Background Briefing

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Introduction

The Human Rights Council (HRC) will meet for the first time on June 19, 2006 in Geneva. Its creation is a landmark for the promotion and protection of human rights. Human rights defenders around the world—and the victims of human rights violations—will now look to this body to provide real and effective leadership.

Expectations are high. The credibility deficit of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), especially in its later years, created a demand for a body that is principled, credible, objective, firm in its dealings with governments, and timely in its response.

The HRC cannot be business as usual. It cannot return to the same kind of tired and discredited horse-trading around resolutions as was so often seen in its predecessor. Nor will human rights activists be satisfied with a series of recommendations and proposals that are never followed up and thus provide no basis for action. It is vital that—beginning with the first session—the Council respond effectively to human rights violations.

The fact that the HRC is to meet no less than three times a year is already a major step forward that will allow for more timely response to developing human rights situations. The “responsibility to protect,” endorsed in recent months by both the General Assembly (G.A.) and the Security Council, provides an extremely important imperative for the HRC: ensuring a timely and effective response to deteriorating human rights situations such that other, more drastic measures are not required to save lives and ease suffering.

While there was widespread agreement in the General Assembly that the highly politicized debate over country resolutions was rendering the former CHR dysfunctional, there was much less agreement over the solution. The good news is the new Council will have more tools to address various human rights situations. The first Council will be particularly important in developing the “universal periodic review,” and also for establishing a tradition of sound judgment in choosing among the various means available to address different human rights situations.

In this brief initial paper, Human Rights Watch seeks to contribute to the ongoing discussions about how the Council should function and develop its work. We recognize that this is a continuing dialogue in which positions will evolve, including our own. The first year of the Council will be one of transition, but also a unique occasion to build a principal human rights organ that delivers results in the short, medium, and long term. This paper primarily focuses on the universal periodic review, country situations, and the review of special procedures. It does not focus on the structure or agenda of the first Council session in June 2006.


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