NIHRA rights committee convenes regular meeting

Manama, July 17 (BNA): The National Institution for Human Rights (NIHRA)'s Economic, Societal, Cultural Rights has convened its 15th regular meeting chaired by Fareed Ghazi, and attended by the committee members Dr. Abdulrahman Jawahery and Dr. Jameela Al Sammak, at the institutions headquarters. The committee discussed the plan for compilation of the National Institution's quasi report on economic, societal, cultural rights and practices to be presented at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC)'s third round of the 287th session of the Comprehensive Universal Periodic Report (UPR). The proposal comes in activation of clause (D) of article 12 of Law 26/2014 regarding establishment of the National Institution that stipulates the NIHRA's achievement of its goals to provide quasi reports, contribute in the drafting and discussion of the kingdom's periodic reporters and to give its remarks on them, in application of regional and international human rights conventions and to publish these reports in the mass media. The committee also discussed the right to health care as one of the societal rights ensured by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Bahrain in article (8). The committee highly commended the efforts of the Kingdom of Bahrain's government in the provision of health services to the citizens and residents in the country. The committee stressed that the planned National Health Insurance scheme will not impact on the gains and rights of citizens especially citizens' accessibility to free health services which the government will continue to provide.