A/HRC/19/74 I. Introduction 1. The Human Rights Council, in resolution 13/23, on enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights, which was submitted by Egypt on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement and adopted without a vote, ―reaffirms that it is one of the purposes of the United Nations and also the primary responsibility of Member States to promote, protect and encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms through, inter alia, international cooperation‖ (para. 1). Addressing all actors on the international scene, the resolution highlights the legal dimension of ―international cooperation in the field of human rights, in conformity with the purposes and principles set out in the Charter of the United Nations and international law‖ (para. 6) with regard to prevention, capacity-building and technical assistance (para. 8). Finally, the Council specifically requests ―the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee to explore ways and means to enhance cooperation in the field of human rights‖ (para. 14), to facilitate exchanges of information and best practices in this regard, taking into account the ―views‖ of ―States and relevant stakeholders‖, and to submit proposals to the Council at its nineteenth session. 2. To this end, on 30 December 2009, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights submitted her report on enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights (A/HRC/13/19), pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 10/6. However, it must be acknowledged that, at this exploratory stage, the consultation has been fairly limited, notwithstanding the valuable initial responses received from eight Member States (Algeria, Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Iraq, Jordan, Monaco, Serbia and Ukraine) and from the Holy See, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the International Labour Organization (ILO), two national institutions (Jordan and Qatar) and a number of NGOs – a total of 15 responses in all. 3. In order to give effect to resolution 13/23, the Advisory Committee, pursuant to its recommendation 5/4, set up a drafting group, to be chaired by Mr. Seetulsingh, which it tasked with undertaking preparatory work on the topic before the in-depth discussion to be held at its sixth session, in January 2011. Mr. Decaux, Rapporteur of the drafting group, prepared a working paper (A/HRC/AC/6/CRP.4), which attempted to clarify the legal bases for international cooperation in the field of human rights and discuss the key issues that revolve around the dialectic between the two concepts. At its sixth session, the drafting group held an informal meeting with the sponsor of resolution 13/23 in order to clarify the nature of its mandate. The drafting group considered the working paper submitted by the Rapporteur, and the document was subsequently discussed by the Advisory Committee in a public meeting. The Advisory Committee adopted recommendation 6/4 on 21 January 2011. In it, the Committee took note of the preliminary discussions and requested that a revised document should be presented to the Committee at its seventh session. The Advisory Committee also noted that the drafting group would prepare a questionnaire to facilitate broad consultation with all stakeholders at the appropriate time. 4. At its sixteenth session, the Human Rights Council adopted resolution 16/22 of 25 March 2011 without a vote. The text had been submitted by Egypt on behalf of the NonAligned Movement. In this resolution, which reproduces the broad thrust of resolution 13/23, States and United Nations human rights mechanisms and procedures are invited to continue to pay attention to the importance of ―mutual cooperation, understanding and dialogue in ensuring the promotion and protection of all human rights‖ (para. 14). In its resolution, the Human Rights Council furthermore takes note of the discussions held in the Advisory Committee, in fulfilment of its mandate, to explore ―ways and means to enhance international cooperation in the field of human rights, in accordance with Council 3