Promoting respect for human rights is a constitutional objective of Swiss foreign policy. This objective is based on the conviction that peace and security can ultimately only be maintained in a community of states which also respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and protect them against arbitrary interference.

Human rights issues are a fixed item of all Switzerland’s political consultations. They are an integral part of overall foreign policy and are systematically addressed at governmental level and in multilateral forums. This approach enables the discussion on human rights problems to take place in a concrete and practical way that targets specific situations.

Switzerland has the following instruments at its disposal to implement its human rights policy:

Addressing the issue of human rights in bilateral meetings worldwide (demarches)

Interventions and public statements, particularly in multilateral bodies (for example, as part of the Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva)

Long-term high-quality exchanges at the technical level (expert missions, seminars, study tours, publications, cooperation projects in areas of particular concern) with selected partner countries.

Discussions in peace processes

Respect for human rights is essential for building confidence and ensuring peace between conflicting parties. For this reason, Switzerland supports human rights defenders and human rights organisations, for example in Sri Lanka and Colombia. Human rights defenders are people or groups, such as trade unionists, journalists or NGOs, who are actively involved in protecting and promoting human rights.

Human rights projects and programmes

Switzerland supports human-rights reforms in its partner countries by identifying possible projects in collaboration with the individual country concerned. Various forms of cooperation are possible. For instance, in Tajikistan and Vietnam, programmes are discussed on themes such as conditions of detention, protection of minorities, violence against women and freedom of expression, and they are carried out with a variety of partners. With China and Russia, a dialogue between experts is being conducted on the subject of detention centres. In Nigeria and Senegal, projects are under way on police violence and juvenile justice, and with Cuba, Switzerland, together with Norway, Austria and Spain, conducts a seminar on human rights issues every year.