Doru Romulus Costea is best known as President of the
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...
. Costea served as president from 19 June 2007 to 18 June 2008. His main task was to initiate the
Universal Periodic Review The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a mechanism of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (HRC) that emerged from the 2005 UN reform process.resolution 60/251of 3 April 2006, the UPR periodically examines the human rights performance of al ...
of the human rights records of the then 192 member states of the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
.
Personal details
Costea was born 22 September 1953 at
Cehu Silvaniei
Cehu Silvaniei (, until 1854 , meaning "Czechs of Szilágy") is a town in Sălaj County, Crișana, Romania. Four villages are administered by the town: Horoatu Cehului (''Oláhhorvát''), Motiș (''Mutos''), Nadiș (''Szilágynádasd'') and Ulciug ...
,
Salaj,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
. He is married and has one son.
Education
Costea attended the
University of Bucharest
The University of Bucharest ( ro, Universitatea din București), commonly known after its abbreviation UB in Romania, is a public university founded in its current form on by a decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza to convert the former Princel ...
where his principal studies were
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
. He took a one-year post-graduate course in International Law at the Academy of Political Science.
Career
In 1976, Costea was briefly a desk officer for PRODEXPORT Foreign Trade Company. From 1976 to 1989, he was an interpreter at the International Center for Political Studies. In 1990, he became the Deputy Director for the Department of Middle East and North Africa in the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From 1991 to 1995, he served as Romania's ambassador to the
State of Kuwait and the
Sultanate of Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...
. From 1995 to 1997, he was the Director of the Policy Planning Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From 1997 to 2001, he served as Romania's ambassador to the
Arab Republic of Egypt. From 2001 to 2003, Costea was the Director of the Department of Analysis and Information in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In December 2003, he became the Permanent Representative of Romania to the
United Nations Office and to international organizations in
Geneva
, neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier
, website = https://www.geneve.ch/
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
. From to he was
Romanian Ambassador in China.
United Nations Human Rights Council
The
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...
appointed Costea to be its president at the same time as it approved a set of procedures known as the
Universal Periodic Review The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a mechanism of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (HRC) that emerged from the 2005 UN reform process.resolution 60/251of 3 April 2006, the UPR periodically examines the human rights performance of al ...
. In September 2007, Costea took part in the selection of the first countries to be reviewed. During Costea's presidency, the Council considered the political situations in
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
,
Darfur,
Liberia,
Sudan,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
,
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
, discussed the "world food crisis", and received the first reports produced under the Universal Periodic Review; the Council held a general debate on racism and racial discrimination, and discussed the follow-up to
The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.
Also during Costea's presidency, the Council took the controversial decision to appoint
Richard A. Falk to a six-year term as a United Nations Special Rapporteur on "the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967".
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Costea, Doru Romulus
Romanian officials of the United Nations
1953 births
Living people
Permanent Representatives of Romania to the United Nations
Ambassadors of Romania to Kuwait
Ambassadors of Romania to Oman
Ambassadors of Romania to Egypt
Ambassadors of Romania to China