Ahmed Shaheed

Ahmed Shaheed
Ahmed Shaheed in 2013
United Nations Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Iran
In office
17 June 2011 – 1 November 2016
Preceded byVacant (last held by Maurice Copithorne)
Succeeded byAsma Jahangir[1]
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Maldives
In office
12 November 2008 – 10 December 2010 1
PresidentMohamed Nasheed
Preceded byAbdulla Shahid
Succeeded byAhmed Naseem
In office
14 July 2005 – 21 August 2007
PresidentMaumoon Abdul Gayoom
Preceded byFathulla Jameel
Succeeded byAbdulla Shahid
Personal details
Born (1964-01-27) 27 January 1964 (age 60)
NationalityMaldivian
Political partyMaldives Democratic Party[2]
Residence(s)Colchester, Essex
Alma materUniversity of Aberystwyth, (BSc)
University of Queensland, (IR)
^ Resigned from office on 24 June 2010 during the En-masse cabinet resignation. Reinstated on 7 July 2010.

Ahmed Shaheed (Dhivehi: ޝަހީދު, born January 27, 1964)[3] is a Maldivian diplomat, politician and professor. On 24 March 2016, he was appointed for the sixth year running as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran.[4][5] Shaheed is also the Chairperson of the Geneva-based international human rights think-tank, Universal Rights Group, which was launched in January 2014.[6] He now lives in England as a Professor of Human Rights Practice at the University of Essex.[7] Shaheed is also a Senior Fellow at Raoul Wallenberg Human Rights Centre and a Fellow at the Bonavero Institute of Human rights at the University of Oxford.

Prior to his appointment as a UN envoy with the rank of Assistant Secretary General,[8] he was a Maldivian politician and human rights defender. He served as Maldivian Minister of Foreign Affairs from November 2008 to December 2010; previously, he had served as Minister of Foreign Affairs for two years, from 14 July 2005 until August 20, 2007.

In March 2014, while he was United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, the Islamic Republic of Iran refused him entry to the country and declared him to be an agent of both the CIA and Israel.[9]

On 13 June 2016, Shaheed was nominated by the Consultative Group of Ambassadors comprising Albania, Brazil, Egypt, France and Thailand, as the most suitable candidate to be appointed by the President of the Human Rights Council for the post of United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, to succeed Professor Heiner Bielefeldt of Germany.[10]

  1. ^ "Appointment of UN special rapporteur unacceptable: Larijani". 4 September 2016.
  2. ^ "Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives". Foreign.gov.mv. Archived from the original on 2012-03-06. Retrieved 2013-08-21.
  3. ^ "Index Sh-Sl". www.rulers.org.
  4. ^ "Ahmed Shaheed » Iran Mandate Renewed by UN Human Rights Council". Archived from the original on 2014-03-31. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  5. ^ "Iran denounces re-appointment of UN special rapporteur on human rights situation_XinHua - Asia Pacific Daily – Breaking News, Asia Pacific, World, China, Business, Lifestyle, Travel, Special Report, Video, Photo…". en.apdnews.com. Archived from the original on 2016-08-14. Retrieved 2016-06-17.
  6. ^ "Press Archives - Universal Rights Group". Universal Rights Group. Archived from the original on 2014-03-31. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  7. ^ "Profile for Ahmed Shaheed at the University of Essex".
  8. ^ "Directory of Special Procedures Mandate Holders" (PDF). Retrieved 2020-02-11.
  9. ^ "MP refers to Ahmed Shaheed as Zionist, CIA agent". 29 March 2014.
  10. ^ "OHCHR - Appointments to be made at HRC32". www.ohchr.org. Archived from the original on 2016-07-13. Retrieved 2016-06-17.