Egypt is fully aware of the need to make human rights a reality, and also committed to achieving this goal, Minister of Justice Omar Marwan said Wednesday.
Marwan was addressing a meeting of the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) concerned with monitoring compliance of state parties with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
He also emphasized the state's commitment to guarantee the rights of all citizens and ensure equal opportunity by building efficient institutions and effective justice delivery mechanism.
The meeting addressed Egypt's fifth report on human rights that was submitted to the committee in November 2019.
Marwan said Egypt had taken unprecedented steps to advance human rights over the past few years, thanks to a determined political will, which clearly demonstrates the amount of attention the state gives to its citizens and their rights.
As an example, the minister cited the
president-backed "Decent Life" rural development project, the largest
of its kind in the world, which aims to improve the life quality of more than
60 million citizens nationwide, despite the harsh economic conditions at the
national and global levels.
He stressed that the ongoing political and economic challenges Egypt has been facing, along with the cases of violating some human rights enshrined in the ICCPR, simulate more action and determination to achieve the noble goal of promoting human rights and enhancing partnerships with human rights bodies.
Marwan added that Egypt's Permanent Higher Committee for Human Rights is following up the implementation of the National Human Rights Strategy (NHRS), launched in September 2021 as the first of its kind to adopt a comprehensive approach to advance human rights in Egypt.
He is leading a high-level delegation in Geneva, Switzerland, to review the fifth periodical report submitted to the UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) during meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Marwan said Egypt has made major human rights achievements in line with the ICCPR, noting that Cairo has been working on building a fully integrated system for promoting human rights in the past eight years.
The 137th session of the HRC – which is being held in Geneva from 27 February to 24 March – is reviewing reports on the status of the implementation of the ICCPR in Egypt and five other countries – Panama, Peru, Sri Lanka, Turkmenistan, and Zambia.
Source: Al-Ahram Online
