GENEVA: The international system is in upheaval with human rights being “suffocated”, the United Nations said on Monday, warning that an era of “dictators” could return.

During an opening address at the UN Human Rights Council’s main annual session, UN rights chief Volker Turk painted a dark picture of a “very dangerous” situation in a world increasingly dominated by authoritarians.

He did not mention any country — even as the world grapples with the Russia-Ukraine war, dramatic changes in the United States and a more assertive China. It was clear, he said though, that “the international system is going through a tectonic shift”.

“The human rights edifice we have built up so painstakingly over decades has never been under so much strain.” The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is to give a more detailed address to the council next week, when he will assess specific country events.

Rights ‘crumbling’ under authoritarians

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned the council that one by one, human rights were being “suffocated”, adding: “by autocrats, crushing opposition because they fear what a truly empowered people would do. By a patriarchy that keeps girls out of school and women at arm’s length from basic rights.” Governments behind wars “thumb their nose at international law, international humanitarian law and the UN Charter”, he said, while conflicts were stripping people “of their right to food, water and education”.

Turk also cautioned that “the global consensus on human rights is crumbling under the weight of authoritarians, strongmen and oligarchs”.

“By some estimates, autocrats now control around one-third of the world’s economy — more than double the proportion 30 years ago.” He stressed a need for “an all-out effort by everyone to make sure that human rights and the rule of law remain foundational to communities, societies and international relations”.

“Otherwise, the picture is very dangerous.” Turk pointed to “the unrestrained use of force by the powerful” in previous centuries.

Dictator era could return

“Dictators could order atrocity crimes consigning vast numbers of people to their deaths,” he said, adding: “Be aware: this can happen again”. He pointed to how some modern day leaders “cite national security and the fight against terrorism to justify gross violations”.

Without naming countries, he warned that “regional powers that are neutral or hostile to human rights are growing in influence”. “Everywhere, we see attempts to ignore, undermine, and redefine human rights; and to create a false binary that pits one right against another in a zero-sum game,” Turk lamented.

“There are concerted efforts to chip away at gender equality, and the rights of migrants, refugees, people with disabilities, and minorities of all kinds.” Turk voiced alarm at the role played by digital technologies, which he warned were being “widely misused to suppress, limit and violate our rights”.

Published in Dawn, February 25th, 2025