31st Meeting - 63rd Session of Human Rights Council

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Right. Good morning, everybody. I think we can start. Excellencies, distinguished representatives, colleagues, I hereby declare open the 31st meeting of the 63rd Human Rights Council. I would like to note that yesterday the Council concluded the consideration of agenda item 6. So that is closed. And I now declare open agenda item 8, entitled Follow-up to and Implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action. We will now begin the annual discussion on the integration of gender perspectives throughout the work of the Human Rights Council and that of its mechanisms. held pursuant to Council Resolution 6/30. The theme of the panel this year is "From gender stereotypes to structural discrimination: Strengthening the Human Rights Council's response." It is my honor to welcome to the podium Ms. Awa Dabo, the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Ms. Nyaradza Ziyi Gumbonzvanda, the Deputy Executive Director of UN Women. who will deliver an opening statement. It is also my honor to welcome our distinguished panelists. Miss Rhoda Reddock, member of the committee on the elimination of discrimination against women. Miss Rosina Rossi Albert, president of the Administrative Litigation. Administrative Litigation Court of Uruguay for a video message. Ms. Amrita Kapoor, Secretary General, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom. Ms. Tannar Lorente, UN Policy and Advocacy Advisor, Plan International. Excellencies, distinguished representatives, colleagues, the list of speakers will close in 15 minutes. I encourage all speakers to intervene in an interactive way, present comments and ask questions that reflects the panelists intervention and the discussion. The speaking time limit is one minute and 30 seconds for all and a maximum of 40 speakers will be accommodated. Delegates inscribed on the list of speakers who cannot take the floor because of time constraints can upload their statements to the online system to be posted on the HRC portal. I now have the honor to invite the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights to deliver the opening statement. Madame.

Thank you. Mr. President, Excellencies, distinguished participants, good morning. Gender stereotypes are not abstract ideas. They shape how women are seen, heard, and judged every day, including in rooms like this one. Nearly nine in 10 people worldwide hold at least one bias against women, according to UN estimates. It's a stark reminder that gender stereotypes are neither marginal nor are they harmless. For many women, including myself, being judged on the basis of gender, scrutinized for appearances rather than work, and expected to conceal discomfort at sexist jokes remain everyday realities. People are placed into categories very early on. A sister who has to clean the house whilst her brother is doing homework. A boy bullied at work for being too humble. A migrant girl whose education is deprioritized because she is destined for other roles. According to UNICEF, girls aged 10 to 14 spend 50% more time on household chores than boys. When deeply entrenched stereotypes may seem normal or go unnoticed, they are often disguised as morality, family values, or established gender roles, and may even be presented as positive. But we should be under no illusion about their profound impact on human rights, primarily the rights of women and girls. Gender stereotypes fuel discrimination in insidious ways. poisoning our everyday practice, our institutions, and our laws. They are directly linked to exclusion, to violence, and a lack of access to economic opportunities and decision-making. And even where laws unlock many doors, stereotypes may still shackle women, preventing them from walking through. For women living at the intersection of multiple forms of discrimination and crises, these bonds tighten further. Biased media portrayals of LGBTIQ+ women can contribute to so-called corrective sexual violence against them. Negative stereotypes about parenting capacity of women with disabilities can result in forced contraception and sterilization. Gender stereotypes become particularly harmful during conflict and crisis, influencing who is targeted and how. silencing and stigmatizing victims, distorting investigations, and enabling impunity. From the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Myanmar to the occupied Palestinian territory, Sudan, Venezuela, UN investigative mechanisms have documented women being targeted as proxies to punish men and communities, while facing greater barriers to justice. Rape and gendered humiliation of men and boys were also used to assert power over the other warring party. Stereotypes can channel migrant women into informal work where they are at risk of exploitation and abuse. They also often shape attitudes in host communities. In Europe, for example, Muslim migrant women can be denied equal opportunities in workplace and politics in part because of harmful stereotypes. Stereotypes casting men as heads of households and economic decision makers also restrict women's access to land, to credit, to technology, and increasing their vulnerability to climate shocks. When women don't participate equally in the development of new technologies, human bias can be encoded into algorithms, and safeguards against online misogyny can be weakened. One study found that young men's TikTok and YouTube Shorts accounts began receiving manosphere content within 26 minutes of viewing. The cycle closes when all these violations and abuse become harder to challenge in courts, as stereotypes also influence who gets arrested, whose case is prioritized, and who is believed. Mr. President, let's stop calling these norms. Misogyny is not a norm. Patriarchy is not a value. Sexism is not a joke. These are harmful misconceptions, deliberately propagated for greater power and control over everyone. Beliefs about gender stereotypes shape our families, either around equality, freedom, and respect, or around domination and oppression. And that logic becomes the logic of our societies. It is no coincidence that the pushback against women's rights is unfolding alongside an autocratic resurgence and proliferation of violent conflict around the world. Last year, a study of 174 countries found that almost every country with low gender equality was an autocracy. We see this clearly in some of our current conflicts, where authorities are reinforcing stereotypes about women to tighten social control and, in some cases, to build support for militarization and nationalistic agendas. This pushback particularly targets politically active women and women human rights defenders who are seen as defying traditional gender norms. But this is not because gender equality doesn't work. It is precisely because it does. Attitudes that cherish freedom and equality help societies recognize injustice and challenge unchecked power. They make our commitments and our communities stronger. All around us, we see women mayors making cities safer and greener, women negotiators making peace agreements more durable, women leaders making institutions more responsive. And in my work, I have seen time and time again, women make a decisive difference in peacebuilding and in transitional justice. Excellencies, we need comprehensive strategies to remove corrosive bias from our institutions, our policies, and our systems. We need governments that invest in laws, in programs and advocacy to promote equal roles and share responsibilities and women's leadership. Embedding human rights in education and training at every level across all professions is a tried and tested way to foster dignity and respect across generations. We need employers that champion diversity and have zero tolerance for sexism. We need to turn technology from an amplifier of bias into a force for equality, using it to detect and eliminate discriminatory patterns. Understanding gender stereotypes is also essential for the effective administration of justice and law enforcement. This is why our office sponsors or supports governments around the world, from Cambodia to Costa Rica and Uruguay, in integrating a gender perspective into justice systems. Mr. President, when we fail women, we fail collectively as societies. When women advance, we all advance. So let's make equality the norm in how we think, in how we act, and in how we build our communities. Thank you.

Thank you. I now have the honor to invite Ms. Gumbo Ndvandha to deliver her opening statement. Madam, you have the floor.

Thank you, Mr. President of the Human Rights Council, Mr. Sidat Reza Suradipo, my own sister, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, our double distinguished panelists, excellencies, colleagues, and friends. It's such an honor for me to be able to address the Human Rights Council on this agenda item. The United Nations Charter starts with we, the people. And it was with intentionality that Article 55 of the United Nations Charter embedded with clarity the issues around non-discrimination, including on the basis of gender, the discrimination of men and women. And indeed, the Bill of Rights is very clear on its emphasis that we are all born equal in dignity and in rights, and yet gender stereotypes do claw away on these fundamental, charter-rooted commitments. Gender stereotypes are at times dismissed as attitudes, as assumptions or matters of culture, but they are not harmless ideas. When they become embedded in laws, in policies, in institutions, in decision making, they shape what is protected and who is valued and who is punished and whose rights are negotiated. This is how stereotypes become structural discrimination. These stereotypes do not operate in isolation. They intersect with racism, with ageism, with ableism, I can attest to that as a woman living with disability, and other forms of discrimination, compounding exclusion for women and girls who face multiple overlapping inequalities. And this is why addressing them is simply a matter of changing individual attitudes. It is a matter of human rights and of structural transformation. 30 years of the Beijing Platform for Action, women still enjoy only 67% of the legal rights enjoyed by men and perform two and a half times much of the care work. These are issues that we know are embedded in the essence of CEDAW. This is why today's is so important. Integrating gender equality perspectives systematically across the Human Rights Council's work must mean more than counting women's participation. It must mean examining and transforming the laws, the institutions, the practices that produce unequal outcomes. UN Women's evidence shows that discriminatory norms and stereotypes are produced and reproduced through institutions that shape our lives, the state, the market, religion, community, and even the family. To dismantle them, we must change the rules, the incentives, and the structure that give those attitudes force. I always, also always reflect on the issue of language and how gender stereotypes are transmitted through language. For instance, what we call child marriage is under international law just rape. It's a crime in many of our jurisdictions. And yet, gender stereotypes reduce them to a social norm, to an articulation that rationalizes and normalizes a violation of human rights. UN Women's evidence also shows that stereotypes are produced very widely and very structurally. There are three mutually reinforcing pathways for doing so. First, we must transform the narratives. We must challenge the stories that present inequality as natural. as inevitable or beneficial and build broad support for equality and for human dignity. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to meet the first ever female Secretary-General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. After 137 years, there's not been a woman elected to that role. And we know equally for WMO. took them 150 years. And we can count, including for ourselves in the United Nations, where we have only had five women as presidents of the General Assembly. And we are yet to even say good morning, Madam Secretary General. All this is embedded in the notion and the stereotype around women as leaders and as decision makers. Therefore, it is important to change the material conditions. A woman cannot overcome a stereotype about her economic role if the law restricts her access to employment or assets. A girl cannot overcome expectation of care if she's required to leave school or care for her family. And women cannot achieve equality in the workplace if unpaid care remains undistributed. We must move from just formal equality, which is important, to substantive equality, within which gender stereotype undermines that possibility. Third, it's important to strengthen the power and voice of those advocating for change. Women's organizations, feminist movements, people facing intersecting discrimination are not just beneficiaries, they are agents of change and need resources, protection and political space that shape the laws, the policies and the institutions. This is why the work of this Human Rights Council is very important and is over time looked at protecting human rights defenders who at times really lived on these issues. A key stereotype about women is that they don't work. Rooted in the norms that cast men as breadwinners and women as homemakers, this stereotype persists despite women's visible contribution in homes, on farms, factories, on the streets, in public and in private sector. Therefore, we call on the Council and States to take the following concrete steps. First, eliminate gender stereotypes in laws, judicial reasoning, in public policy and institutional practice. Second, Integrate gender stereotype analysis systematically across the universal periodic review, special procedures, investigations, and council resolutions. Third, establish effective training, oversight, and complaints procedures and remedies where stereotypes influence decision by judges, prosecutors, the police, health professionals, and other public officials. It is important to equally strengthen the role of independent national human rights mechanisms, as they also play a critical role. Fourth, assess artificial intelligence and algorithmic systems for bias and discrimination and discriminatory outcomes. We are pleased to see that in the recently concluded high-level week of the UN General Assembly, there was a strong, strong call on global AI governance, and for us, this also relates to technology technology-facilitated violence. Finally, resource, fund and protect women's organizations in the affected communities as leaders in the design, implementation and monitoring of reform. As we heard at the CSW70, formal equality before the law is not enough if stereotypes determine whose testimony is credible and whose harm is recognized and who can obtain an effective remedy. UN Women stands ready to support states in the Human Rights Council and its mechanisms in translating international recommendations into country level reform. We will continue to work with the CEDAW Committee, with the Working Group on Non-Discrimination, with indeed the Office of the High Commissioner, including in relation to the forthcoming General Recommendation No. 41 on dismantling gender stereotypes. We are as UN Women also proud to support you, Mr. President, with your Advisory Board on Gender Equality, the board for which we are honored to serve and which brings member states, partners and human rights mechanisms together with civil society to action some of these issues on inequality systematically embedded through the Council's work. We cannot dismantle structural discrimination while leaving intact the ideologies, institutions and relations that sustain it. We therefore look forward to carrying through this discussion through the UN Commission on the Status of Women 71, which would be focusing on the SDGs, and to carry forward those commitments in our ongoing work and in our communities and with the countries that we serve. Again, thank you so much, Mr. President.

Thank you, Madam. I will now give the floor to the distinguished panelists for their initial presentations. And I give the floor to Ms. Rhoda Reddock.

