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10th anniversary of the HRC triggers important discussions on how to improve its efficiency
June marks the 32nd Session of the Human Rights Council (HRC), and ten
year anniversary since its inaugural first session in June 2006. The
momentous occasion has sparked reflection and discussions amongst its
stakeholders, in particular on how to improve the body's technical
efficiency going forward. UPR Info utilised the 32nd Session to
make suggestions on improving the technical aspects of the UPR in
particular, building on broader consultations it had participated in
recent months.
Outside of the Geneva process, UPR Info has been active in
Niger supporting a workshop with civil society organisations (CSOs) on
the development of future activities for UPR implementation. On this
occasion, they set up a national UPR coalition. An outcome
charter listing the thematic priorities of civil society in UPR
implementation was then shared with H.E. Marou Amadou, Minister of
Justice. Our organisation will soon facilitate a new meeting
in cooperation with the Government of Niger, to discuss collaboration
between the latter and CSOs, the national human rights institution
(NHRI), and other stakeholders. In Myanmar, our continued engagement
with civil society resulted in a three-day workshop to support local
and grassroots activists to strategise the implementation of UPR
recommendations received by their Government last November.
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Quote of the month
"Parliaments
can help promote public debate on human rights and seek input from all
segments of society…, they can lend democratic legitimacy to the outcome
of that debate and galvanize public support for
implementation. Moreover, most of the UPR recommendations require
legislative and budgetary action. Taking parliaments into account is
therefore also about making sure that those recommendations do not
become a dead letter”.
Martin Chungong, Secretary-General of the Inter-Parliamentarian Union
Panel on the contribution of parliaments to the work of the Council and the UPR
22 June 2016
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Registration for UPR26 Pre-sessions now open
Applications are now open for the next round of UPR Info Pre-sessions (5-7 October 2016) on the following countries: Haiti; Iceland; Lithuania; Republic of Moldova; South Sudan; Syria; Timor-Leste; Togo; Uganda; Venezuela; and Zimbabwe. The UPR Pre-sessions bring together Permanent Missions, NHRIs and CSOs to discuss the human rights situation of States one month prior to their review at the UPR Working Group. The Pre-sessions offer permanent delegations the opportunity to be informed on the status of implementation of recommendations made during the previous review, while providing space for civil society to influence the process by lobbying several delegations at once. Read more here.
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Efficiency of UPR third cycle at the heart of Human Rights Council’s debate
On 27 June
2016, the 32nd Session of the Human Rights Council (HRC) held the
General Debate on Agenda Item 6 on the UPR. States and CSOs took the
floor to take stock of the first two cycles of the UPR and to elaborate
on their views to improve the efficiency of the mechanism during the
upcoming third cycle. Implementation and follow-up of
recommendations, voluntary mid-term reporting, and reprisals where
amongst the main topics discussed. UPR Info delivered a statement suggesting measures that could improve the efficiency of the UPR during its third cycle. Read more here.
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Role of parliaments within the UPR discussed at HRC
On 22 June 2016, the “Panel discussion on the contribution of
parliaments to the work of the Human Rights Council and its Universal
Periodic Review ” was held during the 32nd session of the HRC. The Panel
aimed to take stock of the current situation since the adoption of the
HRC Resolution 30/14 (October 2015) on identifying ways to further
enhance the contribution of the national parliaments. The panellists
exchanged ideas, shared good practices and formulated recommendations
for the HRC on different ways of further engaging national parliaments
in the UPR. Read more here.
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Civil society space in the SDGs; what we can learn from the UPR
UPR Info
recently published an article for UN Special, examining the extent to
which civil society can formally engage in the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development. The long-anticipated Agenda, including the 17
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), was adopted by consensus at the UN
General Assembly in September 2015. UPR Info discusses how the
UPR framework - with established modalities for civil society inputs -
has proven the transformative potential of multi-stakeholder
participation. Read more here.
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Growing civil society space in the UPR
UPR Info
has recently been working in Myanmar, Niger, Nepal, Thailand, and
Tanzania. Thanks to our local, national, regional, and international
partners, our organisation continues to demonstrate that the UPR
mechanism is a powerful tool to help facilitate coordination and
discussion among stakeholders and grow civil society space. In Myanmar,
Niger, Thailand, and Tanzania, we co-organised three-day workshops for
civil society actors to bring the UPR process to the local level. Our
ultimate goal is to create national space for discussions on
implementation of UPR recommendations. In Nepal, we co-organised with
several partners a two-day multi-stakeholder dialogue, attended by
150 participants, from 21 ministries and dozens of CSOs. Strong
commitments were taken to hold regular dialogues and, to build bridges
between CSOs and Government, were taken. A similar project will be
implemented in the next coming weeks in Niger!
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Work with us! UPR Info
Asia Regional Office is currently seeking two committed
and enthusiastic individuals to join our team in Bangkok, Thailand, for
the following positions:
- Programmes Coordinator (Human Rights Capacity Building & UPR Follow-up), job description here
- Administration & Finance Officer, job description here
Deadline to apply: 17 July 2016
Interested candidates are invited to apply following the instructions
provided in the vacancy announcements. For any questions, please contact
us at: office-asia@upr-info.org
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Oral statement by UPR Info
during the General Debate on the Agenda Item 6 celebrated during the
32nd Session of the Human Rights Council. Roland Chauville, on behalf of
UPR Info, suggested measures that could improve the efficiency of the UPR during its third cycle.
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