A/HRC/23/6 Introduction 1. The Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), established in accordance with Human Rights Council resolution 5/1 of 18 June 2007, held its fifteenth session from 21 January to 1 February 2013. The review of Mali was held at the 4th meeting on 22 January. The delegation of Mali was headed by Malick Coulibaly, Minister of Justice and Garde des Sceaux. At its 10th meeting, held on 25 January 2013, the Working Group adopted the report on Mali. 2. On 14 January 2013, the Human Rights Council selected the following group of rapporteurs (troika) to facilitate the review of Mali: Angola, Montenegro and United Arab Emirates. 3. In accordance with paragraph 15 of the annex to resolution 5/1, the following documents were issued for the review of Mali: (a) A national report submitted/written presentation given in accordance with paragraph 15 (a) (A/HRC/WG.6/15/MLI/1); (b) A compilation prepared by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in accordance with paragraph 15 (b) (A/HRC/WG.6/15/MLI/2); (c) A summary prepared by OHCHR in accordance with paragraph 15 (c) (A/HRC/WG.6/15/MLI/3). 4. A list of questions prepared in advance by the Czech Republic, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia and Spain was transmitted to Mali through the troika. These questions are available on the extranet of the UPR. I. Summary of the proceedings of the review process A. Presentation by the State under review 5. The delegation of Mali explained that the national report had been prepared through an inclusive national dialogue in which State agencies and civil society, supported by experts from the International Organization of la Francophonie, had facilitated the gathering and processing of information on human rights. Thanks to this participatory approach, the comments and recommendations made by various groups in civil society such as the National Human Rights Commission, the Malian Human Rights Association and the Ombudsman have been included in the report. 6. The national report was being submitted under special circumstances, marred by social and political upheaval. The political situation in Mali had been changed by the overthrow of the constitutional order and the occupation of the northern portion of the territory. The political stability that the country had enjoyed had been shaken by a crisis with both institutional and security dimensions. Military operations were under way in order to restore Mali’s territorial integrity and put an end to the population’s suffering in the north of the country. 7. The delegation recalled that Mali’s commitment to the universal values of human rights had been expressed in the legal sphere by the adoption of constitutional, legislative and regulatory instruments. At the international level, Mali had consistently ratified the regional and international instruments for the promotion and protection of human rights; it had submitted reports to certain treaty bodies and implemented the comments and GE.13-11815 3