HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL DECIDES TO DEFER DRAFT PROPOSALS UNTIL 27 NOVEMBER

The Human Rights Council this morning decided, given the high number of draft proposals submitted for the session, and the insufficient time available in order to guarantee the due and balanced consideration of all proposals, to defer all draft proposals which had been placed before the Council for consideration to a resumed second session of the Council to be convened on 27 November, immediately before the opening of the third session, at which time all decisions would be tackled.

The Council also adopted a decision on mechanisms and mandates, and a decision to add to the programme of work of the third session a segment on the theme of “follow-up to decisions of the Human Rights Council”.

The President of the Council, Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba of Mexico, said the adoption of the report of the session was postponed until the relevant decisions had been adopted.

Speaking this morning was the representative of Pakistan on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Conference.

The next meeting of the Council will be at 5 p.m. this afternoon, when it will consider a Presidential statement on various issues of concern before adjourning the Council’s second session until 27 November.

Decisions

In a decision on reports of mechanisms and mandates, adopted by consensus, the Council notes all the reports and studies presented at its second session and the substantive interactive dialogue with mandate holders as well as with the High Commissioner for Human Rights; requests the Secretary-General, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Secretariat to continue with the fulfilment of their activities, in accordance with all previous decisions adopted by the Commission on Human Rights and to update the relevant reports and studies; decides to transmit the views of the Sub-Commission on Promotion and Protection of Human Rights on the Human Rights Council’s future system of expert advice to the Working Group established pursuant to Human Rights Council decision 2006/104; also decides to take note of the draft decisions transmitted by the Sub-Commission pertaining to previously authorised activities, with a view to allowing their continuation in accordance with Council’s decision 2006/102.

In another decision, the Human Rights Council, at its 29th meeting on 6 October 2006, decides to add a segment on “follow-up to decisions of the Human Rights Council” to the programme of work as contained in Council’s decision 2006/105 of 30 June 2006.

Statement

TEHMINA JANJUA (Pakistan), speaking on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Conference, said that it was their understanding that all decisions and resolutions that had been deferred now for treatment, would then have to be taken up upon resumption of the Council’s session on 27 November.

In addition, the Organization of Islamic Conference wished to distance itself from the report of the Special Rapporteurs on their joint mission to Lebanon (E/CN.4/2006/7), and considered that the adoption of operative paragraph two did not result in the endorsement of the report.