Supreme Court Justice Aisha Shujune Muhammad has secured a seat in the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture and Other Inhumane or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT) for a third term.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed that Justice Shujune secured the seat for the term 2021-2024 at the elections held in Geneva, Switzerland on Thursday.

The Maldives Justice beat 19 other candidates who competed for 12 seats and this is the third term she is going to assume as a member of the subcommittee. Her first two terms were served between 2011-2018.

She was initially elected in 2010 as the first Maldivian to have been elected to a UN Treaty Body.

During her previous terms, she served as the Rapporteur and the Vice-Chair on Jurisprudence and Shujune has also worked within the civil society and judiciary extensively, in the elimination of torture and the protection of human rights.

In a statement issued after her election, the ministry reiterated the government’s belief that Shujune is “eminently qualified to effectively contribute” to the subcommittee’s work, as an experienced figure with extensive knowledge.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid also expressed confidence the Shujune will enrich the work of the subcommittee as Maldives actively re-engages with international human rights treaty bodies.

The Maldives Justice’s election for a third term comes as the government has placed renewed emphasis on engaging with international treaty bodies and prioritized the fulfillment of its international human rights obligations.

The incumbent administration remains fully committed to implement its foreign policy based on human rights, good governance and respect for democratic norms and the fact that Shujune hails from the Maldives top court mirrors the importance the administration placed on this election.

Maldives was one of the original 20 state parties to join the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT), the first state party from Asia and among the first few countries to receive a mission from the subcommittee as well as one of the first to establish a National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) under OPCAT.

Established by the OPCAT, SPT is an international body and the largest human rights treaty body of UN comprising of 25 independent experts.