A/HRC/24/55
of the Coordinating Committee consolidated this practice by making a statement from the
floor on behalf of all special procedures mandate holders at the high-level panel discussion
on human rights mainstreaming during the twenty-second session of the Council. He had
also participated in a panel on human rights mainstreaming and the role of special
procedures organized by the Special Procedures Branch in New York on 14 February 2013
and he suggested that those practices would expand the space available to mandate holders
for providing their perspectives in intergovernmental forums.
14.
The Chairperson of the Coordinating Committee discussed general questions
relating to the special procedures system in meetings with stakeholders, including the
President of the Human Rights Council and NGOs. He also raised the importance of
encouraging qualified candidates to apply to become mandate holders in line with the
appointment process established in 2011 as one outcome of the five-year review of the
Council.
15.
The Chairperson of the Coordination Committee referred to the fact that several
mandate holders had raised reprisals-related issues during their interactive dialogues with
the Human Rights Council, noting that it was crucial for individuals and groups to have
unhindered access to human rights mechanisms. The Chairperson raised the issue with
several stakeholders, including NGOs and the President of the Council, asking them to
maintain a strong stance on reprisals. On 13 September 2012 during the twenty-first session
of the Council, the Chairperson had participated in the panel on the issue of intimidation or
reprisal against individuals and groups who cooperate or have cooperated with the United
Nations, its representatives and mechanisms in the field of human rights.
16.
The Chairperson of the Coordination Committee reported that NGOs appreciated the
opportunity to meet regularly with the Coordinating Committee of Special Procedures, but
would not favour the establishment of a formal coordination mechanism, as suggested
during the nineteenth annual meeting. The Chairperson had continued his engagement with
NGOs through informal meetings, in particular in the lead-up to the twentieth annual
meeting.
IV. Exchange of views with the United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights
17.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights referred to the Vienna
Declaration and Programme of Action as a milestone for the international human rights
community and the special procedures system, as it provided the context in which they
could become a key pillar of the United Nations human rights promotion and protection
framework. She recalled that the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna had
acknowledged the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights
including the right to development and that the three United Nations pillars of development,
peace and security and human rights, were equally important. It had also been in Vienna
that the crucial role of civil society, NHRIs and regional human rights arrangements had
been recognized and women’s rights had been put firmly on the international agenda for the
first time.
18.
The High Commissioner deplored the fact that in spite of the commitments made in
Vienna, there were many human rights crises ongoing in many parts of the world, in
particular in the Syrian Arab Republic, where political considerations appeared to have
been prioritized over human rights and her calls for the situation to be referred to the
International Criminal Court had gone unheeded. She indicated that the Special Rapporteur
on the human rights of internally displaced persons had been tasked to report in August to
the General Assembly on the situation of IDPs in the Syrian Arab Republic. She called
6
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents