At the April 24, 2023 meeting of the International Council of the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) in Bonn, Germany, the human rights organization elected its new governing council for the 2023-2027 term and exchanged views on the current human rights situation worldwide.
The leaders of the sections from six continents (Albania, Kenya, Mali, Lithuania, Belarus, Germany, Moldova and Azerbaijan) met in Bonn, where the ISHR secretariat is also located. In addition, some members who could not attend in person also participated online. This was the first meeting of the ISHR International Council since the 2019 Covid-19 pandemic outbreak.
In the elections to the Executive Board, Prof. Dr Thomas Paul Schirrmacher was re-elected as President of the International Council and Matthias K. Boehning was again appointed Secretary General by the President. The International Council also welcomed Dr Carmen Krusch-Grün as the new Treasurer. She replaces Karl Hafen, who did not stand for re-election, in his office. Other notable persons elected to the International Council include Haydee Marin (USA) as Vice-President for “The Americas”, Lyubov Nemcinova (Moldova) as Vice-President for Eastern Europe, Margarita Kola (Albania) as Vice-President for Europe, Wanjeri Nderu (Kenya) as Vice-President for E ast Africa, Moumouni Guindo (Mali) for West Africa and Krmanji Othman (Iraq) as Vice-President for the Mena Region.
The newly elected Vice-Presidents and Treasurer have a wide range of experience and expertise which they intend to use to develop and grow the ISHR and shape the future of the organization.
In their remarks, the President of the International Council, Prof. Dr Thomas Paul Schirrmacher, and the Secretary General, Matthias K. Boehning, thanked the outgoing Council members for their exceptional commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights through their respective sections. Each section leader provided information on the current state of human rights in their country and presented an activity report for their section. The reactivation of the Cameroonian section was also announced, to be led by the successful human rights defender Agbor Felix Nkongho.
The ISHR works closely with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), where it has consultative status, with the United Nations Department of Public Information as an associate member, with the European Council in Strasbourg in a consultative capacity, and with the African Union.
Downloads and Links:
- Photo 1 and photo 2: Members of the International Council of the ISHR during the meeting © ISHR
- Website of the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR): https://ishr.org