Good morning. The CERD Committee is pleased to have this opportunity to address you here today. The CERD Convention was adopted in 1979. and the committee met for the first time in 1982. This committee is mandated by Article 21 of its convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women to develop general recommendations with the aim of providing authoritative guidance to states parties on legislative policy and other appropriate measures to ensure the implementation of the obligations under the conventions. So I welcome all the States Parties who are present. Since its inception, general recommendations have been developed by CEDAW and become more comprehensive over the years. GR 41, General Recommendation 41 on dismantling gender stereotypes, prejudices and stigma and the power relations that sustain them is our latest general recommendation. It interprets and develops upon Article 5A of the Convention, which calls on States Parties, and I quote, "to modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women with a view to achieving the elimination of prejudices and customary and all other practices based on the idea of the inferiority or superiority of either of the sexes or on stereotyped rules for men and women. I always say that this is one of the most important articles because it identifies the basis for the other discriminatory practices that women experience. This general recommendation provides a more in-depth interpretation of the scope and nature of States Parties' obligations under Article 5 and Article 10C to address gender stereotyping as a form of discrimination against women. It provides guidance to States Parties on legislative policy and other relevant measures to ensure the implementation of their obligations under the Convention. Article 5 is the only article that specifically mentions men and boys, providing the opportunity to address how men and boys are affected. Gender stereotypes are often rooted, as we have heard on this distinguished panel already, in notions of women and girls' inferiority and lesser value, and the assumed value and superiority of men and boys. They normalize and legitimize women and girls' unequal worth, inequality and subordination from birth. They are embedded in everyday behaviors, rules and standards in institutions such as the state, economy, labor market, community, religious institutions and the family. Gender stereotypes justify existing discriminatory behaviors, the norms, rules, and practices that determine the roles, power, and privileges of men and women in these institutions. Dismantling gender stereotypes, therefore, requires the transformation of discriminatory ideas and rules and standards that support them in all areas of life, and addressing the stigma affecting many special groups faced by intersectional discrimination. Intersectional discrimination is the result of intersecting axes and systems of inequality. Although, sorry, for example, racism, casteism, colorism, sex and gender-based discrimination, ageism, ableism, and class inequality. So although they are often perceived as separate axes within the social structure and in everyday practice, they simultaneously interact with each other to shape women's and men's lives. Those axes are connected to broader systems of oppression. including political, colonial, and patriarchal structures, which reinforce each other. One innovation of this GR is the location of gender stereotypes within these wider structures and systems of inequality, which benefit from women's inferior and subordinate status, and therefore sustain them. They operate as part of a system that normalizes and controls rather than just a set of discriminatory beliefs. It is critical for States Parties not only to address their gender stereotypes themselves, but importantly, also the underlying attitudes, systems and structures that give rise to and sustain them. This must entail research, analysis and identification of the root causes giving rise to and sustaining these ideas and practices. In this general recommendation, the term gender stereotypes we use to also refer to prejudices, stigma, bias, and all other beliefs, assumptions, customary, and organizational cultures that shape or contribute to discriminatory social practices. Men and boys are also shaped and impacted by gender stereotypes. Across the world, patriarchal masculinities define ideals of manhood which are not always in men's interests, but which define certain constructs of masculinity that are highly privileged. Most men and boys are socialized to conform to these norms to gain acceptance within the group. They build upon harmful traits, attitudes and behaviours that consistently normalise inequality and encourage violence, discrimination, domination, exploitation, control, militarisation, colonialism and a lack of accountability and care affecting women and girls, but importantly, also men and boys and entire societies. These attitudes justify and establish discriminatory practices in law, custom, and all aspects of social and economic life. Gender stereotypes, prejudices, bias, and stigma are often justified, as we heard earlier, under the banners of tradition, culture, religion, and as my colleague mentioned, so-called family values, and even nature. Discriminatory practices against women and girls need to be eliminated, regardless of their origins, including those perpetuated through misinterpreted notions of culture and religion. After two years of comprehensive work, beginning with a half-day of general discussion in February 2025, briefings to States Parties and other groups, and eight regional and subregional consultations in the Pacific, East and South Asia, West and Central Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Caribbean Community, Asia, Europe and Central Asia, and the Arab States, we thank UN Women and all UN agencies that supported this process as we move towards conclusion. The final reading and adoption of GR 41 on dismantling gender stereotypes, prejudices and stigma and the power relations that sustain them. The final reading and adoption will take place during CEDAW's upcoming session in October. And we thank you for being here. and for lending us your ear. Thank you.

Thank you. I now give the floor to Ms. Rosina Rossi Albert to deliver a video message.

Let me introduce myself. I'm Rosina Rossi. I'm a judge in the Uruguayan justice system, have been for 41 years. director of the judicial school centre for judicial studies in Uruguay between 2017 and 2023. Currently, I am in charge of training judges and lawyers in the state as president of the administrative litigation court of Uruguay. I will be sharing an institutional experience related to gender stereotypes and training justice operators to act in cases of gender-based violence in all areas, criminal, civil, labour and in other areas, and in cases of private relations and with the state. In 2019, the interagency gender group of the UN in Uruguay tasked the judiciary school and the attorney general of the nation to develop two practical guides on gender stereotypes and international standards on the rights of women. One of those documents is geared towards justice operators, judges and public defenders within the judicial authority, and the other is aimed at staff in the attorney general's office, which, in Uruguay, lies outside the judicial authority. The draft was also supported by the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and the OHCHR. branch in Uruguay. Of the two guides, I'll be highlighting the following points: the purpose, the process of drafting, the content, the format of the guides, and I'll be concluding with a brief assessment. So what was the purpose of the guides? The two documents consist of a practical guide but with theoretical support aimed at helping the work of justice operators when they have to act in response to life problems that affect human dignity and gender. The drafting process of those two guides was supported and guided the drafting of the documents, but we should highlight in particular the fact that the operators themselves, who are representatives of judges, public defenders and prosecutors, diagnosed the most common problems facing the Uruguayan community and best profiled how to implement training and the seeking of solutions. The content that the two guides have in common is that they have five main chapters. The first chapter is on general definitions, including what a gender perspective means, the reasons for introducing a gender perspective, what gender-based violence means, international standards and language as a form of perpetuating inequality. Chapter 2 the legal framework of human rights law, which includes both the universal and regional contexts, in our case, the terms of the region, the Americas. Chapter three, the role of justice operators and how to implement in that role the gender perspective. Now, on this point, each guide refers specifically to the respective functions involved. The guide for the judicial authority refers to problems of judicial practice that face judges and public defenders, while the guide for the attorney general refers to those problems inherent to its functioning in the criminal domain. Chapter 4 contains a sort of self-test, a self-test to be carried out by a judiciary operator during each stage involved in his or her action. In other words, in understanding the problem before the justice system, in evaluating evidence and the final decision. Now this self-test's purpose is for the operator to examine his or her own action, ensuring that he doesn't himself become trapped in gender stereotypes that are so deep-rooted in the community. And then there is a set of questions that the operator will put to his or herself and that can be applied to each specific case. Chapter five, then. Chapter five is dedicated to jurisprudence. It's split into two sections, one on cases before the Inter-American Human Rights Court and the CEDAW Committee. It also has a second section, which is a guide on where and how to seek international jurisprudence. That is the content of the two guides. I will now turn to the format. The two guides use simple terms and accessible language. They were edited in paper and digital form. published this by UN Women Latin America and the Caribbean. They are practical, straightforward guides of about 8,000 words in a user-friendly paper format so that, because judiciary operators can have it on their work desk, given that Uruguay, you see, is still the majority of the justice system still uses paper files. Now, turning then to the assessment. So the guides constitute a useful instrument to visualize, understand and resolve cases of discrimination against women that are adapted to universal and regional norms, as well as the recommendations of the CEDAW Committee. They adapt those norms to the specific problems facing the Uruguayan community and its cultural idiosyncrasies. What is particularly valuable is that it was put together by the representatives of the operators themselves, the people who would be using those guides. At the request of the OHCHR office in Uruguay, the guides were later presented in Latin American countries, especially during the first few years after publication. Either way, when carrying out a forward-looking assessment from a human rights perspective in terms of access to justice, it is crucial to understand that the guides are just one step and that, to properly deconstruct gender stereotypes, it is vital to insist on ongoing training of all State operators. those in the justice system, but others also, all state operators who wield power. Therefore, those who act for the state should, or we should, in my condition as a judge, be accountable case by case as to how power is used in the best way to guarantee human dignity. Today, on behalf of the administrative justice system in Uruguay, who specifically is the one that controls the use of the power of the state, I want to thank you.

Thank you. The list of speakers is now closed, and I'd like to inform everybody that we have two hours, so we finish by noon. and there are 60 requests from states to speak and 17 from NHRIs and non-governmental organizations. So our schedule is very tight and I would have to insist, unfortunately, I would have to insist that all speak according to their time limit. And I now give the floor to Ms. Amrita Kapoor.

Thank you, excellencies, distinguished panelists, ladies and gentlemen. At a moment of growing polarization, misogyny, and militarization, we need to understand gender stereotypes for what they do. They organize power. They shape who leads and cares, who protects and who is protected, whose knowledge counts, and whose exercise of power and violence is considered legitimate. Gender stereotypes fuel deepening polarization. They amplify misogyny through the manosphere and normalize militarization, dominance, aggression, and force as answers to security. We see the consequences of this today when these links are ignored. The escalation from stereotype into structural discrimination has been mentioned. From discrimination into institutionalized oppression is the next step. and from cultures of domination into conditions that enable and fuel violence and conflict. Accordingly, states must move from challenging individual stereotypes to addressing and transforming the institutions that reproduce them. There is a responsibility to transform the gendered power relations and institutions that enable discrimination, domination, and violence. From our homes and communities to our economies, political institutions, and systems of peace and security. Across all spheres of society, policies need to ask what assumptions about masculinity, femininity, authority, care, violence, and protection does this institution reproduce? Who benefits and who is excluded? And critically, how is this policy challenging these stereotypes? Transforming harmful gender stereotypes changes how communities distribute productive labor, unpaid care, resources, and power, and will inevitably reduce some of the economic and social conditions through which insecurity and violence are reproduced. The gender impact assessment is already an established governance tool, including across many OECD countries, where the stated policy goal is indeed gender transformative policy that changes gender norms and power relations. So the broad recommendation is that states should integrate this analysis of gender stereotypes, masculinities, and unequal power relations into existing gender impact assessments, gender analysis, and policy review processes. including in security sector reform and governance, peace processes, DDR, arms control policy, national action plans and women, peace and security, and require that identified discriminatory or stereotype reinforcing impacts to result in policy change. Second, militarized masculinities must be part of conflict prevention, human rights investigation and accountability, and this has already been mentioned. We know that a militarised masculinities lens allows us to examine how masculine norms and expectations influence the perpetration of violence, the gender targeting of victims and forms of violence, and the barriers that survivors face in testifying, reporting and seeking services and assistance. Transforming these is critical to break cycles of institutionalised and normalised violence to prevent its recurrence. And without this analysis, we risk holding individuals accountable while leaving the very architecture of violence untouched, which allows militarized notions of domination, force, and masculinity to remain embedded in institutions and reproduce the violations we seek to present. So concrete recommendations, and here I would echo the Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, should include that commissions of inquiry, fact-finding missions, and national early warning systems, transitional justice, and other investigative mechanisms should examine militarized masculinities as structural drivers and enabling conditions of violations, because findings about these can inform accountability and progress guarantees of non-repetition. Third, there is a political economy behind gender stereotypes. WILPF has documented firearms marketing that associates weapons with militarised masculinity, strength and manhood. The gun industry sells not just a product but an identity, and firearms themselves increase women's exposure to serious forms of gender-based violence. Masculinity is monetised by selling weapons, attention or outrage, and this means inequality is fuelled by a business model and personal profit. And this is why WILPF's submission to CEDAW on General Recommendation 41 recommended to recognize the gun industry's exploitation of violent and militarized notions of manhood. It is also why states must incorporate gender stereotype analysis into regulation and human rights due diligence covering firearms, advertising, and marketing, address the partnerships between firearms marketing and digital gaming and entertainment ecosystems, and strengthen corporate accountability for the gendered harms that result. Without accountability for industries that monetise gender stereotypes, from selling weapons through militarised masculinity to profiting from online misogyny, we leave powerful commercial incentives in place to reproduce the very norms of violence that human rights policy seeks to dismantle. Finally, we must treat the prevention of gender stereotyping as part of preventing authoritarianism, violence and conflict. Gender norms that equate masculinity with strength, domination, force and protection, and position women as vulnerable or in need of protection, do not remain in the private sphere. They underpin militarised understandings of security, legitimise violence and shape who holds power, whose authority is recognised and whose security is prioritised. We see this continuum in different forms, from some countries where discriminatory ideas about how women should dress and behave are given legal force and enforced through policing and surveillance, And the most extreme manifestation of this continuum we see in Afghanistan, where gender stereotypes are embedded in the institutionalised framework of gender apartheid, a deliberate system of gender-based discrimination, which is not just an accumulation of individual restrictions, it is gender apartheid and must be named, challenged and met with accountability rather than normalisation. The concrete recommendation to states can and should already recognise this system as gender apartheid, even while efforts to codify it as an international crime through the Crimes Against Humanity Treaty progress, as formally proposed by Australia, Iceland, Mexico, Spain, Timor-Leste and Uruguay. And this should include diplomatic and policy responses that resist the normalisation of the Taliban regime. In conclusion, human rights and transforming harmful gender norms are integral to conflict prevention itself. Addressing discrimination, inequality, misogyny, militarized masculinities, that enable violence before they escalate is critical to protect civic space and those challenging these norms, as well as to integrate gender transformative approaches across human rights monitoring, WPS plans, security sector reform, peace building and disarmament. And finally, to resource feminist movements and community led work with men and boys investing in the rights, care, social infrastructure and nonviolent institutions that build resilient and peaceful societies. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you, and I now give the floor to Ms. Tenar Lorente.

