United Nations Human Rights Chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein and Funding

In a New York Times Report by Nick Cumming-Bruce, he writes that Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein, the Human Rights Chief of the United Nations, have been critical of countries regarding their funding efforts on issues of human rights. He has been particularly critical of the response to the Ebola virus, as well as ISIS. In the New York Times piece, he is quoted as saying

“I have to say I am shocked, shocked that just six weeks into the job I am already having to look at making cuts because of our current financial situation.” He went on to say that “[o]ur operations are stretched to breaking point in a world that seems to be lurching from crisis to ever more dangerous crisis,”

Cumming-Bruce writes that “The office, which has an annual budget of $250 million, was continuously asked to monitor these crises, investigate abuses and undertake the training of officials and security forces to prevent human rights violations. Doing that with the resources provided by member states and facing a $25 million shortfall in funding this year was “like being asked to use a bucket and a boat to cope with a flood,” Mr. Zeid said.”

State leaders must continue to provide the necessary aid to prevent human rights abuses and lives lost from these situations, along with other pressing human rights matters in the international system. It is important for leaders to do all they can to ensure that the United Nations human rights entities have all that they need to carry out their work. Unfortunately, states, looking out for their immediate interests, often fail to keep in mind the importance of ensuring human rights for the world community as a whole. Human rights take top priority in international relations. Norms must continue to move towards this idea that the rights of individuals are by far the primary action of the United Nations, and of all states in the UN. Of course, states are often concerned with their own objectives, but this needs to be aligned with human rights.