Mr. President,
In Ethiopia, conflicts in Amhara and Oromia regions are having a devastating impact on civilians, with reports of summary executions, arbitrary detention and attacks on aid workers and critical infrastructure. The government’s transitional justice process has stalled, leaving little hope for meaningful justice for survivors of atrocities. The government has significantly suppressed the media and civil society, shuttering space for criticism before national elections. OHCHR should report publicly and this Council should renew its scrutiny on Ethiopia.
Repression has intensified across China – including the dismantling of freedoms in Hong Kong and forced cultural assimilation in Tibet. Three years since the landmark OHCHR report on Xinjiang, crimes against humanity against Uyghurs continue, which need determined follow-up by this Council and OHCHR.
As the UN financial crisis threatens the work of this Council and OHCHR, states should urgently address the failure to pay, or late payment of, assessed UN contributions, in a context of long-term chronic underfunding of the human rights pillar. While the US, then China, bear the greatest responsibility for the current financial shortfall, 72 countries haven’t paid their UN contributions for 2025, among them some Council members. Ostensible efficiency measures should not jeopardize the Council’s effectiveness, nor the delivery of its mandate, including responding to human rights emergencies. Prevention, protection, and justice cannot wait until the financial crisis blows over.
Thank you.
