Swazi Observer

FULL STORY

COUNTRY HAS MADE PROGRESS IN HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES

By Nozipho Sibiya | 2018-11-09

THE country has made progress in addressing some of the concerns and recommendations raised by the United Nations Committee.

This was confirmed by EU ambassador to Eswatini during a breakfast meeting with the Editors Forum of Eswatini on the visit of the Human Rights Delegation to the country. Present during the media engagement at Mountain Inn yesterday, was member of the UN Human Rights Committee, Christof Heyns, Representative of the Centre for Civil and Political Rights, Eswatini Human Rights Commission, Sabelo Masuku, Executive Secretary of the commission Linda Nxumalo and many others.

The EU ambassador said important achievements had been the revision of the Public Order Act 2017 and the enactment of Sexual Offences and Domestic violence Act. She said the UN human rights committee is expecting a new report from the Kingdom of Eswatini to illustrate the achievements done since 2017 and the challenges in implementing the recommendations made on the three areas mentioned before.

“We have encouraged the country to consult and involve the civil society and non-governmental organisations in the preparations of this report.

I was happy to note from the meeting, that government demonstrated a willingness to embrace this approach as it will without any doubt enrich the quality of the state report,” she said.

She also thanked the Eswatini Commission on Human Rights and Public Administration and the Eswatini Civil Organisations on their positive involvement on this progress to renew the European Union support to the new Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini in preparations of the human rights necessary reports so the country would be able to report factually and timely.

She also highlighted that in the past three days, the European Union engaged members of the UN Human Rights Delegation, the Eswatini Commission on Human Rights and public administration, government officials and civil society organisations on the subject of human rights which is the central to their work globally.

“Our dialogue with the government and civil society under Article of the Cotonou Agreement which we always hold annually gives us the opportunity to take stock and assess the progress made on the issues of democracy and human rights in the country,” she added.

She said the EU financed developmental programmes and projects also contribute to the fulfilment of partner countries, international human rights obligation, including the recommendations put forward by the UN treaty bodies during the Universal Periodic Review as well as other monitoring bodies.

share story