Permanent Mission of India
Geneva
30th session of the Human Rights Council
(14 September-02 October 2015)
Agenda Item 3: General Debate (18 September 2015)
Statement by H.E. Mr. Ajit Kumar, Ambassador & Permanent Representative of India to UN & Other International Organizations
Mr. Vice President,
1. We thank the Deputy High Commissioner for her presentation of various reports under Agenda item 2 and 3.
2. We note with concern that the report on annual activities in relation to the Right to Development is becoming yet another annual ritual – without spelling out concrete steps taken by the Secretariat for its practical implementation and their promotion system-wide. We reiterate our request to the High Commissioner to allot adequate time and resources to identify and implement tangible projects dedicated to the Right to Development and ensure appropriate visibility to this critical right both within and outside the Council.
3. We thank the new Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on the Right to Development for his oral update on the 16th session of the Working Group.
4. India attaches very high priority to the Right to Development. We are seriously concerned at the slow pace of progress in the Working Group. It is disappointing to note the regressive approach of certain delegations on the Right to Development, and even questioning its founding documents. It is useful to remind that the RTD is a right that has been reaffirmed as a universal, inalienable and an integral part of fundamental rights by the Vienna Declaration and numerous UNGA and HRC resolutions, including the UNGA resolution 60/251 that established this Council.
5. There is an urgent need to reinvigorate the deliberations of the Working Group. As we adopt a new and ambitious 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Working Group should focus on how RTD framework can facilitate effective implementation of future Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We hope that a set of standards to be submitted by the Chairperson would assist better in elaboration of a binding instrument on the Right to Development.
6. We welcome the Working Group’s recommendation to convene a high level segment at the 71st UNGA session to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the UN Declaration on the Right to Development. We hope that the forthcoming anniversary would provide an occasion to undertake an honest assessment of gaps and challenges, renew our commitment and redouble efforts for the early realization of the Right to Development.
Mr. Vice President,
7. We also welcome the Chairperson-Rapportuer of the Working Group on Private and Military and Security Companies (PMSCs) and thank him for his presentation. We acknowledge the challenges in regulating and monitoring the activities of PMSCs and believe that the existing lacunae in legal protection for victims of human rights abuses by PMSCs can be best addressed by elaborating a comprehensive international regulatory framework within the auspices of the UN system.
8. We reiterate that the Council’s objectives can be best pursued through genuine dialogue and cooperation with a view to build consensus on all outstanding issues. In the face of multiplicity of views, the Council should continue to strive to devise procedures and practices that move away from partisanship approach, which alone can help realize more holistic and sustainable achievements.
9. It is also time for the Council to undertake serious introspection with regard to the increasing imbalance between civil and political rights on the one hand and economic, social and cultural rights on the other. Addressing this imbalance would save the Council from adverse politicization, which in turn would boost its credibility.
Thank you Mr. Vice President.
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