Guterres : Despite 75 years of trying by UN for peace, security and development, myriad challenges persist
ADVTNGO– UN website reported that, In his speech to the top UN right body, in which he detailed a seven-point blueprint for positive change, Mr. Guterres issued an appeal for solidarity.
He said: Human rights are our ultimate tool to help societies grow in freedom. To ensure equality for women and girls. To advance sustainable development. To prevent conflict, reduce human suffering and build a just and equitable world. As the Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims: human rights are “humanity’s highest aspiration”.
“People across the world want to know we are on their side,” he said. He added: “Whether robbed of their dignity by war, repression of poverty, or simply dreaming of a better future, they rely on their irreducible rights – and they look to us to help uphold them.”
Echoing the call for change, High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said that although threats to human rights, development and peace were on the rise, so were the practical, actionable solutions to these issues.
Mr. Guterres insisted that all States had a responsibility to protect and promote people’s “dignity and worth”.
Positive change is possible, the UN chief insisted, recalling his own experience living under dictatorship in Portugal, which finally gave way to a democratic movement when he was 24 years old.
Despite this, in the 75 years that the UN has strived for peace, security and development, myriad challenges persist, Mr. Guterres explained.
Chief among these challenges are several protracted, unresolved conflicts that have left families trapped in war-torn enclaves.
