National Institution for Human Rights, appointed Mr. Yasser Ghanem Shaheen as the Deputy Secretary-General
Secretary-General of the National Institution for Human Rights HE Dr. Ahmed Abdullah Farhan issued a decree appointing Mr. Yasser Ghanem Shaheen, as the Deputy Secretary-General with effect from 1st March 2015.
Mr. Shaheen has experience of over 24 years in the field of law and human rights, and holds a master's degree in law from the University of Durham in the United Kingdom. He has joined the Secretariat-General of the National Institution since its inception as the director of the Legal Affairs Department, He previously worked as a legal auditor in the State Audit Institution of the United Arab Emirates before joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where he gradually advanced in the diplomatic service until he became an adviser in the Legal and Human Rights Affairs Directorate.
He was the Deputy Permanent Representative in the Delegate of the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Nations Office in Geneva and Vice Chief of Mission, Embassy of the Kingdom of Bahrain in Washington, USA.
Mr. Yasser Shaheen participated in the sessions of the Human Rights Council of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva since the establishment of the Council in 2006, and also in the two-year long meetings related to studying means of activating the Universal Periodic Review mechanism.
He was a member of the delegation of the Kingdom of Bahrain during the first phase of the Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council in 2008, and was also a member in a number of specialized committees, among them was the committee in charge of studying Shura mechanism and human rights contained within the vision of the Kingdom of Bahrain for the development of the GCC States, the legal team of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the International Court of Justice on the issue of border conflict between Bahrain and Qatar, the team in charge of following up the preparation of detailed studies of the uses of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes in the GCC Secretariat General.
He also participated in many meetings, seminars and workshops for the promotion and protection of human rights, at the regional and international level. Recently he became a member of the National Committee of the International Humanitarian Law representing the National Institution for Human Rights.
It is worth mentioning that the National Institution for Human Rights has been established by royal decree in 2009, and created in 2014 by Law No. (26) in accordance with the Paris Principles governing the work of national human rights institutions. The Institution enjoys a legal entity, has financial and administrative independence, and exercises its functions freely, impartially and independently. It raises an annual report on its activities and recommendations on the protection and promotion of human rights in the Kingdom of Bahrain to His Majesty the King, as well as the Cabinet and the Representatives and the Shura Councils, the same report is presented to the public in parallel.
