11 March 2013, Male';At the 22nd Session of the Human Rights Council, currently ongoing in Geneva, the Maldives delegation has been actively participating in the debate and negotiations of the Council. The Maldives Delegation in Geneva is led by Ambassador Iruthisham Adam.
The Maldives as a Vice Chair of the Council has the opportunity to contribute to the discussions of the Bureau of the Council. To this effect, the Maldives Ambassador exchanged views with the UN Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-Moo, during the Secretary General's first historic meeting with the President and Bureau of the Council. During the discussion, Ambassador Adam emphasized the need to strengthen technical support to Small Island Developing Countries & LDCs and the need for a more balanced geographical representation of staff at the OHCHR and noted that the Asian region is largely underrepresented in the Office.
The Maldives represents the Asian Group in the Bureau of the Council.
Continuing to play a strong role during the third year of the membership, the Maldives Delegation participated in discussions on thematic areas of human rights and environment, the rights of children and the rights of disabled persons. In addition the Maldives responded to the Annual report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and took part in the high level debate on Mainstreaming of Human Rights. The Maldives used the opportunity to update the Council on the current political developments in the country and the efforts underway to consolidate the national human rights framework. The Maldives requested the expert opinion of the Panelists on how democracies in transition could effectively strengthen their domestic human rights framework.
Similarly the Maldives participated in the Annual Thematic Discussion on Disability wherein the Maldives delegation called for states to adopt measures geared towards increasing economic opportunities for persons with disability. Noting that a disabled person has a 50% chance of being unemployed, while others with the same merit and qualification has 80% chance of getting an employment the Maldives highlighted that the main challenge for the country at present was combating the stigma attached and stereotyping of disabled persons that leads to them being labeled as unworthy of any economic opportunity within society. The Maldives also explored how the introduction of quotas for the disabled and concessions for employers who employ disabled persons and easy access into micro-credit schemes for the disabled would help overcome the current situation in the country.
During the interactive dialogue with thematic mandate holders the Maldives extended an invitation to the Human Rights Council's Independent Expert on Human Rights and Environment, Professor John Knox to visit the Maldives. Professor Knox is the Human Rights Council's first-ever mandate-holder on the wider question of human rights and environment, the mandate of which was spearheaded by the Maldives Delegation in 2011 which culminated in the establishment of the mandate by consensus in March 2012. During the Interactive Dialogue with the Independent Expert the Maldives welcomed Professor Knox's first report wherein he conceptualised the issue of human rights and the right to a healthy environment. In its statement the Maldives requested that the linkages between the right to a healthy environment and its impact on vulnerable groups such as women and children be explored by the Expert in his future reports. The Delegation also posed the issue of climate change being inherently linked to the mandate's theme and requested that it be further looked at in the next report of the Expert.
The Maldives also participated in the negotiations of draft resolutions presented to the current Session, particularly those relating to the Maldives' priority areas in Geneva. In this regard, the Maldives co-sponsored the Joint Statements on various topics including the Financing of the OHCHR, Mainstreaming of Human Rights, Situation in Syria, Truth and Reconciliation and Marking of International Women's Day. Lastly the Delegation attended several informal consultations on a variety of human rights related issues such as defamation of Islam, promotion of peaceful protests, prevention of torture and the protection of human rights defenders.
ENDS.