A/HRC/27/32 comprehensive sanctions in terms of humanitarian impact. However, even under smart sanctions as they were currently imposed, vulnerable populations paid the highest price, while policy elites were least affected. Humanitarian practitioners had the best access to research and data on the impact of sanctions. They should therefore advocate for a political and legal understanding that the rights and well-being of civilians and vulnerable populations could not be sacrificed because their governments were in conflict with powerful States or multilateral institutions. As human rights principles applied to all sanctions regimes, there should always be: (a) clear legal exemptions and expedited processes for humanitarian goods, including food, medicines, medical inputs and equipment and educational resources; (b) fast-tracking of licences for humanitarian goods, with streamlined financial and administrative procedures, especially for medicines for the chronically ill; (c) protection for whistle-blowers who report on the misuse of humanitarian funds; and (d) ongoing mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the humanitarian impact of sanctions. 34. Ms. Zaidi noted that war was a terrible, quintessentially human horror which should be avoided altogether or waged with great reluctance as a very last resort, and stated that it was long overdue for sanctions to be considered in the same light. 35. During the ensuing interactive dialogue, representatives of Qatar and the Hawa Society for Women took the floor. The speakers called for greater attention to fundamental human rights principles, and drew attention to the negative effects of sanctions on vulnerable groups. 36. Responding to comments, Ms. Macdonald gave the example of Somalia to illustrate the impact of sanctions on the civilian population, noting that the loss of US$ 1.3 million in remittances to support livelihoods was not being taken up by any donor. Further, she stated the necessity for humanitarian workers to be able to engage with all actors as required by their mission to deliver assistance, and the importance of their neutrality, whereas sanctions and counter-terrorism measures were essentially political. Mr. Halliday recalled the example of Iraq, where the banking sector had been crushed by sanctions. He urged Member States to give greater power to the Human Rights Council, which must monitor human rights violations associated with coercive measures. VII. Presentation by the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee on its forthcoming research-based report on mechanisms to assess the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights and to promote accountability 37. Jean Ziegler, a member of the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee, presented the Committee’s work to prepare a research-based report on mechanisms to assess the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights and to promote accountability, requested by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 24/14. In January 2014, the Committee had created a working group and online platform for that purpose, sent a questionnaire to the permanent missions in Geneva and other stakeholders, and selected case studies from Cuba, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Zimbabwe. The report was currently being prepared and would be submitted to the Human Rights Council for consideration at its twenty-eighth session. Mr. Ziegler expressed his disappointment that few States from the Western European and other States Group had submitted responses. He said that the initial responses received supported the view that sanctions caused violations of human rights and humanitarian law, and he proposed the creation of an international monitoring mechanism with the participation of international organizations, as well as a mechanism to provide compensation to victims. 11