Thank you, Mr. President, Excellencies, distinguished panelists, colleagues. Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to this important discussion. We were glad to see this Council's own framing echoed elsewhere that gender stereotypes are both a root cause and a consequence of discrimination. That is the language used in the CEDAW's ongoing work on General Recommendation No. 41, which has been cited many times today, and to which Play International also made a written submission, arguing for a consistent life cycle, age-responsive approach. It is the same argument that we bring here today, because two mechanisms addressing the same problem should reinforce each other and not produce five different versions of it. At Plan International, we have been looking closely at what it takes to move from recognizing gender stereotypes as harmful to transforming the structures and power relations that allow them to persist. Gender stereotypes do not begin when a woman enters the workplace, stands for election, or becomes a political leader. They begin much earlier. through in childhood, through gender socialization in the family, at school, and increasingly in digital spaces, from cartoons to social media feeds. Age, like gender, is a structural ground of discrimination, and the two compound each other. A girl does not experience stereotyping the same way, at the same moments, or with the same consequences as an adult woman. So the obligation to transform the deeply embedded social and gender norms, expectations, and power relations that produce prejudice cannot stop addressing adults' attitudes. It must reach the point where those norms are firstly learned. They are communicated through what toys and games children are steered towards, what subjects and sports girls are encouraged or discouraged to, what responsibilities they are expected to assume, whose voices are allowed to matter. Small choices in childhood narrow, one by one, into who leads, who earns, and who is heard as an adult. Today, girls resist these norms. Our 2025 research with Cardiff University, titled "Girls' Everyday Resistance," found that most girls in the study practice what we call secret behavioral resistance, challenging norms quietly because challenging them openly can carry real consequences, punishment, violence, stigma, exclusion. It is great that girls are resisting discrimination, that's some progress. But why do they have to resist at all? This is why prevention matters. And prevention is not about persuading individuals. It is about changing the institution and power structures that give a stereotype its authority. These patterns are learned, which means they can also be unlearned and something different can be built in their place. PLANS work through community jambays, brings women, men, people of all genders, young people, religious leaders, community, traditional leaders, authorities together to examine norms and harmful practices, creating space for conversation that are often taboo and engaging men and boys directly in reflecting on power and privilege. And systems have to change too. Plan's Redefine the Rules initiative in Bangladesh works across four dimensions, rights, representation, resources, and reality check, with young people not as beneficiaries, but also as co-creators and co-designers and who hold institutions accountable. This is the shift I will emphasize today, from changing attitudes to expanding agency to transferring power. Finally, we cannot discuss stereotypes without discussing the digital environment, and I know this is a hot topic at the moment. Our new research from memes to misogyny followed accounts modeled by ordinary 13 to 16 year old young people with no interest in harmful content. It took the platform's own algorithm around 20 minutes, 20 minutes, to start serving it anyway. Girls were told to be beautiful and compliant. Boys were told to bottle up emotion and see equality as a threat. 70% of girls told us that they regularly see messages online telling them how to behave. We're also seeing organized backlash. Our regional office in the Americas is studying how boys and young men encounter online narratives that convert ordinary anxiety about belonging into resentment towards women. This is not only a content moderation problem, it is a question of who has a voice in shaping the platforms that in turn shape them. 62% of young people we surveyed want platforms to do more, and they are largely excluded from those decisions. So three messages to leave with this council. First, prevention must begin early. Second, transformation must address power, not only attitudes, including the language leaders themselves use, because misogyny left unanswered in public discourses becomes harder to challenge anywhere else. And third, girls must be recognized not only as those affected by stereotypes, but as agents of transformation, with the safety, resources, and power to act openly and not in secret. A girl should not have to resist a stereotype in secret in order to exercise her rights. Thank you.

Thank you very much, excellencies, representatives. We will now proceed with the first segment of the list of speakers. All interventions from the floor are limited to one minute and 30 seconds. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Sweden on behalf of a group of countries.

Mr. President, I have the honor to speak on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic states. We welcome this annual discussion on the integration of gender perspective throughout the work of the Human Rights Council, a topic which requires our continued attention. Despite important progress towards gender equality, deeply rooted gender stereotypes continue to limit opportunities, expectations and outcomes for persons around the world. They influence access to education, employment, political participation, health services and justice, often particularly affecting women's, girls' and LGBTQI persons' enjoyment of human rights. Achieving full gender equality requires efforts to challenge gender stereotypes and harmful social norms across society. Governments, civil society and the private sector all have an important role in driving change. At the same time, New and emerging technologies like AI are transforming the way information is produced and shared. While these tools offer significant opportunities, they can also reinforce existing biases, stereotypes, and also violate a person's privacy and human rights. Distinguished panelists, from a human rights perspective, what practical measures can be used to address gender stereotypes in the digital sphere and promote equality and non-discrimination for all? Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of the European Union.

Thank you, Mr. President. Gender stereotypes are generalized views or preconceptions about attributes or characteristics or the roles that people are expected to possess or perform. They are both a root cause and a consequence of discrimination, shaping social norms, laws, policies and decision making. Gender stereotypes are embedded in and reproduced by unequal power relations and patriarchal systems, and they can intersect with other forms of discrimination in all dimensions of life. The European Union recognises gender stereotypes as a root cause of gender inequalities. We are strongly committed to challenging them as a part of our efforts to advance gender equality. Challenging gender stereotypes is a key priority in the European Commission's Gender Equality Strategy 2026-2030, combining gender mainstreaming with targeting action while taking an intersectional approach. EU legislation also recognizes the need to address and prevent gender stereotypes. Directive 2024/1385 on combating violence against women and domestic violence calls for measures to prevent and challenge gender stereotypes and highlights the importance of addressing them starting from early childhood. As digital spaces increasingly shape social norms and risk to perpetuate gender stereotypes, the Digital Services Act requires the largest platforms to assess and mitigate systemic risks, including technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Distinguished panelists, what measures can states take to challenge and eliminate gender stereotypes and the structures that reproduce them across all spheres of life, including in digital spaces? I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Barbados on behalf of CARICOM.

Mr. President, it is an honor for Barbados to speak on behalf of the CARICOM states in Geneva and contribute to this annual discussion on the integration of a gender perspective in the work of the Human Rights Council. CARICOM states remain deeply committed to the advancement of gender equality and the empowerment of women in every sphere of life, particularly in the current geopolitical context where the rule of law is being flouted and the rights of women and girls are being reversed at an alarming rate. Across the region, in accordance with the Beijing Programme of Action, many CARICOM member states have reached a benchmark of at least 30% female representation in the lower houses of parliament. In addition, member states are strengthening legal protections, improving economic opportunities for women, and promoting equal participation in decision-making within the framework of the CARICOM Regional Gender Equality Strategy, which aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Mr. President, CARICOM reaffirms its shared global responsibility to ensure that non-discrimination and gender equality are upheld through regional and national legal frameworks, institutional implementation, and practical measures. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Canada on behalf of a group of countries.

Thank you, Mr. President. I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of Australia, New Zealand, and my own country, Canada. Gender stereotypes remain a root cause of discrimination and gender-based violence. They reinforce unequal power relations and create barriers to the full, equal, and meaningful participation of all women and girls in all aspects of society. Left unchallenged, these stereotypes become embedded in laws, institutions, and social norms, driving structural discrimination and inequality. Addressing structural discrimination requires more than legal protections. It demands sustained efforts to transform the social, economic, cultural and institutional norms that perpetuate inequality. When we better understand how laws, policies and institutions produce unequal outcomes, we can respond more effectively to discrimination. When such approaches are absent, it is women and girls who bear the greatest consequences. This is why integrating a gender perspective across the Human Rights Council's work remains essential. We call on all States to challenge gender stereotypes and address their discriminatory impacts. In this context, we ask the panelists: How can the Human Rights Council use a gender perspective to better identify and respond to emerging forms of discrimination and inequality, including those reinforced through digital technologies? What are some good practice examples? Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the Distinguished Representative of Albania on behalf of the OIF.

Mr. President, this statement is delivered on behalf of the Group of Francophone Ambassadors. Gender equality and women and girls' rights, as well as their empowerment, are at the heart of action in the Francophone sphere. Our States and governments have developed long-standing commitments that were reiterated recently in the Kigali Call. This call is intended to accelerate progress towards genuine equality, to guarantee the full, equal and significant participation of women and girls in all spheres, to guarantee their protection, to fight against all forms of violence and discrimination. Gender perspective and its integration in all of our work cannot be seen as a siloed or isolated action. It needs to be cross-cutting in the drafting, implementation, follow-up, monitoring and assessment of all public policies, programmes and budgets. To achieve that goal, we need disaggregated data, we need to bolster institutional capacity, we need to guarantee adequate financing for relevant initiatives, and we need to guarantee the full, equal, and meaningful participation of women and girls in all their diversity in decision-making processes. This approach is vital if policies in the areas of education, healthcare, employment, justice, peace, development, and the digital transition are to respond to the realities and needs of all women and girls. Absent the systematic integration of the gender perspective and action to tackle and eradicate gender stereotypes, the full enjoyment of women and girls' rights will never be achieved. Thank you very much, President.

I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Spain.

President, Spain allies itself with the statement delivered on behalf of the European Union, and we'd like to thank the panellists for their interventions. Gender stereotypes are embedded in public policies and institutions and give rise to forms of structural discrimination which systematically restrict and reduce rights, participation and opportunities of women in the digital sphere. said stereotypes do not just reproduce pre-existing inequalities, but can further amplify said inequalities through biased algorithms, disinformation campaigns and forms of online and digital violence that restrict the full participation of women in the public debate and in decision-making processes. Spain's feminist foreign policy recognizes that the achievement of equality requires a transformative approach aimed at modifying institutional culture and addressing the root causes of discrimination. We cannot content ourselves with merely responding to the manifestations of this inequality, of this discrimination. We need to tackle it at heart. We would also underscore the need to integrate a gender perspective on a cross-cutting basis in all areas of public action, promoting inclusive participation and applying an intersectional approach that acts in all the forms of discrimination that impact women and girls, together with factoring in their rights, particularly at a time of armed conflict, humanitarian crisis, climate change, and an increase of anti-equality movements, all of which is leading to an increase in gender inequality around the world. What in your view are the main obstacles to your recommendations on gender equality and those of the Council being integrated at the national level? How can we overcome those obstacles? Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President.

I give the floor to the Distinguished Representative of Luxembourg.

President, Luxembourg thanks the High Commissioner as well as each and every one of the panelists for their contributions to this essential discussion. Luxembourg is firmly committed to gender equality as well as to ensuring the full enjoyment of human rights for all. Gender stereotypes are not just social perceptions. They are more insidious than that. They continue to influence access to education, employment, justice and to political participation and they also continue to undermine efforts to protect women and girls from gender-based violence. We share the finding that stereotypes are deeply embedded in norms, practices and institutional structures that perpetuate inequalities. The eradication of these stereotypes requires an approach pulling together reform at all levels, whether that be legislative, political or educational. In a world where artificial intelligence as well as digital technologies are occupying a growing place at the heart of our societies, it is vital that we prevent the reproduction or amplification of these biases and gender stereotypes in digital systems. Luxembourg therefore calls upon all States to bolster their efforts to combat gender stereotypes in all their forms and manifestations, including intersectionally. How can states benefit from the travail of this Council in their work to prevent and eliminate stereotypes at the national level, particularly when confronted with the challenges posed by artificial intelligence? Thank you very much.

I give the floor now to the distinguished representative of Japan.

Thank you, Mr. President. Japan thanks the speakers for their valuable insights. We recognize the importance of addressing gender stereotypes and unconscious biases in advancing gender equality. At the national level, Japan is implementing its sixth basic plan for gender equality. One of the plan's action areas is promoting changes in attitude and understandings through education, media, and other means. To this end, that plan includes measures to address fixed gender role perceptions and unconscious biases in education. Japan also attached importance to cooperation with UN Women and other relevant stakeholders. In March 2026, then Parliamentary Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, Onishi Yohei, attended the opening ceremony of the Unstereotype Exhibition, organized by UN Women in cooperation with private companies to mark International Women's Day. The exhibition provided an opportunity to reconsider stereotypes and preconceptions, and Japan expressed its commitment to working with the private sectors to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women. Japan remains committed to promoting and protecting the human rights of women and girls and advancing gender equality in close cooperation with all stakeholders, including civil society. We would like to ask the panelists What measures should states prioritize to effectively transform discriminatory social norms and eliminate gender stereotyping by public and private sectors?

Thank you.

I thank you.

I give the floor to the distinguished representative of France.

Monsieur le President, France thanks the panelists for their interventions. Gender stereotypes make their way into laws, political decisions and institutional practices. Such stereotypes hinder women and girls' access in all of their diversity to justice, to education, to employment and to healthcare. The impact of gender stereotypes is exacerbated by other discriminations, particularly those linked to disability. Artificial intelligence can reproduce these biases and amplify them. France's Feminist Foreign Policy 2025-2030 places the fight against gender stereotypes at the heart of its action, including in the spheres of education and the digital space. France calls upon states to act to address the root causes of these discriminations, to guarantee that effective remedies are in place to correct them, and to include feminist organizations in decision-making spheres. This Council and its mechanisms need to systematically integrate a gender perspective in their work and follow the application of this gender perspective in the recommendations. what practices would allow States to identify and correct gender stereotypes in public institutions and in digital tools? Thank you very much.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Cyprus.

Welcomes this important discussion on strengthening the response to gender stereotypes and structural discrimination. We align with the EU statement. When gender stereotypes are given the power to determine who can access education, employment, health care, justice, or political participation, they can perpetuate unequal treatment, restrict opportunities, and undermine the full enjoyment of human rights. The Council has an important role in identifying and addressing the underlying structures that allow discrimination to persist and promoting their comprehensive reform. This includes examining discriminatory laws and practices, strengthening accountability, and ensuring effective access to remedies for those rights that have been violated. All individuals, regardless of sex or gender, must be able to enjoy their human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis. Prevention is equally essential. States have a responsibility to challenge stereotypes that undermine equality and to promote human rights education and awareness while ensuring that these efforts respect the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights. Cyprus stands ready to work constructively to strengthen the Council's response and to advance the equal and effective enjoyment of human rights for all. I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Marshall Islands.

