A/HRC/25/21 United Nations General Assembly Distr.: General 22 January 2014 Original: English Human Rights Council Twenty-fifth session Agenda item 2 Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the question of human rights in Cyprus Note by the Secretary-General Summary The present report was prepared pursuant to Commission on Human Rights resolutions 4 (XXXI), 4 (XXXII) and 1987/50, as well as to Human Rights Council decision 2/102. The report covers the period from 1 December 2012 to 30 November 2013. In the present report, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights highlights the concerns voiced by various United Nations treaty bodies and special procedures at the factors and difficulties impeding the implementation of international human rights standards on the whole island in view of the protracted conflict in Cyprus. It gives an overview of specific human rights concerns in Cyprus, including with regard to the right to life and the question of missing persons, the principle of nondiscrimination, freedom of movement, property rights, freedom of religion and cultural rights, freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to education. Moreover, it provides an update on activities in Cyprus to promote the implementation of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000), in which the Council called on all actors involved, when negotiating and implementing peace agreements, to adopt a gender perspective. The Office concludes that human rights do not have borders and that all stakeholders are thus obliged to uphold the fundamental freedoms and human rights of all people. It furthermore stresses the importance of addressing all human rights protection gaps and the underlying human rights issues in situations of protracted conflicts. GE.14-10478 *1410478*