HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL CONCLUDES ITS EIGHTH REGULAR SESSION

The Human Rights Council closed its eighth regular session this afternoon, adopting 14 resolutions and a Presidential statement on a wide range of issues, naming 13 new Special Procedures mandate holders, extending the mandates of eight Special Procedures, and adopting the outcomes of the Universal Periodic Review on 32 countries whose human rights situations were reviewed during the first two sessions of the Universal Periodic Review Working Group, held in April and May this year. The Council also achieved a new milestone in human rights machinery, adopting a text on an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which will allow persons to petition an international human rights body about violations of their rights under that Covenant.

Within the context of its Universal Periodic Review process, the Council adopted the outcomes of the Universal Periodic Review process on the reports on Bahrain, Ecuador, Tunisia, Morocco, Indonesia, Finland, United Kingdom, India, Brazil, Philippines, Algeria, Poland, Netherlands, South Africa, Czech Republic, Argentina, Gabon, Ghana, Peru, Guatemala, Benin, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Pakistan, Zambia, Japan, Ukraine, Sri Lanka, France, Tonga, Romania and Mali. By its founding text, General Assembly resolution 60/251, the Council was mandated to undertake a Universal Periodic Review, “based on objective and reliable information, of the fulfilment by each State of its human rights obligations and commitments in a manner which ensures universality of coverage and equal treatment with respect to all States". The Working Group of the Universal Periodic Review reviewed the human rights situations in these 32 countries during two two-week sessions held in April and May 2008. These countries are the first to have undergone the Universal Periodic Review process.

The Council continued its review, rationalization and improvement of mandates of its Special Procedures. Following the reviews, it decided to extend for three years the mandates of its Special Rapporteurs on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; on the right to education; on the independence of judges and lawyers; on human rights and transnational corporations; on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; on the human rights of migrants; on human rights and extreme poverty; and on trafficking in persons, especially women and children.

The Council also adopted texts on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order, the promotion of the right of peoples to peace, the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, the situation of human rights in Myanmar, conference facilities and financial support for the Human Rights Council, and on terms in office of Special Procedure mandate holders.

At the end of its last meeting, the Council adopted a list of 13 new Special Procedures mandate holders, as follows: Frank William La Rue Lewy of Guatemala, as Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Anand Grover of India, as Special Rapporteur on the right to health; Githu Muigai of Kenya, as Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism; Joy Ngozi Ezeilo Emekekwue of Nigeria, as Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons; Maya Sahli of Algeria, as a member of the Working Group on people of African descent; Shaheen Sardar Ali of Pakistan, as a member of the Working Group on arbitrary detention; and Michel Forst of France, as Independent Expert appointed by the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights in Haiti. In addition, the following five members of the Expert Mechanism on the rights of indigenous peoples were approved: Catherine Odimba Kombe of Congo; Jose Mencio Molintas of the Philippines; Jannie Lasimbang of Malaysia; Jose Carlos Morales Morales of Costa Rica; and John Henrikson of Norway. Viktoria Mohasci of Hungary was appointed as Chairperson for the Forum on minority issues.

During the session, the Council held a number of general debates, including on the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Palestinian territories; on the promotion of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development; on racism, in the context of follow-up to the Durban Conference and complementary standards; and on follow-up and implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action.

On the afternoon of Thursday, 5 June, the Council held two interactive panels with experts on the human rights of women, the first discussing violence against women – identification of priorities; and the second discussing maternal mortality and the human rights of women. The following day, on 6 June, the Council organized two special events, in the morning, dedicated to the entry into force of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and in the afternoon on the draft United Nations guidelines for the appropriate use and conditions of alternative care for children.

Opening the eighth session were Danilo Turk, the President of Slovenia, and United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour. The Slovenian President emphasized the need to reject the notion that human rights were brought to the international arena as an expression of the desire of the West to dominate the world. There was a long way to go between the proclamation of human rights and their full realization and the path led through an adequate social and international order.

In a farewell address, Ms. Arbour noted that this was the last time she would address the Council before her mandate concluded at the end of this month. It was indisputable that thus far the reform of the human rights machinery represented the most tangible achievement in the institutional renewal process of the United Nations system.

The eighth session, which was presided by Ambassador Doru Romulus Costea of Romania, marked the end of the second annual cycle of the Council. It will be immediately followed, on 19 and 20 June, by an organizational session for the third year of the Council’s work and, in particular, to elect the new members of the Council’s Bureau.

The ninth regular session of the Council will be held from 8 to 26 September 2008.

