Recalling that the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) has been replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in 2006 to improve the credibility of the United Nations as a defender of human rights around the world;
Recalling that some of the major improvements of the HRC are the Universal Periodic Review, the opportunity for competitive elections for the membership of the HRC and the possibility to call for emergency sessions
Noting that most observers consider the structural improvements of the UNHRC to be substantial, but that its implementation by the UN members has been severely flawed;
Concerned by the lack of competitive elections for the HRC positions, which seems to be one of the main reasons for countries with a bad human rights record to still be elected into the HRC;
Similarly concerned by the vigor that aforementioned countries put into their presence in the HRC, compared to the sometimes acklustre approach taken by democracies when it comes to defending human rights within the HRC;
Observing that the vast majority of the HRC consists of countries considered by Freedom House to be free or partly free, but that the non-free countries seem to be dominating the HRC, in particular countries like Cuba;
Noting that there have been various instances in which NGOs have been censored to express their opinion in the Human Rights Council, despite their formal right to do so;
Concerned that the lack of effort put into the HRC by democracies is a major reason why countries which have a (relatively) good domestic record on human rights, still tend to vote with non-free countries in the HRC (for example South-Africa and India);
Considering that neither all the current members, nor candidates for the next Human Rights Council abide by to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
Considering that the Human Rights Council is and should be the main battleground for the international discourse on human rights;
Emphasizing that membership of the United Nations Human Rights Council should be reserved for states that respect and promote human rights, and that competitive elections between UN Members are the most realistic way to ensure that;
Emphasizing that the United Nations Human Rights Council should not be politicized by allowing members of the Council to distract attention from their own violations of human rights, as it happens with many of the initiatives by in particular the Organization of the Islamic Conference;
Strongly believing that the involvement of NGOs in the HRC procedures is a crucial condition for human rights abuses to be brought to the attention of the international community;
Be it therefore resolved that Liberal International calls on democratic governments to invest more time and resources to the Human Rights Council, in particular by encouraging countries to run in competitive elections against non-free countries, as well as by more vigorously calling for respect for human rights at the Human Rights Council;
Be it also resolved that Liberal International calls upon governments to defend the right of NGOs to objectively and independently submit facts and opinions to the Human Rights Council.
