UNPO’s side event at the UN Minority Rights Forum was chaired by UNPO Secretary-General Mercè Monje Cano, and consisted of renowned human rights defenders and advocates and Keynote Speaker Professor Costas Constantinou. The UNPO greatly thanks Mr. Haiyuer Kuerban (Director of Berlin Office, World Uyghur Congress), Ms. Sarah Hillware (Gender Equality and District of Columbia advocate), Mr. Nasser Boladai (Baluchistan Human Rights Group spokesperson and former UNPO President) and Professor Costas Constantinou (International Relations, University of Cyprus) for their inspirational contributions.
Mr. Kuerban outlined the most significant barriers non-state actors face in multilateral forums and the real-life consequences of these barriers for the Uyghur people, who face repression by the Chinese government. Mr. Kuerban also stressed the great personal cost borne by individual human rights defenders.
Ms. Hillware introduced the paradoxical materialization of representation and democracy in Washington DC; it is a global diplomatic hub that nurtures and facilitates international negotiations, yet its own citizens lack full democratic representation in the US Congress. Ms. Hillware outlined how this lack of representation has impacted the federal funding and civil rights afforded to DC citizens. Central to her analysis was an examination of how structural racism is an inherent factor in the denial of DC’s self-determination; 44% of the population is Black or African-American.
Mr. Boladai shared the severe human rights abuses and the denial of representation faced by the Baluch people in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Looking towards solutions, Mr. Boladai argued for the significance of truly intersectional approaches that empower all segments of society in decision-making processes. Ensuring intersectionality is fundamental to the campaign for equal and full representation in national and international diplomatic spaces.
To address the exclusion of unrepresented people at the global and national stage, Professor Constantinou proposed a new approach, sharing his concept of the ‘Right to Diplomacy’, developed with Professor Fiona McConnell. The concept re-imagines diplomacy as a universal right, not merely possessed by state actors, that facilitates the empowerment of all peoples and communities to meaningfully engage in future-building processes. Professor Constantinou identified three waves of the democratization of diplomacy and called the international community to action, to reverse diplomatic inequality and exclusion during the current third wave. Professor Constantinou also explored the challenges of implementing the right to diplomacy at a multilateral, bilateral and self-representation level. Crucially, the implementation of the right requires responsibilities, as well as liberties. These responsibilities must be upheld by both the international community, through the adoption of a corresponding Duty of Care, and the minority communities themselves, ensuring they inclusively and intersectionality represent their own peoples.
The UNPO is proud to be at the forefront of advocating for a future where diplomacy serves everyone. UNPO’s discussion highlighted the potential for unrepresented communities to collectively challenge traditional hierarchies, build bridges, and shape a more inclusive diplomatic future. The Secretariat thanks the panel, organisers and attendees of the side-event.
