A/HRC/21/24 15. The Permanent Forum holds annual sessions. In accordance with paragraph 1 of Economic and Social Council resolution 2000/22, States, United Nations bodies and organs, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Council may participate in the Permanent Forum as observers. Organizations of indigenous people may equally participate as observers in accordance with the procedures which have been applied in the Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights. 16. The Secretariat of the Permanent Forum and the Civil Society and Outreach Unit of the Division for Social Policy and Development, part of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, make practical arrangements for the pre-registration of civil society participants to attend the annual sessions of the Permanent Forum. 17. Five categories of participants can pre-register for the annual sessions: indigenous peoples’ organizations; indigenous parliamentarians; non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council; national human rights institutions; and academic institutions. In accordance with the practice of the Permanent Forum, academic institutions have no right to speak. B. Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples 18. Participation as observers in the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples by organizations that are not accredited under the Economic and Social Council rules is permitted under Human Rights Council resolution 6/36, by which the Council also established the Expert Mechanism. It states: The annual meeting of the expert mechanism shall be open to the participation, as observers, of States, United Nations mechanisms, bodies and specialized agencies, funds and programmes, intergovernmental organizations, regional organizations and mechanisms in the field of human rights, national human rights institutions and other relevant national bodies, academics and experts on indigenous issues, nongovernmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council; the meeting shall also be open to indigenous peoples’ organizations and non-governmental organizations, whose aims and purposes are in conformity with the spirit, purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, based on arrangements, including Economic and Social Council resolution 1996/31 of 25 July 1996, and practices observed by the Commission on Human Rights, through an open and transparent accreditation procedure in accordance with the rules of procedure of the Human Rights Council, which will provide for the timely information on participation and consultation with States concerned. 19. In practice, OHCHR, which manages the accreditation process, requests all nonState bodies to seek accreditation to the annual sessions of the Expert Mechanism and to complete the requisite accreditation form, irrespective of whether they are entitled to accreditation under, for example, Economic and Social Council accreditation procedures. Only those organizations that are not accredited under those or other such procedures, for example as national human rights institutions, must complete the forms to receive the security pass required to attend the annual sessions of the Expert Mechanism, however. 20. An organization requesting accreditation must submit a letter to OHCHR and complete an online form. In accordance with the questions on the form, it must: (a) Indicate whether it has Economic and Social Council accreditation; (b) Provide details about the organization; 7