Geneva (Switzerland). Since February 26, 2018, the 37th Session of the Human Rights Council at Geneva, Switzerland is taking place at the United Nations Building. It began with the interventions of the General Secretary of the United Nations, António Guterres; the President of the General Assembly of the United Nations, Miroslav Lajcák; the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein; the Federal Head of Foreign Affairs of the Swiss Confederation, and representatives of other Nations.
It is a significant session, seventy years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that outlined the three basic pillars of the system of the United Nations: peace and security, human rights and development, inter-connected and inter-dependent dimensions of a unique structure of intervention at the world level.
The Human Rights Office IIMA and Vides International, together with a group of five young interns coming from Austria, Canada, Italy, Niger, and the United States, rich in international experience, participate daily in the 37th Session’s working days. It is a Salesian way of celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, recognizing and honoring the many human rights defenders who tirelessly build peace, justice, and solidarity among the peoples of the third millennium.
Being present “Salesianly” and with a passionate heart for education at the UN headquarters is a convinced commitment and responsibility that all actions in defense of rights begin with a decision taken in meetings at the Palace of Nations, which then have a tangible impact in the field, in everyday life. The real change, in fact, occurs when the Nations adhere to the UN recommendations and continue the construction of peace by implementing and guaranteeing its promotion. Without national action, the constructive atmosphere, the cooperative spirit, and the rules established by the Human Rights Council would not be effective to ensure a sustainable future for all.
What began seventy years ago with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was a great dream and a novelty. Now, the legacy of Eleanor Roosevelt and her colleagues to promote universal human rights is a secure foundation for the common good of humanity, the basis on which the IIMA Human Rights Office in Geneva “builds education” in favor of the educational presences and of the FMA educating communities.
