A/HRC/4/84 page 4 I. INTRODUCTION 1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council decision 2/102 of 6 October 2006, requesting the High Commissioner for Human Rights to “continue with the fulfilment of her activities, in accordance with all previous decisions adopted by the Commission on Human Rights and to update the relevant reports and studies”. 2. The updated Set of Principles for the protection and promotion of human rights through action to combat impunity (E/CN.4/2005/102/Add.1) affirms the need for a comprehensive approach towards combating impunity, including undertaking investigations and prosecutions of those suspected of criminal responsibility, ensuring effective remedies and reparations to victims, ensuring the inalienable right to know the truth about violations, and taking other necessary steps to prevent a recurrence of violations. The Commission on Human Rights, in its resolution 2005/81 on impunity, inter alia, encouraged “States, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations to consider the recommendations and best practices identified in the independent study on impunity (E/CN.4/2004/88) as well as the updated Set of Principles, as appropriate, in developing and implementing effective measures to combat impunity, including efforts ... in the design of judicial mechanisms and truth and reconciliation commissions and other commissions of inquiry” (para. 21). 3. The resolution also requested the Secretary-General, inter alia, to report on the latest developments in international law and practice relevant to combating impunity, including international jurisprudence and State practice, and the work of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and other parts of the United Nations system. 4. The independent study on impunity, undertaken by Diane Orentlicher, identified best practices and recommendations to assist States in strengthening their domestic capacity to combat all aspects of impunity. The study noted, inter alia, that since its submission to the Commission in 1997, the Set of Principles for the protection and promotion of human rights through action to combat impunity has played an influential role in strengthening domestic efforts to combat impunity and received strong affirmation in decisions by international criminal tribunals and human rights treaty bodies. Furthermore, the study found that recent experience reinforced a central premise of the Set of Principles that an effective programme for combating impunity requires a comprehensive strategy and that another factor behind a successful programme is the broad participation of citizens, including victims, in deliberations about their design. Another recurring theme was that domestic efforts to combat impunity have been significantly enhanced by States’ adherence to human rights treaties and their acceptance of optional complaint procedures. 5. Subsequently, and pursuant to Commission resolution 2004/72, the Set of Principles has been updated (E/CN.4/2005/102/Add.1) to reflect developments in substantive international law and major institutional developments, such as the emergence of courts comprising both national and international elements. Furthermore, some revisions reflected developments in State practice that have provided valuable insights concerning effective strategies for combating impunity, such as affirming the central importance of promoting the broad participation of victims and other citizens in the design and implementation of programmes for combating impunity. Additional revisions reflected the cumulative experience of States, the