Almost eighty years ago, the UN Charter established the three founding pillars of the UN system: peace and security, development and human rights.
As our Prime Minister said before the General Assembly, one of these – human rights – speaks to the very essence of what it is to be human.
We have made many advances in the years since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
But we cannot ignore the challenges we now face.
Widespread conflict and violence, misuse of new technologies, entrenched inequality, rollback of women and girls’ rights, climate vulnerability, and – all too often – downright impunity where power is abused.
In seeking solutions we must have human rights and the rule of law front and centre. As all member states agreed in the Pact for the Future, human rights are key to meeting the needs of everyone – especially the most vulnerable.
This includes women and children in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Lebanon.
The humanitarian implications of the conflict are devastating and compounding an existing crisis in Lebanon.
We remain deeply concerned at the escalation of violence, the number of deaths and injuries, the displacement of families from their homes, and unacceptable attacks on UN Peacekeepers.
We call for an immediate ceasefire, and the release of all hostages in Gaza and the rapid provision of humanitarian aid into Gaza and Lebanon.
Diplomacy, not violence, is the way to achieve peace, stability and security across the region.
In Ukraine, Russia continues to disregard the UN Charter through its illegal invasion.
Many Russian atrocities amount to war crimes. Russia’s attacks on energy infrastructure, as well as the widespread and systematic use of torture against Ukrainian POWs are beyond reprehensible. We must hold perpetrators to account.
With conflict driving most of the world’s humanitarian needs, the UN’s role in independently monitoring and documenting human rights abuses and violations is more critical than ever.
We welcome the Human Rights Council’s recent renewal of the Fact-Finding Mission in Sudan. While international attention is on the Middle East and Ukraine, a brutal war has displaced over 10 million people, with atrocities carried out by both warring parties.
But in non conflict situations too, human rights are under threat.
Two years after the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Right’s Assessment on Xinjiang, China continues to persecute and arbitrarily detain Uyghurs and Tibetans, restricting civil society and independent media, and targeting human rights defenders and lawyers.
We again call upon China to implement its OHCHRs recommendations
The use of the death penalty in Iran has also reached a critical level – we cannot ignore politically motivated executions of protesters, dissidents, and juvenile offenders.
With so many global challenges we must recommit to collective action underpinned by responsible global leadership.
In 2025 the United Kingdom will stand for election to the Human Rights Council. We will do all we can to advert greater conflict, instability and injustice.
Realising human rights goes hand-in-hand with sustainable development. But that too is throttled in places like Afghanistan, where we have seen a wholesale regression of the rights of women and girls. Banned from education and employment, with numerous restrictions on their presence in public spaces.
And in Syria we have seen the targeting of girls, subjected to forced marriage, and forced to take on increased care-giving responsibilities.
We will not progress on sustainable development if women and girls are denied their human rights.
Let us recommit, together, to the UN Charter and Universal Declaration and continue to strive for a world where nobody is left behind.
