HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL TO HOLD TWELFTH REGULAR SESSION FROM 14 SEPTEMBER TO 2 OCTOBER 2009

The Human Rights Council will hold its twelfth regular session from 14 September to 2 October 2009 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

On the morning of Monday, 14 September, the Council will hear an update by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, to be followed by a general debate. Under this item, which covers the reports of the Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) and the Secretary-General, the Council will have before it over a dozen reports, including the report of the Secretary-General on human rights and unilateral coercive measures; the consolidated report of the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner on the right to development; a study on human rights and transitional justice by the OHCHR; the report of the Secretary-General on the question of death penalty; the report of the High Commissioner on promotion and protection of human rights while countering terrorism; and the report of the High Commissioner on combating defamation of religions.

Concerning the promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, the Council will review reports from the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict; the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people; the expert mechanism on the rights of indigenous peoples (on the rights of indigenous peoples to education); the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, its causes and consequences; the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography; the Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity; independent expert on the issue of human rights obligations related to safe drinking water and sanitation; the Special Rapporteur on the adverse effects of illicit movement and dumping of toxic wastes; and the Working Group on the Right to Development.

The Council will also hear a presentation on the report of the second session of the expert mechanism on the rights of indigenous peoples, in the context of its consideration of human rights bodies and mechanisms. The Council will also consider draft guidelines for the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members prepared by the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee.

On the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories, the Council will discuss follow-up to its special session on grave human rights violations in the Occupied Palestinian territories, particularly due to the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip. In that context, it will have before it the report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, as well as a periodic report of the High Commissioner on the implementation of the resolution adopted at the special session held in January 2009, focusing on some of the key concerns of her Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory covering the period of the Israeli military operations in Gaza codenamed “Cast Lead” up to 10 April 2009.

On racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance: follow-up to and implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, the Council will have before it the report of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

As for technical assistance and capacity-building, the Council will have before it the report of the High Commissioner on the progress achieved in the situation of human rights in Burundi and on the OHCHR activities in the country, and will hold an interactive debate with the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Burundi. It will also hear reports from, and hold interactive debates with, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, and the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia.

Also during the session, the Council will hold general debates on human rights situations that require the Council’s attention. It will hold its annual discussion on the integration of a gender perspective in the Council’s work, with a focus on the Universal Periodic Review, and a panel discussion on the human rights of migrants in detention centres. The Council will also hold two closed meetings of its complaint procedure. In addition, the Council will appoint two new Special Procedures mandate holders – an independent expert in the field of cultural rights and an independent expert on the situation of human rights in the Sudan.

Concerning its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism, the Council will consider the final outcome of the Review for the Central African Republic, Monaco, Belize, Chad, Congo, Malta, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Chile, Viet Nam, Uruguay, Yemen, Vanuatu, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Comoros and Slovakia.


For more detailed information about the work of the Council at this session, including with regard to documentation, please refer to the annotated agenda of the session A/HRC/12/1, as well as the Human Rights Council website at http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/12session/.


Composition of the Council

The Council is made up of the following 47 Member States. The mandates conclude on 18 June of the year indicated between parentheses. The Member States are: Angola (2010); Argentina (2011); Bahrain (2011); Bangladesh (2012); Belgium (2012); Bolivia (2010); Bosnia and Herzegovina (2010); Brazil (2011); Burkina Faso (2011); Cameroon (2012); Chile (2011); China (2012); Cuba (2012); Djibouti (2012); Egypt (2010); France (2011); Gabon (2011); Ghana (2011); Hungary (2012); India (2010); Indonesia (2010); Italy (2010); Japan (2011); Jordan (2012); Kyrgyzstan (2012); Madagascar (2010); Mauritius (2012); Mexico (2012); Netherlands (2010); Nicaragua (2010); Nigeria (2012); Norway (2012); Pakistan (2011); Philippines (2010); Qatar (2010); Republic of Korea (2011); Russian Federation (2012); Saudi Arabia (2012); Senegal (2012); Slovakia (2011); Slovenia (2010); South Africa (2010); Ukraine (2011); United Kingdom (2011); United States (2012); Uruguay (2012); and Zambia (2011).


The President of the Council is Alex Van Meeuwen (Belgium); Vice-Presidents are Dian Triansyah Djani (Indonesia), Carlos Portales (Chile) and Andrej Logar (Slovenia); and the Vice-President and Rapporteur is Hisham Badr (Egypt).


For use of the information media; not an official record

HRC09097E