OHCHR | Statements and Speeches

Statements

Press briefing notes on Poland/Belarus border

21 December 2021

Lebanon: Cease threats and intimidation of human rights lawyer – UN expert

1 December 2021

In Dialogue with Thailand, Experts of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Ask about the Situation of Indigenous Peoples, Migrants, Asylum Seekers and Stateless Persons

23 November 2021

UN experts deplore the expulsion by Egypt of Eritrean family seeking asylum in violation of the principle of non-refoulement

19 November 2021

Greece: Guilty verdict for migrant rights defenders could mean more deaths at sea – UN expert

18 November 2021

UNFCCC COP 26 Side Event: Climate Impacts as Drivers of Migration: Science, Human Rights and Policy Response

11 November 2021

Comment by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on the Belarus-Poland border situation

10 November 2021

Singapore: UN experts urge halt to execution of drug offender with disabilities

8 November 2021

Viet Nam and Saudi Arabia: UN experts call for protection of trafficked workers

4 November 2021

G7 Trade Ministers’ strong stance against forced labour in supply chains is welcome, but must be followed by concrete action on forced labour and other human rights abuses says UN expert group

2 November 2021

Press briefing notes on Libya

12 October 2021

Belarus and Poland: Stop sacrificing migrant lives to political dispute ̶ UN Special Rapporteurs

6 October 2021

UN agencies call for protection measures and a comprehensive regional approach for Haitians on the move

30 September 2021

Afghanistan: UN experts urge swift global action to protect human rights and prevent ‘civilian slaughter’

16 August 2021

Deadly practice of migrant ‘pushbacks’ must cease - UN Special Rapporteur

23 June 2021

Chile: Nearly 40 years on, still no remedy for victims of Swedish toxic waste – UN experts

7 June 2021

Joint Statement by UN human rights experts for World Environment Day

4 June 2021

Time for UN to formally recognise right to clean, healthy environment - experts

4 June 2021

Act to protect migrants in central Mediterranean Sea, Bachelet urges Libya and EU

26 May 2021

Chile: Arbitrary and collective expulsion of migrants must stop - UN experts

19 May 2021

UN experts urge the Bahamas to halt plans to demolish 600 homes

7 May 2021

Azerbaijan: UN experts urge release of ailing Government critic Huseyn Abdullayev

27 April 2021

Argentina: UN committees welcome decision to repeal deportation decree

24 March 2021

Migrants: Guidance on equitable access to COVID-19 vaccine

8 March 2021

Joint Statement by independent United Nations human rights experts* on human rights responsibilities of armed non-State actors

25 February 2021

Malaysia: UN experts appalled by deportation of migrants to Myanmar despite court order

24 February 2021

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Stop extradition of rights defender at risk of torture or ill-treatment, say UN experts

10 February 2021

Syria: UN experts urge 57 States to repatriate women and children from squalid camps

8 February 2021

Italy failed to rescue more than 200 migrants, UN Committee finds

27 January 2021

Spain: Power outages put children’s lives at risk in informal settlement – UN experts

22 December 2020

International Migrants Day
Video message by United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet

18 December 2020

Migrants must be included in all COVID-19 recovery plans – UN and regional experts

17 December 2020

34th anniversary of UN Declaration on the Right to Development - 4 December 2020

3 December 2020

Building back better: People with disabilities have vital role

1 December 2020

Governments must do more to prevent slavery and exploitation during COVID-19 pandemic

30 November 2020

UN experts hail landmark environmental treaty in Latin America and the Caribbean

9 November 2020

UN experts: Bosnia must investigate attacks against woman aiding migrants

5 November 2020

UN Network on Migration

19 October 2020

Italy: UN expert condemns ‘criminalization’ of those saving lives in the Mediterranean

8 October 2020

UN experts welcome return to Canada of five-year-old orphaned in Syria

7 October 2020

UN human rights experts welcome Qatar’s improvement of migrant rights

3 September 2020

Spain: Passing the buck on exploited migrant workers must end, says UN expert

26 June 2020

US attacks against the International Criminal Court a threat to judicial independence – UN experts

