#romania2019.eu/Ciamba: Romania's human right priorities - combating anti-Semitism, equality of opportunities, child protection

Equality of opportunities and combating anti-Semitism are among the priorities of the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Minister-delegate for European Affairs George Ciamba said on Wednesday, having attended the United Nations Human Rights Council and the high-level segment of the Conference on Disarmament held in Geneva. 

In the address held within the Human Rights Council, the Minister-delegate for European Affairs stressed our country's commitment to promoting the global human rights agenda, in line with the values and objectives agreed with the European Union's partners, a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) sent to AGERPRES informs. 

As the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Romania has among its priorities the promotion of policies that guarantee respect for human rights, with an emphasis on combating anti-Semitism, equal opportunities, combating domestic violence and child protection, the official said. 

Moreover, highlights MAE, in the program of the Romanian Presidency, the fourth pillar is dedicated to the stimulation of cohesion around the values that have underpinned the European construction. This, says the minister, is a good way to combat racism, intolerance, xenophobia, populism and any form of hate speech. 

During the Conference on Disarmament, the Romanian official confirmed Romania's support for the revival and relaunch of the forum's core activity in the context of the 40th anniversary since its establishment in 1979, while emphasizing its unique role and potential in the multilateral negotiation of the issues in the field of disarmament. In his speech, Minister George Ciamba reiterated Romania's firm commitment to preserving and consolidating the current international security architecture and global non-proliferation regime, the Foreign Affairs Ministry specifies. 

In view of the third meeting of Preparatory Committee for the 2020 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NTP) Review, the Minister-delegate for European Affairs voiced Romania's support for the efforts to consolidate and fully implement this essential instrument of the current global security architecture. 

UN human rights concerns have seen institutional progress as soon as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948. 

The Human Rights Commission (CHR), which has been for nearly 60 years the main international forum for the defence and promotion of human rights in the world, was replaced in 2006 by the current Human Rights Council in the context of UN reform, following the adoption of the General Assembly Resolution 60/251. 

Romania had two mandates within the CHR: the first, between June 19, 2006 and June 18, 2008, during which it held the CHR Presidency (2007/2008) and the second, from August 2011 until the end of 2014. 

Since its establishment in 1979, the Geneva Conference on Disarmament has been the forum for dialogue and multilateral negotiations on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and disarmament. Under its auspices and precursory structures, the main multilateral legal documents were negotiated: the NPT, the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). 

The agenda of the Conference on Disarmament entails seven main topics: the cessation of the nuclear arms race and nuclear disarmament; the prevention of nuclear warfare, including related issues; the prevention of an arms race in outer space; effective international agreements to assure non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons; new types of weapons of mass destruction and new launch systems including radiological weapons; the comprehensive disarmament program; transparency in armaments. 

Romania held the Chair of the Conference for Disarmament in 2017.