A/HRC/4/42 page 22 67. The Working Group suggests that the global round table be preceded by regional preparatory round tables, and welcomes the willingness indicated by a number of States to host such meetings: Armenia, Costa Rica, Ghana, Honduras, Lebanon, Morocco, Mexico and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of). Before receiving suggestions from Governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to be included in the agenda of the regional preparatory round tables, below are some examples of questions that could be raised for discussion at these round tables: − Should States reclaim full responsibility for their armed forces, without outsourcing any of their functions to private actors? − Alternatively, should States outsource as many of their military functions as they need but retain a contractual relationship with the private entities, therefore retaining their monopoly on the use of force, and therefore also retaining their prime responsibility for the ultimate outcomes and effects? − Are States prepared to hand over security and military services to private companies, and to consider the consequences and implement measures to ensure that private companies and individual employees are accountable and do not enjoy impunity for human rights violations? − If States are able to cede the monopoly of the use of force to PMSCs, what are the exact human rights obligations and responsibilities of non-State actors? − What are the main human rights and humanitarian principles to be articulated between the State contracting out their military functions and the private actors? − Should intergovernmental organizations also consider formalizing an arrangement, currently ad hoc, on the use of private actors to provide security, and even advanced military activities in situations where, say, genocide, or serious human rights violations are taking place, prior to the use of peacekeeping and peace-building initiatives?36 − If there is to be a “shared monopoly” of the use of force, between States and intergovernmental organizations on one hand and private actors on the other, what should be the terms and conditions of such a shared responsibility? 68. Provided financial and other resources, the Working Group would welcome the holding of the regional preparatory round tables during 2007, on the issue of the monopoly by the State of the use of force, with a view to holding a global round table in 2008. The outcome of the regional preparatory round tables will be reported to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly. 36 See also report of the Secretary-General, “In larger freedom” (A/59/2005).