25 June 2020

Croatia: Police brutality in migrant pushback operations must be investigated and sanctioned – UN Special Rapporteurs

19 June 2020

Closure of “transit zones” by Hungary: an important step forward

29 May 2020

US Government urged to do more to prevent major outbreaks of COVID-19 in detention centres – UN experts

29 May 2020

COVID-19: Governments must protect the rights of migrants during the pandemic and beyond, UN experts urge

26 May 2020

COVID-19: The suffering and resilience of LGBT persons must be visible and inform the actions of States

14 May 2020

‘States must include LGBT community in COVID-19 response’: The how and why from a UN expert

14 May 2020

Forced returns of migrants must be suspended in times of COVID-19

13 May 2020

Bachelet urges Latin American states to allow their nationals to return home

15 April 2020

“Leave no one behind” – Don’t forget your commitments in your response to the COVID-19 crises, UN expert urges States

9 April 2020

The rights and health of refugees, migrants and stateless must be protected in COVID-19 response:
A joint statement by UNHCR, IOM, OHCHR and WHO

31 March 2020

Greece: Rights violations against asylum seekers at Turkey-Greece border must stop – UN Special Rapporteur

23 March 2020

COVID-19 does not discriminate; nor should our response

20 March 2020

Thailand: judicial system abused by business to silence human rights defenders – UN experts

12 March 2020

International Women’s Day - 8 March 2020
“The time to act is now” – UN experts urge men and boys to become women’s rights defenders

6 March 2020

International Migrants Day – 18 December 2019

17 December 2019

International Day of the Girl Child,11 October 2019
Agents for change: Girls take up the fight for a better world

10 October 2019

End of visit statement of the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, Felipe González Morales

1 October 2019

UN human rights expert to assess situation of migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina

24 September 2019

Hate speech: UN experts make joint call for action by states and social media firms

23 September 2019

Bangladesh: UN experts concerned by crackdown at Rohingya refugee camps

16 September 2019

Nationalist groups and endangered languages raised by experts as the Committee on Racial Discrimination examines the report of Mongolia

16 August 2019

Italy: UN experts condemn criminalisation of migrant rescues and threats to the independence of judiciary

18 July 2019

End of visit statement of the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, Felipe González Morales

17 July 2019

Hungary: Government’s declared migrant ‘crisis’ does not correspond to reality and leads to human rights violations, says UN expert

17 July 2019

UN human rights expert to assess situation of migrants in Hungary

9 July 2019

Australia: UN experts urge immediate medical attention to migrants in its offshore facilities

18 June 2019

UN experts urge US authorities to drop charges against aid worker Scott Warren

5 June 2019

Italy: UN experts condemn bill to fine migrant rescuers

20 May 2019

Italy must urgently protect evicted migrant workers from exploitation, say UN rights experts

13 March 2019

UN expert requests full investigation of migrant girl’s death in the US, urges end to migration detention of children

24 December 2018

Migrants and refugees crossing Libya subjected to "unimaginable horrors" – UN

20 December 2018

States must ensure all migrants enjoy all human rights, UN experts say on International Migrants Day

18 December 2018

OHCHR: Statement on the Adoption of the Global Compact on Migration - Global Compact on Migration, Plenary Debate, Marrakesh, 11 December 2018

11 December 2018

Statement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Promoting human rights-based actions on the commitments of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration

10 December 2018

Migrant caravan: States have duty to protect human rights

28 November 2018

Commit2Dialogue: Partnerships for Prevention and Sustaining Peace

21 November 2018

Protect the human rights of Venezuelan migrants, UN expert committees urge States

5 September 2018

UN expert calls for stronger regional cooperation and increased international support to guarantee Venezuelan migrants’ rights

5 September 2018

"This is what true leaders look like" - High Commissioner Zeid's parting message

30 August 2018

Global Compact for Migration: UN experts call on States to ensure protection of migrants’ rights

11 July 2018

UN experts to US: “Release migrant children from detention and stop using them to deter irregular migration”

22 June 2018

Opening statement and global update of human rights concerns by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein at 38th session of the Human Rights Council