Thank you, Mr. President.

The Marshall Islands thanks the panelists for their remarks. Gender stereotypes are among the most persistent, yet least visible drivers of discrimination.

Woven into laws.

Institutions, and everyday life, they continue to deny women and girls the full and equal enjoyment of their human rights.

For the Marshall Islands, this issue carries particular resonance.

Ours is a matrilineal society, which women have long held central responsibility for land, family, and community.

Overcoming structural discrimination therefore means more than reappealing discriminatory laws.

It means ensuring that women's traditional.

Authority finds real expression in our contemporary institution toward the equal representation as stipulated in the CEDAW General Recommendation No. 40.

Our 2019 Gender Equality Act ensures equal treatment.

And equal pay for men and women.

And our government is now strengthening its implementation nationwide. Esteemed panelists, which practices have proven most effective in carrying women's customary leadership in formal decision making? Thank you, Kumuldara, and I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative.

Of Chile.

Thank you, President, distinguished panelists. Gender stereotypes are structural barriers that limit the development of society as a whole. They perpetuate inequalities, they limit the individual potential of people, and they attach strings to access to work, justice and public decision-making spheres. Gender stereotypes also increase vulnerability, which has a direct impact on the enjoyment of human rights of women and their safety. Eradicating these prejudices is a vital step if we are to effectively combat the violations of human rights that arise in contexts of violence and criminality. Eradicating them is also a sine qua non for democratic progress and for the strengthening of our multilateral system. In that understanding, Chile has integrated its multilateral commitments into its national priorities, incorporating in its third national action plan for resolution 1325 specific measures to tackle transnational organized crime, with a special emphasis on the prevention and eradication of human trafficking, an action which contains a strong gender and intercultural focus. This strategy is intended to dismantle and eradicate institutional bias in the justice system and penal protection system, guaranteeing effective responses that are focused on the dignity of victims. We reiterate our view that only by strengthening the institutional framework and by eradicating discriminatory cultural patterns and behaviours will we achieve safe and inclusive environments in which all can flourish. Thank you very much.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of North Macedonia.

Mr. President, North Macedonia welcomes today's timely discussion. Gender stereotypes are not merely attitudes or perceptions. When embedded in laws, policies and practices, they reinforce inequality and discrimination and limit the equal enjoyment of human rights. Over the past two decades, the Human Rights Council has increasingly integrated gender equality into its work. We commend the OHCHR and the High Commissioner for their continued efforts to advance the rights of women and girls and to promote gender equality. Yet, despite sustained international efforts, advances remain far too slow. At the present pace, achieving global gender parity could still take more than a century. This is a sobering reminder of persistent barriers and stereotypes hindering gender equality.

We must also address emerging challenges.

AI and digital technologies can amplify gender stereotypes. At the same time, they offer opportunities to counter discriminatory norms and advance equality. North Macedonia calls for continued efforts to combat gender stereotypes and overcome persistent barriers to equality. We support the systematic integration of a gender perspective across the Council's work, including its mandates, country-specific engagement and the UPR, with greater emphasis on implementation and measurable progress.

I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Belgium.

President, my delegation aligns itself with the statement delivered on behalf of the European Union. Belgium welcomes the holding of this roundtable today and we thank the panellists for their interventions. There are no positive stereotypes, let us be clear. Every stereotype represents a generalisation which reduces human beings to their characteristics or to preconceived roles. Gender stereotypes are both a deep-rooted cause and a consequence of discrimination. In that understanding, they shape and are shaped by social norms, institutional practices, public policies and legislation. Intersectionality further exacerbates these discriminations, particularly for racialized women and girls or women and girls of diverse genders, as well as those who have a disability. Gender stereotypes are often invisible, but are directly imposed on women and girls nonetheless, particularly via the different forms of gender-based violence to which they are disproportionately confronted when they participate in public life, in particular gender-based violence that is facilitated by technology. Dear panelists, what can we do, working together, in order to better identify, prevent and combat gender-based stereotypes and prejudices which lead to structural discrimination against women and girls in the daily functioning of this very Council? Thank you very much.

Thank you. I will now turn to a list of speakers for national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations. And I now give the floor to the representative of the Global Alliance for National Human Rights Institutions.

Mr. President, GANHRI welcomes the discussion on gender stereotypes and their links to structural discrimination. Gender stereotypes are not simply social attitudes. They can shape laws, policies, and institutions, limiting the equal enjoyment of human rights. They can also intersect with other forms of discrimination, including through digital technologies. GANRI has made gender equality a priority. In 2025, its annual meeting focused on the human rights of women and girls and the role of NHRI in advancing equality. It provided a platform to share good practices and address emerging challenges. NHIs have an important role in addressing these structural dimensions through monitoring, investigations, complaints handling and reporting. They can identify discriminatory stereotypes in laws and institutional practices. They can bring these concerns to public authorities and support measures to prevent and remedy discrimination. GANRI calls on States to ensure that NHRCs have the mandate, resource and independence to monitor discrimination effectively. This includes engaging NHRCs in developing and reviewing relevant laws and policies and strengthening mechanisms to prevent and address gender stereotyping, including in emerging digital technologies. Transforming stereotypes requires addressing the systems and practices that reproduce them, not only individual attitudes. Ghana reaffirms its commitment to equality and non-discrimination. Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. I give the floor to the Philippines Commission on Human Rights for a video intervention.

Excellencies, assalamu alaikum. The Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines underscores the harmful gender stereotypes when embedded in laws, institutions, policies, practices, and decision-making, reinforce structural discrimination. We see this clearly in civic and digital spaces. Women human rights defenders face red tagging, harassment, gender disinformation, misogynistic attacks, and other forms of technology-facilitated gender-based violence. These attacks often draw upon stereotypes that seek to silence women who challenge traditional expectations of women's roles and leadership. Gender stereotypes also create barriers to justice and health. Survivors of rape and other forms of gender-based violence continue to face stigma that undermines reporting, institutional responses, and access to remedies. Discriminatory assumptions concerning women's sexuality and reproductive choices can also impede access to post-abortion care. For indigenous women and rural adolescent girls, these barriers intersect with geographic and socio-economic inequalities. We appeal to the Council and its mechanisms to systematically integrate gender and intersectional analysis strengthen protection for women human rights defenders, promote responsible use of disaggregated data, and ensure that technical cooperation strengthens national accountability, access to justice, and effective remedies.

Thank you. I give the floor to the Center for Reproductive Rights for a joint statement.

Thank you, Mr. President. Discriminatory laws, policies, and practices that violate women and girls' human rights, structural and systemic factors that perpetuate disadvantages, and restrictions on human rights based on claims of traditional values are all embedded in gender stereotypes. Violations of sexual reproductive health and rights demonstrate this clearly. Across abortion, adolescent SRHR, and maternal health care, stereotype discourses deny women and girls information to make informed decisions, impose others' decisions on them, and strip them of bodily autonomy. Gender stereotypes have fueled restrictive abortion laws. They've inhibited women's access to contraception and subjected them to forced contraceptive methods. Stereotypes around gender and age compound to hinder adolescents' access to SRH. Both the Human Rights Committee and the CRC have recognized that denying adolescent girls access to abortion can constitute gender-based discrimination by enforcing stereotypes of women and girls. Stereotypes are not harmless assumptions. They determine whose pain is considered, whose consent matters, whose reproductive choices are respected. Calling for improved maternal health care and the elimination of discrimination is vital, and the HRC must also identify and challenge the stereotyped assumptions and entrenched power dynamics embedded in laws, policies, and practices that produce such violations. A question to the panel, how can the Human Rights Council build on the work of TMB, civil society, and its own mechanisms to dismantle stereotypes, particularly in laws and policies affecting women and girls' bodily and reproductive autonomy? Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the Advocates for Human Rights for video intervention.

Mr. President, the Advocates for Human Rights is a member of the Gender Working Group of the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, and I speak on behalf of the working group to highlight an important but often overlooked dimension of gender stereotypes, their impact on the administration of justice, particularly in cases involving the death penalty. Research conducted by members of the World Coalition shows that gender stereotype can shape the way women are perceived, criminalized, and condemned to death, from investigations to the assessment of evidence and credibility, and ultimately to sentencing. Women may be punished for failing to conform to expectations of femininity or for not fitting the expected.

Image of a real victim.

The death penalty makes these biases irreversible. When gender stereotypes influence who systems actors believe, whose vulnerability courts recognize, and whose conduct the legal system condemns, those stereotypes can ultimately shape who lives and who dies. Pending complete abolition of the death penalty, we invite states and UN human rights mechanisms to systematically examine how gender stereotypes affect credibility, evidence, mitigation and sentencing, and to develop guidance to prevent gender stereotypes from influencing the administration of justice. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the representative of Imam Ali's Popular Students Relief Society, video intervention.

Thank you. The Islamic Republic of Iran is a contemporary example of how gender stereotypes can become embedded in laws and institutions, producing economic exclusion, legal discrimination, and violence against women and girls on a scale that has been described as gender apartheid. For example, under Iranian law, girls as young as nine can marry with court and father's approval and are considered mature enough to have children, yet cannot withdraw money from their own bank accounts until 18. The state's repressive and violent treatment of women and girls, particularly following the death of Shina Maso Amini in custody, has been repeatedly documented before this Council by Special Rapporteurs and the FFM Iran. Femicides have increased in Iran since then, yet the state treats statistics on femicide, suicide of women and girls under pressure, child marriage, and child mothers as classified security information that must not be made public. Women in Iran face severe economic hardship resulting from the government's systematic discrimination in access to economic resources and opportunities, further compounded by war. Honorable panelists, how should the international community respond to the authorities of Iran, whose systematic and institutionalized discrimination and repression of women and girls amount to crimes against humanity? Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the representative of the International Planned Parenthood Federation.

The president in our work in more than 150 countries we see gender stereotyped turn into law policy and practice for instance the belief of that motherhood is woman Destiny Drive the deny of contraceptions and the first continuity of pregnancy people who define expected rule are stigmatized accreted and criminalizes these including lgbtqi persons sick workers migrant women comprehensive sexual Sexuality education is one of the strongest tools to dismantle these stereotypes. However, the belief that young people should not know about their own bodies still blocks comprehensive sexuality education. We urge states to repeal laws that discriminate sexual and reproductive autonomy, including laws to abortion, sex work, and same-sex relations. Guarantee comprehensive sexuality education. Train health, education and justice personnel to act free from stereotyping. Thank you.

Thank you. We will now proceed with the second segment of the list of speakers. And I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Poland.

Thank you, Mr. President. Poland aligns itself with the statement delivered by the European Union and wishes to add the following remarks in its national capacity. Gender stereotypes are not simply harmless assumptions. Left unchallenged, they shape institutions, limit choices, and translate into structural discrimination, affecting who participates in political and public life, who has access to economic opportunities, and whose voice is heard when decisions are made. For Poland, integrating a gender perspective into the work of the Council cannot be reduced to a paragraph on women and girls at the end of a resolution. It must shape how we identify violations, collect evidence, formulate recommendations, and measure their implementation. This is particularly important in situations of armed conflict. Russia's war against Ukraine has shown how pre-existing inequalities deepen in wartime. through conflict-related sexual violence and the gender burden of displacement, while also showing Ukrainian women as first responders, negotiators and leaders of recovery, who must be recognized and resourced as such. Gender integration is not an additional task for the Council. It is part of doing its core job properly, protecting human rights effectively and for everyone. Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative from Montenegro.

And we thank the distinguished panelists for their work. Integrating a gender perspective throughout the Council work is essential for protecting human rights without discrimination. Progress has been made, including through its mechanism and President's Advisory Board on Gender Equality, helping keep the issue prominently on the Council's agenda. Yet integration must go beyond visibility. A gender perspective should be consistently applied from identifying violations in their gender dimensions to ensuring an effective response and addressing their root causes. We must shift from commitment to implementation, particularly as the rights of women and girls face growing pushback by grave and systematic violation continue worldwide. New technologies can amplify gender bias and discrimination, but also advance equality. We should therefore strengthen coherence to advance gender integration and meaningful change. This year's focus on gender stereotypes highlights their significance rooted in unequal power structures. Stereotypes drive discrimination and can lead to human rights violations. When embedded in laws and policies, they perpetuate inequality. To confront these challenges, we need a transformative approach. CEDAW provides an essential normative framework that should more systematically inform the Council's work. Ultimately, meaningful gender mainstreaming requires shared responsibility. The Council must build on progress and translate it into greater impact, while States must uphold their obligations and turn commitment into real change for women and girls. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of the Netherlands.

Thank you, Mr. President. The Kingdom of the Netherlands aligns itself with the statement of the European Union. We are proud to see that references to gender stereotypes and harmful social norms have become more commonly accepted in UN spaces, a sign that there is a collective understanding that these are indeed drivers of discrimination and violence that must be addressed. However, these changes stand in stark contrast to the developments we observe globally. Following decades of progress in these countries, Support for gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights and individual freedoms is waning. On the young people, in particular young men, support for misogyny is growing. And the Netherlands is no exception here. Additionally, we are very concerned to observe how discriminatory standards and views are being reproduced and even magnified online. We see the effects of gender biases, polarization, algorithms and the general lack of diversity in the development of these tools unfolding. Effects that are real in the lives of many people, both online and offline. Regulation and the global collective push to protect women and rights are urgently needed. Distinguished panelists, in your estimation, what is needed to ensure that men and boys are encouraged to act as champions for gender equality and stand up for positive and inclusive forms of masculinity? Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the representative of the UNFPA.

