CHRI at HRC47: Oral statement in UPR Report Consideration of Saint Kitts and Nevis (Agenda Item 6)

9 July 2021, Geneva: CHRI was among the five civil society organisations that submitted an video statement in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Report Consideration of Saint Kitts and Nevis at the 47th Regular Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

In the statement delivered by Ms. Aditi Patil, CHRI expressed concern that the Government of Saint Kitts and Nevis has noted 96 out of 165 recommendations received and urged the State to:

(1) ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the optional protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).

(2) reinforce its commitment to the 1951 Refugee Convention by acceding to the Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees and adopting a national system for the determination of refugee status by enacting a legislation to protect their rights. 

(3) decriminalise consensual same-sex relations between adults and enact a comprehensive anti-discrimination law.

(4) establish an independent National Human Rights Institution in line with the Paris Principles. 

(5) ensure that its 2018 Freedom of Information Act is effectively implemented and is in line with international standards.

(6) create effective, responsive and inclusive strategies to tackle climate change. 

(7) harmonise the legal age of sexual consent and the age of majority, in addition to raising awareness among adolescents and providing them access to sexual and reproductive health care facilities.  

You can read the statement here and watch the video here: