Business Daily (Nairobi)
Ban Ki-moon
5 March 2008
Almost two years have passed since the Human Rights Council was inaugurated. It has clearly set its direction on the right track in establishing your mechanisms and procedures.
The question for the council, however, is whether it is fully meeting the high expectations which the international community wants.
What are those expectations? They are that it will recognise and promote the universal application of human rights values - and that it will do so without favour, without selectivity, without being impacted by any political machinations around the world. If it meets this benchmark, it can count on my fullest support and defence in the face of criticism and attacks, wherever they may come from.
No country, however powerful, should escape scrutiny of its record, commitments and actions on human rights.
The Review must reaffirm that just as human rights are universal, so is our collective respect for them and our commitment to them. It must help prevent the distrust that surrounded the work of the Commission on Human Rights in its final years.
But the Universal Periodic Review is only one of the tools. Throughout the year, in the regular and special sessions, HRC must remain vigilant and proactive -by sounding early warnings, by pushing for implementation, by insisting on accountability.
It must respond to crises as they build up or unfold, and address situations of concern that are neglected or forgotten by the international community.
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, with all the authority of my office behind it, has for many years played a crucial role in advancing the cause of human rights worldwide, and continues to do so.
Ultimately, the work to uphold human rights rests on integrating human rights obligations into national legislation and policy, and using these to prevent and punish violations.
But the Human Rights Council is responsible for securing such an outcome.
Its power lies in persuading rather than compelling, in cooperating rather than imposing mandatory measures. Its power stems from credibility, not force. Its power gathers strength and resonance from the respect it enjoys among nations around the world.
Its power must be exercised at all times, in the face of all threats to human rights, wherever they occur.
For the Human Rights Council, to fulfil its true promise, must create an environment of trust and foster a climate where best practices thrive.
That was certainly the hope of the framers of this council, it was the conviction of the world's Governments when they united behind it, and it was the spirit in which our predecessors drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Ban is the secretary-general of the United Nations.
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