Gender stereotypes are both a cause and a consequence of discrimination and inequality. They underpin gender-based violence and harmful practices, including child marriage and female genital mutilation, and contribute to violations of sex and reproductive health and rights by reinforcing unequal power relations and restricting the autonomy of women and girls. They are also perpetuated through laws, legal systems and institutional practices, And when reflected in legislation, policy, and decision making, gender stereotypes can entrench discriminatory gender and social norms. Increasingly, they are also reproduced online, where technology-facilitated gender-based violence, including harassments and gender disinformation, is used to intimidate, silence, and push women and girls out of digital and public spaces. UNFPA works in development and humanitarian settings with governments, health providers, community leaders to dismantle these drivers through comprehensive sexuality education, alongside community-led dialogues, engagement with men and boys to transform patriarchal norms, and the creation of safe physical and digital spaces. UNFPA will continue to address gender stereotypes as a core human rights concern and support efforts to challenge discriminatory norms and advance gender equality. I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the Distinguished Representative of Armenia.

Thank you, Mr. President. We would like to thank the panelists for their valuable contributions. Advancing gender equality and addressing discrimination is a continuous process requiring sustained commitment. For Armenia, it is part of the broader democratic transformation of our society and our commitment to equal rights, opportunities, and participation. At the national level, we will continue to work towards translating this commitment into practice. Armenia's Gender Equality Strategy 2025-2028 and the Third National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security for 2025-2027 emphasize women's participation and leadership in decision-making. Armenia has also recently ratified ILO Convention No. 190, the Violence and Harassment Convention, as part of our continued efforts to address discrimination in the workplace. The profound changes brought by digital transformation add a new dimension to efforts to advance gender equality. Digital technologies and AI can expand opportunities for education, economic participation, and public life, while existing inequalities can also be reflected in data, technological design, and algorithmic systems and potentially be amplified. Against this background, Armenia, together with Estonia, Kazakhstan, Rwanda, Senegal, Sweden, and Uruguay, has presented a resolution on the human rights of women and girls in the context of digital technologies. initiative addresses gender digital divide and participation as well as algorithmic bias, discriminatory design and gaps in data representativeness. Armenia reaffirms its commitment to advancing gender equality as we navigate the opportunities and challenges brought by technological change. I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Rwanda. Rwanda? Right. I give the floor then to the distinguished representative of Benin.

Thank you, President. The delegation of Benin takes the floor today to reaffirm its commitment to the principle of gender equality and the promotion of female empowerment, which remains one of the key pillars of the global human rights and sustainable development architecture. This commitment is reflected at national level in the updated constitution of 2019, through the introduction of a quota of seats reserved for women in the parliament. Bhena in 2010 established a national policy on gender promotion and created through, by decree, a National Institute for Women attached to the presidency. and tasked with promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women. Although significant progress has been achieved, contemporary challenges, especially the economic crisis and climate change, continue to impact disproportionately on women and girls in our countries. Given that reality, a better-coordinated international response, supported by renewed political will, remains crucial. and therefore reiterates its full willingness to work together with all Member States and relevant international organisations to ensure that the gender perspective is fully integrated into the development, implementation and assessment of all human rights policies. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Andorra.

Thank you, Mr. President. Gender stereotypes are not merely individual perceptions. They perpetuate structural inequalities and limit women's and girls' access to education, employment, justice, and political participation. They also contribute to gender-based violence. In Andorra, combating these forms of discrimination is a priority. Our law on equality between women and men mandates equality plans in the public and private sectors and strengthens institutional mechanisms promoting equality. Our approach is also cross-cutting. In our third voluntary national review of the 2030 Agenda, SDG 5 on gender equality will be analyzed through the lens of our five national sustainable development goals. in order to integrate a gender perspective into all of our policies. We're also working with the Ministry of Education to dismantle stereotypes from the earliest stages of schooling in the spirit of the Kigali Call. However, digital technologies and artificial intelligence can amplify biases and stereotypes on a large scale. In this regard, What priority actions could the Council encourage to ensure that emerging technologies help eliminate, rather than reinforce, gender-based discrimination? Thank you.

Thank you, and I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Mexico.

Thank you, President. Gender stereotypes are structural factors that reproduce inequalities, legitimise forms of discrimination and facilitate the persistence of violence against women, teenagers and girls in all their diversity. Therefore, combating them is a human rights obligation and a prerequisite for a achieving substantive equality, Mexico promoted constitutional reforms in 2024 to strengthen substantive equality and the right of women to a life free of violence, and committed to an integral progressive system of care, which sought to eliminate the sexual division of work, which underpinned roles and stereotypes as to who was meant to be responsible for caregiving. Mexico reaffirms the importance of this council, together with new instruments such as General Recommendation 41 of CEDAW continues to strengthen an approach that eliminates gender stereotypes with special attention to its intersectional impacts. In turn, we believe that transforming social norms requires the participation of all society, including men and boys in order to eradicate discriminatory practices. What specific measures and best practices have been most effective in identifying and correcting gender stereotypes reproduced by systems of artificial intelligence and digital platforms?

I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Ecuador.

President, my delegation is grateful to the panelists for their presentations. We agree that gender stereotypes reproduce unequal roles and relations that create barriers to substantive equality and the full enjoyment of human rights. Ecuador was a pioneer in making gender equality a constitutional provision, ensuring equal participation of women and men in appointments to positions in the civil service and establishing affirmative action measures to guarantee real equality for women. Reforms to the code on democracy included rules on equality and who was present on electoral lists, as well as measures to prevent and sanction political violence against women. The national gender equality council promotes a cross-cutting approach and monitoring of rights and generation of information. The national agenda for gender equality 2025-29 prioritises elimination of structural barriers to the participation of women and LGBTI+ people. people in spaces of power. Furthermore, the organic law to promote a violet economy promotes closure of gender gaps and shared responsibility for care tasks through prerequisites and incentives that ensure that maternity and non-remunerative work should continue to limit the careers, income and the economic independence of women. Thank you.

The floor to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

President, DRC welcomes the choice of the topic of this annual discussion. Moving from deconstructing stereotypes to eradicating structural discrimination is a vital urgency for the advent of true equality. Gender stereotypes aren't just cultural biases, they are the invisible foundations of legal, economic and social barriers that marginalize women. Aware of these challenges, our government has made positive masculinity a strategic lever of governance. established at the highest level of the state by his Excellency the President. We intensified legislative reforms to dismantle discriminatory structures while bolstering access for women to decision-making posts and financial empowerment. However, given persisting global barriers, the Human Rights Council must toughen its response. DRC calls on the Council to systematically integrate analysis of structural discrimination into the UPR. It's time to move towards indicators measuring not so much intentions but genuine impact of gender policies. In conclusion, the DRC reaffirms its commitment to substituting the stereotypes of today with a culture of equality and shared dignity. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of the UK.

Thank you, Mr. President. The UK agrees that harmful gender stereotypes remain a significant barrier to equality. They can inhibit people's choices, their aspirations and their potential. That affects women and girls as well as men and boys, and contributes to behaviours that damage mental and physical health. The UK is taking action to address both the causes and consequences of those stereotypes. The UK's minister for women and equalities has launched a national task force to tackle the rise of misogyny, bringing together Government, local leaders and experts to strengthen prevention efforts and build communities and workplaces where women and girls no longer face harmful attitudes. England has also published revised teaching guidance on relationships, sex and health education for schools to help young people challenge harmful attitudes around consent, power and control, including misogynistic narratives spread online. Alongside this, the UK's Enough campaign is raising awareness of abusive behaviours and encouraging lasting change. We are also advancing pay transparency, recognising that opaque pay practices can allow stereotypes rather than ability to shape salary decisions. Mr. President, how can states better tackle the harmful stereotypes and structural discrimination that continue to undermine the rights, opportunities and safety of women and girls? Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Maldives.

Mr. President, the Maldives thanks the panelists for their contribution.

Gender equality remains a national priority.

We are honored to serve on the UN Commission of the Status of Women for the term 2026 to 2030. At the national level, the Gender Equality Act remains the cornerstone.

Of our efforts, guiding a whole of government approach to advancing women's rights and participation. Following the introduction of a 33% quota for women in local.

Councils, women's representation has increased from just 6.1% in 2017 to 37% today. Women's development committees have been strengthened through enhanced budgetary allocations, and women's representation in managerial support roles and executive roles are also increasing within the civil service. Women also account for 49 of the 83 legal practitioners who completed the mandatory training program as per the Maldivian Bar Council. We remain firmly committed to eliminating gender-based discrimination and fulfilling our obligations under CEDAW.

Measures such as six months of paid maternity leave and flexible working arrangements for up to two years following childbirth seek to create an enabling environment for women to pursue their personal and professional aspirations.

Before concluding, I would like.

To ask: How can States and the Human Rights Council address gender stereotypes that hinder women's equal participation in decision-making?

I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Morocco.

Mr. President, stereotypes persist in assumptions about who should lead, negotiate, and decide. When these assumptions shape institutional practice, formal guarantees of equality alone cannot remove the barriers they create.

We must identify and address those barriers.

This conviction guided Morocco's initiative on Resolution 5815, Women, Diplomacy, and Human Rights, adopted by this Council in 2025. The resolution advances women's leadership in diplomacy and invites us to consider who speaks, who is heard, and who shapes.

Outcomes in this Council.

At the national level, under the enlightened leadership of His Majesty the King, Morocco is pursuing the reform of the family code and working to strengthen women's rights and participation in economic and political life. We encourage the Council's mechanisms, particularly the special procedures and the universal periodic review, to examine the effects of stereotypes, hear from the women concerned, and offer states practical recommendations. Morocco stands ready to work with all partners to that end.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Afghanistan. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Angola.

Mr. President, Angola welcomes this annual discussion. Gender equality and the empowerment of women are essential pillars of sustainable development, poverty eradication, social cohesion, and peace. In line with the 2030 Agenda and the African Union Agenda 2033, Angola has implemented reforms to promote the effective participation of women in economic, social, political, and institutional life with visible progress in their representation. Mr. President, gender equality, however, goes beyond representation. It requires economic autonomy, access to education and technology, and the full protection of the rights of women and girls. Angola is therefore strengthening its support for rural women, girls' education, financial inclusion, and digital literacy, while continuing to combat all forms of gender-based violence. At the multilateral level, we encourage the systematic integration of a gender perspective into resolutions, mandates, and debates, supported by sex-disaggregated data, as well as international cooperation, capacity building, and sustainable financing for developing countries. I'm going to reaffirm the commitments to more just, inclusive, and equitable societies where all women and girls can fully exercise their rights. Thank you.

Thank you. That was the last speaker that we could accommodate. And now we will proceed with the list of speakers for national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations, I give the floor to the representatives of Qatar National Human Rights Committee.

Mr. President, the National Human Rights Committee of Qatar plays an important role in combating discrimination and promoting equality through monitoring the implementation of relevant conventions, reviewing legislation, and putting forward practical solutions to any challenges in legislation or practice. We also have a role to play in receiving complaints. and taking initiatives to raise awareness of the culture of human rights. The Qatari women have demonstrated their presence and excellence across all fields. We believe we must increase the presence of Qatari women in the legislative, executive, and judiciary. and the various technical professions, we reaffirm our commitment to continuing our role in facing gender-based discrimination and working towards equality that safeguards human dignity, which is consistent with our understanding and our religion and embodies the authentic civilizational advancement of the State of Qatar. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the representative of ARROW for video intervention.

Mr. President, I am Hasini Rupasinghe, making this statement on behalf of the Asian Pacific Resource and Research Center for Women, ARROW. Gender stereotyping is harmful and a flagrant violation of the right to be free from discrimination and a form of violence against women. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, General Recommendation No. 35 affirms that gender-based violence is rooted in stereotyped gender roles and patriarchal norms that subordinate women. Across Asia-Pacific, gender stereotypes constrain women and girls' sexual and reproductive health and rights. Stereotypes portraying women primarily as mothers and caregivers are used to deny comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care. Others portray women as incapable of autonomous decision-making, justifying control over their bodies and health care choices, permitting harmful practices like child marriage and female genital mutilation and cutting, and excluding them from meaningful participation in development. Women and girls of intersecting marginalizations based on disability, ethnicity, or sexuality are further ostracized. We call on states to act decisively to uproot these stereotypes, repeal discriminatory laws, transform harmful social and cultural norms, and ensure all women and girls can exercise their sexual and reproductive health and rights free from coercion, stigma, and violence. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the representative of COC Netherlands for video intervention and a joint statement.

