8 PROMOTING AND PROTECTING MINORITY RIGHTS CHAPTER II THE OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS Summary: The High Commissioner for Human Rights has the lead responsibility within the United Nations system for implementing the United Nations human rights programme. The High Commissioner plays an important role in promoting and protecting human rights through public statements, dialogue with Governments, liaison with United Nations and other bodies, and by ensuring that human rights, including minority rights, remain an integral part of the work of the United Nations. The High Commissioner can give voice to minorities facing discrimination. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner (OHCHR) services the main United Nations human rights bodies and mechanisms, and ensures that minority issues are regularly placed on the international human rights agenda. Minority rights advocates who have concerns about the protection of minority rights may contact OHCHR directly. The Office works on minority issues through its global, thematic work and more than 50 field presences. The section most concerned with minority rights issues is the Indigenous Peoples and Minorities Section, based in Geneva. OHCHR field presences enable minorities to communicate directly with United Nations staff and participate in relevant programming, training and monitoring activities. Increasingly, OHCHR features minority issues in its regular involvement with, for example, the United Nations Human Rights Council and its special procedures, the human rights treaty bodies and the universal periodic review process. Under the direction of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, OHCHR has the mandate to promote and protect all human rights for all people. It works to build awareness of and respect for human rights, to assist States to uphold human rights in accordance with international human rights law and to empower individuals to claim their rights. OHCHR is headquartered in Geneva, with an office in New York and a network of more than 50 field presences around the world, many of which work actively on minority issues. OHCHR is proactive in advocating for minority rights. Consistently focusing on the human rights of persons belonging to minority groups, it strives to have their issues mainstreamed throughout the United Nations system and by many different stakeholders. The High Commissioner often speaks out on behalf of minorities, giving them a stronger voice.13 The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is the official with “principal responsibility” for United Nations human rights activities. In summary, the mandate of the High Commissioner is to: • Promote and protect all human rights for all people; • Make recommendations to the competent bodies of the United Nations system for improving the promotion and protection of all human rights; • Promote and protect the right to development; • Provide technical assistance for human rights actions and programmes; See www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/NewsSearch.aspx?PTID=HC&NTID=STM (accessed 29 November 2012). 13