Lithuania offers human rights recommendations to United States of America and Croatia
On 9 and 10 November, the Permanent Representative of Lithuania Ambassador Andrius Krivas took the floor at the 36th session of the Working Group of Universal Periodic Review to address the human rights situation in the United States of America and in Croatia.
Lithuania commended US efforts in the protection and promotion of human rights. Acknowledging the progress at state level to end the death penalty, Lithuania recommended to introduce an immediate moratorium on execution of death penalty as a step toward a future complete abolishment. Lithuania also recommended US to ratify the United Nations (UN) Convention on Elimination of All Forms Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), to establish an independent national human rights institution at the federal level and to consider rejoining the work of the Human Rights Council.
Commending Croatia’s human rights record over the past years, Lithuania recommended Croatia to adopt a National Programme for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights, to strengthen and enforce laws protecting journalists against physical attacks and threats and to ensure due prosecution of the perpetrators of such acts.
The Universal Periodic Review is a human rights mechanism employed since 2008. The UPR assesses the human rights situation in each individual country and provides recommendations for improvements. At the end of each UPR cycle, UN Members produce reports about the implementation of the adopted recommendations and overall progress in the area of human rights. Countries undergo the UPR every five years. Lithuania had its reviews in 2011 and 2017. The third-cycle review will take place in January 2022.
