MUNICH SECURITY CONFERENCE: AMNESTY’S SECRETARY GENERAL CALLS ON STATES TO RESIST ATTACKS ON HUMAN RIGHTS PROTECTIONS

In these precarious times, humanity can ill afford further breakdowns in the international order. We do not need more instability, division or turmoil; we do not need more attacks on human rights values and further undermining of our already fragile commitments to address climate change

Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard will be attending the Munich Security Conference from 14 to 16 February, where she will be available for interview and will call on world leaders and senior officials to resolutely come together to resist attacks on human rights and the global multilateral architecture and avoid further harm to human rights protections and the rules-based order.

“The past 12 months have laid bare precisely how hellish the world can be when states don’t apply universal standards and insist that international law and multilateral decisions do not apply to their actions. Consider Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine, the conflict still raging in Sudan, the worsening catastrophe in Myanmar, and the recent uptick in fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo,” Agnès Callamard said.

“Following the long overdue ceasefire in Gaza and the transition of power in Syria, the question turns to how lasting peace and justice can be achieved in such contexts. States must commit their full support to bodies like the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court in their efforts to uphold the law, as failure to hold perpetrators accountable will only embolden other aggressors and fuel further cycles of violence and destruction.

The past 12 months have laid bare precisely how hellish the world can be when states don’t apply universal standards and insist that international law and multilateral decisions do not apply to their actions.

Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General

“In these precarious times, humanity can ill afford further breakdowns in the international order. We do not need more instability, division or turmoil; we do not need more attacks on human rights values and further undermining of our already fragile commitments to address climate change. We need sustainable, future-focused solutions. The multilateral system may be failing us, but the answer is not to abandon it to the abyss. The answer is to strengthen and reform it, grounding it in a common vision so it can make good on its promise of global stability and universal human rights protections. The Munich Security Conference presents a timely opportunity for world leaders to begin to address these challenges and pave the way for a future free of the harrowing conflicts that blight today’s world.”

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Decision-makers and opinion leaders from more than 100 countries will attend the 61st edition of the Munich Security Conference, which runs from 14 to 16 February.

Agnès Callamard is an international human rights expert. A leading advocate for freedom of expression, a feminist, and an anti-racism activist, Dr. Callamard has been at the forefront of international efforts to combat some of the greatest human rights challenges of our time. She was appointed Secretary General of Amnesty International in 2021.