Following the end of the Cold War, international sensitivity to human rights issues intensified considerably, while at the same time establishing links with other concepts or fields of knowledge: human security, the human dimension, international humanitarian law and international criminal law (the establishment and functioning of ad hoc tribunals and the International Criminal Court).

In the international community, Slovenia advocates a progressive approach in the area of human rights, which on the one hand leads to further codification of international human rights law (development of new standards) and on the other to specific activities for ensuring the respect and application thereof. It is very important for Slovenia to engage in such activities in international organisations such as the European Union (EU), United Nations (UN), Council of Europe (CoE), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and other initiatives such as the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe (SP SEE) and the Human Security Network (HSN).

Slovenia's foreign policy in the field of human rights is coordinated with the human rights policy of the EU in the context of the Common Foreign and Security Policy.

EU Presidency: during its EU Presidency in the first half of 2008, Slovenia will chair the EU Working Party on Human Rights (COHOM) and coordinate the implementation of the extensive EU human rights policy agenda.

Within the United Nations, Slovenia is active in the two bodies engaged in the field of human rights: the General Assembly Third Committee and the Human Rights Council  established in June 2006 that replaced the Commission on Human Rights. Slovenia was elected to the Human Rights Council on 17 May 2007 and began its three-year membership of this universal organisation for the protection and promotion of human rights on 19 June 2007. Slovenia will strive to make the new body as effective as possible and expects the mechanisms available to the Human Rights Council to be helpful in this important mission. The mechanisms include the new Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which applies to all UN Member States according to the same criteria. Every two years, Slovenia proposes in the UN General Assembly Third Committee the adoption of a resolution on the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.  

Slovenia devotes particular attention to the most vulnerable social groups, children and women, in international forums and takes part in the drafting of relevant international documents. In addition, Slovenia participated in the preparation of the United Nations Secretary General’s Study on Violence Against Children developed under the leadership of Prof. Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, the independent expert appointed by the Secretary-General, and actively advocates the best possible implementation of his recommendations. The Study was presented at the international conference entitled “Prevention of Violence against Children and Human Security" held on 30 November and 1 December 2006.

The year 2005 witnessed two international events: the Regional Consultation for the UN Study on Violence Against Children, Europe and Central Asia, entitled Stop Violence against Children – Act Now! held in Ljubljana from 5 to 7 July 2005, and the Council of Europe conference entitled Yokohama Review for Europe and Central Asia – Combating Sexual Exploitation and Abuse of Children held in Ljubljana on 8 and 9 July 2005.
 

Slovenia’s engagement within the UN will continue to focus particularly on the issues of children’s rights and gender equality. In addition, we would also like to devote sufficient attention to the strengthening of tolerance and understanding among different cultures and religions. In the context of promoting human rights, we would like to remain focused on human rights education.

Slovenia participated actively in the Council of Europe’s activities for the drafting of a number of documents in this field, particularly the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, the first international multilateral document in this area, a codification of international standards in the field of human rights and biomedicine, and the latest Protocol No. 12 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms relating to the general prohibition of discrimination. In addition to “legislative” activities, Slovenia also takes part in practical activities for the application of adopted standards. Together with the Council of Europe, Slovenia participates in the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe, which contributes through a number of joint projects to democracy building and to human rights protection mechanisms in individual countries and, consequently, to the stability of the entire region. These projects include particularly the Conference on Interethnic Relations and Minorities that took place in Portorož in March 2000.

One of the priorities of Slovenia's Chairmanship of the Human Security Network also includes promotion of human rights, in this context particularly the rights of children in armed conflict.

It is also important that Slovenia itself respects international commitments undertaken in the field of human rights; therefore, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs strives for Slovenia to accede to new human rights instruments and to draw up national reports on their implementation on a regular basis. For more information on international human rights instruments, click here.