UNGA81 Third Committee Interactive Dialogue with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Statement delivered by H.E. Ms. Christina Markus Lassen, Permanent Representative of Denmark
on behalf of the Nordic Baltic countries:
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden
New York, 14 October 2026
Mr. Chair,
I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic countries, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden, and my own country, Denmark.
High Commissioner,
We congratulate you on your reappointment and, as you begin your second term, reaffirm our strong support for your mandate and for the independence of your Office. We thank you for your report and your principled leadership at a time of mounting pressure on human rights and the international human rights system across all regions.
Armed conflicts are multiplying, respect for international human rights law and international humanitarian law is eroding, and restrictions on civic space are intensifying. We are particularly concerned by attacks against civil society, journalists and human rights defenders, including intimidation and reprisals against those who cooperate with the United Nations. States must uphold their obligations, ensure a safer and enabling environment for civil society actors, protect those who defend human rights, and ensure accountability for violations and abuses. We also firmly reject all attempts to roll back the rights of women and girls and LGBTI persons.
OHCHR’s field presence and its independent monitoring and public reporting are indispensable. They establish credible facts, enable early warning and preventive action, and preserve evidence for accountability and in turn justice. Equally indispensable is OHCHR’s support to the Human Rights Council, treaty bodies and special procedures in fulfilling their mandates. We also value the Office’s technical cooperation and country engagement, which help States translate obligations and recommendations into concrete improvements.
Mr. Chair,
As the UN80 reform process continues, efficiency and coherence must strengthen, not weaken, human rights and the UN human rights pillar. Mandates must be matched with adequate, predictable and sustainable resources. In this difficult financial context, we must work to sustain independent monitoring and support national efforts to strengthen accountability and access to justice.
Human rights must be integrated across the UN’s work on peace and security, development and humanitarian action. We therefore welcome the High Commissioner’s intention to strengthen early warning and prevention. Effective prevention requires timely information from civil society, safe and meaningful participation, and follow-up by Member States and the wider UN system.
High Commissioner, what concrete steps should Member States take to strengthen OHCHR’s ability to turn early warning into preventive action, particularly where civic space is closing and human rights defenders face intimidation or reprisals?
Thank you.
