Canadian Intervention at Human Rights Council Forum on Minority Issues Agenda Item 4: Improving Prevention of Violence and Atrocity Crimes 25 November, 2014 Thank you, Mr. President. States have a solemn duty to defend the vulnerable, challenge aggressors, protect human rights, and promote human dignity. Unfortunately, the situation in many parts of the world today is characterised by violence and atrocity. Too often, our efforts at prevention have been inadequate and the impact on minorities devastating. As such, Canada welcomes the Minority Forum’s timely focus this year on preventing and addressing violence and atrocity crimes targeted against minorities – a priority issue for our country and one that necessitates ongoing attention by the international community. Proactively addressing risk factors associated with atrocities saves lives. As our Foreign Minister, John Baird, has said, “Societies that respect diversity, protect religious communities, protect human rights and hold perpetrators legally accountable are much less likely to suffer atrocities.” Resolving political differences democratically, and seeking reconciliation are also critical practices in preventing atrocities. We must ensure our own societies are resilient against the risk of atrocities and work cooperatively as an international community. The challenge now is to move to a more focused, effective and international approach to atrocity prevention and the UN has a key role to play. Canada looks to the UN to include atrocity prevention as part of its core commitment and the Office of the Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide has an important responsibility in this respect. Plans such as the UN Human Rights Up Front Action Plan can support more effective atrocity work, and provides valuable guidance on implementing specific prevention measures. It could also position the UN system to more effectively support human rights and act as an early warning system for atrocity crimes. The UPR also provides a powerful venue to identify issues of concern related to violence and atrocity targeting minorities. For our part, Canada is unequivocally committed to preventing and halting genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Priority areas in violence and atrocity prevention include: preventing sexual violence against minority women and protecting and promoting the rights of religious minorities. Women and children belonging to minorities are at greater risk of violence, including sexual violence, in particular deliberate targeting for use of rape as a weapon of war.