|PIC1|Worldwide church bodies and ecumenical organisations have welcomed new measures introduced by the United Nations to better protect civil society.

The International Convention on Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and a new Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples were agreed at the inaugural session of the UN Human Rights Council which concluded in Geneva at the end of last month.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) joined with the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), Franciscans International, Dominicans for Justice and Peace, and Pax Christi International welcomed the new measures which they had urged the UN to adopt in a joint statement submitted before the Council meeting.

Dr Guillermo Kerber, a specialist in human rights at the WCC, said, “The adoption of this convention confirms a shift in international law towards the rights of victims to truth, justice and reparation.”|QUOTE|

He added: “It also signals that the newly formed UN Human Rights Council is able to act decisively in support of the fundamental dignity and rights of people, and to confront impunity, and this is to be applauded.”

The church bodies also welcomed the transparency of the Council’s first session in allowing NGOs considerable access to the discussions.

|AD|“We very much hope that this openness to civil society, and the interactive nature of this session, are signs of how the Human Rights Council will conduct itself in the future,” said Mr Peter Prove, Assistant to the LWF General Secretary for International Affairs and Human Rights, who also paid tribute to the “skilful stewardship” of the presidency of the first session.

“It is hoped that this Convention will go a long way in eliminating impunity and bringing peace to the families of the disappeared,” Etienne De Jonghe, Secretary General of Pax Christi International, stated.

The five church bodies reaffirmed in their joint statement the desire to work closely with the new Human Rights Council “as a key international instrument for the promotion of justice and human dignity”.

They added that the Council would be judged by whether it “actually increases the chances for life in dignity and in sustainable communities for people suffering discrimination, deprivation, oppression and violence”.