UN Activities on Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that all human being are born to be free and have rights to live with dignity.
Many in the world, however, are not able to enjoy these rights.
The United Nations has thus engaged itself in activities to improve human rights situations. Japan has strongly supported the U.N. activities in human rights field, believing that all human rights are universal.
Then Foreign Minister Keizo Obucni and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson at the Third Symposium on the Human Rights in the Asia-Pacific Region, Jan. 1998.
U.N. Activities on Human Rights
The U.N. Activities
The promotion and protection of all human rights is among the main objectives of the United Nations. The U.N. has established organizations to deal with human rights including the Commission on Human Rights, drafted various human rights instruments, encouraged states to accede to them, adopted resolutions requesting that states should improve their human rights situations, and organized a number of world-wide conferences. In June, 1993, World Conference on Human Rights adopted the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, which has a large impact on activities in the field of human rights. The post of the United Nations High commissioner for Human Rights was created in 1993, and Mrs. Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland, was appointed as the second High Commissioner in June 1997. She has been active in coordinating relevant U.N. activities and international cooperations since she assumed the office. Japan firmly supports High Commissioner's activities including human rights field operations and advisory services and technical assistance.
Japanese Cooperation
Japan has actively participated in the U.N. Commission on Human Rights as its member since 1982. Japan has increased its contribution to the Voluntary Fund for Advisory Services and Technical Assistance, considering that cooperation in legal systems building and awareness-raising in human rights is important to improve human rights situations. Japanese experts have also contributed to these activities as members of the sub-commission and committees in human rights field. Japan has also concluded a number of human rights instruments.
Partnership for Democratic Development (PDD)
Japan assists institutional building in various fields such as the legislative, administrative, electoral systems in order to foster democratic development and to protect and promote human rights in developing countries. Japan announced at the Lyon Summit an initiative named "Partnership for Democratic Development (PDD)," which is to strengthen cooperative activities in human rights field and for democratization. This initiative is based on the understanding that there exist many countries which have the political will to promote democracy and human rights but lack the appropriate systems, institutions and human resources. As examples of multilateral cooperation, we have supported the activities of the Voluntary Fund for Advisory Services and Technical Assistance in the field of human rights, and strengthen cooperation with the U.N. Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Programme. In the bilateral context, we will continue to make efforts in institutional building through dispatching and receiving experts of officials, assisting democratic elections, and sending personnel for monitoring of elections. We are also eager to cooperate directly with NGOs and the people of developing countries through such activities as supporting NGOs, inviting the press, and organizing symposiums.
Social Issues
Women
In September 1995, 10 years after the Nairobi World Conference, the Fourth World Conference on Women adopted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. At this conference, Japan announced its intention to promote the Initiative on Women in Development (WID) as its international contribution to the empowerment of women. Japan submitted to the Third Committee of the 50th U.N. General Assembly a resolution on the Role of the United Nations Development Fund for Women in Eliminating Violence Against Women, which was adopted by consensus, with 46 co-sponsors. And based on this resolution, Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence Against Women was established within the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), to which Japan provides financial contribution.
Japan has been a member of the Commission on the Status of Women and has an expert participate in the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Japan has been providing contributions to the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and to the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW).
Children
In order to respect and protect the rights of all children of the world, the U.N. adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989, 10 years after the International Year of the Child, 1979. In September 1990, the World Summit for Children was convened with the attendance of 71 Heads of States and Governments, and adopted the World Declaration and the Plan of Action for implementing the World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children. As of February 1998, the Convention on the Rights of the Child has been ratified by 191 countries. This fact shows its distinguished universality among the U.N. human rights instruments. Japan ratified it in April 1994 and submitted the initial report on this convention in May 1996.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has implemented long-term development activities in the field of health, sanitation, basic education and emergency assistance. Japan is a member of the Executive Board, and has been making contributions both from the government (7.83% of the whole donation, as of 1997) and from the private sector.
Social Development
Social problems such as poverty, unemployment, and social exclusion of vulnerable people were taken up comprehensively for the first time at the World Summit for Social Development, held in Copenhagen, Denmark in March 1995, in conformity with a General Assembly resolution of the United Nations. The summit adopted the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and Programme of Action, which showed the international commitment to social development. The then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama attended this summit and made a speech, stressing to give the prominent role to the realization of the social justice. He also declared that Japan would place special emphasis on social development in the field of ODA, promote technical assistance in such areas as education and vocational training, and increase the assistance for women in developing countries.
Awareness-raising
United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education
To raise international awareness for human rights, the 10-year period beginning from 1995 is proclaimed as the U.N. Decade for Human Rights Education. Under the Decade, U.N. organizations, governments, human rights institutions in different parts of the world are expected to make head to the goal by promoting human rights education. To accomplish this task, in December 1995, the Government of Japan established the Headquarters for the Promotion of the Plan of Action of the U.N. Decade for Human Rights Education, with the Prime Minister as its chair. The Headquarters finalized a National Plan of Action in July 1997.
The Symposium on Human Rights in the Asia-Pacific Region
Japan has attached importance on the mutual understanding on human rights, as a universal value, in the Asia-Pacific Region. In January 1998, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the United Nations University co-sponsored the Third Symposium on Human Rights in the Asia-Pacific Region, which provided the opportunity for the experts on human rights in this region to exchange their views. Japan expects the discussions on human rights to be deepened and developed in the symposium.
Japan's Financial Contribution
Contributions to the U.N. Funds on Human Rights
Japan's annual contributions to the U.N. Funds on human rights totaled about US$1 million. In addition, Japan has contributed $700,000 and $800,000 to the Human Rights Field Operations in Rwanda (HRFOR) and the former Yugoslavia, respectively.
ODA
Guided by the belief that human rights are universal, Japan has expressed its concerns upon human rights violations, calling on countries of concern to improve the human rights situation. Japan pays full attention to the human rights situations and efforts for promoting democratization as proclaimed in the ODA Charter. When any improvement in human rights situations or any trace of democratization is recognized, Japan helps these changes through aids. On the contrary, when the situation is clearly accusable, Japan reviews its ODA projects to the country concerned.
Back to Index