President, my name is Alex Hernandez from Lima, Peru. We welcome this discussion and its recognition that gender stereotypes are not merely social attitudes, but can become embedded in policies and institutions, producing structural discrimination. Heteronormative and binary stereotypes have been used to justify the criminalization of same-sex couples, discrimination against diverse families, barriers to gender recognition, non-consensual medical interventions on intersex people, and exclusion from sexual and reproductive health information and services. These harms are particularly severe for trans people, LBQ women, indigenous people, migrants, and persons with disabilities. In Latin America, we have witnessed how deeply rooted gender stereotypes can outlive legal progress. While many countries in the region have advanced protections for queer people, the global rise of anti-rights movement has shown how fragile these gains can be. Stereotypes continue to shape public discourse, education systems, and public policy. They have been used to restrict sexual and reproductive rights, undermine inclusion efforts, and increasingly portray trans people as threats. Protecting human rights must include preventing political shifts from eroding the dignity, equality, and safety of those most affected. How can the Human Rights Council and its mechanisms more systematically identify when gender stereotypes have become embedded in laws and institutions, and ensure that states are held accountable for dismantling them? Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. I give the floor now to the representative of AKAHATA for video intervention.

President, Action Canada and AKAHATA made this statement on behalf of the SRI. We welcome this annual discussion and its focus on gender stereotypes and stereotyping as substantive human rights concerns and drivers of discrimination and inequality. Meaningful integration of a gender perspective requires recognizing that gender is not a siloed issue. Gender stereotypes shape the enjoyment of rights across all spheres of life and intersect with age, race, disability, migration status, economic inequality and other factors. We are concerned that discriminatory gender stereotypes continue to find space within international discussions and institutions, including approaches that reduce women to their roles as mothers or seek to regulate and control their bodies. Human rights institutions must ensure that they challenge rather than reproduce the unequal power relations and social and cultural patterns that perpetuate discrimination. States have obligations to address these underlining structures through laws, policies, and practices. But this responsibility also requires reflection within the institutions tasked with advancing human rights. We therefore encourage concrete transformative measures to embed an intersectional gender perspective throughout the Council's work and mechanisms, not as an additional thematic consideration, but as an essential component of understanding, protecting and advancing all human rights. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the representative of Center for Global Nonkilling.

Dear human beings.

Thank you, Mr. President. Dear distinguished delegates and panelists, ladies and gentlemen, plus everyone everywhere, greetings of well-being.

Human rights have a core, a learning zone, and a periphery.

At the core, the human personality, regardless of gender, profound, intelligent, creative, caring for others and for humanity, capable of love, enabling peace. Human potential is built through education, open dialogue, recovery or forgiveness, all aimed at betterment and non-recurrence. Human cooperation, our common future, is reinforced when we acknowledge.

The equal rights of others, all others, when we help each other to reach and sustain dignity at the periphery. As soon as by ignorance or on purpose, lack of conscience, for any reason, we forget others and that all others have equal rights, we create stigma, discrimination, or worse, violence.

Our human nature, our universal humanity, united for our best future, there we find the tools needed for the enlightenment of the human condition. Thank you for your participation.

We all have the right to lead happy lives.

Thank you very much, Mr. President. Thank you. That was the last speaker that we could accommodate. I wish to remind all of you to upload your statements on the HRC portal, both those that have spoken and could not be accommodated in the list of speakers. I will now give the floor back to the panelists for their concluding remarks. We shall finish at 12 o'clock sharp, and you will, each of the panelists, have one minute time to speak. and now I give the floor to Miss Rhoda Reddock one minute please.

Vast responses I have noted many of the points that you have put forward some are already in our draft and this gives us the incentive to to highlight them even further and to strengthen them. Specifically, I would like to focus on the digital forms of reproduction of gender stereotypes, prejudices, biases and stigma. This already has a very important location within our draft. but the link to misogyny and the rise of misogyny, we would like to strengthen that and highlight that in the draft. We also are encouraged to strengthen our discourses on militarization. Thank you, Madam.

Sorry, thank you. And I now give the floor to Ms. Amrita Kapoor. One minute, please.

On the digital sphere, good examples include having an independent regulator combining policy with data collection and training of public officials and an integrated roadmap linking prevention, access to justice and platform accountability. Beyond this, working with fathers, couples, men and boys has been trialled in Rwanda and Uganda, and WILPF's Mobilising Men for Feminist Peace takes this further upstream to prevention, connecting masculinities to militarism, inequality and armed conflict. and mobilizing men as allies for feminist peace in countries such as Cameroon, Colombia, DRC, and Afghanistan. All of these programs demonstrate that when you evaluate attitudes and conduct of violence, these are reduced. And we strongly encourage states to look at positive examples and programs rather than simply condemning harmful masculinities. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to Ms. Denar Lorente.

Thank you. To answer some of the questions that have been raised, I think we need to demonstrate that a girl has freedom to speak, move, learn, choose, and decide. And to do that, we have five priorities. First, adopt a life cycle approach. Second, make education generally gender transformative. Third, invest in transforming social norms with men and boys. Fourth, make girls' participation safe, meaningful, and resourced, and fifth, ensure digital governments addresses gender and age together. For decades, we have been preparing girls to navigate a world shaped by stereotypes, and now we should be changing the world that produces them. Thank you.

Thank you very much. This brings us to the end of the panel discussion on this important issue. I wish to thank the Deputy High Commissioner, to thank Ms. Nyaradziayi Gumban Gumbon, Wanda, our distinguished panelists and all participants who have contributed to our discussion. We shall take now a one minute technical break to continue to the next agenda item.

Unless you want to keep.

So I think this is just one.

Excellencies, distinguished representatives, we will now hear the presentation of the report of the High Commissioner under agenda item 2 on the database of all business enterprises involved in the activities detailed in paragraph 96 of the report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission to investigate the implications of the Israeli settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem. I have the pleasure now of giving the floor to Ms. Awa Dabo, the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, to present the report. Madam, you have the floor.

Mr. President, I am here today to present our report updating the database of business enterprises involved in certain activities related to the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory. The Council mandated the High Commissioner to create and update a database of business enterprises involved in one or more of 10 listed activities related to the Israeli settlements. This work is to be undertaken in close consultation with the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises. The cut-off date of the reporting period for this update is 15 April 2026. The Office continued to be guided by the principles of independence, impartiality, objectivity, credibility and professionalism in discharging this mandate. The methodology for this report is drawn from the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The database reflects a factual determination of involvement in adverse impact on the right to self-determination through participation in one or more of the listed activities based on the totality of evidence available to my office. Our office issued a call for inputs in May 2024. We received 733 submissions reporting allegations of the potential involvement of 596 business enterprises in the listed activities. Last year's update reviewed 215 of these. This year's update covers another 126 enterprises and 255 remain unassessed. We are continuing to assess them and will duly report on them. Mr. President, out of the 126 business enterprises assessed in preparing this update, the Office found reasonable grounds to believe that 61 were involved in one or more of the listed activities during the assessment period. This brings the current total number of listed business enterprises to 214, domiciled in 11 countries. This year's update also provides information on the types of involvement for each business enterprise listed. The type of involvement has been determined based on the involvement framework set out in the Guiding Principles. This framework sets out the ways in which business enterprises may become involved in actual or potential adverse human rights impacts, namely through causation, contribution, or a direct linkage to an adverse human rights impact. This information serves as a useful tool for companies to identify and address their responsibilities under international standards. It also aims to help other stakeholders understand the nature of a company's connection to adverse impacts and actions they are expected to take in response in line with the guiding principles. A business enterprise may be removed from the database if credible information shows it is no longer involved in the activities that justified its inclusion. Due to resource limitations, our office cannot systematically reassess past determinations. However, When our office receives a request for reassessment which includes new information, it reassesses the involvement of the concerned business enterprise, applying the same methodology. During the reporting period, our office received requests for reassessment regarding eight business enterprises. It found reasonable grounds to believe that five of them were no longer involved in listed activities, and they were removed from the database. Likewise, our office found reasonable grounds to believe that one business that had been delisted in the 2025 update for lack of sufficient evidence is involved in one or more of the listed activities. These changes are reflected in the annexes to the report. The database list is available on our website. In addition, our office continues to post communications from companies requesting to have their responses to their listing shared publicly on the same dedicated page. Mr. President, our office remains open to constructive dialogue with business enterprises and other stakeholders in the implementation of this mandate. Since the presentation of last year's report, our office has engaged with 14 member states. two subnational authorities, 43 business enterprises, and 27 other stakeholders. We continue to engage with all interested Member States, business enterprises, and other stakeholders. We call on all States, business enterprises, and stakeholders to make constructive use of the information provided through this update and to uphold the human rights obligations and responsibilities. Thank you.

Thank you. In accordance with our practice, we will now hear the delegations of the country concerned. And I turn to the distinguished representative of Israel, if the delegation is in the room. It appears that that is not the case. I have also been informed that the Distinguished Representative of the State of Palestine will deliver their statement as a country concerned, together with their statement under agenda item 7. Excellencies, Distinguished Representatives, therefore, I now declare open agenda item 7, entitled "Human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories". We will now begin the General Debate under Agenda Item 7. Let me remind you that requests for right of reply will be accommodated exclusively at the end of the General Debate. I would also remind all speakers to comply with the allocated speaking time, which is 1 minute 30 seconds. As is the practice, as you all know, full statements can be uploaded on the Extranet. The list of speakers will close in 15 minutes. According to established practice, we shall start by hearing the delegations of the country concerned. And I would like to give the floor to the distinguished representative of Israel. I note that the delegation of Israel is not present in the room. I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the State of Palestine. You have 10 minutes.

Sir.

Thank you, President. At the outset, I would like to convey my gratitude to the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, and I also thank the Office, the OHCHR, for their efforts. including the publication of the third update of the database of all businesses involved in settler activities, which is a publication that we very much welcome. This publication is the fruit of a decision taken by the Council. Despite the difficulties with which we're all too familiar, 61 new enterprises have been added to the database of those engaged in listed activities. This is an indicator that the guiding principles on business and human rights of 2011, the Human Rights Council, need to be respected by businesses, by enterprises, and by nations, wherever these businesses and enterprises are operating in the world. We have benefited from this in Palestine. We are firm in our view that the violations of these principles need to be responded to in line with the principles established by the independent international fact-finding mission in 2012. Their report of that year reflected the impact of settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people. article, paragraph 96 detailed all of these actions, all of these adverse impacts, together with actions that we didn't have an opportunity to list and enumerate. It is abundantly clear at this juncture that many enterprises of the 214 on the list are Israeli companies that have links with different companies. in many countries around the world. So any enterprises cooperating with these Israeli enterprises need to review those relationships and the way in which they interact with these Israeli enterprises who are engaged in the settlements, because such action contravenes the 2004 and 2014 rulings. We welcome the fact that many enterprises and businesses have announced that they will be withdrawing from engagement in any activities related to the settlements, including those who've walked away from pre-signed contracts. That said, there are enterprises and companies who are still operating in Israel, in the settler space, although the majority of them are, as we said, Israelio. We hope that the OHCHR will continue to publish an updated version of this list every year, given its importance in bringing pressure to bear to stop activities under the illegal occupation, which was found illegal in line with the 2024 ruling of the ICC, the ICJ, I beg your pardon. I believe that all of you have been keeping a very close eye on the situation on the ground in the occupied Palestinian territories, in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip and in East Jerusalem since November 2023, when the genocidal war broke out. That genocidal war is still being continued by the occupying power, targeting Palestine and the Palestinian people, despite the calls by the ICJ in 2024, in January of 2024, and in March of 2024, as well as in May of 2024, when the ICJ called for measures to be taken to put an end to said genocide. defined as such under the 1949 Geneva Convention, which you're also familiar with. It's our hope that the ICJ will continue to address this issue and to take the necessary decisions, rulings and advisory opinions. Many UN reports have flagged the issue and it has been said openly by the Secretary General at the opening of this year's General Assembly high-level segment. It's also a point that's been made by special rapporteurs and the independent international fact-finding mission, to wit that after the Sharm el-Sheikh initiative and President Trump's personal initiative for a ceasefire, no such ceasefire has occurred. We have seen, even in the wake of that declared ceasefire, thousands of martyrs and thousands more injured. not even 0.1 of that ceasefire agreement has been implemented. Hostages were released, and we welcome the fact that hostages have been released, but since that step was taken, up to and including today, not even a third of the declared aid has been delivered to Gaza. The majority of that humanitarian assistance and aid remains blocked. At the different entry points, some lorries are allowed through, but these are mostly commercial lorries, not lorries carrying humanitarian aid. Winter is coming, and Gaza has become a camp of refugees all the way from the north to the south. Two million Palestinian people are living in arduous condition in tents, tents which have often been destroyed or dilapidated and may lack anything to meet their most essential needs. It's useless to detail the situation again. You're all aware of what's going on. I would invite you all to read the report of the High Commissioner. and of the fact-finding mission, as well as the reports published by humanitarian organizations and aid and assistance organizations, as well as by the United Nations and specialized agencies such as OCHA, UNICEF, the WHO, and the housing program, UNHABITAT, which published a very grim reading report on the situation in Gaza vis-a-vis accommodation and housing. The situation is catastrophic in light of the criminal attacks carried out by the settlers who are protected by the armed forces of the occupying power and who are armed as settlers by the occupying power. We're talking about killings, theft, theft of property, theft of cattle, attacks on citizens, civilians, they are killed or they are injured, roads are blocked, So there is no freedom of movement. These actions occur every day, at least 10 such incidents every day perpetrated by the settlers. A large group of settlers in Tamiya are trying to carry out such activities there. This is a live situation. I'm trying to follow events. I don't know what the latest update is. There are at least 1,200 roadblocks that have been illegally put in place. We will be able to send you some videos so that you can see with your own eyes what is occurring. It's hell. It's a living hell for citizens, a hell when it comes to movement from one town or city to another, given the roadblocks. There's also the humanitarian aspect of this situation. Moreover, the Israeli government adopts discriminatory legislation, discriminatory that is against Palestinian detainees. as well as carrying out deliberately provocative visits by security officials, including the criminal Bengvir. Three days ago, we sent you a video in which he could be seen threatening one of the prisoners, one of the detainees, sharing with him what justice for him would look like. These hateful images, these hateful actions, carry on. And there are those who seek to defend Israel still as the only democratic country in the region, that you have evidence of undemocratic behavior such as this. So we don't want to hear these words again. Israel is carrying out a genocidal war. And they've allowed men such as this one, such as the Prime Minister, to engage in these actions. The Prime Minister of this genocidal nation was allowed to address the United Nations and to attack states, heads of state, heads of government. He was allowed to brandish lies to give an image of what was occurring, completely divorced from reality. And he had exploited the United Nations Tribune as part of his electoral campaign. In response to that, concrete actions need to be taken and practical, concrete, tangible measures need to be enacted. We welcome what Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, and many other countries have done and are doing. And particularly, we'd like to thank the United Kingdom. Recently, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom officially recognized that what's happening in the West Bank is ethnic cleansing. We know what's happening in the camps. and particularly in the Bedouin gatherings and the Bedouin camps. And that has been duly recognized by the United Kingdom. Now we need to take such practical measures going forward. It's not just a question of punishing settlers and stopping commerce with the settlers and with the settlements. These settlers are an integral part of the occupying regime. Punitive measures, therefore, need to cover the system as a whole. They need to ensure a cessation of arms trade with Israel and to cease banking, trade, commercial and diplomatic relationships with Israel. Only by cutting them off from these channels is the only way in which we will continue to keep alive the two-state solution. And it is only by pursuing this action that we will be able to implement the decision of the world, which is the two-state solution, the New York Declaration, as well as the rulings and advisory opinions of the ICJ of 2024, which were duly recognized by the General Assembly on the 19th of December 2024 as being valid. So this is what we're calling for. This is the action we're asking of you in order to ensure that we can put an end to this tragedy suffered by the Palestinian people so that we can exercise our right to self-determination, that we can see an end to the occupation thanks to the support of all promoters and supporters of peace from the four corners of the world. Thank you very much.

