A/HRC/RES/44/14
United Nations
General Assembly
Distr.: General
24 July 2020
Original: English
Human Rights Council
Forty-fourth session
30 June–17 July 2020
Agenda item 3
Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to development
Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council
on 17 July 2020
44/14.
Fifteenth anniversary of the responsibility to protect populations from
genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, as
enshrined in the 2005 World Summit Outcome
The Human Rights Council,
Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,
Reaffirming the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Vienna Declaration
and Programme of Action, and recalling the International Covenants on Human Rights and
other relevant human rights instruments,
Recalling the 2005 World Summit Outcome on its fifteenth anniversary, especially
paragraphs 138 and 139 thereof on the responsibility to protect populations from genocide,
war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity,
Stressing that States have the primary responsibility for the promotion and protection
of and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any
kind, and reiterating the responsibility of each individual State to protect its population from
genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, which entails the
prevention of such crimes, including their incitement, through appropriate and necessary
means, and that the international community should, as appropriate, encourage and help
States to exercise this responsibility and support the United Nations in establishing an early
warning capability,
Noting the annual reports of the Secretary-General on the responsibility to protect and
the relevant recommendations contained therein,
Recalling General Assembly resolution 63/308 of 14 September 2009,
Recalling also the mandate of the Human Rights Council, as established by the
General Assembly in its resolution 60/251 of 15 March 2006,
Recognizing the important contribution of the United Nations human rights system to
efforts towards addressing situations in which genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and
crimes against humanity could be committed,
GE.20-09789(E)