A/HRC/2/2 A/HRC/Sub.1/58/36 page 76 I. VISION AND RECOMMENDATIONS A. Introduction 1. The Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights respectfully requests the Human Rights Council (the Council), to take into account the following comments and recommendations when undertaking the overall review of all mandates, mechanisms, functions and responsibilities formerly under the authority of the Commission on Human Rights (the Commission) and assumed by the Council on 16 June 2006. 1. General Assembly resolution 60/251 of 15 March 2006 2. In resolution 60/251 the Assembly stressed the need to preserve and to build on the achievements of the Commission and to redress its shortcomings.1 It reaffirmed the commitment to strengthen the United Nations human rights machinery.2 It requested the Council to undertake a two-stage process. First, it must review all mandates, mechanisms, functions and responsibilities of the Commission (55 in total, in accordance with the annex to Council decision 1/102). Then, on the basis of that review, which should be completed not later than 1 July 2007, the Council may improve and/or rationalize any of those mandates, mechanisms, functions and responsibilities. Any modification to existing practices and procedures must have, as its ultimate purpose, “to maintain a system of special procedures, expert advice and a complaint procedure” (emphasis added), and requires a specific decision of the Council. Pending the reaching of decisions under this overall process of review, a system of special procedures, expert advice and a complaint procedure is to be maintained in place.3 3. Council decisions during that overall review process that may imply the extinction of any of the components of the present system should be adopted only after the completion of a full review of the present status and usefulness of the mandate, mechanism, etc. in question.4 In this connection, the Secretary-General, in his statement of 23 February 2006 on the new Council, and the present United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in her statement of 27 March last 2006 before the Commission, emphasized the need to avoid any gaps in the protection of human rights. In her statement, Ms. Arbour also stressed the need to prevent disruptions in standard-setting activities. 4. As noted above, the overall review process should be completed by the Council within a year of the holding of its first session. It could be validly argued that considering the systemic nature of the existing network of mandates and mechanisms now under the Council’s authority, 1 Eighth preambular paragraph. 2 Twelfth preambular paragraph. 3 Paragraph 6. 4 Ibid.