DCI at the 59th UN Human Rights Council Session
From 16 June to 8 July 2025, Defence for Children International (DCI) actively engaged in the 59th Session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC59), ensuring that the rights of children remained at the forefront of international discussions.
Key highlights include:
Side Event on Child Detention: On 4 July, DCI hosted “Child Detention: Palestinian Children in the Israeli Detention System and the new Roadmap for Action on Children Deprived of Liberty 2025–2030.” The event, featuring Khaled Quzmar (DCI-Palestine) and Francesca Albanese (UN Special Rapporteur), shed light on the systematic ill-treatment of Palestinian children and outlined rights-based alternatives to detention.
Accountability for Violations in Gaza: On behalf of DCI-Palestine, we delivered strong statements calling for an arms embargo, urgent humanitarian access, and accountability for grave violations against Palestinian children.
Corporate Complicity: DCI urged member states to update the UN database on business enterprises in Israeli settlements and terminate ties with complicit companies.
Children Deprived of Liberty: Speaking on behalf of the NGO Panel, DCI advocated for the implementation of the new Roadmap for Action (2025–2030), urging trauma-informed alternatives to detention for displaced children.
She Leads Youth Advocacy: Young women from Jordan, Kenya, and Mali amplified their voices in high-level discussions, co-hosting the side event “Our Future, Our Right: Girls, GC26, and Climate Action.”
The Council concluded with resolutions addressing violence against women and girls, female genital mutilation, and child protection in digital spaces.
Read the full Round-Up here