is after the country’s presentation.
“This will be the final seal of approval on the significant achievement,” said Bahrain’s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva Abdulla Abdullatif Abdulla.
“The efforts of the Bahrain leadership, particularly of Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, have been exemplary,” he said, speaking to the GDN from Geneva.
“It was thanks to the extremely favourable UPR that we literally sailed through the election process of the Human Rights Council last month,” he said.
“Bahrain’s efforts for ensuring the protection and enhancement of human rights have already been commended at several forums so we have no issues with answering any questions which might emerge.”
He said a 20-minute presentation by Dr Al Baharna would mark the formal adoption of the UPR. “It will also be addressed by some Bahrain NGO’s who will present their views.”
Supreme Council for Women vice-chairwoman Dr Shaikha Mariam bint Hassan Al Khalifa and representatives from foreign and labour ministries are also part of the Bahrain delegation.
The report leading up to Bahrain’s UPR review was prepared by the Foreign Ministry in consultation with NGOs and submitted to the council in February this year.
Bahrain human rights groups, initially had mixed feelings about the success of the review, but later termed it as a significant achievement.
They also later welcomed Bahrain’s election to the council, saying it was a golden opportunity for the country to showcase its achievements.
Mr Abdulla said that Bahrain was considered one of the pioneering countries in the UN’s efforts for reforms.
“We will also highlight at the meeting the passing of the Press law in Bahrain, another step in the direction of ensuring rights and freedom for all,” he said.
The UPR had urged Bahrain to scrap its amnesty for officials allegedly involved in abuses before February 2001 and had praised it for stamping out such abuses.
At the same time, it had criticised the “blanket amnesty” for previous alleged violations.
A group of 11 of Bahrain’s political and human rights organisations had earlier demanded the government make a firm commitment to ratify several international conventions and recommendations.
They said these included introducing legislation to improve the rights of migrant workers such as housemaids, prevent racial discrimination, give redress to alleged victims of abuse, introduce citizenship equality and protect the role of human rights activists.
Mr Abdulla said all these concerns could now be better addressed once the UPR has been formally adopted and after Bahrain’s election to the council.
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