Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Dr. Awwad Al-Awwad, president of the Human Rights Commission (HRC), has underscored the great transformations that the Kingdom has achieved in the human rights field under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman.

“The pioneering reform measures being undertaken under the leadership of the crown prince are behind the developments witnessed by the Kingdom in the human rights sphere,” he said. Al-Awwad made the remarks while inaugurating the training program titled: “The journalistic approach based on human rights”, conducted by HRC in cooperation with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

United Nations Resident Coordinator in Saudi Arabia Nathalie Fustier was among those who attended the event, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Al-Awwad emphasized that the Kingdom has adopted many decisions, enacted regulations and created institutions related to human rights, which have resulted in a qualitative reform in various realms such as the rights of women, children and persons with special needs as well as in the field of combating human trafficking.

All these have contributed to the Kingdom’s improvement in its ranking in a number of international indexes related to human rights around the world, he noted.

The HRC chief appreciated the Saudi media’s key role in protecting and promoting human rights and spreading its culture, and emphasized the importance of building media capabilities in this field, which is part of the commission’s approach to building national capabilities in all areas related to human rights.

Al-Awwad considered media as an important and effective partner in spreading the culture of human rights. “The Kingdom relies heavily on the media to provide content that enhances societal awareness, in line with the great transformations achieved by the Kingdom in the human rights arena,” he said while looking forward to reach a more effective partnership with various means and outlets of the media to enhance human rights and disseminate its culture.

On her part, UN Resident Coordinator Fustier said that HRC plays an active role in promoting and monitoring the effective implementation of international human rights standards in the Kingdom, a role that is increasingly appreciated by the international community.

“Implementation of such programs will enhance building strong partnerships with the media and will enhance knowledge of human rights and the ability to help accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by the year 2030.

The United Nations is committed to strengthening journalistic capabilities and promoting professionalism,” she stressed while noting that this is one of the fruits of cooperation between the Saudi Human Rights Commission and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the framework of the technical cooperation program for human rights in the Kingdom.