UN rights chief urges rights council members to open records News
UN rights chief urges rights council members to open records

[JURIST] UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour [official website] Thursday called on [press release] state members of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) [official website; JURIST news archive] to open their records and allow the Council to adhere to its mandate to serve as an effective watchdog. The organization has been bogged down in debate since its inception over how to effectively conduct the country reviews.

Members of the UNHRC reached an agreement [JURIST report; press release] in June to adopt final, internal rules governing the body. The UNHRC was established in 2006 to replace [JURIST report] the UN Human Rights Commission [official website], which was often criticized for allowing states with poor human rights records to become members. AP has more.