The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (HRC) is responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the world, and for addressing human rights violations and making recommendations on them. The HRC is made up of 47 UN member states which are elected by the UN General Assembly. The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a sub-organ of the HRC which reviews the human rights records of each UN Member State. Key thematic issues that the HRC works on include: LGBT rights, women's rights, the rights of racial and ethnic minorities, the right to freedom of association and assembly, the right to freedom of expression, freedom of belief and religion etc.