A/HRC/27/51 However, during the 18 years since the adoption of the general comment, human rights law has started to gradually move beyond the above described narrow interpretations of the right to participation. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as a number of other treaty bodies, have adopted general comments pointing to governments’ responsibility to inform and hear the opinions of groups affected by political decisions on, among other things, water and sanitation, adequate food and eviction from houses. Other examples of expansion of consultation rights can be seen in relation to the rights of certain group requiring particular attention. Additionally, new human rights instruments have adopted hitherto unprecedented obligations on States parties to consult with certain groups or with regard to particular issues. In particular, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has adopted unprecedented obligations on States parties to consult with representatives of people with disabilities in the monitoring mechanisms of the convention. We are witnessing similar expansion in the understanding of the scope and content of the right at the national, regional and international level as well. At the international level states are increasingly called upon to consult with relevant segments of the society before submitting information to UN human rights bodies and to include them in follow-up activities on recommendations stemming from these bodies. While there has been increased recognition of the importance of the right, this has not been reflected in a corresponding level of international elaboration and standardization of what the rights and obligations entail or what quality of participation is required and how it should be enforced. This should establish the duty of states to ensure consultation in the development, implementation and monitoring of public legislation, policy, programmes and projects and also that this should involve everyone and not only citizens as is the case when exercising participation in relation to elections. The increasing importance attributed to participation as a key principle has spawned growing interest in defining the extent to which states should open up to wider dialogue with the general public. The quality and nature of such participatory and consultation processes has not yet been addressed in an international human rights document that is generally applicable. Additionally, accountability mechanisms for the conduct and outcome of participatory processes are either weak or non-existent, or only relate to a very narrow segment of the process (right to access to information). The challenge therefore is manifold. It is crucially important to raise awareness among governments and members of the general public of the current understanding and interpretation of the right to participate in the conduct of public affairs. Equally important is to attempt to arrive to a coherent understanding and interpretation of the right to participation and to fill the concept with content that is generally applicable and can be used as a tool by communities and relevant authorities at the local, national, regional and international levels. The aim is to ensure that participation is recognized as a right at all relevant levels and to design more informed, effective and legitimate public participation processes with a strong evaluation and accountability component. There is also a need for new approaches that emphasize two-way interaction between decision-makers and the public as well as deliberation among participants. Lastly, enforcement mechanisms should be defined in order to ensure the implementation of the right at all relevant levels. 36