Delivering on our commitments to human rights in 2014

In July 2011 in a ‘Declaration on Bilateral Co-operation’ the British and Cuban governments agreed that human rights are a ‘priority for co-operation’. Both countries have recently been elected by the UN General Assembly to the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) for a three year term beginning on 1 January 2014. The HRC is the main UN intergovernmental body responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the world. It addresses situations of human rights violations, makes recommendations on them and has the ability to discuss all thematic human rights issues and situations that require its attention throughout the year. Last year it addressed issues such as the conflict in Syria, protecting human rights defenders and promoting reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka.

All candidate countries to the HRC publish their pledges and commitment before the election. The UK’s pledges focus on fifteen issues ranging from the rights of persons with disabilities to preventing sexual violence in conflict to freedom of religion and belief. Cuba’s pledges and commitments reiterate its commitment to international cooperation in the promotion and protection of human rights and to continue working to fulfil its international human rights obligations. Like the UK it emphasised its determination to promote the rights of women and children, to combat discrimination against minorities and to tackle human trafficking.

One of the most important mechanisms of the Human Rights Council is the Universal Periodic Review process which examines the human rights situation in all UN member states over a four-year cycle. This unique system works through peer review and uses an interactive dialogue between the state under review and all other UN member states, along with written reports by the state concerned, the UN system and civil society, to encourage action to improve states’ human rights records. Under the review, countries accept or reject the recommendations made by others. The value of the Universal Periodic Review lies in its universal nature, constructive spirit and how it complements other procedures. The UK believes the Universal Periodic Review will only be successful if it improves the human rights of people in the countries under review. That in turn means the proposal and acceptance of meaningful recommendations and the implementation of those recommendations in the countries concerned.

Both Cuba and the UK were subject to the UPR in recent years – the UK in May 2012 and Cuba in May 2013. In the UK’s review, Cuba said it was concerned that the national report did not contain enough information on the protection and promotion of economic, social and cultural rights, and stated that such rights had been affected by public cuts. Cuba added that children, persons with disabilities, women, migrants, minorities and indigenous populations were marginalized and disadvantaged on a daily basis. The UK government accepted the two Cuban recommendations that we ‘continue efforts to combat discrimination on any ground and violence against women and girls’ and ‘guarantee the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, particularly health, education and adequate housing’. We accepted a range of recommendations from other countries including, for example, the Russian Federation’s suggestion that we ‘take measures to reduce prison overcrowding and improve conditions for detainees’ and Iran’s suggestion that we ‘facilitate ICRC access to prisons’.

In Cuba’s UPR, the UK welcomed the new migration law but remained concerned about the continued restriction of freedom of expression. Whilst Cuba did not accept the UK’s recommendations, including on strengthening the right to fair trial and improving prison conditions, it did accept Eritrea’s recommendation to ‘strengthen the exercise of freedom of expression, assembly, association and participation’. Cuba also agreed to ‘enhance the quality and access to information and communication technologies’ as recommended by Sri Lanka and to Japan’s suggestion to ‘improve access to the internet’. The Cuban government also accepted the recommendation made by Iraq that they ‘take more active measures to promote real participation of NGOs and civil society organisations in the adoption of legislation to promote human rights’.

All of the reports – from national statements to civil society comments to the questions asked by other countries – are available on the UN website in all UN languages (E = English, S = Spanish).

What the UPR process shows is that in the area of human rights there are some subjects where the UK and Cuba find common ground and others where we disagree. That is inevitable. The challenge next year and in the following two years when we both sit on the Human Rights Council is to find more areas of common ground and put into practice the commitment we made in July 2011.

If you want to read more about inter-governmental discussions on human rights, please see the excellent blog written by my colleague, Bob Last.