Armenia’s election to the UN Human Rights Council is the best demonstration of the acknowledgement by the international community of the significant progress in democratic transformation and protection and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms following the non-violent, Velvet Revolution in the Republic of Armenia, Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said in a statement.
The remarks come after Armenia was elected as a member of the UN Human Rights Council for the period 2020-2022, with the overwhelming majority of votes.
“This success also reflects the high confidence of the international community towards Armenia as a reliable partner, who is at the forefront of protection of human rights, and the prevention of massive violations of human rights and atrocities,” the Foreign Minister stated.
“As a responsible member of the international community and a supporter of effective multilateralism, Armenia has acceded to all major human rights instruments. Today we can proudly state that these human rights commitments are not merely enshrined in our legal system, but are also part of our national values and identity. We are ready to share experience, listen to and learn from our partners, and are committed to advance international collaboration aimed at strengthening the UN human rights system, promoting effective intergovernmental cooperation and civil society engagement,” he added.
Minister Mnatsakanyan said “the promotion of all human rights and fundamental freedoms, consolidation of democratic values will be an important priority of Armenia’s membership in the Human Rights Council. Human rights are universal for all peoples and individuals in all parts of the world.”
“Armenia is determined to contribute to the strengthening of international cooperation and dialogue at the Human Rights Council, and to this end we have already expressed our clear pledges and commitments that we plan to implement over the coming years. We will continue to fight against identity-based violations of human rights, including discrimination, xenophobia, intolerance and hate speech because Armenia and the Armenian people are well aware of the consequences emanating from massive violations of human rights committed on such grounds,” Zohrab Mnatsakanyan continued.
Reminding that Armenia’s membership in the UN Human Rights Council is complemented by the chairmanship our country currently holds in another important UN body – the UN Commission on the Status of Women, the Foreign Minister said “Armenia stands ready to contribute to the strengthening of international cooperation in the protection of women’s rights, and we intend to spare no effort to drive this agenda forward.”
