United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk. Photo: UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Volker Türk Must Release Data on Human Rights Work
It is essential for the UN Human Rights office to release data about the effectiveness of its work so that its performance could be measured empirically.
A United Nations (UN) human rights expert urged Russia in June 2023 to drop criminal charges against Oleg Orlov, a human rights defender and one of the leaders of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization “Memorial”.
Earlier, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, asked Iran to stop illegal executions of protesters. He also expressed concern at persecution of judicial officials in Guatemala, besides expressing his dismay at death sentences by military courts in Myanmar.read more
Poor children who live and sleep on the open pavements in India’s capital New Delhi. Photo: Rakesh Raman / RMN News Service (Representational Image)
Global Campaign Calls for a UN Special Rapporteur on Democracy
The democracy rapporteur would be mandated to investigate the state of democracy from a broader perspective.
As the UN celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 2023, a global campaign demands the appointment of a dedicated staffer to report on the state of democracy around the world.
The campaign was launched on 20 November 2023 by the Berlin (Germany)-based global network of civil society organizations Democracy Without Borders (DWB). It calls on the United Nations (UN) to appoint a special rapporteur on democracy.read more