Maldives has participated at the 34th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland.

10 states were reviewed at the session, held from 4 – 15 November.

They are, Italy, El Salvador, Gambia, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Fiji, Kazakhstan, Iraq, Slovenia, Egypt and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The foreign ministry said that Maldives actively participated at the session and presented constructive recommendations to the 10 states reviewed at the session, which it noted “is in line with the priority the Maldives accords to the UN Human Rights Council and its mechanisms.”

This year’s delegation at the UPR session included Maldives’ Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva, Hala Hameed, Deputy Permanent Representative, Hawla Ahmed and First Secretary Shahiya A. Manik.

The Universal Periodic Review Working Group holds three two-week sessions per year and currently, the UPR is holding its Third Cycle review which began in 2017 and will conclude on 2021.

The third cycle review of the Maldives will be held in April/May 2020 at the 36th Session of the Universal Period Review.

The UPR involves a periodic review of the human rights records of all 193 UN Member States. The United Nations Human Rights Council provides the opportunity for each state to declare actions taken to improve the human rights situations in their respective countries and to fulfill their human rights obligations.

With the objective to improve human rights situations in all countries, and also addressing violations of human rights wherever they may occur, the UPR mechanism is designed to give equal treatment to every country when their human rights situation is assessed.