Dear guests, colleagues and friends.

Esteemed Assistant Secretary-General Ilze Brands Kehris.

Liebe Frau Barbara Willmers-Hillenbrand.

Each year the German Mission to the U.N. creates a photo calendar which we pass to colleagues and partners as a token of gratitude. We try to reflect special events which we consider to be of particular importance for the year to come.

For 2024, we dedicated our calendar to the 75^th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Following its adoption on 10th of December 1948, the Declaration’s 30 articles have guided fundamental work on important conventions, treaties, and other Human Rights instruments.

One year ago, it was a fortunate coincidence that we had learned about Ms Willmers-Hillenbrand and her non-profit initiative from Germany, which aims to illustrate each article of the Universal Declaration with works from artists, stemming from different countries and backgrounds.

We decided to connect with “Pictures for the Human Rights” and selected twelve art works for our calendar.

We regretted that we could not showcase all of the 30 works.

As we saw that “Pictures for the Human Rights” got invited to display its full exhibition at the Parliament of the European Union and in various cities across Europe, in schools, in museums and on public squares, we hoped that the UN headquarters in New York could be the exhibition’s final mooring point in 2024.

And here we are, on the eve of International Human Rights Day, in the lobby of the United Nations General Assembly.

As the anniversary year of the Universal Declaration draws to a close, we hope that this exhibition and tonight’s reception offer an opportunity to contemplate important milestones of the past year and to reflect on current Human Rights challenges.

It is a privilege that Assistant Secretary-General Ilze Brands Kehris is among us and will share her thoughts with us in a few moments.

And I am equally delighted that Ms. Willmers-Hillenbrand and her team from “Pictures for the Human Rights” are here tonight to spotlight their personal motivation and inspirations for their wonderful exhibition.

For me personally, the past year was marked by our efforts to facilitate, together with Namibia, the Pact for the Future.

Even in a world increasingly affected by polarization and conflict, we could – after long negotiations – find common ground, including on the fundamental issue of human rights.

Human Rights must remain at the heart of our collective efforts.

They are universal, indivisible, and interdependent. And no right can be protected at the expense of others.

We are thankful that it was recently possible for us, together with our co-facilitator Brazil, to update the resolution on the “Right to Privacy in the Digital Age”.

It is pivotal that the breathtaking digital innovations, including artificial intelligence, are developed and used in ways that respect human rights and safeguard personal privacy.

To cite another field of our particular attention this year:

Recently, we marked the 25^th anniversary of the UN Security Council agenda on Children and Armed Conflicts.

Germany is glad to continue the strong support with various partners and likeminded delegations to help improve accountability, in particular in cases of grave violations against children’s rights.

Finally, let me underline the equal importance we assign to the realization of economic and social rights.

We must ensure that everyone has access to food, water and essential services like healthcare, education, and housing.

Promoting inclusive and sustainable development that leaves no one behind is part of our active human right policy.

Now, I am looking forward to giving the floor to the Assistant Secretary-General, followed by Ms. Willmers-Hillenbrand.