Thank you. I now give the floor to a distinguished representative of the Syrian Arab Republic for a five-minute statement.

Thank you, President. When addressing the issue of human rights in the occupied Arab territories, you need first and foremost to tackle head-on the reality of the phenomenon of the occupation, which undermines the rights of the peoples in these territories and also undermines and violates the unity of these territories and the nations, and is a direct violation of the sovereignty of the nations to whom these territories belong. This is de facto forced seizure of land. We must resist any attempts to legitimise this state of affairs and to legitimise the occupation, because it is an occupation. It is an occupation of the Syrian Golan, a violation of international law and of various United Nations human rights, including resolutions of the Security Council of 1991. The administration of the Syrian Golan by the occupying power was round in those resolutions to be null and void. We are seeing settler policy, exploitation of natural resources, confiscation of land and of territory, as well as practices which have been well documented and which represent further violations of resolutions and rights. They're documented in various human rights reports, special procedures, mandates, reports, and Secretary General's reports. we cannot accept this situation of de facto occupation in the Syrian Golan. The collapse of the previous regime in December 2024 saw as part of it an Israeli violation and incursion. The Israeli violations adapted and morphed with the collapse of the previous regime in 2024, with military attacks in the very heart of Syrian territory, and with the occupation of a further enclave of other regions in the southeast of Syria. We also saw that military sites, military barracks have been established in occupied Syrian territory, and this has been well documented in reports of the OHCHR, which also documents the ongoing settlement process, the expansion of Syrian military movements in the south of my country. The report details the impact of these violations, which are not limited merely to the military dimension, it also adversely impacts the daily life of civilians. During a recent update to the Human Rights Council, in fact, on the 8th of September this year, the the international independent Commission of inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic talked about military controls military Israeli military checkpoints which are growing as a phenomenon in the southern region of the country after the 8th of December 2024 that is a reality and an act of belligerent occupation we call upon the international community to condemn all of these violations to prevent Israeli attacks on and infiltrations into our country and into our territory. We also call upon the international community to call upon Israel to immediately withdraw from all occupied Syrian territory, including those regions that have been occupied since the 8th of December 2024, and to return to the disengagement agreement of 1974, as well as to abide by the various decisions and resolutions of the United Nations, including the Security Council. Security affirms that any measure intended to change the in order to change the demographic makeup or institutional structure in occupied Syrian Golan are null and void and invalid. It is unacceptable to invoke security considerations to seek to justify this occupation and its related violations. We reiterate our support for the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including their right to establish an independent sovereign state within the 4th of June 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital of that independent sovereign state. We reaffirm that the respect for and upholding of international law rejects any form of selectivity or bias or biased or unequal implementation of its principles, rather we should equally implement the principles of the United Nations and its This is the very core and bedrock of a sovereign future for the Palestinian people. It should also be the bedrock of putting an end to an illegal occupation. It will also be the bedrock of promoting a just peace and stability in the region. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Before I give the floor to the first speaker of members, I would like to request that all delegations deal with human rights issues with dignity and respect. and to adhere to the well-established principles of the United Nations. And I request that all speakers to uphold UN standards when referring to countries or in reference to UN member states. And I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Uganda on behalf of the NAM.

Mr. President, I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement. NAM welcomes the update of the UN database of business enterprises involved in settlement-related activities. We urge states and the companies to ensure that their activities and business relationships are not contributing to the or benefiting from these unlawful policies and practices in line with the obligations under international law, as reaffirmed by the ICJ advisory opinion of 2024, we urge the business enterprises to immediately terminate their involvement in listed activities. The Non-Aligned Movement continues to maintain its long-standing and firm position of solidarity with the Palestinian people and their just cause, including their right to self-determination. NAM condemns in the strongest terms the massive, flagrant and systematic violation of human rights and international humanitarian law committed by Israel, the illegal occupying power, against the Palestinian people, including acts of aggression and collective punishment. NAM expresses its deepest alarm that the situation in the Gaza Strip continues to deteriorate, with genocidal acts being committed against the Palestinian people. We recall that the CIOI has concluded that Israel, the occupying power, is committing genocide, and we note that the ICJ is in its order of 26 January 2024, imposed the provisional measures to prevent such acts, measures which have not being implemented. We call on humanitarian aid at a scale to meet the dramatic needs of the population. We reject any proposal to...

Thank you.

And I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Bahrain on behalf of the GCC.

Thank you.

Thank you, President. We reaffirm our solidarity with the Palestinian people against violations perpetrated by the occupying power and settlers, including killing of civilians, demolitions of homes, and seizure of property. We condemn the The actions of extremist, uh, extremist minister and settlers entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque, this undermines efforts at stability and peace. We reiterate there's a need for the ceasefire to be lasting in Gaza. We urge for the blockade to be lifted on supply of humanitarian aid. support to reconstruction. We reject the expulsion of the Palestinian people. We condemn the escalation of settlers in West Bank, especially the settlement project E1, and all measures that could lead to a change in the demographics or legal status of the Palestinian territories. We welcome the results of the International Conference for a Peaceful Settlement. the Palestinian cause and implementation of the two-state solution presided by Saudi Arabia and France and the adoption of the New York Declaration. and the dynamics towards recognition of the state of Palestinian we call for an end to occupation the establishment of a independent Palestine state in the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its Capital pursuant to the Arab peace initiative and international resolutions thank you.

Thank you I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Philippines on behalf of ASEAN president.

The ASEAN Foreign Ministers at their 59th Meeting in Manila last July expressed grave concern over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, which has been exacerbated following the 7 October 2023 attacks and the resumption of hostilities on 18 March 2025. We condemn all attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, including the increased settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. and reaffirm its long-standing support for the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to self-determination and to their homeland. In this regard, ASEAN urges all parties concerned to work towards a peaceful resolution to the conflict with a view to realising the two-state solution in accordance with international law and the relevant UNSC and UNGA resolutions, including 1023 on the admission of new members and 1027 on protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations, all of which the ASEAN members voted in favor. Finally, we also call for a full, safe, rapid, and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance for the Palestinians, including through the continuation of UNRWA's role and mandate, and for the immediate reconstruction of the areas to ensure the livelihood for the people of Gaza. Thank you.

Thank you. The list of speakers is now closed. And I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Kenya on behalf of the African group.

Mr. President, The ongoing Israeli military occupation of Arab territories is a situation of protracted conflict that continues to inflict a heavy toll on the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people in the occupied Palestinian Arab territories. The African Group expresses grave concern over the continued violation of international humanitarian law and international human rights law against the Palestinian people, including repeated violations of the ceasefire in Gaza, resulting in civilian casualties and widespread destruction, as well as ongoing illegal measures in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, aimed at altering the legal and demographic character of the occupied Palestinian territory. Grounded in its values opposing colonialism, oppression, and apartheid, the African Group reaffirms its support for the Palestinian people's struggle to assert their right to self-determination and to establish an independent state based on the 4th June 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. The Group denounces Israel's colonial policies, including the collective punishment and attempts at forced displacement, and rejects any attempt to liquidate the Palestinian cause through displacement, a violation of international law and the right to self-determination. The group calls for implementation of the Gaza peace agreement in all its phases, with the aim of facilitating the urgent and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance, advancing early recovery and reconstruction efforts, and preserving the unity and territorial integrity of the occupied Palestinian territory. The group stresses the need to address root causes, prolonged occupation, confiscation of land, settlement expansion, violation of international law, and defiance of the Security Council resolution. Resolving the Palestinian question through a two-state solution remains essential to achieving a comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East. The Human Rights Council must act decisively to protect the Palestinian people and uphold their right to self-determination. I thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Iraq on behalf of the Arab Group.

Thank you, Mr. President. The Arab Group welcomes the latest update of the database. It is essential that it be updated regularly and to provide the necessary resources to implementing this mandate. We recall that all state must commit not to recognize or contribute to the illegal situation in the OPT due to occupation and not to provide any assistance, including by taking legislative measures and measures related to duty of care. Therefore, they would not contribute directly or indirectly to the support of settlements, annexation, or perpetuate illegal occupation. We strongly condemn the genocidal war launched by the occupying power against the Palestinian people in Gaza and the ethnic cleansing and terrorism by settlers supported by the occupying power in the West Bank, including Jerusalem. We call for complete and immediate end of the occupation while guaranteeing accountability reparation the release of Palestinian takes money the protection of prisoners detainees supporting the Palestinian government and onra I thank you.

Thank you I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Pakistan on behalf of the.

Mr. President, the OIC Group condemns in the strongest terms Israel war of extermination against the Palestinian people and the annexation of their lands to nullify efforts towards a just and comprehensive peace. We condemn Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Israel aims to fragment and annex Palestinian territory and alter its character. Its military strikes, settler terrorism, land confiscation, and forced displacement all demand accountability and sanctions. We likewise condemn Israel's continuing genocide in the Gaza Strip, marked by the use of starvation and sexual violence as weapons of war, repeated mass displacement, and the wholesale destruction of civilian infrastructure. Upholding the ceasefire, the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces, and unimpeded humanitarian access remains essential. The OIC notes the OIC Chair's presentation of an updated database. We call upon all states to ensure that business enterprises cease contributing to Israel's illegal settlement enterprise. The OIC rejects all attempts to undermine the question of Palestinian refugees and reaffirms support for UNRWA's mandate. The West Bank, including East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, constitute a single, indivisible territorial unit. The OIC reaffirms the Palestinian people's right to self-determination and the emergence of an independent and sovereign State of Palestine on the June 4, 1967 border, with East Al-Quds as its capital.

Thank you. Thank you. I give the floor to the Distinguished Representative of Venezuela on behalf of a group of countries.

Thank you, President. It's my honor to take the floor on behalf of the Group of Friends in Defense of the United Nations Charter. The group professes its concern at the persistent situation in the OPT, including East Jerusalem, and the consequences for the human rights of the Palestinian people. Settler violence contributes to the illegal displacement of Palestinians and the consolidation of the illegal Israeli presence in the OPT. Persistence of violence and impunity undermines the rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination. The group reiterates the importance of an immediate, permanent, fully respected ceasefire, as well as immediate, unhindered access for humanitarian aid. The group calls on all states to abide by their obligations under international law and to take into account the advisory opinion of the ICJ of July 2024, including not recognizing as legal the occupation of Palestinian territory or providing any support to maintain that situation. The group reiterates its call for a sovereign, viable Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. in line with international law and the relevant resolutions of the United Nations, and on the basis of the two-state solution that guarantees the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Kuwait for a video statement.

Thank you. We associate ourselves with the statements on behalf of groups we belong to. Kuwait strongly condemns the expansion of settlements, the confiscation of land and destruction of property in the OPT, including East Jerusalem, and the flagrant attacks by settlers against the Palestinian people. This aims at uprooting the Palestinians from their land and to consecrate illegal annexation and undermines the two-state solution. We also condemn the settlement expansions in the occupied Syrian Golan and the Israeli military incursions in Syria. We call for a complete end of settlement activities in the OPT and prevent any business activities that consecrate settlements. Secondly, an immediate withdrawal from Syria. Occupation does not lead to a right, and confiscation of land by force does not provide sovereignty. Who tries to make profit at the expense of the Palestinian people becomes a partner in this heinous crime. we reaffirm the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of France.