18 June 2018

Press briefing note on Egypt, United States and Ethiopia

5 June 2018

Press briefing note on Algeria and Libya

22 May 2018

Pregnant Rohingya Refugees Are in Desperate Need

9 May 2018

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, 21 March 2018

20 March 2018

UN expert calls for better protection against abuse and exploitation for Nepali workers seeking foreign employment

5 February 2018

UN human rights expert to visit Nepal to assess situation of migrants working abroad

24 January 2018

Statement by Andrew Gilmour, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, at the panel discussion marking the launching of the Joint General Comments by the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, and the Committee on the Rights of the Child on the human rights of children in the context of international migration; New York, 18 December 2017

18 December 2017

Human rights must be centre-stage as Paris climate change deal takes effect, UN experts say

3 November 2017

Statement by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein at the end of visit to Libya

12 October 2017

Human Rights Council Intersessional Panel Discussion on Human Rights, Climate Change, Migrants and Persons Displaced across International Borders

6 October 2017

Oral update of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Libya pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 34/38

27 September 2017

Panel discussion on the impact of multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence in the context of racism

26 September 2017

Darker and more dangerous: High Commissioner updates the Human Rights Council on human rights issues in 40 countries

11 September 2017

Returned migrants are being robbed, raped and murdered in Libya

8 September 2017

Panel discussion on unaccompanied migrant children and adolescents and human rights

9 June 2017

Migrants and refugees with disabilities must be priority in new Global Compact on Migration – UN experts

12 April 2017

UN experts urge UAE to quash the death sentence against a woman migrant domestic worker

30 March 2017

Human Rights Council decides to dispatch a fact-finding mission to Myanmar to establish facts on violations, especially in Rakhine State

24 March 2017

New EU recommendation on return procedures a “slippery slope” to solve European migration challenges – UN experts

9 March 2017

Malta summit: Protect rights of migrants, Zeid urges EU

7 February 2017

US travel ban: “New policy breaches Washington’s human rights obligations” – UN experts

1 February 2017

Children and families should never be in immigration detention – UN experts

14 December 2016

UN report urges end to inhuman detention of migrants in Libya

13 December 2016

Zeid warns against populists and demagogues in Europe and U.S.

5 September 2016

Jailing migrants is not the solution to Bulgaria’s migration challenges -- Zeid

11 August 2016

Press briefing note on Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Myanmar and Hungary

5 July 2016

Human rights protection must gain new momentum at World Humanitarian Summit – UN experts First World Humanitarian Summit – 23-24 May 2016

23 May 2016

UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants concludes country visit to Angola

10 May 2016

UN human rights expert urges Angola to develop an all-inclusive strategy for migrants

10 May 2016

UN human rights expert to assess the situation of migrants in Angola

29 April 2016

Statement by the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the “Migration: Why human rights matter”, Austrian Federal Ministry for Science and Research, 29 April 2016

29 April 2016

High Commissioner on Addressing Large Movements of People

30 March 2016

UN rights chief expresses serious concerns over EU-Turkey agreement

24 March 2016

Statement by Ms. Kate Gilmore, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights at the Annual Discussion on Technical Cooperation

22 March 2016

EU Migration Summit: “Some European States showing a complete disregard for human rights” – UN expert

16 March 2016

Keynote address: Side event “Migrants in transit” by Ms. Kate Gilmore, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights

14 March 2016

Keynote address by Kate Gilmore United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights at the Side event Migrants and the Right to Health

3 March 2016

UN report documents litany of violations and abuses amid chaos in Libya

25 February 2016

Europe/migration: Five-country police agreement exacerbates crisis and puts vulnerable migrants at risk -- Zeid

25 February 2016

International Migrants’ Day – Friday 18 December 2015

15 December 2015

Opening Statement by Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at the Panel Discussion - Promoting tolerance, dispelling myths, protecting rights: an evidence-based conversation on migration

15 December 2015

Opening remarks by Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at the Graduate Institute for International and Development Studies, Maison de la Paix, Geneva

