United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan has called for radical changes to be made to the UN's human rights work.Mr Annan has made the comment at the annual session of the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva.
The commission has been harshly criticised recently by human rights groups claiming it has become less of a body for upholding human rights, and more of a haven for violators.
Mr Annan says the situation is damaging the entire United Nations.
"We have reached a point at which the commission's decline in credibility has cast a shadow on the reputation of the United Nations system as a whole, and where piecemeal reforms will not be enough, or will not do," he said.
Mr Annan says the 53-member body is failing to protect people against human rights abuses and should be replaced by a smaller council with greater authority.
"The new Human Rights Council must be a society of the committed, it must be more accountable and more representative," he said.
Mr Annan says any new body must have a real impact on people's lives.
"The course of human rights has entered a new era," he said.
"For much of the past 60 years, our focus has been on articulating, codifying and enshrining rights.
"Such work needs to continue in some areas.
"But the era of declaration has now given way - as it should - to an era of implementation."
By Just Us 8 April 05
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