Swiss join Human Rights Council for third time

Switzerland has been elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council at the UN General Assembly in New York. The three-year term begins on January 1, 2016.  The Geneva-based Human Rights Council was created in 2006 – the result of a Swiss initiative – to replace the UN Commission on Human Rights, which was widely seen as ineffective. Switzerland was previously a member from 2006-2009 and 2010-2013. It has been active within the council over the past two years, but its status as an observer meant it was unable to participate in votes.  The foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that, as a member of the Human Rights Council, “Switzerland will prioritise abolishing the death penalty worldwide, enforcing the ban on torture, strengthening the role of civil society, protecting human rights defenders, ensuring human rights are respected in the context of peaceful protests, promoting the rights of women and children and increasing criminal responsibility for ...