The United Nations Human Rights Council examined Jordan's human right record in Geneva today, Thursday, in the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) session for the kingdom.

Jordan’s fourth review comes after its last comprehensive review in 2018, during which 224 recommendations were made, and 131 were accepted, with 21 recommendations studied, and 18 accepted, bringing the total accepted recommendations to 149.

Attorney Taghreed Al-Doghmi, a member of the civil society delegation attending the proceedings in Geneva, told "Roya" that 103 countries presented their recommendations for Jordan during the initial days of the review.

According to the United Nations regulations, each country has two minutes to present its recommendations for human rights to the kingdom.

Al-Doghmi added that most of the recommendations for Jordan urged the country to ratify the protocol related to the abolition of the death penalty and to ratify the protocol on the Convention against Torture.

Jordan had previously issued a moratorium on capital punishment from 2006 to 2014 before being lifted in late 2014 to execute 11 convicts on murder charges. Two more executions took place in 2015 in response to the martyrdom of Muath al-Kasasbeh by the hands of Daesh. 15 executions took place in 2015 and one in 2021.

ِِِA member of the accompanying delegation for Jordan in Geneva told "Roya" that several other recommendations were made by countries regarding the rights of women, children, integration of persons with disabilities into society, as well as freedom of opinion and expression.

The Human Rights Unit in the Prime Minister's Office submitted Jordan's national report on the comprehensive periodic review of human rights in early October, 2023. Civil society institutions also submitted their reports on the mechanism of the comprehensive periodic review of human rights in Jordan months before.

The kingdom is progressing steadily towards a political update and a clear economic vision, driven by the royal directives to improve human rights in the country and develop political life and empower political parties.

The Kingdom approved political and economic reform systems, in addition to approving the administrative reform and updating the public sector and human rights systems, all aimed at improving the human rights situation.

His Majesty King Abdullah II directed the National Center for Human Rights to study the legislative impact of the cybercrime law and its effects on the human rights situation.

The United Nations began implementing the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism to review human rights records in various countries worldwide in 2006, with the aim of monitoring member states and their progress in the field of human rights.

The UPR takes place every four and a half years and examines all member states of the United Nations, numbering 193 countries. 48 countries are reviewed each year.

The Jordanian delegation is chaired by Ambassador Walid Obeidat, the Permanent Representative of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United Nations Office in Geneva.