Maputo — The president of Mozambique's Human Rights League (LDH), Alice Mabote argues that while there is need to promote the good name of the country, this should not prevent a realistic assessment of the current situation of human rights in Mozambique.

"As Mozambicans we should be concerned with preservation of good reputation and good name of our country, however this should never prevents us from making a realistic assessment of the current situation of human rights in the country," said Mabote.

Mabote was speaking in Maputo on Monday during the opening ceremony of a one day seminar for the Presentation and Discussion of a Preliminary Report of Mozambique of the Universal Periodic Review Mechanism (UPR) of the Human Rights Council. .

LDH president reiterated that the alternative report that her institution will deliver to the Human Rights Council will highlight progress made in this area, but "we will not omit facts that, in our view, are constraints and setbacks for these to be dealt in future".

Also, the League expects that collaboration between government and civil society on this matter will not stop after these consultations.

"We would like this openness to continue while the civil society is compiling the alternative report, and during the interactive dialogue at the Human Rights Council in 2011, as well as during the implementation of recommendations and targets commitments that will be eventually adopted by the country", said Mabote.

The League also expects, according Mabote, that before the beginning of second cycle of review in 2014, everyone to feel be proud of having participated in this first experience and that the gains are visible throughout Mozambique.

Speaking during the event, the British High Commissioner to Mozambique, Shaun Cleary, praised the efforts made by the Government in ratifying important instruments in the area of human rights.

However, he urged the Mozambican government to also ratify others instruments such as the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, among others.

For Cleary, ratification of these and other instruments will help Mozambique to establish a comprehensive national legal framework for better protection of the rights of the citizens.

The Universal Periodic Review Mechanism is one of the major innovations brought by the Human Rights Council to monitor the degree of implementation of the Conventions ratified by the states.

This mechanism seeks to be a cooperative basis relying on interactive dialogue with the country under evaluation.