Human Rights and Unilateral Coercive Measures

A/HRC/RES/37/21View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the Human Rights Council, under agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, published in 2018.

What else is in this group?

42 documents · 1997–2025

Newer documents in this group exist (latest: 2025).

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2025	A/RES/80/209	Human rights and unilateral coercive measures	3,078	–
2024	A/RES/79/167	Human rights and unilateral coercive measures	3,310	–
2023	A/RES/78/202	Human rights and unilateral coercive measures	3,401	–
2023	A/HRC/RES/54/15	Human rights and unilateral coercive measures	1,512	–
2023	A/RES/77/214	Human rights and unilateral coercive measures	3,320	–

This group bundles related documents that are not individually ordered.

What subjects does this mandate have?

7 subjects

Accountability Declarations Human Rights Reparation Right to Development Sanctions Unilateral Coercive Measures

What’s in this document?

29 operative paragraphs

Calls upon all States to stop adopting, maintaining or implementing unilateral coercive measures not in accordance with international law, international humanitarian law, the Charter of the United Nations and the norms and principles governing peaceful relations among States, in particular those of a coercive nature with extraterritorial effects, which create obstacles to trade relations among States, thus impeding the full realization of the rights set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments, in particular the right of individuals and peoples to development;

Urges all States to refrain from imposing unilateral coercive measures, also urges the removal of such measures, as they are contrary to the Charter and norms and principles governing peaceful relations among States at all levels, and recalls that such measures prevent the full realization of economic and social development of nations while also affecting the full realization of human rights;

Urges States to resolve their differences through dialogue and peaceful relations, and to avoid the use of economic, political or other measures to coerce another State with regard to the exercise of its sovereign rights;

Strongly objects to the extraterritorial nature of those measures which, in addition, threaten the sovereignty of States, and in this context calls upon all Member States neither to recognize these measures nor to apply them, and to take effective administrative or legislative measures, as appropriate, to counteract the extraterritorial application or effects of unilateral coercive measures;

Condemns the continued unilateral application and enforcement by certain powers of such measures as tools of political or economic pressure against any country, particularly against developing countries, with a view to preventing these countries from exercising their right to decide, of their own free will, their own political, economic and social systems;

Expresses its grave concern that any unilateral coercive measure imposed necessarily runs counter to some provisions of the International Bill of Human Rights or peremptory norms and other provisions of customary law, and entails adverse consequences for the enjoyment of human rights by innocent people;

Also expresses its grave concern that, in some countries, the socioeconomic conditions of family members, particularly women and children, are adversely affected by unilateral coercive measures, imposed and maintained contrary to international law and the Charter, that create obstacles to trade relations among States, restrict movement through various means of transport, impede the full realization of social and economic development and hinder the well-being of the population in the affected countries, with particular consequences for women, children, including adolescents, the elderly and persons with disabilities;

Reiterates its call upon Member States that have initiated such measures to commit themselves to their obligations and responsibilities arising from relevant provisions of the international law and human rights instruments to which they are a party by putting an immediate end to such measures;

Reaffirms in this context the right of all peoples to self-determination by virtue of which they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their own economic, social and cultural development;

Also reaffirms, as enshrined in the Charter, its opposition to any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and territorial integrity of a State;

Recalls that, according to the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Cooperation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and to the relevant principles and provisions contained in the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States, proclaimed by the General Assembly in its resolution 3281 (XXIX) of 12 December 1974, in particular article 32 thereof, no State may use or encourage the use of economic, political or any other type of measure to coerce another State in order to obtain from it the subordination of the exercise of its sovereign rights and to secure from it advantages of any kind;

Reaffirms that essential goods, such as food and medicines, should not be used as tools for political coercion and that under no circumstances should people be deprived of their own means of subsistence and development;

Underlines the fact that unilateral coercive measures are one of the major obstacles to the implementation of the Declaration on the Right to Development, and in this regard calls upon all States to avoid the unilateral imposition of economic coercive measures and the extraterritorial application of domestic laws that run counter to the principles of free trade and hamper the development of developing countries;

Rejects all attempts to introduce unilateral coercive measures, and the increasing trend in this direction, including through the enactment of laws with extraterritorial application;

Recognizes that the Declaration of Principles adopted at the first phase of the World Summit on the Information Society, held in Geneva in December 2003, strongly urges States to avoid and refrain from any unilateral measure in building the information society;

Stresses the need for an independent mechanism of the United Nations human rights machinery for the victims of unilateral coercive measure to address the issues of remedies and redress, with a view to promoting accountability and reparations;

Urges all special rapporteurs and existing thematic mechanisms of the Human Rights Council in the field of economic, social and cultural rights to pay due attention, within the scope of their respective mandates, to the negative impact and consequences of unilateral coercive measures and to cooperate with the Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights in fulfilling his mandate;

Recognizes the importance of the quantitative and qualitative documentation of the negative impact associated with the application of unilateral coercive measures in the context of ensuring the accountability of those responsible for human rights violations resulting from the application of unilateral coercive measures against any State;

Acknowledges the need to ensure that all relevant United Nations human rights treaty bodies and subsidiary organs of the Human Rights Council mainstream the issue of the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights and perform specific activities, such as during the review of periodic reports submitted by States to such bodies and under the universal periodic review;

Decides to give due consideration to the issue of the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on human rights in its task concerning the implementation of the right to development;

Welcomes the report of the Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights;³

³A/HRC/36/44.

Requests the Special Rapporteur to identify and propose concrete measures to ensure the removal of unilateral coercive measures affecting the enjoyment of human rights of victims, and to focus on the resources and compensation necessary to promote accountability and reparations for victims in his next reports to the Human Rights Council and to the General Assembly;

Also requests the Special Rapporteur, taking into account the views of Member States, to identify a set of elements to be considered, as appropriate, in the preparation of a draft United Nations declaration on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights, and to submit those elements to the Human Rights Council in his next report;

Recognizes the importance of the role of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner in addressing the challenges arising from unilateral coercive measures and their negative impact on the human rights of peoples and individuals who wish to realize their economic and social rights, including the right to development;

Requests the High Commissioner, in discharging his functions relating to the promotion, realization and protection of the right to development and bearing in mind the continuing impact of unilateral coercive measures on the population of developing countries, to give priority to the present resolution in his annual report;

Calls upon all States to cooperate with and assist the Special Rapporteur in the performance of his tasks, and to provide all necessary information requested by him;

Urges the High Commissioner, relevant special procedures of the Human Rights Council and the treaty bodies to pay attention, within the framework of their mandates, to the situation of persons whose rights have been violated as the result of unilateral coercive measures;

Requests the Secretary-General to provide the assistance necessary to the Special Rapporteur to fulfil his mandate effectively, in particular by placing adequate human and material resources at his disposal;

Decides to continue its consideration of the issue of the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on human rights in accordance with its programme of work.

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