The State in the Complex Networks of the UN Human Rights Council

Abstract

Having developed into a political and ideological concept since the 1990s, global governance has evolved as a priority of the European Union. Although the EU promotes the idea of state decentralization within global governance at the UN, in the EU itself the state is paramount. This article examines the structure of the complex networks of the UN Human Rights Council. The scholarly problem of the article is the contradiction between the key decision-making role of the state in the HRC and increasingly complex social networks of the UN system. The Council is structured in a way that ensures the active participation of transnational corporations, NGOs, and EU supranational institutions in its agenda. Does this hypothetically mean that the role of the state in the UN system and in international affairs is declining? The focus of this article is on the ties between states, NGOs, and international organizations in the UN Human Rights Council. These ties suggest that the state is included in complex networks and enhances their sustainment.