01/04/2020

Virtual Roundtable: Giving a Voice to Civil Society amid Covid 19

UPR info invites civil society organizations and National Human Rights Institutions in a Virtual Roundtable to exchange information on the impact of the Covid 19 crisis on human rights. This will be an opportunity to discuss about challenges that civil society is facing and the solutions that can be put in place to protect human rights.

 “The COVID-19 crisis cannot be solved with public health and emergency measures only; all other human rights must be addressed too » reports a statement published by UN human rights experts on 26th March 2020.

States are called to act with determination to provide the needed resources to all sectors of public health systems – from prevention and detection to treatment and recovery to stem the crisis. It is crucial that States apply a human rights-based approach in the responses to epidemics.

UPR Info believes that civil society can play a key role in providing inputs to support and inform governments on how to prioritize the needs of those who are at most risk of being disproportionately affected by the crisis. As the UN experts have identified in their statement these include: “People with disabilities, older persons, minority communities, indigenous peoples, internally displaced people, people affected by extreme poverty and living in overcrowded settings, people who live in residential institutions, people in detention, homeless people, migrants and refugees, people who use drugs, LGBT and gender diverse persons – these and other groups need to receive support from governments.” In addition, women are affected even more severely by the virus “who are already at a disadvantaged socio-economic position, bear an even heavier care burden, and live with a heightened risk of gender-based violence.”

In this period of crisis, UPR Info will continue to carry on its mandate to support civil society in the protection and advancement of human rights. For this reason we are pleased to launch this initiative to support civil society to stay connected and exchange information about the challenges and solutions during this crisis. The Virtual Roundtable will be a space for dialogue among civil society actors to discuss the following questions:

- How does covid-19 crisis affect your work on human rights?
- What initiatives/ measures did you put in place to protect human rights in this period?

There will be two  sessions- one in English and one in French)- of 1 hour and half. The virtual meetings are open to all CSOs and NHRIs who wish to share inputs on how to apply a rightsbased approach to addressing the COVID-19.

English Virtual Meeting on Wednesday, 8th April at 3 pm (Geneva Time).  To register, please click here. 
French Virtual Meeting on Thursday, 9th April at 3 pm (Geneva Time). To register, please click here. 

If you have any question, please contact: stakeholders@upr-info.org