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STORY: GENEVA / BACHELET HUMAN RIGHTS
TRT: 2:38
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 29 MARCH 2017, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / RECENT
RECENT - GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Wide shot, Palais des Nations
29 MARCH 2017, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
2. Various shots, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet arrival at the United Nations Office in Geneva
3. Med shot, Bachelet at dais
4. Wide shot, dais
5. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Michelle Bachelet, President of the Republic of Chile:
“We proclaim that ensuring peace and security is a central task in constructing a free and prosperous world. Human rights are the pillar that sustains the core purpose of the United Nations. Attaining peace, security and sustainable development for our societies requires that we place people, with their dignity and their rights, at the centre of our policies and decision-making processes.”
6. Med shot, delegates
7. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Michelle Bachelet, President of the Republic of Chile:
“It is imperative that we eliminate gender disparities in education in order to ensure equal access at all levels of education. This is the pillar upon which we can advance toward full and effective participation that will, in turn, lead to equal opportunities in leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life. To summarize, we are facing a series of considerable tasks that we must address as soon as possible. But there is an element that holds true for each one: the only feasible response is one that is collective, coordinated and cooperative.”
8. Med shot, delegates
9. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Michelle Bachelet, President of the Republic of Chile:
“This Council has a responsibility to speak out against every instance of human rights violations, regardless of sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, or ethnicity, culture or religion; irrespective of the type of political regime in each country. The Human Rights Council has a mandate and the tools to direct these efforts. Preventative actions are important tools available to multilateral diplomacy. The Council must strengthen its mechanisms so that it can respond to early warnings of crises in the Rule of Law and in institutions. Justice and accountability are just as important as preventative actions.”
10. Med shot, dais
11. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Michelle Bachelet, President of the Republic of Chile:
"In my opinion it is important to preserve the essence of the Council and to prevent it from being used for alternative purposes by any one State. We are all responsible for ensuring that the international system works as it is supposed to. One fundamental element is the principle of adherence to International Law, which includes respect for treaties and preventing the misuse of mechanisms or institutions designed to resolve differences.”
12. Various shots, Michelle Bachelet shaking hands with delegates
Chile’s President Michelle Bachelet announced her country has made a commitment to head an initiative against torture that has brought together countries from every continent to prevent this crime from occurring and to promote the ratification of international instruments related to torture.
President Bachelet, who herself suffered torture and lost her father under the dictatorship of General Pinochet, made the comments at a special session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Addressing the Council in Spanish, Bachelet said that “ensuring peace and security is a central task in constructing a free and prosperous world,” and added that “human rights are the pillar that sustains the core purpose of the United Nations.”
According to President Bachelet, in order for countries to understand and address the challenges that affect human rights, countries must focus on the roots causes of the threats that are around them. They have to listen to the uneasiness of citizens, and put an end to discrimination and create opportunities for women.
“It is imperative” she said “that we eliminate gender disparities in education in order to ensure equal access at all levels of education.”
The Chilean President said this was “the pillar upon which we can advance toward full and effective participation that will, in turn, lead to equal opportunities in leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life.”
Bachelet said that regardless how powerful a country is, it is not immune to these problems, and they cannot be resolved by building walls, either real or metaphorical.
She said “this Council has a responsibility to speak out against every instance of human rights violations, regardless of sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, or ethnicity, culture or religion; irrespective of the type of political regime in each country. The Human Rights Council has a mandate and the tools to direct these efforts. Preventative actions are important tools available to multilateral diplomacy. The Council must strengthen its mechanisms so that it can respond to early warnings of crises in the Rule of Law and in institutions. Justice and accountability are just as important as preventative actions.”
Bachelet warned that the Human Rights Council should be used only for the purposes for which it was intended.
She said “in my opinion it is important to preserve the essence of the Council and to prevent it from being used for alternative purposes by any one State,” and added that “we are all responsible for ensuring that the international system works as it is supposed to. One fundamental element is the principle of adherence to International Law, which includes respect for treaties and preventing the misuse of mechanisms or institutions designed to resolve differences.”
Chile is currently seeking membership in the Human Rights Council for the 2018-2020 term. Forty-seven countries of the Council are elected by the UN General Assembly and shall serve for a period of three years.
