The committee stressed in a statement released yesterday that it will continue to work professionally in accordance with international law and the Paris Principles and shall remain committed to defending human rights and victims.
It highlighted that it was the first institution of its kind in the GCC region and the only accredited "A" status in the Gulf since 2010.
The committee said that at a time when they were looking forward to end the injustice done to the victims by the blockade and its humanitarian repercussions on the citizens and residents of the GCC countries, the committee was shocked to know about the complaint submitted last week by the blockading countries against it to the High Commissioner for Human Rights through its permanent representatives to the United Nations in Geneva.
The statement added that the complaint included demands to withdraw the "A" Status (the highest status accredited to NHRIs by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions) from NHRC, which entails the highest level of institutional credibility and independence from the Government in accordance with the standards established by the UN (the Paris Principles).
The complaint has been preceded by systematic distortion campaigns against NHRC launched by some parties and media, as well as accusations and threats made by some high-level officials in these countries, in a critical precedent that has never been witnessed in the work of national human rights institutions around the world.
The committee said that it would have been more practical for the siege countries to act and make efforts to address the violations promptly by ending the injustice and responding to demands of NHRC, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations Special Rapporteurs and international human rights organisations, instead of obscuring violations, targeting human rights defenders, human rights organisations and national institutions, and obstructing their work.
The statement also said that it would have been more appropriate for these countries to open the way for their human rights organisations to work together to resolve and address the violations, rather than wasting time in submitting statements and complaints that don't have any legal effect on NHRC's efforts.
The committee stressed that this complaint was an explicit condemnation of the practices of the besieging countries and a compelling proof of restricting the activities of human rights defenders.
The committee then called upon the special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions and international organisations to act to counter the vicious and systematic campaigns against human rights activists and organizations.
NHRC has remained in constant contact with High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions among other organisations since the beginning of the siege on June 5.
It stressed that the decisions and measures taken by the siege countries represented collective punishment and a siege against Qatari citizens and anyone who lives in Qatar.
The measures also represented a clear violation of all international laws and conventions related to human rights.
NHRC said that it would have been more practical for the siege countries to act and make efforts to address the violations promptly by ending the injustice
Qatar's National Human Rights Committee stressed yesterday that the complaint submitted by the siege countries to the High Commissioner for Human Rights was a desperate attempt to hinder the committee's efforts to protect human rights.