27 October 2015

Statement by the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, François Crépeau, and the Chair of the UN Committee on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, Francisco Carrión Mena

23 October 2015

“Using force will not stop the global migration crisis” – UN experts call for “smart mobility solutions”

23 October 2015

Zeid urges Czech Republic to stop detention of migrants and refugees

22 October 2015

Video message by the High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein to warsaw dialogue for democracy 2015

22 October 2015

Migrant crisis: “High time for Europe to reclaim a leading role in human rights” – UN experts

9 October 2015

EU migration policy will fail unless comprehensive and grounded in human rights – Zeid

6 October 2015

Statement of the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the side event on 'Strengthening cooperation on migration and refugee movements in the perspective of the new development agenda', at the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly

30 September 2015

Hungary violating international law in response to migration crisis: Zeid

17 September 2015

High Commissioner closing remarks: Launch of the short documentary film "I AM NOT HERE"

16 September 2015

Opening Statement by Mr. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to a Panel to mark the 25th Anniversary of the Adoption of the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families

8 September 2015

Migrant crisis: “Let’s not pretend Europe’s response is working” – UN rights expert warns

25 August 2015

Joint Statement by UNHCR, OHCHR, IOM, the SRSG for Migration and Development, and UNODC

1 July 2015

Opening Statement by Mr. Ivan Šimonović, Assistant Secretary-General, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, at the Seventh Meeting of States Parties to the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families

1 July 2015

Sealing international borders is impossible, it only empowers smugglers – New expert report warns

16 June 2015

Statement by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein at the Interactive Dialogue on the Human Rights of Migrants at the 29th session of the Human Rights Council

15 June 2015

Human Rights Council Informal Briefing on Burundi, Tunisia, Migration crises in Europe and South-East Asia, and South Sudan

26 May 2015

SE Asia / Migrants: “Saving the lives of those stranded at sea should remain the priority” – UN rights experts

21 May 2015

Joint Statement by UNHCR, OHCHR, IOM and SRSG for Migration and Development

19 May 2015

High Commissioner Zeid: Pushbacks endanger thousands in Bay of Bengal

15 May 2015

Migrants: “EU’s resettlement proposal is a good start but remains woefully inadequate” – UN expert

15 May 2015

Joint Statement on Protection in the Mediterranean in Light of the EU Council’s Decision of 23 April 2015

28 April 2015

UN Human Rights Chief urges U.K. to tackle tabloid hate speech, after migrants called “cockroaches”

24 April 2015

Saving migrant lives is imperative but what next? – UN human rights experts ask EU leaders

24 April 2015

Joint Statement on Mediterranean Crossings

23 April 2015

Cooperate to save migrants' lives, urges UN Committee

21 April 2015

“Callous” EU politics on migrants costing lives – Zeid

20 April 2015

Statement of Mr Craig Mokhiber, IMO High-Level Meeting to Address Unsafe Mixed Migration by Sea

4 March 2015

International Migrants Day: joint statement by ILO Director-General, Guy Ryder, and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein

18 December 2014

Secretary-General's message on International Migrants Day

18 December 2014

Open, safe and regular migration channels crucial to stop human rights violations against migrants International Migrants’ Day – Thursday, 18 December 2014

18 December 2014

Statement by Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at Session II – Migration across the post-2015 agenda, IOM New York Migration Series “Defining the role of migration in the Post-2015 UN Development Agenda"

17 December 2014

Urgent Appeal: UN experts call on the Netherlands to give homeless migrants emergency help before Christmas

16 December 2014

Rich countries must not become xenophobic “gated communities”, warns UN rights chief Zeid

10 December 2014

OHCHR, UNHCR, IOM, UNODC and IMO Joint Statement on Protection at Sea in the Twenty-First Century

10 December 2014

Migrants and the Mediterranean: UN rights expert on human rights of migrants follow up visit to Italy for further development of his study on EU border management End of Mission Statement

5 December 2014

Opening Statement by Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at the Human Rights Council 27th Session

8 September 2014

Statement by Chair of the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (CMW) on Ending Immigration Detention of Children

3 July 2014

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