On 17 October 2019, the UN General Assembly elected by secret ballot the following member States to the UN Human Rights Council: Libya, Mauritania, Namibia and Sudan (Africa), Indonesia, Japan, Marshall Islands and South Korea (Asia-Pacific), Armenia and Poland (Eastern Europe), Venezuela and Brazil (Latin America and Caribbean), Germany and Netherlands (Western Europe).
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COMPOSITION OF THE UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL IN 2020
Following the election on 17 October 2019 of 14 member States by the UN General Assembly, the composition of the Human Rights Council in 2020 will be as follows:
African States
Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Libya, Mauritania, Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Togo
Asia-Pacific
Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Marshall Islands, South Korea, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar
Eastern Europe
Armenia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Ukraine
Latin America and Caribbean
Argentina, Bahamas, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela
Western Europe and other States
Australia, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain
States leaving the Council at the end of 2019
Egypt, Rwanda, South Africa and Tunisia (Africa); China, Iraq, Japan and Saudi Arabia (Asia-Pacific); Croatia and Hungary (Eastern Europe); Cuba (Latin America and Caribbean); Iceland and the United Kingdom (Western Europe).
In accordance with paragraph 7 of General Assembly resolution 60/251, the Council shall consist of 47 Member States, which shall be elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the members of the General Assembly.
The membership shall be based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats shall be distributed as follows among regional groups:
- Group of African States (13)
- Group of Asia-Pacific States (13)
- Group of Eastern European States (6)
- Group of Latin American and Caribbean States (8)
- Group of Western European and other States (7)
The members of the Council shall serve for a period of three years and shall not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms.
In accordance with paragraphs 4 of General Assembly resolution 65/281 from 2013, the Human Rights Council starts its yearly membership cycle on 1 January.
Member States who have chosen to announce their candidacies in writing are listed below. Voluntary pledges that Member States have chosen to provide in support of their respective candidacies, in accordance with paragraph 8 of General Assembly resolution 60/251, are issued as General Assembly documents in all official languages
gdh-ghr.10.2019
