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Summary of HRC59 Side Event – Justice and accountability for aid workers and health workers: What more can the UN Human Rights Council do?

Accountability & Rule of Law - Global - Advocacy

Side event to the 59th session of the Human Rights Council 

Justice and accountability for aid workers and health workers: What more can the UN Human Rights Council do? 

Summary

 

Co-hosted by the Permanent Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, the Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Indonesia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, Action Contre la Faim, Protect Aid Workers, Protect Humanitarians, Global Interagency Security Forum, and Oxfam.  

On 20 June 2025, LAW gathered Member States, survivors, and UN and NGO representatives, to discuss their recommendations on the role of the UN Human Rights Council and Geneva, as a centre for the promotion of international humanitarian law and human rights, and the UN Human Rights Council do to improve access to justice and accountability for aid workers and health workers. Over 50 people attended, including 13 representatives of Member States. 

After opening remarks from HE M. Michele Cervone d’Urso, Ambassador and Chargé d’Affaires of the European Union Delegation, and HE Ms. Emily Roper, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Australia, Ms. Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, gave a video statement. The Special Rapporteur has taken the groundbreaking initiative to consider aid workers as human rights defenders in certain situations, acknowledging that their work often contributes to the very concrete access to human rights such as the right to life, health, and many others. She highlighted that “we need to make use of every possible tool available to us to scream: stop.”

Olivier Vandecasteele, Founder and Director of Protect Humanitarians and a survivor of arbitrary detention, made the link between recovery and justice. He shared his experience obtaining a statement from a group Special Procedures and an opinion from the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and the importance it had to him and his family to put words and legal definitions on the harm inflicted to them.

Following his intervention, Ramesh Rajasingham, Head and Representative of OCHA in Geneva and Director of the Coordination Division shared OCHA’s engagement in advocating for the protection of civilians at all opportunities. He highlighted the role of domestic jurisdictions, human rights mechanisms and international courts to uphold the law, while humanitarian organisations do have a duty of care to their staff, to ensure that survivors have access to legal services and are not alone when then choose to pursue formal justice processes.

Antonia Mulvey, LAW’s Executive Director, then shared LAW’s recommendations, followed by Pauline Chetcuti Head of Humanitarian Advocacy and Campaigns at Oxfam International.

Pauline stated that the erosion of respect for international humanitarian law had far reaching consequences, including on aid workers, and specifically targeting women in some contexts. She shared Oxfam’s experience with staff members arbitrarily detained in Yemen, due in particular to misinformation and disinformation about aid work.

Camille Gosselin, Humanitarian Advocacy Manager with Action Contre la Faim, added that the problem was not new, recalling the killing of 17 ACF staff members in Sri Lanka in 2006, and mentioning increasing challenges such as access constraints, counter terrorism measures leading to criminalisation of aid work, disinformation campaigns, the politisation of humanitarian assistance, and the lack of accountability.

A representative of the Permanent Mission of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and a representative of the Permanent Mission of Japan made remarks from the floor, followed by Fadhel Djemali, whose father, Mustapha Djemali, has been detained in Tunisia since May 2024.

Mary Lawlor, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and several other Special Procedures sent an allegation letter to Tunisia, expressing their concern about the detention, which appears to be the result of his an others legitimate work defending the rights of migrants. Fadhel said that this communication gave him and his family, and other brave aid workers in similar situations, hope, and a voice. 

H.E. Mr. Julien Thöni, Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of Switzerland, made closing remarks, calling all States to make respect for international humanitarian law a priority, and to protect those who give their lives to protect others. 

The panel made recommendations: 

  • More must be done by Member States to prevent and respond to attacks. The legal framework exists, and obligations are clear, what is missing is States political will and courage to act on them and to consistently hold those responsible accountable, including through strengthening and using universal jurisdiction and applicable domestic laws. 
  • Humanitarian organisations must do better to support the people that they work with. Aid workers and frontline organisations must be supported to access legal services. 
  • Providing a space for survivors and families of victims who want to speak out is essential, as they have valuable knowledge and insight on what can be done better. 
  • Aid workers must be systematically trained on international humanitarian law and human rights, to know their rights and be able to enforce them. 
  • The UN architecture must be strengthened to provide more protection to aid workers and humanitarian organisations, with for example the appointment of a Special Envoy on the protection of humanitarian actors to lead coordination, advocacy, and reporting. 
  • States must make better use of the good offices of the International Humanitarian Fact Finding Commission in Bern, to establish whether international humanitarian law has been breached in specific cases.