RES/9/8 Effective implementation of international human rights instruments

Human Rights Council

Resolution 9/8. Effective implementation of international human rights

instruments

The Human Rights Council,

Reaffirming that the full and effective implementation of United Nations human rights

instruments is of major importance to the efforts of the United Nations to promote universal

respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and that the effective

functioning of human rights treaty bodies is indispensable for the full and effective

implementation of such instruments,

Stressing the importance of preserving the independence of the human rights treaty bodies,

Recalling General Assembly resolution 57/202 of 18 December 2002, Commission on

Human Rights resolution 2004/78 of 21 April 2004, and Council resolution 2/5 of

28 November 2006,

Welcoming the establishment of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other

Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which began its work in 2007,

Welcoming also the entry into force on 3 May 2008 of the Convention on the Rights of

Persons with Disabilities and the Optional Protocol thereto, which creates a ninth human rights

treaty body which will begin its work in 2009,

Acknowledging with appreciation the adoption of the International Convention on the

Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance by the General Assembly on

20 December 2006, and noting that, once it enters into force, it will establish an additional treaty

body,

Noting the provisions in the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, the

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the International Convention on the

page 2 Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which establish a two-term limit for

members of the relevant treaty bodies,

1. Acknowledges the important contribution of the human rights treaty bodies in

furthering the effective implementation of the human rights treaties and the interpretation of the

rights contained therein;

2. Takes note with appreciation of:

(a) The report of the Secretary-General on the effective implementation of international

instruments on human rights (A/HRC/4/81);

(b) The reports of the Secretary-General containing the reports of the chairpersons of the

human rights treaty bodies on their sixteenth to nineteenth meetings (A/59/254, A/60/278,

A/61/385 and A/62/224), held in the period 2004-2007, and the reports of the inter-committee

meetings of human rights treaty bodies annexed thereto;

3. Welcomes the measures taken by the human rights treaty bodies to date to improve

their functioning, and encourages continuing efforts aimed at improving the effectiveness of the

treaty body system with a view to a more coordinated approach to its activities and standardized

reporting, including by streamlining, rationalizing, rendering more transparent and otherwise

improving working methods and reporting procedures, inter alia by:

(a) Reducing the duplication of reporting required under the different instruments as

well as the reporting burden on States parties, including through the use of the common-core

document, without impairing the quality of reporting, and focused periodic reports based on the

concluding observations;

(b) Harmonizing the general guidelines regarding the form and content of reports across

all treaty bodies, including through the adoption by each treaty body of revised reporting

guidelines for treaty-specific documents;

(c) Providing preliminary lists of issues to States in advance of consideration of reports

by treaty bodies;

page 3 (d) Coordinating the schedule for the consideration of reports;

(e) Limiting the length of States parties’ reports;

(f) Establishing improved and harmonized methods of work for the treaty bodies and

harmonizing rules of procedure;

(g) Enhancing efforts to provide concrete and practical concluding observations

addressed to States parties, taking into consideration views expressed during the constructive

dialogues with them;

(h) Harmonizing practices relating to the publication and reporting of responses by

States parties to concluding observations and comments made during the constructive dialogues

with a view to enhancing transparency;

(i) Considering harmonizing practices for inviting comments from States and other

stakeholders in the elaboration of general comments, including by publishing a single list of

general comments under consideration;

(j) For treaty bodies dealing with individual complaints, considering further ways of

improving their working methods in this regard;

(k) Further enhancing emphasis on implementation and follow-up;

(l) Taking further measures to assist States parties upon their request with their

reporting obligations, and the preparation of common-core documents;

(m) Harmonizing efforts to consider the situations of some States parties whose reports

are overdue;

(n) Considering the development of harmonized working methods for the exchange of

credible and reliable information between the human rights treaty bodies and non-governmental

organizations and national human rights institutions in all parts of the world;

page 4 (o) Monitoring more effectively the human rights of women in their activities,

integrating a gender perspective throughout their work and assessing the effectiveness of those

efforts;

4. Welcomes the holding of inter-committee meetings of human rights treaty bodies

twice annually to discuss issues of common concern, including improving and further

harmonizing the methods of work of the treaty bodies, and encourages those bodies to continue

this practice;

