Statement by the Main Sponsors on Local Government and Human Rights ID with HRC Advisory Committee (Item 5)
(22 September 2015, Room 20, PDN)
Thank you, Mr. President,
I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of Chile, Egypt, Romania, and the Republic of Korea, the main sponsors of the Human Rights Council resolutions 24/2 and 27/4 on local government and human rights.
We appreciate the informative and comprehensive report by the Chairperson of the Advisory Committee, Mr. Obiora Chinedu Okafor, on the excellent work done by the Committee regarding the subject. We also commend the Committee on the final report A/HRC/30/49 that it has prepared for the Council in conformity with the mandates given by the above-mentioned resolutions.
The final report is an important first step towards clarifying a connection between local government and human rights. Above all, we concur with the view of the report that as the level closest to the citizens, local government makes and implements decisions that generate a real impact on almost every single aspect of the citizens’ daily life. Specifically, local government is frequently in a better position than central government to deal with human rights issues that are relevant to local needs and priorities. In most cases, the work carried forward by local government has much to do with the realization of the citizens’
rights to education, housing, health, culture, equality and inclusion, the environment, and so on. In this regard, the importance of local government in realizing human rights at grassroots level cannot be overemphasized.
Mr. President,
Given the importance of local government, it is crucial to create an environment conducive to the strengthening of the role of local government in the promotion and protection of human rights. In this sense, we wish to draw your attention to one of the findings of the report that the supporting role and shared responsibility of central government are critical to enabling local government to implement human rights obligations at both the national and international levels. Also, as the report rightly points out, civil society should have a crucial role to play in promoting and protecting human rights at the local level, especially in close coordination with local government.
Along these lines, we support the report’s recommendation that it is necessary to develop guiding principles for local government and human rights, with a view to further clarifying the role of various actors and institutions as well as ensuring better implementation of their human rights activities.
Mr. President,
We held a side event on local government and human rights last Friday. The event served as a venue to discuss the main findings and recommendations from the report and to explore the ways forward on how to implement the recommendations of the report, including drawing up the guiding principles.
It is our sincere hope that the Council and the Committee will continue to build on the final report as well as relevant discussions. We firmly believe that such efforts will further elaborate on the role of local government in the promotion and protection of human rights.
Thank you, Mr. President. /End/
