This Saturday, January 30, the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations (UN) on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on human rights, Alena Douhan, arrived in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on an official visit that will last from February 1 to February 12.
The UN expert was received at the main airport in Venezuela by the Deputy Minister for Multilateral Issues of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Daniela Rodríguez, who was accompanied by the Venezuelan ambassador to the United Nations and other international organizations based in Geneva, Héctor Constant.
On Friday, the Special Rapporteur had expressed her full willingness to “examine, in a spirit of cooperation and dialogue, whether and to what extent the adoption, maintenance or application of sanctions hinders the full realization of people’s human rights.”
“I will focus in particular on any negative impact that the sanctions may have on the enjoyment of all human rights in Venezuela,” stated the senior official in a UN press release, the text of which she posted on her Twitter account, @AlenaDouhan.
Country visit to Venezuela will take place on 1-12 February to assess impact of unilateral sanctions on human rights https://t.co/vKuzeu2MRd
— Alena Douhan (@AlenaDouhan) January 29, 2021
During her visit to Venezuela, the Special Rapporteur plans to meet with senior officials of the Venezuelan government, the National Human Rights Council, members of the National Assembly and the Judiciary, representatives of international organizations, the diplomatic corps, civil society, sectors of the opposition, lawyers, academics, activists, victims and their families.
The UN Human Rights Council established the mandate of the Special Rapporteur in September 2014 due to the concerns of the United Nations human rights system and the international community about the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on human rights of civilians.
In recent years the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has been the subject of numerous unilateral coercive measures imposed from the White House, which have had a negative impact on the human rights of the civilian population, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Featured image: File photo.
Translation: OT/JRE/SC
