Human Rights, Technical Assistance and Capacity-Building in Yemen

A/HRC/RES/36/31View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the Human Rights Council, under agenda item 10 Technical assistance and capacity-building, published in 2017.

What subjects does this mandate have?

11 subjects

Accountability Commissions of Inquiry Experts Financial Assistance Human Rights Human Rights in Armed Conflicts Human Rights Violations Internal Security Report Preparation Technical Cooperation Yemen

What’s in this document?

21 operative paragraphs

Condemns the ongoing violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law in Yemen, including those involving the widespread recruitment and use of children by parties to the armed conflict, arbitrary arrests and detention, denial of humanitarian access and attacks on civilians and civilian objects, including medical facilities and missions and their personnel, as well as schools, and emphasizes the importance of accountability;

Calls upon all parties to the armed conflict to respect their obligations and commitments under applicable international human rights law and international humanitarian law, and in particular with regard to attacks against civilians and civilian objects, and to ensure humanitarian access to the affected population nationwide, including by lifting obstacles to the importation of humanitarian goods, reducing bureaucratic delays, resuming salary payments for civil servants and ensuring the full cooperation of the Central Bank of Yemen;

Calls upon all parties in Yemen to engage in the political process in an inclusive, peaceful and democratic way, ensuring the equal and meaningful participation and full involvement of women in the peace process;

Demands that all parties to the armed conflict end the recruitment and use of children and release those who have already been recruited, and calls upon all parties to cooperate with the United Nations for their reintegration into their communities, taking into consideration the relevant recommendations made by the Secretary-General in his report on children and armed conflict;⁵

⁵A/70/836–S/2016/360.

Calls upon all parties in Yemen to implement fully Security Council resolution 2216 (2015), which will contribute to an improvement in the situation of human rights, and encourages all parties to reach a comprehensive agreement to end the conflict;

Emphasizes the commitments and obligations of the Government of Yemen to ensure respect for the promotion and protection of the human rights of all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction, and in that connection recalls that Yemen is a party to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Optional Protocols thereto on the involvement of children in armed conflict and on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography thereto, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the Protocol thereto, and looks forward to the Government continuing its efforts to promote and protect human rights;

Calls upon all parties to immediately release all Baha’i detained in Yemen due to their religious belief, to cease the issuance of arrest warrants against them and to cease the harassment to which they are subjected;

Expresses deep concern at the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Yemen, and expresses its appreciation to donor States and organizations working on improving that situation and for their pledges to provide financial support for the Yemen humanitarian response plan for 2017;

Invites all bodies of the United Nations system, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Member States to assist the transitional process in Yemen, including by supporting the mobilization of resources to tackle the consequences of the violence and the economic and social challenges faced by Yemen, in coordination with the international donor community and according to the priorities set by the Yemeni authorities;

Acknowledges the difficulty of the circumstances under which the National Commission of Inquiry operates, and that the continuation of the armed conflict and the continued violations and abuses of international human rights law and violations of international humanitarian law necessitate the continuation of the Commission’s mandate, and the intensification of its work according to presidential decree No. 50 of 23 August 2017, and urges that its tasks be completed professionally, impartially and comprehensively;

Urges all parties to the armed conflict to take all the measures necessary to ensure effective, impartial and independent investigations into all alleged violations and abuses of human rights and alleged violations of international humanitarian law, in accordance with international standards, with a view to ending impunity;

Requests the High Commissioner to establish a group of eminent international and regional experts with knowledge on human rights law and the context of Yemen for a period of at least one year, renewable as authorized, with the following mandate:

To monitor and report on the situation of human rights, to carry out a comprehensive examination of all alleged violations and abuses of international human rights and other appropriate and applicable fields of international law committed by all parties to the conflict since September 2014, including the possible gender dimensions of such violations, and to establish the facts and circumstances surrounding the alleged violations and abuses and, where possible, to identify those responsible.

To make general recommendations on improving respect for and the protection and fulfilment of human rights, and to provide guidance on access to justice, accountability, reconciliation and healing, as appropriate;

To engage with Yemeni authorities and all stakeholders, in particular relevant United Nations agencies, the field presence of the Office of the High Commissioner in Yemen, the authorities of the Gulf States and the League of Arab States, with a view to exchanging information and providing support for national, regional and international efforts to promote accountability for human rights violations and abuses in Yemen;

Requests the immediate operationalization of the mandate, and also requests the High Commissioner to appoint without delay the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts, by no later than the end of 2017;

Requests the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts to submit a comprehensive written report to the High Commissioner, by the time of the thirty-ninth session of the Human Rights Council, to be followed by an interactive dialogue;

Encourages all parties to the armed conflict in Yemen to extend full and transparent access and cooperation to the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts;

Requests the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner to provide the full administrative, technical and logistical support necessary to enable the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts to carry out its mandate;

Requests the High Commissioner to continue to provide substantive capacity-building, technical assistance, advice and legal support to enable the National Commission of Inquiry to complete its investigatory work, including to ensure that the National Commission investigates allegations of violations and abuses committed by all parties in Yemen and in line with international standards, and to submit its comprehensive report on alleged human rights violations and abuses in all parts of Yemen, in accordance with Presidential Decree No. (50) of 23 August 2017, as soon as it is available, and encourages all parties to the conflict in Yemen to extend full and transparent access and cooperation to the National Commission and the Office of the High Commissioner;

Also requests the High Commissioner to present to the Human Rights Council, at its thirty-seventh session, an oral update on the situation of human rights in Yemen and the development and implementation of the present resolution, and to present to the Council at its thirty-ninth session a report on the situation of human rights, including violations and abuses committed since September 2014, as well as on the implementation of technical assistance as stipulated in the present resolution.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

Table of contents