Islamabad – Pakistan has been elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) for a three-year term beginning January 1, 2026, after securing 178 votes in the UN General Assembly, the Foreign Office announced on Tuesday.
The Human Rights Council, an intergovernmental body of 47 member states, serves as the UN’s top forum for promoting and protecting human rights globally and addressing violations that demand urgent international attention.
This marks the sixth time since the Council’s establishment in 2006 that Pakistan has been elected as a member, an acknowledgment of the country’s sustained engagement and credibility within the global human rights framework. The Foreign Office said the result underscores the international community’s trust in Pakistan’s “commitment to defending, promoting, and protecting human rights both domestically and globally,” as well as its “constructive role as a consensus-builder within the HRC.”
During its upcoming term, Pakistan will continue to engage actively with UN members and civil society to promote all dimensions of human rights, including civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights, along with the right to development. The country reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that the Council’s work remains anchored in “universality, objectivity, transparency, and non-selectivity.”
The Foreign Office emphasized that Pakistan’s re-election provides an opportunity to further strengthen its role as a credible and principled voice at the UN, while advancing dialogue and cooperation for global human dignity. It also enables Pakistan to project its national progress in democracy, social justice, and the protection of women’s and minority rights.
Reaffirming its long-standing diplomatic stance, Pakistan pledged to use the HRC platform to raise awareness about ongoing human rights violations in regions under foreign occupation. “In line with the Council’s mandate, Pakistan will continue to draw attention to the grave human rights violations committed by Indian occupation forces in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and highlight the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” the Foreign Office statement added.
Pakistan’s election reinforces its position as a responsible member of the international community and a committed advocate of global human rights, equality, and justice. The Foreign Office noted that Pakistan has consistently played the role of a consensus-builder within the Council and made “persistent efforts” to strengthen the international human rights system.
