Thank you Mr. President,

The Kingdom of the Netherlands aligns itself with the EU statement and thanks the OHCHR for carrying out its technical cooperation and capacity building mandate, despite facing operational and financial challenges.

We take this opportunity to focus on the situation in Yemen, since the resolution disappointingly does not foresee in a dedicated dialogue. 

We strongly condemn the latest arbitrary detentions by the Houthis of staff working for the United Nations, NGOs, and diplomatic missions in Yemen. We urgently call for their immediate and unconditional release. We also call upon the Houthis to end the discriminatory practices against women and girls, including the so-called “mahram” requirement, which bans women to travel without a male guardian.

We are concerned by the reports of the Yemeni National Committee of Inquiry and others that highlight numerous and serious human rights violations in Yemen, including against children. We support the National Committee’s work and encourage them to adopt the recommendations by OHCHR, including by publishing information on its funding.  

However, in its current form the mandate is below item 10 standards and it’s insufficient to address the severe human rights crisis in Yemen. The Yemeni people have been through almost ten years of devastating conflict. We firmly believe that Yemeni victims and survivors deserve 1) the full attention of this Council, 2) independent monitoring of ongoing human rights violations and 3) accountability for victims and survivors. 

In conclusion, Mr. president, we once again call on all parties, to work together towards just, inclusive and sustainable peace for the Yemeni people. 

Thank you.