A/HRC/15/22 associated with hazardous products and wastes. The guidelines should be normatively based on international human rights norms and standards, and consistent with international environmental law. They should identify the rights and fundamental freedoms that may be adversely affected by the movement and dumping of hazardous products and wastes and the corresponding responsibilities of States and other actors. 49. During the twelfth session of the Council, the Special Rapporteur held a number of bilateral meetings with interested delegations to explore the possibility of receiving a specific mandate in this regard. Although some delegations expressly supported the development of such guidelines during the interactive dialogue, resolution 12/18 only called for the organization of a panel discussion on the adverse effects of the movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes on the enjoyment of human rights, with a view to informing the future work of the Special Rapporteur.31 50. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the organization of this panel discussion, and encourages the Council to request the new mandate holder to develop such guidelines with a view to clarifying the content of the obligations that States have undertaken under existing human rights treaties to eliminate, or reduce to a minimum, the adverse human rights impact caused by the unsound management and disposal of toxic and dangerous products and wastes. IV. Review of the work of the Special Rapporteur A. Reports to the Human Rights Council 51. In previous annual reports to the Council, the Special Rapporteur provided an indepth analysis of selected thematic issues, chosen on the basis of such criteria as the scale of the phenomenon, its potential or actual adverse impact on human rights and/or the lack of an adequate legal framework to regulate it. At times, these reports led to controversial discussions. For example, a number of States challenged the Special Rapporteur in relation to his analysis of the shortcomings of the Hong Kong Convention on ship recycling, contained in last year’s report (A/HRC/12/26), while other States and NGOs welcomed his conclusions and recommendations on issues such as the pre-cleaning of ships and the gradual phasing-out of the “beaching” method. 52. Thematic reports contribute to clarifying the adverse human rights impact of hazardous products or activities unknown to most human rights practitioners, and to identifying measures that States and other actors should adopt to eliminate, or reduce to a minimum, the threats that such products or activities pose to the enjoyment of human rights. Nevertheless, the Special Rapporteur believes that better use could be made of the extensive research carried out by the mandate holder. B. Country missions 53. During his six-year tenure, the Special Rapporteur carried out country visits to Ukraine, Tanzania, Côte d’Ivoire, the Netherlands, Kyrgyzstan and India. He is grateful to all Governments that responded positively to his requests for invitations. At the same time, he regrets that several countries have not responded to his requests or have denied him access to their territories, despite the repeated calls made by the Council, and previously by 31 GE.10-14907 See supra, paragraph 7. 15