Vol. 565 No. 1
61 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the resolutions which Ireland is co-sponsoring at the next session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights; the reasons for such in each case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9828/03]
The UN Commission on Human Rights deals with a wide range of issues. This year, for instance, at the session currently ongoing in Geneva, it is expected to adopt over 90 resolutions. Most of these will be adopted by consensus, but some draft resolutions may be put to the vote. Co-sponsorship of a draft resolution indicates a strong degree of support for the issue it addresses.
At the current session of the commission, Ireland is the principal sponsor of a resolution on the elimination of all forms of religious intolerance. Greece, on behalf of the European Union, will also present a number of draft resolutions, all of which Ireland will co-sponsor. I expect that these will include resolutions on the death penalty and on the rights of the child, as well as resolutions on the human rights situation in a number of countries, which are likely to include Burma-Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea, Iraq, Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Territories, Sudan, Turkmenistan, and Zimbabwe.
