Qatar’s openness and commitment to human rights come in for praise

QNA/DohaSecretary General of international organisation ‘No Peace Without Justice’, Dr Niccolo Figa-Talamanca, praised the role of Qatar in promoting human rights locally and internationally.Speaking to Qatar News Agency (QNA) on the sidelines of the International Conference on “National, regional and international mechanisms to combat impunity and ensure accountability under the law”, he said that Qatar’s organising of the conference was not a publicity stunt, but rather out of commitment to international organisation to end impunity.He said that Qatar’s human rights record was good, and added that one of the positive outcomes of the conference was that practitioners got to see that Qatar’s human rights practices were not a facade.He noted that the country has been opening up on other countries around the world and moving towards a democratic path.He said that another benefit of the conference was that participants got to discuss how current international mechanisms on combating impunity, which were established with the help of Qatar and other countries, can be developed in the future.He also mentioned recent developments in the region, such as Sudan, and Malaysia’s joining of the International Criminal Court.He said that these developments and others gave the conference a bigger momentum.He said he was impressed with the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC), praising it as the only one in the region that was truly independent.He said that the committee was in contrast to other similar committees in neighbouring countries, where they act as a propaganda arm. The NHRC on the other hand, he added, was focused on just doing its job.NHRC chief meets accountability conference participantsHE the Chairman of National Human Rights Committee (NHRC), Dr Ali bin Smaikh al-Marri, met a number of participants in the international conference titled “National, regional and international mechanisms to combat impunity and ensure accountability under the law,” HE al-Marri met the vice-president of the Kuwaiti human rights bureau Dr Siham Abdulwahab al-Fareeh, Interministerial Delegate for Human Rights in Morocco, Ahmed Chaouqui Benyoub, Chief of Rule of Law, Equality and Non-discrimination Branch at OHCHR, Mona Rishmawi, Chief of Middle East and North Africa Section (Mena) at the OHCHR, Mohamed Alnsour, Vice-Chairperson of CEDAW in the UN, Nicole Ameline, and vice-chairman of the Advisory Committee at the UN Human Rights Council, Lazhari Bouzid.Albanian PM leaves DohaAlbanian Prime Minister Edi Rama left Doha yesterday, after an official visit to Qatar.He was seen off at Doha International Airport by HE the Minister of Municipality and Environment Abdullah bin Abdulaziz bin Turki al-Subaie.