Thank you, President. On 7th October 2023, Israel was struck by terrorist attacks of a scope and brutality without precedent. The worst anti-Semite massacre since the Shoah. France reiterates its full total condemnation of these unjustified, unjustifiable attacks perpetrated by Hamas. France remains determined to act in favour of a last just peace on the basis of the principles of the New York Declaration adopted a year ago to enable Israel and Palestine to live side by side in peace and security within secure and internationally recognized borders. electoral process in Palestine. Palestine sets the stage for an establishment of a transitional administration. It must be accompanied and supported. Legislative and presidential elections in Palestine are essential to renew the Palestinian Authority and prepare for its return to Gaza. The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains a disaster. France calls on Israel to immediately lift all restrictions to supply humanitarian aid, to reopen all crossing points, and to guarantee access and security for humanitarian personnel in line with international law. In the West Bank, it expansion of settlements and violent settler violence pose a direct threat to the viability of the two-state solution. France urges Israel to respect its obligations under international law and to investigate allegations against the Israeli armed forces. It's urgent to put an end to the trend towards de facto annexation and forced displacement. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Qatar for a video statement.

Thank you, Mr. President. The continuation of Israeli occupation.

The interpreter apologizes. Sound quality is too poor for interpretation.

وعليه، ندين بأشد العبارات مواصلة الاعتداءات الإسرائيلية على قطاع غزة والضفة الغربية، واستهداف المدنيين والبنى التحتية، واستمرار المعاناة الإنسانية للفلسطينيين، واستمرار اقتحامات المستوطنين والمتطرفين للمسجد الأقصى، ومحاولات تغيير الطابع التاريخي والقانوني والديمقراطي لمدينة القدس الشرقية المحتلة. إن الرفض الإسرائيلي المعن لتنفيذ الخطة الشاملة لإنهاء النزاع في غزة، التي أيدها قرار مجلس الأمن رقم ألفين وثمانمية وثلاثة، هو تحدي مباشر ومحاولة مقصودة لإفشال الجهود. الرامية إلى تحقيق سلام عادل وشامل ودائم وتنفيذ حل الدولتين. ندعو المجتمع الدولي إلى تحمل مسؤولياته لإنهاء الاحتلال الإسرائيلي وضمان المساءلة عن الجرائم المرتكبة ووقف أي دعم يرسخ أو يسهم في توسيع المستوطنات الإسرائيلية غير القانونية. وترحب بلادي بالتدابير التي اتخذتها بعض الدول بما فيها القيود التجارية على السلع القادمة من المستوطنات وندعو إلى توسيعها بما يضمن عدم دعم الاستيطان الإسرائيلي غير المشروع ووفاء الدول بمسؤولياتها.

Thank you. I give the floor to the Distinguished Representative of Iraq.

Thank you, Mr. President. Genocide and crimes against humanity and war crimes faced by the Palestinian people was reiterated in a number of UN reports. This shows the importance of this item and the need to keep it on the Council's agenda till the end of occupation. We condemn extension of-- expansion of settlements, confiscation of land by the occupying power. In the West Bank, there is a clear and systematic violation of international law. The catastrophic situation of the Palestinian people is getting worse because of the genocide. Since more than two years, 2 million Palestinians are deprived of the most basic factors of life. It is difficult to find words to describe. Daily, we see murder and forced displacement, starvation, and total collapse of necessary services, which is a violation of the dignity of the Palestinian person. The occupying power must abide by its international commitments, and they must not use assistance as a weapon of war. As well, we recall the targeting of NROA. This necessitates a quick international action. We call on the immediate end of the occupation, holding those responsible accountable, as well as the need to provide reparation. We reiterate.

I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Mexico.

ExCo expresses its concern at the impact of Israeli settlements on the enjoyment of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights in the OPT, including in East Jerusalem. We reaffirm that the self-determination of peoples is a fundamental principle, and we are opposed to any action that could undermine it, including activities by private entities. We urge for a permanent cessation of hostilities and protection to be given to the civilian population in Gaza and the West Bank. We reiterate our condemnation of all violence against civilians, and we urge for full, secure, unrestricted humanitarian access to be guaranteed, as well as release of all persons detained in contravention of international law. Mexico maintains its commitment to a just and lasting peace based on international law, dialogue and the two-state solution. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Spain.

Thank you, President. The occupation of Palestinian territories is the materialization of the continued violation, unpunished violation, of international human rights law and international law. And this has gone on for so many long, difficult decades, and Spain condemns this gravely. But there are reiterated violations of the ceasefire and exacerbation of humanitarian crisis. Israel is systematically violating those fundamental rights of the civilian population, submitting them to suffering and intolerable dehumanization with military campaigns, aggressions by settler gangs, destruction of homes, of key infrastructure, and the livelihoods in a context of total lack of legal security. We urge Israel to comply with Security Council resolutions and cooperate with the mandates of this Council, as well as with UNRWA, whose work is irreplaceable. It should assume its responsibilities as occupying power so that its crimes should not go unpunished, and it should protect the Palestinian population in line with the humanitarian obligations. We demand full entry of humanitarian aid. We reiterate our call to the Government of Israel to withdraw from all occupied Arab territories, including from the Golan Heights, and to withdraw their military forces from all of Lebanese territory. Israel must immediately reverse measures aimed at the de facto annexation of the occupied territories. The two-state solution is the only means for achieving a just, lasting peace that satisfies the legitimate aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of India.

Mr. President. India was among the first countries to recognize the state of Palestine in 1988. Our position is principled and long-standing. We support a negotiated two-state solution, a sovereign, viable, and independent state of Palestine within recognized and mutually agreed borders, living in peace and security. Continued settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territory, which the UN General Assembly has repeatedly affirmed to be illegal under international law and an obstacle to peace, erodes precisely that viability. Humanitarian assistance is vital to sustaining life and must remain outside politics and conflict. India calls for sustained and unimpeded access to Gaza. India has acted on this conviction. Our development partnership with Palestine focuses on institution building, human resource development and livelihoods, with emphasis on health and education. Our cumulative, untied and uninterrupted contribution to UNRWA stands at US$52 million. 52.5 million. This year, we dispatched 12 tons of life-saving and anti-cancer medicine to Gaza and committed a mobile hospital unit and a school in a box facilities to support early learning activities there. Annual training and scholarship support Palestinian officials and students. Projects underway include a 200-bed super-specialty hospital in Jenin, the Palestine-India Techno Park in Ramallah, and the Palestinian Institute of Diplomacy and Vocational Training at the National Printing Press. Our helpful to build the institutions of statehood. India will continue to stand with the Palestinian people. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Egypt.

Thank you, Mr. President. The Israeli aggressions against OPT, Lebanon, and Syria are not separate incidents. They are a systematic approach in clear violation of international law and IHL. In Gaza, we see that assistance is blocked in the West Bank. The confiscation of land continues, as well as settlement violence. and attempts to create a new status quo. And the High Commissioner's report on the businesses shows that there's an attempt to consecrate illegal. occupation, and we call on taking more concrete measures. We ask Israel to abide by its commitments to guarantee humanitarian assistance and to provide support for early recovery and reconstruction. We refuse dismantling Gaza from the West Bank. We strongly support the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. We also condemn the repeated Israeli attacks against Lebanon and Syria, and we renew our condemnation of the occupation of the Syrian Golan and parts of Lebanon. Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Gambia.

Thank you, Mr. President.

The acceleration of settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, Golan Heights, and southern Syria constitute flagrant violations of the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice and undermine the viability of the two-state solution.

The recent surge in settler violence in Palestinian territories, restrictions on the freedom of movement, destruction of essential infrastructure, and the man-made humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip demand the urgent attention of the international community. It is indeed a big stain on the collective conscience of the world that Palestinians are being forced to choose between enduring physical and mental harm and displacement from their homeland. For the Gambia, the issue is fundamentally a question of respect for international law.

Therefore, respect for international borders, the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, and the enforcement of international humanitarian law and human rights law must remain at the center of any international response. We call on Israel to end the unlawful occupation of Palestinian territories.

Lift the restrictions on humanitarian aid, protect Palestinian civilians from settler violence, and ensure accountability for perpetrators of such violence.

The President of The Gambia reaffirms its unequivocal support.

For an independent and sovereign State of Palestine, based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Thank you.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Indonesia.

Thank you, Mr. President. Indonesia aligns itself with the statement of the OIC and welcomes the High Commissioner's report on Resolution 31/36. Indonesia unequivocally condemns settlement activities by Israel, the occupying power. The International Court of Justice has confirmed they are unlawful. All states must not aid or assist in maintaining this unlawful situation, including through trade and investment. The report finds 214 businesses contributing to or directly linked to adverse impacts on the Palestinian people's right to self-determination. We call, first, on home states to ensure that businesses under their jurisdiction are not involved in or materially contributing to serious human rights violations and that victims have access to remedy. Second, on listed businesses to cease their contribution and use their leverage. for the database to be updated annually and adequately resourced, as requested in resolution 53/25. On our part, Indonesia's national strategy on business and human rights established a framework requiring business enterprises to uphold human rights standards. Indonesia opposes all violence and violation of international law, including the genocide committed by Israel. We stand for an independent and sovereign state of Palestine. Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of China.

Mr. President. are highly concerned about the human rights situation in the opt and other occupied Arab territories recently the situation in the opt has continued to deteriorate with Justice.

And fairness repeatedly being trampled upon Israel's intensified deadly attacks on Gaza have.

Worsened the fragile fragile situation there facts have shown that the fundamental reason for the failure to achieve lasting peace in Gaza is a lack of political will to pursue peace and the greatest obstacle is the dangerous attempt to deliberately prolong the conflict in the face of the current situation, the international community must attach great importance to and to accelerate efforts for resolving the Palestinian issue. All parties concerned must fully implement the ceasefire agreement. Tensions in the West Bank must be eased. The two-state solution must be revitalized, and peace and stability in the Middle East must be safeguarded. China has always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people. President Xi Jinping's Global Security Initiative and Global Governance Initiative provide important guidance for addressing the issues in the Middle.

East.

Guided by these initiatives, China is ready to work with the international community to promote an early, comprehensive, just, and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue. Thank you, Mr. President.

I now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Pakistan.

Thank you, Mr. President. Pakistan remains gravely concerned by the deteriorating human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory resulting from Israel's illegal occupation and flagrant disregard for tenets of international law. The Palestinian people under occupation are subjected to systematic oppression and collective punishment. Israel's genocide in Gaza and brazen settler colonialism in the West Bank are a blot on the collective conscience of humanity. We condemn Israeli attempts to fragment the next Palestinian territory, alter its demography and identity, and expel the Palestinian people from their indigenous lands. The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip constitute one indivisible geographical and political unit. Al-Quds al-Sharif remains central to Muslims worldwide. Attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and attempts to alter the status of Al-Quds are null and void. Pakistan notes the update to the OHCHR database on business enterprises. and calls for an end to business complicity in Israel's illegal settlement enterprise in the OPT. We reject efforts to undermine the question of Palestinian refugees and affirm our unwavering support for the Palestinian people and their inalienable right to self-determination. Finally, Mr. President, we call for a credible, irreversible, and time-bound political process leading to the realization of an independent and sovereign state of Palestine on pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds al-Sharif as its capital. Thank you.

Thank you. We will take our last speaker for this meeting. I give the floor to the distinguished representative of Cuba, and I thank the interpreters for their indulgence.

Thank you, President. The human rights of more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza and other occupied territories continue to be flagrantly violated. They are condemned to hunger, forced displacement as a result of the genocidal actions and ethnic cleansing actions carried out by Israel, which enjoys financial and military supplies and support, and also the impunity guaranteed to it by the government of the United States of America. It also enjoys the complicity and the blind eye turned by others. Israel violates all UN resolutions, including Security Council resolutions. It also thumbs its nose at its obligations as the occupying power, which it should uphold under the Fourth Geneva Convention. Cuba reiterates its unwavering solidarity with the Palestinian people and calls for an immediate end to the occupation. We support the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to build and forge their own independent and sovereign state. within the pre-1967 borders and with its capital in East Jerusalem. The General Assembly of the United Nations needs to admit the State of Palestine as a member state in full standing of the United Nations. Thank you very much indeed, President.

Thank you. This was the last speaker that we could accommodate at this meeting. Excellencies, distinguished representatives, colleagues, this brings us to the end of this meeting. And we will reconvene this afternoon at 3:00 PM to continue the general debate under agenda item seven. After the conclusion of item seven, we would normally proceed with the general debate under agenda item eight. However, the enhanced interactive dialogue with the High Commissioner and international independent expert mechanism to advance racial justice and equality in law enforcement, which is scheduled for this afternoon, cannot be postponed. until tomorrow morning. I therefore propose that the Council take up the enhanced interactive dialogue at this time and defer the general debate under item 8 to tomorrow morning. Further adjustments in the programme of work will be made as necessary, and the scheduling of the remaining interactive dialogue and general debates will be adjusted accordingly. I'd like to thank all colleagues for their indulgence and keeping to time. we are trying to catch up with our timing to finish on time. I thank our interpreters and our security officers, and I hereby close the 31st meeting of the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council. Meeting is adjourned.