Resolutions Adopted by the Council

Resolutions on the Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development

In a resolution on an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Council adopted the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and recommended that the General Assembly adopt and open for signature, ratification and accession the Optional Protocol, at a signing ceremony in Geneva in March 2009. [The annexed Optional Protocol provides for Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to receive and consider communications by individuals or groups of individuals claiming to be victims of a violation of any of the rights set forth in the Covenant.]

In a resolution on the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, the Council requested the Special Rapporteur, inter alia, to continue to examine situations of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions in all circumstances and for whatever reason and to submit her or his findings on an annual basis and decided to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for three years.

In a resolution on the right to education, the Council decided to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the right to education for a period of three years, inter alia, to gather, request, receive and exchange information from all relevant sources on the realization of the right to education and on obstacles limiting effective access to education.

In a resolution on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order, the Council urged all actors on the international scene to build an international order based on inclusion, and promotion of and respect for cultural diversity and universal human rights, and to reject all doctrines of exclusion based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

In a resolution on the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, the Council decided to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for a period of three years, and requested the Special Rapporteur, inter alia, to inquire into any substantial allegations transmitted to him or her and to report his or her conclusions and recommendations thereon.

In a resolution on the mandate of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, the Council decided to extend the mandate of the Special Representative for a period of three years, and requested the Special Representative to provide views and concrete and practical recommendations on ways to strengthen the fulfilment of the duty of the State to protect all human rights from abuses by, or involving, transnational corporations and other business enterprises.

In a resolution on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, the Council decided to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment for a further period of three years, inter alia, to seek, receive, examine and act on information regarding issues and alleged cases concerning torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

In a resolution on the promotion of the right of peoples to peace, the Council requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to convene, before April 2009, a three-day workshop on the right of peoples to peace, with the participation of two experts from countries of each of the five regional groups, in order to further clarify the content and scope of this right; to propose measures that raise awareness of the importance to realize this right; and to suggest concrete actions to mobilize States, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations in the promotion of the right of peoples to peace.

In a resolution on the human rights of migrants: mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, the Council decided to extend for a period of three years the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, inter alia, to examine ways and means to overcome the obstacles existing to the full and effective protection of the human rights of migrants, recognizing the particular vulnerability of women, children and those undocumented or in an irregular situation.

In a resolution on human rights and extreme poverty, the Council decided to extend the mandate of the Independent Expert on human rights and extreme poverty for a period of three years, in order to, inter alia, further examine the relationship between the enjoyment of human rights and extreme poverty; and to identify alternative approaches for removing all obstacles to the full enjoyment of human rights for all people living in extreme poverty. The Council also requested OHCHR to give high priority to the question of the relationship between extreme poverty and human rights and invited it to pursue further work in this area.

In a resolution on the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, the Council decided to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for a period of three years, in order to, inter alia, promote the prevention of trafficking in persons in all its forms and the adoption of measures to uphold and protect the human rights of victims. The Council also requested OHCHR to submit to the Council, at its ninth session, a report on the latest developments in the United Nations relating to combating trafficking in persons as well as on the activities of the Office on this issue.

In a resolution on the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, the Council called upon Governments to take effective measures to eliminate any type of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, including awareness-raising; requested OHCHR to collect information on the measures that Governments had taken to eliminate discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, and to submit a report to the Council and the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee; and requested the Advisory Committee to formulate a draft set of principles and guidelines to eliminate discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, and to submit it to the Council for its consideration by September 2009.

Resolution on Human Rights Situations that Require the Council’s Attention

In a resolution on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, the Council strongly urged the Government of Myanmar to desist from further politically motivated arrests and to release all political prisoners without delay; called upon the Government to fully implement the commitments it had made to the Secretary-General on granting immediate, full and unhindered access by relief workers to all persons in need throughout the country; called for an absolute and immediate stop to the recruitment of child soldiers into both the Government armed forces and armed groups; and called for a full, transparent and effective, impartial and independent investigation into all reports of human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, torture and ill-treatment, forced labour and forced displacement.
Resolution on Organizational and Procedural Matters

Texts on Organizational and Procedural Matters

In a resolution on conference facilities and financial support for the Human Rights Council, the Council reaffirmed the need to ensure the provision of necessary financial resources to the Council and its Working Groups in order to discharge its mandate fully; expressed its concern at the delays in the submission of documents to the Council, and in particular the delays in the translation of documents; and reaffirmed that the Council would consider favourably the adoption of a decision on the webcasting of all public proceedings of its various Working Groups.

In a Presidential statement on terms in office of Special Procedure mandate holders, the Council stated that in accordance with General Assembly and Human Rights Council resolutions, a Special Procedure mandate holder’s tenure would not exceed six years in a particular position. The Human Rights Council guaranteed the integrity and independence of the system of Special Procedures and would also follow up on the implementation of the Code of Conduct for Special Procedure mandate holders.


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