29 Nov 2023 | The UN Commission on Human Rights adopted a number of important resolutions during last week’s UN General Assembly. The aim of these resolutions, which could be adopted partly thanks to Dutch input, is to promote human rights worldwide.

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‘I am pleased that the UN has achieved results on a number of the issues that we have prioritised in our human rights policy. The Netherlands conducted an active lobby to get these resolutions adopted,’ said foreign minister Maxime Verhagen. A major success for the Netherlands was the adoption of the resolution it submitted condemning violence against women.

On the initiative of the Netherlands, the European Union submitted a resolution on freedom of religion or belief. This was also adopted. The resolution condemns discrimination on grounds of religion or belief.

Another important initiative was the resolution submitted by the US on rape in areas of armed conflict, and the use of rape as a weapon of war. With the support of a number of countries confronted by this problem – the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for instance – this resolution was adopted without a vote. The resolution calling for a moratorium on the death penalty can be seen as a breakthrough.