Egypt won membership to join the United Nation’s Human Rights Council, the country’s foreign ministry announced Thursday.
The membership will last from 2017 to 2021.
In a statement, ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said the election involved renewal of the membership for nine countries from a total of 18 member countries. The election was “intensely competitive,” Abu Zeid said.
“It is a powerful message to those who doubted Egypt’s loyalty to its international and constitutional human rights commitments,” Abu Zeid said of Egypt’s win.
Ambassador Ahmed Fathallah will represent Egypt in the council, Abu Zeid said.
The council is made up of 47 member states and is, according to its website, a “forum for identifying, highlighting and developing responses to today’s human rights challenges, and acts as the principal focal point of human rights research, education, public information and advocacy activities in the United Nations system.”
Despite criticism over its poor human rights record from international organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, Egypt continues to become more and more involved in UN councils.
Egypt was given a two-year nonpermanent seat on the United Nations Security Council last fall. Two months later, Egypt was then unanimously picked to head its Counter-Terrorism Committee.
