Geneva (UN Human Rights Council) 17 June 2026 (SPS) – Prominent international human rights defender, Catherine Constantinides, considered that human rights monitoring in conflict zones is an absolute necessity to deter systemic abuses and safeguard victims under occupation.
Moderating a high-level side-event titled "Western Sahara and the Right to Self-Determination: Challenges to International Legality," convened by the Geneva Support Group for Western Sahara during the UN Human Rights Council 62nd session, the South African activist and Climate Commissioner warned that the global community's selective application of international law in Africa's last unresolved decolonization case directly undermines the credibility of the entire United Nations system.
The high-level panel sought to rigorously examine the right to self-determination as a fundamental principle of international law, explicitly confronting the legal, political, and human rights implications of ongoing attempts to evade internationally recognized decolonization frameworks.
Addressing an audience of diplomats and advocates, Constantinides emphasized that the anniversary of 50 years of occupation must not pass as a mere symbolic milestone, but must instead serve as an immediate catalyst for accountability, credible independent monitoring, and the long-overdue fulfillment of the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination.
On another hand, she deeply regretted the geopolitical status quo, underscoring that the erosion of global commitments to self-determination carries severe consequences that ripple far beyond the borders of Western Sahara.
"Human rights are universal, or they are nothing at all," Constantinides stated, noting that treating international legality as an option rather than an obligation weakens the structural integrity of historical decolonization processes worldwide. This double standard, she argued, directly contributes to systemic instability and fuels prolonged regional conflict.
The Panel also emphasized that equal application of legal principles is not a secondary matter, but an essential requirement for maintaining trust in multilateral institutions and ensuring the basic protection of populations currently living under colonial and foreign occupation.
A central focus of Constantinides address was the immediate, practical necessity of deploying oversight mechanisms to the occupied territory, rejecting any notion that such measures are optional.
"Human rights monitoring in conflict areas is not a luxury. It safeguards, it deters abuses, documents violations and provides victims with visibility and recourse."
Constantinides warned that "silence enables impunity," making a direct link between international passivity and the continuation of abuses on the ground.
The side-event concluded with a collective reaffirmation of the international community's strict responsibility to uphold the core principles of the United Nations Charter without selectivity, political compromise, or exception. (SPS)
090/500/60 (SPS)
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