CCDH PRESIDENT REPRESENTS THE ICC IN DISCUSSIONS TO REVIEW THE WORK AND FUNCTIONING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL AND PRESENTS ICC PROPOSALS

CCDH President represented the ICC in the review of the work and functioning of the HRC and presented its proposals to strengthen NHRIs participation at the HRC and make the Council more effective.

Mr. Ahmed Herzenni, President of the Advisory Council on Human Rights (CCDH), being President of the African Network of National Human Rights Institutions, represented the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC) in the works of the “Open-ended intergovernmental working group on the review of the work and functioning of the Human Rights Council” in Geneva, from 25 to 29 October 2010.

This working group established by virtue of a HRC Resolution adopted on 12 October 2009, in application of UN General Assembly # 60/251 of 15 March 2006, in which the Assembly decided that “the Council should review its works and functioning five years after its establishment…”.

During the discussions held to review the work and functioning of the United Nations Human Rights Council, the ICC presented several proposals to strengthen the participation of national human rights institutions (NHRIs) at the Council and make it Council more effective.

STRENGTHENING NHRI PARTICIPATION AT THE HRC

In this regard, the ICC stressed the importance of making the Council more accessible to national stakeholders. A fund should be established to support the participation of representatives from the least developed countries, NHRIs and civil society organizations at Council sessions and the meetings of its mechanisms, the Committee proposed. In addition to making the program of work and reports publicly available well in advance of the Council sessions, the Committee underlines, the Council sessions should also be webcast and, along with the reports and other relevant information, be available in all six UN languages, in order to make the Council more transparent and accessible. It added that a yearly calendar of resolutions should be made available to all delegations and stakeholders to make the negotiation of resolutions more predictable.

The International Coordination Committee highlighted the importance of drawing from the unique expertise of NHRIs. It indicated that NHRI representatives should be regularly invited to speak on the Council panels and to contribute to other experts meetings and events organized by the Human Rights Council or the Office of the Hugh Commissioner for Human Rights. In addition to the necessity to maximize the contribution of NHRIs to the Special Procedures and involving them directly in the interactive dialogue, the Committee stressed the importance of maximizing the contribution of NHRIs to the UPR process. It indicated that national human rights institutions should be able to submit their reports points of view and provide regular update information on the status of implementation of UPR outcomes.

MAKING THE HRC MORE EFFECTIVE

The International Coordination Committee submitted several proposals aiming at making the Human Rights Council more effective and more inclusive of national-level contributions. It indicated that Council’s work and activities should be funded out of the UN general budget. It called for the protection of human rights defenders. It highlighted the need for creating a fund to support persons who are at risk of reprisal as a consequence of having cooperated with the UN human rights mechanisms and for ensuring the Council is equipped to respond to emergency situations.

The Council should increase follow-up to Special Procedures recommendations end enhance the process of the Universal Periodic Review. In this regard, the Committee added, States under review should be clear in stating their position with respect to each UPR recommendation presented to them. The Council should create a segment for follow-up to each UPR examination. It recommended that States should be required to provide oral reports on their implementation of the recommendations two years after their review.

The International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC) is the international association for national human rights institutions from all parts of the globe. Established in 1993, the ICC promotes and strengthens national human rights institutions (NHRIs) to be in accordance with the Paris Principles, and provides leadership in the promotion and protection of human rights.

The ICC offers advice and assistance to help its members (A- status accredited NHRIs) enhance international engagement at the United Nations in order to strengthen human rights domestically. It undertakes accreditation of NHRIs, and holds an annual meeting and a biennial conference to strengthen cooperation and share good practice between NHRIs.

It is worth mentioning that he Advisory Council on Human rights chaired the ICC in 2003 and 2004.