5. Also welcomes the holding of regular meetings of treaty bodies with States parties,

and encourages the treaty bodies to continue this practice;

6. Further welcomes the contribution to the work of the human rights treaty bodies

made by other United Nations bodies, and encourages the specialized agencies, funds and

programmes, other United Nations bodies, the various organs of the Council, including its

special procedures, the Advisory Committee, the Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Human Rights and the chairpersons of the human rights treaty bodies to

continue to intensify this cooperation and improve communication and information flow to

improve further the quality of their work, including by avoiding unnecessary duplication;

7. Welcomes the launch of the universal periodic review of the Council, which shall

complement and not duplicate the work of the treaty bodies, and the potential of this mechanism

to contribute to the ratification and to promote the implementation of the human rights treaties,

including follow-up to the recommendations of the treaty bodies;

8. Urges States to:

(a) Consider signing and ratifying or acceding to the international human rights

instruments and to consider accepting the individual communications procedures under

applicable instruments if they have not already done so, and to effectively implement their

obligations under instruments to which they are party;

(b) Make every effort to meet their reporting obligations under United Nations human

rights instruments, in particular by submitting initial and overdue reports;

page 5 (c) Submit common-core documents, if they have not already done so, and take into

consideration reporting guidelines for the common-core document and treaty-specific documents

when preparing their reports;

(d) Provide effective follow-up to the concluding observations of the treaty bodies on

their reports;

(e) Disseminate effectively in their territories the full text of the concluding observations

of the treaty bodies on their reports;

(f) Consider carefully the views of the treaty bodies on individual communications

relating to them and to provide adequate follow-up to such views;

(g) Encourage the involvement of civil society, including non-governmental

organizations and other stakeholders including national human rights institutions, in the process

of preparation of reports and in follow-up;

(h) Avail themselves, where necessary, of technical assistance for the purpose of

submitting their core documents or initial reports under United Nations human rights

instruments;

(i) When nominating their candidates to treaty bodies, consider the principle of

non-accumulation of United Nations human rights mandates at a time;

9. Expresses its appreciation for the technical cooperation and training activities

undertaken and reiterates that a priority of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner

for Human Rights should be to provide assistance to States parties, upon their request and, if

possible, in coordination with other United Nations bodies, Governments and other interested

parties, in order to assist States:

(a) In the process of ratifying United Nations human rights instruments;

(b) With the implementation of their obligations under such instruments, including the

preparation of their core documents and initial reports;

page 6 (c) In following up on concluding observations, inter alia, by identifying specific

possibilities for technical assistance which may facilitate such follow-up;

10. Encourages the human rights treaty bodies to continue to identify specific

possibilities for technical assistance, to be provided by the Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Human Rights at the request of the State concerned, in the regular course of

their work of reviewing the periodic reports of States parties, and encourages States parties to

consider carefully the concluding observations of the treaty bodies in identifying their needs for

technical assistance;

11. Welcomes the availability of documentation regarding the treaty bodies on the

website of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the

electronic distribution of concluding observations, general comments and views issued by the

treaty bodies, and encourages the Office to continue to enhance its use of modern technologies,

such as webcasts, with a view to strengthening the treaty body system and its visibility and

making it more accessible to the public, including persons with disabilities, and making more

efficient use of existing resources, including through harmonizing the treaty body websites and

providing the option to States of submitting and receiving electronic copies of documentation

rather than hard copies;

12. Emphasizes the need to ensure financing and adequate staff and information

resources for the operations of the human rights treaty bodies, in particular in view of the

additional demands placed on the system by the creation of new treaty bodies and their

mandates, new reporting requirements, the increasing number of ratifications and enhanced

reporting by States and, with this in mind, reiterates its request that the Secretary-General

provide adequate resources in respect of each treaty body while making the most efficient use of

existing resources, in order to give the human rights treaty bodies adequate administrative

support and better access to technical and legal expertise and relevant information;

13. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the Council annually, in accordance with

its programme of work, on measures taken to implement the present resolution and on obstacles

to its implementation, including recommendations for further improving the effectiveness of,

page 7 harmonizing, and reforming the treaty body system, and to seek the views of States and other

stakeholders in this regard;

14. Decides to consider this question annually in accordance with its programme of work

under the same agenda item.

-----