https://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/un-body-to-debate-police-racism-after-g-floyds-death/1877915

The UN Human Rights Council (HRC) said Monday it has decided to discuss as a matter of urgency racism and police violence in the US after a request from African countries.

The 43rd session of the HRC was suspended indefinitely in March due to the onset of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, but the council restarted Monday at the UN Office in Geneva after the easing of virus restrictions in Switzerland.

In the HRC, those attending the session were asked to wear masks as Burkina Faso on behalf of 54 African nations asked for a special debate on "systematic racism, police brutality and violence in peaceful protests" in the US.

President of the Human Rights Council Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger from Austria spoke at a press conference at the UN in Geneva, the first since it shut down normal activities in March due to the pandemic.

"We got a request from the African group to have an urgent debate in the follow up to what happened in America with George Floyd and the whole tragedy which showed the problems of racism of police violence, and the follow up to that," said Tichy-Fisslberger.