Bulgaria Elected Member of Human Rights Council
12 October 2018 News
Bulgaria was elected member of the Human Rights Council (HRC) for the 2019-2021 period during the 73rd Session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Our country received the support of 180 of a total of 188 UN Member States that attended the vote and voted. Bulgaria ranked fifth among the 18 candidate countries for HRC membership and shared the first spot with Italy among the EU candidate countries.
This was the first time that Bulgaria has run for election to this body. The country’s election to the HRC is a token of recognition for its active human rights policies at national and global level. In view of its commitments to the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, Bulgaria has pledged to support the independence of the UN human rights structures and to work for the protection of the rights of the child, the equality between men and women, the rights of people with disabilities, and the building of tolerant societies.
The Human Rights Council (HRC) is an intergovernmental body within the UN system that is responsible for promoting and protecting human rights across the world and for tackling violations in this area. The Council has the authority to discuss all human rights issues and situations that come to its attention throughout the year as well as to make recommendations on them. The body meets at the UN Office in Geneva. Its membership consists of 47 countries that are elected by the UN General Assembly. At elections, account is taken of every candidate’s contribution to encouraging and protecting human rights as well as to their voluntary commitments in this area.