Regional Training Course on Interaction with International Human Rights Mechanisms Kicks off

Doha, May 28 (QNA) - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) launched Sunday a regional training course on the interaction with international human rights mechanisms, in cooperation with the UN Training and Documentation Center for Southwest Asia and the Arab Region, and the GCC General Secretariat.
The five-day course includes a series of basic themes related to international human rights mechanisms, with a focus on the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), UN Treaty Bodies, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), and Special Procedures of the HRC and the subsequent national plans to implement the recommendations of these mechanisms.
HE Director of MOFA's Human Rights Department, Dr. Turki bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud affirmed that this course reflects the State of Qatar's commitment to raising awareness and building human capacities for human rights activists, and to the Gulf strategy on human rights, which mainly focuses on raising awareness and building human capacities for the benefit of citizens and residents by promoting and protecting it in the GCC countries.
He added that the event brought together 26 participants from all GCC countries and various government agencies with the aim of raising their capacities regarding international human rights, the international agreements that fall under international human rights law, and the human rights-related bilateral relations of countries and strategic dialogues.
HE Dr. Turki bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud said that the course is an opportunity to exchange experiences and positive practices among countries, leading to the creation of a healthy environment for the exchange of positive practices and practical solutions to some of the challenges to establish and protect human rights in various countries and various government agencies. His Excellency appreciated the role of the UN Training and Documentation Center for Southwest Asia and the Arab Region and its staff in organizing the course, voicing hopes that the maximum benefit from it will be achieved for the benefit of all.
Director of UN Training and Documentation Center for Southwest Asia and the Arab Region, Dr. Abeer Al Khraisha said the course was part of the mandate of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to provide technical support to countries to fulfill their obligations in this aspect. She added that the Center's new vision was adopted effective 2022 in a bid to bolster the main training programs that target specific groups, including Arab diplomats, workers and those concerned with human rights in the relevant official bodies such as the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Justice and others, in addition to other training programs targeting other groups such as Arab journalists and media professionals, national institutions and NGOs in the Arab region for their important role in the promotion and protection of human rights.
She added that the course is also part of the Center's continuous cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the State of Qatar and comes within the framework of adopting the GCC human rights strategy (2023-2026), and enhancing the knowledge of those concerned in the GCC countries and the GCC General Secretariat representatives regarding the UN mechanisms, international instruments and the interaction of member states with international mechanisms.
The participants will be provided with the necessary information about the concepts, principles and standards of human rights, and their international mechanisms, with a focus on mechanisms that address the obligations and responsibilities of member states to respect, protect and fulfill them, Al Khraisha said. She added that the course would also build and enhance the capacities and skills of those concerned in the relevant official authorities in interacting with international human rights mechanisms during their work, and the exchange of experiences, best practices and lessons learned about interaction with the UN mechanisms.
The UN Training and Documentation Center for Southwest Asia and the Arab Region was established under UN General Assembly Resolution No. 60/153 of 2005. It was inaugurated in Doha in 2009.
Al Khraisha highlighted the Center's human rights training activities and educational resources for the Arab region, and its many regional training courses over the past years, as well as its efforts on human rights education in implementation of the World Program for Human Rights Education, to advance the implementation of human rights education programs in all educational levels, with a focus on youth, a program that will include all stakeholders from the ministries of education, higher education, national human rights institutions and civil society.
She stressed the OHCHR and its affiliated Center to strengthen partnership and cooperation with all government agencies in the Arab region, especially diplomatic institutes, police academies, ministries of foreign affairs, interior, justice and others, in addition to other official institutions and relevant authorities and national human rights institutions in the Arab region to promote, protect and respect human rights. (QNA)