The United Nations Human Rights Council officially opened its 61st regular session at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, commencing a six-week deliberation on urgent global human rights issues. The session runs from 23 February to 31 March 2026, with the high-level opening segment convening 23–25 February and featuring statements from senior UN leaders and international dignitaries.
Opening the session, António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, delivered a forceful assessment of the state of human rights worldwide. He warned that human rights are under “attack at a large scale around the world”, increasingly undermined by the most powerful actors on the global stage. Guterres stated that the “rule of law is being replaced by the rule of force” and highlighted how fundamental freedoms are being strategically and, in some cases, proudly eroded. He cited ongoing conflicts—including the war in Ukraine, where more than 15,000 civilians have been killed over four years—and violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territories as emblematic of this trend. Guterres drew attention to declining humanitarian funding, growing repression against journalists and civil society, and backsliding on the rights of women, children, and persons with disabilities. He argued that global governance structures, such as the UN Security Council, require reform to reflect current realities and called for strengthened international justice mechanisms and greater emphasis on climate action and sustainable development.
In his opening remarks, Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, underscored the pervasive pressures on human rights structures and norms, and emphasized the need to confront multiple overlapping crises. In related addresses he has warned that the global consensus on human rights is eroding under authoritarian pressures and conflicts and stressed that any sustainable peace must be rooted in accountability, justice, and respect for international law. He has urged independent investigations into grave violations, decried attempts to ignore, undermine, or redefine human rights, and highlighted the necessity of an alternative vision grounded in law, facts, and compassion. His remarks consistently affirm that human rights, from basic civil liberties to economic and social rights, are foundational to stability, justice, and human dignity worldwide.
The opening ceremony also featured statements by Annalena Baerbock, President of the UN General Assembly, and Ignazio Cassis, Chief of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, who reaffirmed their respective commitments to human rights protection and international cooperation.
Over the course of the session, the Council will conduct plenary discussions, interactive dialogues with mandate holders and investigative mechanisms, thematic panel discussions, and a global human rights update by the High Commissioner. Topics include economic, social and cultural rights; a culture of peace; rights of persons with disabilities; and the impact of digital technologies on harmful practices such as female genital mutilation.
