A/HRC/10/48 page 4 5. Not only was this Convention negotiated in a shorter time than any other human rights convention in the history of international law, it has also attracted swift ratification by States, second only to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.3 6. Ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and of its Optional Protocol requires States to undertake steps both at the international and national level. A. International measures for ratification 7. At the international level, a State that intends to become a party to the Convention and its Optional Protocol must express its consent to be bound by the treaty in one of the forms prescribed by the Convention. Article 43 establishes that consent to be bound can be expressed through the methods of ratification, accession or confirmation. 8. Ratification consists of the deposit of the instrument of ratification4 nationally executed by the State with the Secretary-General of the United Nations as the depositary of the Convention in accordance with article 41. Expression of consent to be bound through ratification is a two-step process, as it requires signature of the Convention by the State prior to the deposit of the instrument of ratification. While the act of signature does not make a State party to the treaty, it requires the signatory State to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of the treaty.5 With the deposit of the act of ratification, on the other hand, the “State establishes on the international plane its consent to be bound by the Convention”.6 9. Accession consists of the deposit of an instrument of accession with the depositary and has the same legal effect as ratification; unlike ratification, however, it does not require to be preceded by signature. “Confirmation” is used as an equivalent for the term “ratification” when an international organization expresses its consent to be bound to a treaty.7 10. A State can decide to ratify both the Convention and its Optional Protocol or the Convention only. Such intention needs to be reflected in the instrument executed and deposited by the State. 3 The Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted by the General Assembly on 20 November 1989 and entered into force on 2 September 1990, after the deposit of its 20th ratification. 4 “Instrument” means a document signed by the Head of State, Head of Government or Minister of Foreign Affairs which unambiguously conveys the intent of the Government on behalf of the State to consider itself bound by the Convention (and its Optional Protocol if it is the case). 5 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), art. 18. 6 VCLT, art. 2. para. 1 (b). 7 Treaty Reference Guide, United Nations Office of Legal affairs, 1999, available at: http://untreaty.un.org/ola-internet/Assistance/guide.pdf.