The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
“The UN Human Rights Office and the Government of Bangladesh this week signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding to open a mission in the country to support the promotion and protection of human rights,” Shamdasani told the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva.
The memorandum was signed by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk and Asad Alam Siam, Foreign Secretary, on behalf of the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.
“Since last August, as you know, our office’s engagement with Bangladesh has significantly increased. We have been working with various stakeholders in advancing human rights reforms and conducting a comprehensive fact-finding inquiry into deadly repression of mass protests,” she said.
“The signing of this memorandum sends an important message of the country’s commitment to human rights as a cornerstone of the transition. It will enable our Office to better support implementation of the recommendations made in our fact-finding report, as well as to engage directly on the ground with the Government, civil society and others with our expertise and assistance on the fundamental reforms Bangladesh is undertaking going forward,” she added.
The spokesperson said the new mission would offer training and technical assistance to the authorities across a range of areas, towards meeting the country’s national and international human rights commitments, as well as undertake capacity-building for government institutions and civil society actors.
ENDS
For more information and media requests, please contact:
In Geneva
Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org or
Jeremy Laurence - +41 22 917 9383 / jeremy.laurence@un.org or
Tag and share
Facebook unitednationshumanrights
Instagram @unitednationshumanrights
STORY: UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani on Office opening new mission in Bangladesh
TRT: 01:13
SOURCE: UNOG/OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: None
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 18 July 2025 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior shots : Palais des Nations
- Cut away: Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “The UN Human Rights Office and the Government of Bangladesh this week signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding to open a mission in the country to support the promotion and protection of human rights.”
- Cut away: Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “Since last August, as you know, our office’s engagement with Bangladesh has significantly increased. We have been working with various stakeholders in advancing human rights reforms and conducting a comprehensive fact-finding inquiry into deadly repression of mass protests.”
- Cut away: Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “The signing of this memorandum sends an important message of the country’s commitment to human rights as a cornerstone of the transition. It will enable our Office to better support implementation of the recommendations made in our fact-finding report, as well as to engage directly on the ground with the Government, civil society and others with our expertise and assistance on the fundamental reforms Bangladesh is undertaking going forward.”
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
At least six million people in Somalia are going days without enough food, UN aid teams warned on Friday, highlighting that nearly two million of this number are young children “at high risk of illness or death”.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , WHO
Children shot, stabbed and pepper-sprayed in occupied West Bank; scores of Gaza amputees denied prosthetics, aid teams warn
Israeli military operations and surging settler attacks in the occupied West Bank are killing and maiming Palestinian children, while in Gaza tens of thousands with life-changing injuries lack access to treatment and rehabilitation, UN agencies warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
The risk of hantavirus spreading to the general population is “absolutely low”, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) stressed on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , IFRC
Death and destruction have continued unabated in Lebanon while communities are still unable to return to their homes despite a ceasefire that began on 17 April, humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Deadly hantavirus on board cruise ship may be transmitted among humans - WHO
Hantavirus victims on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean may have been infected prior to joining the cruise and human-to-human transmission on board cannot be ruled out – although it is rare - the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN rights chief concerned by upheld convictions of Cambodian activists.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , OHCHR
Middle East crisis puts aid, food, fuel further out of reach for millions already struggling – UN agencies
As the Middle East crisis continues the humanitarian fallout is worsening, with aid route disruptions and food and fuel price hikes wrecking the lives and rights of the most vulnerable, UN agencies warned on Friday.
1
1
2
Edited News | UNMAS
Demining experts from around the world have been sharing their collective shock at the widespread and growing threat from unexploded ordnance, the new head of the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) said on Wednesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Human Rights Office in Syria conducted a 5-day visit to the northeast of the country where they received accounts of human rights violations and abuses.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
Sudan: ‘History repeating itself’ for Darfur’s children - UNICEF
Mass atrocities in Sudan’s Darfur 20 years ago reverberated as far as Hollywood, but today, a new generation of children faces attacks, hunger and displacement in an emergency largely ignored by the outside world, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Tuesday.
1
1
Edited News | WHO , UNMAS
Desperate and dangerous conditions in Gaza continue to hamper recovery efforts for the wartorn enclave's people, the UN health agency said on Friday, while demining experts warned that they’ve “barely scratched the surface” in assessing the level of contamination of unexploded ordnance.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News
The continued support of UN Member States to Lebanon will be “indispensable” to boost the country’s national armed forces and provide humanitarian assistance with more than one million people still uprooted by the Middle East war, the UN's peacekeeping chief said on Wednesday.