The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday rejected Saudi Arabia’s candidacy for the Human Rights Council, a decision welcomed by human rights defenders. The ballot aimed to fill 18 seats for the period 2025-2027, distributed by region. In the “Asia-Pacific” category, Cyprus, the Marshall Islands, Qatar, South Korea and Thailand secured the five available spots, leaving Saudi Arabia on the sidelines.
NGOs such as Reprieve and ESOHR applauded this decision, highlighting the serious human rights abuses perpetrated by the regime of Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, including 214 capital executions in 2024. The ISHR group interpreted this vote as a refusal of states to give power to actors violating fundamental rights. However, the situation remains worrying for the “Africa” group, where the five candidates (Benin, DRC, Ethiopia, Gambia and Kenya) were elected despite protests from human rights organizations.
For the other regions, Bolivia, Colombia and Mexico will represent Latin America and the Caribbean, while Czechia, North Macedonia, Iceland, Spain and Switzerland were elected for Europe. Western, Eastern and other states. This vote highlights the persistent challenges of the Human Rights Council, where countries with contrasting records in respecting fundamental rights and freedoms coexist.