Human Rights Violations in Occupied Territories Condemned by 40+ Countries

A United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) resolution was adopted supporting Georgia’s efforts to condemn and solve human rights violations in the occupied territory of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali. The delegations of the United Kingdom, the United States, Switzerland and Australia, together with 36 other countries, voted in favor of the resolutions.

The resolution was supported by many countries not part of the UNHRC, but still looking for a way to express their condemnation of human rights abuses. The resolution reaffirms the territorial integrity of Georgia according to the internationally recognized borders of the wider international community, alongside reiterating past resolutions, which supported Georgia’s sovereignty.

The resolution touches on issues such as the worrisome introduction of school curriculums stopping Georgian language classes, which is the mother tongue of many families. The UNHRC further declared their opposition to second-class treatment of part of the population based on ethnic differences. These treatments affect non-Russian affiliated ethnic groups.

The council regard the opening of polling stations for the previously held Russian presidential election as inacceptable. While international law is not only disregarded, the occupying authorities have committed grave human rights violations with their insufficient treatment of IDPs in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali.

The two key points pushed forward by the resolution are providing assistance to the UNHRC office in Tbilisi and demanding immediate access to the occupied regions to UNHRC representatives in Georgia. In the meantime, a third point called for a continuous observation of the situation as well as a report evaluating and highlighting human rights violations in the region.

Australia has complimented Georgia for its efforts to find a solution at the negotiation table, highlighting Australia’s continued support for these efforts as well as strengthening the cooperation for human rights. “The resolution seeks immediate access for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and international and regional human rights mechanisms to Abkhazia and South Ossetia. It is appropriate for Georgia to put forward such a resolution, since these regions are integral parts of Georgia," the Australian delegation said.

“Switzerland exercises a mandate of protective power in the region between Russia and Georgia and is involved in various dialogues as a facilitator. Switzerland will spare no effort to improve the security and humanitarian situation in the region promoting the respect of human rights in cooperation with the parties to the conflict”, the Swiss delegation reiterated, stressing human rights and Georgia’s sovereignty as a key point.

“This resolution is about access, it is about cooperation…The council should always support cooperation with UN human rights mechanisms,” the UK delegation commented, pointing to the unique situation, in which only an independent monitoring team can ensure partiality.

“Along with reporting on the human rights situation, the Government of Georgia is cooperating closely with the OHCHR to improve the human rights situation in their country. At the same time, de-facto authorities in the Russian occupied territories of Georgia continue to deny any access to OHCHR while there are reports of widespread abuses of rights in these territories,” the US delegation emphasized.

Georgia has been a member of the council since 2016.

By Benjamin Music