GENEVA - United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Monday that growing human rights violations across the world are akin to a spreading disease which needs to be cured through multilateral forums including the Human Rights Council (HRC), whose latest session kicked off Monday.
"Disregard for human rights is a disease, and it is a disease that is spreading -- north, south, east and west," Guterres told members in his opening address to the 34th session of the HRC.
"The Human Rights Council must be part of the cure. You can be pivotal for prevention -- sounding early warnings of crises," he added.
In light of an increasingly "dangerous and chaotic world," the secretary-general reminded that normative differences among member states must not shadow the shared understanding that human rights should be upheld for all people and in the interest of all member states.
He also highlighted the importance of conducting interactive discussions and recommendations within the Council in a way which avoids "double standards."
"The integrity and credibility of this Council will only be enhanced by proceeding in a manner that avoids unbalanced treatment of Member States," he said.

Guterres, who took office at the beginning of the year, reminded that the most effective tool to counter human rights violations is prevention, which includes capacity-building states, institutions and civil society. (Xinhua)