A/HRC/22/17 regret the decision of the Government of Israel to suspend cooperation with the Council and with OHCHR. I encourage the Government to reconsider its decision. 74. Panel discussions have become characteristic of the sessions of the Human Rights Council. Fifteen panel discussions were held on such topics as the realization of the right to development; reprisals against individuals and groups who cooperate with the United Nations and its mechanisms; people living with or affected by HIV/AIDS; discriminatory laws and practices and acts of violence against individuals based on their sexual orientation and gender identity; participation in political and public life of persons with disabilities; the right to health of older persons; the promotion and protection of freedom of expression on the Internet; human rights mainstreaming; due diligence in prevention of violence against women the language and culture of indigenous peoples; and human rights in a multicultural context. 75. The Human Rights Council established two new intergovernmental working groups, on the right to peace and on the rights of peasants and other rural workers, mandated to elaborate instruments. In this context, I note that the Advisory Committee has produced several relevant studies and reports. 76. The Human Rights Council adopted new resolutions on country situations, requesting OHCHR to report (on Mali, South Sudan, Sri Lanka and Yemen) and strengthened technical assistance (on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sri Lanka and Yemen). At the twenty-first session, I reported orally on the situation of human rights in Mali, particularly in the northern part of the country, to the Council. I will present a written report on this subject to the Council at its twenty-second session. 77. Unfortunately, the calls made during the review of the Human Rights Council for a more rationalized programme of work have not materialized. In spite of the determination of OHCHR to address multiple human rights issues and challenges, and the commendable commitment of the Council to address protracted and emerging crises, it has become increasingly difficult to support the ever increasing number of new mandates, including reports, panel discussions and intergovernmental working groups. 3. Universal periodic review 78. May 2012 witnessed the formal start of the second cycle of the universal periodic review. Two sessions were held and all States scheduled for review participated. OHCHR continues to strive for full participation, as in the first cycle. States that came before the Working group on the Universal Periodic View for the second time prepared their review with great care, and many engaged in national inter-departmental and civil society consultations in the preparation of their reports. National reports and reviews balanced reviews of recent developments and the status of recommendations made during the first cycle. Although most States reported on the measures taken to implement the recommendations they had committed to implement, several reported on recommendations unsupported during the first review. This practice should be encouraged. 79. The two trust funds to assist States to prepare for, participate in and implement the outcome of the universal periodic review have increasingly been supported by donors and used by States and other stakeholders. As requested by the Human Rights Council, OHCHR has reviewed the terms of reference of the fund to allow for strengthened support to countries, particularly least developed countries and small island developing States, for which the review process has proven challenging. Requests from all regions for OHCHR to provide technical cooperation in follow-up to the review are growing. OHCHR \ further developed its global approach and reorganized its limited resources dedicated to the review to strengthen its ability to support States and other stakeholders to implement the 16

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