HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL HOLDS TWENTY-SEVENTH REGULAR SESSION FROM 8 TO 26 SEPTEMBER

The Human Rights Council will hold its twenty-seventh regular session from 8 to 26 September 2013 in Room XX of the Palais des Nations in Geneva. During the three-week session the Council will hear the first address from the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Zeid Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein.

During the session, the 47-member body will hear the presentation of the latest report of the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, an oral report from the Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) on the situation in Ukraine and updates on the situations pertaining to its recent special sessions on the human rights situations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and in Iraq, held on 23 July and 1 September, respectively. The Council will also hold dialogues with 19 human rights experts and bodies, take part in ten thematic panel discussions, as well as dedicated meetings on the integration of a gender perspective and the rights of indigenous peoples.

The ten thematic panel discussions will cover a variety of human rights issues. In the first week there will be panel discussions on history teaching and memorialization processes, on the protection of the rights of persons deprived of their liberty and on the right to privacy in the digital age. In the second week, panel discussions will take place on the protection of the family and its members, on the integration of a gender perspective, on the rights of indigenous peoples, and on the role of prevention in the promotion and protection of human rights. Panel discussions scheduled for the third week of the session will be on the use of remotely piloted aircraft or armed drones in counter-terrorism and military operations, on accelerating global efforts to end violence against children, and on the situation in South Sudan.

The session will open at 9 a.m. on Monday 8 September with an address by the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Zeid Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein, who will update the Council on the activities of his Office. During the first week of the session the Council will hear the presentation of reports and hold interactive or clustered dialogues with a number of independent human rights experts and bodies. They include the Independent Expert on older persons and the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, the Special Rapporteur on water and sanitation and the Special Rapporteur on hazardous wastes, and the Working Group on mercenaries and the Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order. The Council will also hold dialogues with the Special Rapporteur on truth, justice, reparation and non-recurrence, the Working Group on arbitrary detention, the Working Group on enforced disappearances, and the Working Group on the right to development. At the end of the first week, the thematic reports of the Secretary-General, the High Commissioner and the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, including one on the safety of journalists, will be introduced, to be followed by a general debate.

The Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic will present its latest report to the Council in its second week, on 16 September. The Special Rapporteur on indigenous peoples and the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples will also present their latest reports. The Council will additionally hold a dialogue with the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee and hear a presentation of the report of the Inter-governmental Working Group on the right to peace.

Towards the end of the second week the Council will consider the adoption of the Universal Periodic Review Working Group reports on the following 14 countries (in chronological order of review): Norway, Albania, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Portugal, Bhutan, Dominica, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Brunei Darussalam, Costa Rica, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Qatar and Nicaragua. The Council will also continue its general debate on its Universal Periodic Review process. The adoption of the reports contributes to the Universal Periodic Review aim to improve human rights situations in all countries and address human rights violations wherever they occur.

In the third and final week of the session a written report will be presented by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the human rights situation in Ukraine, followed by an interactive dialogue. The Council will also discuss human rights country situations and technical assistance and capacity building, holding dialogues with the Special Rapporteur on Cambodia, the Independent Expert on Sudan, the Independent Expert on Somalia and the Independent Expert on the Central African Republic.

On 22 September, the Council will consider a written report from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on steps taken to implement the resolution adopted at its special session on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in particular the Gaza Strip, held on 23 July, and on 24 September an oral update from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the situation in Sri Lanka as a follow up to its resolution adopted in March establishing a commission of inquiry. Similarly, the Council will hear an update to the special session held earlier this week, on 1 September, on the situation in Iraq in light of abuses committed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (the date for that update has not yet been confirmed).

The report of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent will also be presented, followed by an interactive dialogue. On 25 and 26 September, the Council will take action on the decisions and resolutions and will also elect the members of the Advisory Committee before it closes the session.

During this session, the Council will twice meet in private under its Complaint Procedure (5 p.m. on Friday 12 September and 5 p.m. on Monday 22 September). It should also be noted that Thursday 11 September is a United Nations holiday and no meetings will take place that day.

Click the links to read the programme of work and the annotated agenda. Reports for the twenty-seventh session can be found here, and for any other information or documentation, please refer to the homepage of the Human Rights Council website.

The Human Rights Council

The Council is made up of 47 Member States, elected by the majority of members of the General Assembly of the United Nations through direct and secret ballot. The General Assembly takes into account the candidate States’ contribution to the promotion and protection of human rights. Members serve for a period of three years and are not eligible for immediate re-election after serving two consecutive terms. The Council’s Membership is based on equitable geographical distribution. Seats are distributed as follows: African States: 13 seats; Asian States: 13 seats; Latin American and Caribbean States: 8 seats; Western European and other States: 7 seats; and Eastern European States: 6 seats.

The composition of the Council at its twenty-seventh session is as follows: Algeria, Argentina, Austria, Benin, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chile, China, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Czech Republic, Estonia, Ethiopia, France, Gabon, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Maldives Mexico, Montenegro, Morocco, Namibia, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Venezuela and Viet Nam.

As of 1 January 2014, the President of the Council has been the Ambassador of Gabon, Baudelaire Ndong Ella. Serving as the Council’s four Vice Presidents are Kateøina Sequensová of the Czech Republic, Alberto D'Alotto from Argentina, Maurizio Enrico Serra of Italy, and Dilip Sinha from India as Vice-Presidents. Ms. Sequensová is also the Rapporteur of the Council.

For further information and media requests, please contact Rolando Gomez (+ 41 22 917 9711 / rgomez@ohchr.org) or Cedric Sapey (+41 22 917 9695 / csapey@ohchr.org).

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For use of the information media; not an official record

HRC14/106E