A/HRC/29/45
Rapporteur
D.
A/HRC/WG.13/3/1
Note by the Secretariat
A/HRC/27/63
Report of the open-ended intergovernmental working group on
a draft United Nations declaration on the right to peace
Adoption of the agenda and organization of work
15.
In his opening statement, the Chairperson-Rapporteur referred to Human Rights
Council resolution 27/17, in which the Council requested him to prepare a new text on the
basis of the discussions held during the first and second sessions of the working group and
on the basis of the intersessional informal consultations.
16.
The Chairperson-Rapporteur introduced his new text, which he described as the
result of extensive consultations held with a wide range of stakeholders, including States,
intergovernmental organizations, United Nations entities, civil society organizations and
academia.2 In this light, the revised text did not include any paragraph or provision that had
not been previously discussed with or in the working group. The revised text was short and
concise, and did not aim to provide a stand-alone definition of the right to peace as such,
but rather focused on the elements composing the right to peace that had already been
identified by the Human Rights Council in previous years.
17.
The Chairperson-Rapporteur stated that the first and second sessions of the working
group had created a basis that would allow for the working group to conduct the negotiation
process in good faith. As this was the final session of working group, it was now the
responsibility of States to reach consensus on a draft declaration. He reiterated that
transparency, inclusiveness, consensus and objectivity – and a little realism – continued to
be the guiding principles for the conduct of the process.
18.
At its lst meeting, on 20 April 2015, the working group adopted, without comments,
its agenda (see A/HRC/WG.13/3/1), and the draft programme of work.
19.
On the proposal of the Chairperson-Rapporteur, the working group agreed to hold a
general debate, to be followed by the first and second readings of the revised text prepared
by the Chairperson-Rapporteur, and to conclude with the adoption of the report on the
session.
III. General comments
20.
At the 1st meeting, on 20 April 2015, following the adoption of the agenda, the floor
was opened for general comments, which included statements delivered on behalf of groups
of States, namely, by Algeria (on behalf of the Group of African States), the Islamic
Republic of Iran (on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement), the European Union and the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
2
The Chairperson-Rapporteur convened several informal consultations in preparation for the third
session of the working group. The first consultation was held with States and other stakeholders on 30
January 2015, the second consultation with representatives of various international organizations on
26 February 2015, and the third consultation with non-governmental organizations, also on 26
February 2015. Consultations and bilateral meetings were held also with the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and regional groups
prior to the third session of the working group.
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