Gulf rights groups to unite under umbrella organisation

Manama: A network of human rights organisations in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will be launched next week, a senior Qatari activist has said.

"The network will co-operate with international human rights agencies to dispel the wrong perceptions about the region's record in human rights," Ali Bin Semaikh Al Merri, head of Qatar's National Human Rights Committee (NHRC), said.

"Several human rights reports issued by international organisations on the GCC are not based on fair systems, [they] lack accuracy and are based on wrong information. Some other reports, like the one issued by the US State Department, are not accurate because they do not have enough information. One of the objectives of the Gulf network will be to work closely with international organisations on their reports," he said in Doha.

The network will include the six GCC countries and will be launched at a forum in Doha on Tuesday in the presence of the UN High Commissioner, who will be on an unprecedented 10-day tour of the Gulf.

The forum, to be held this year under the theme "Promoting and Protecting Human Rights: Challenges, Achievements and Aspirations", will be held annually if the founders agree, Al Merri said.

"The network aims to support national human rights organisations in countries that lack such institutions," he said.