UN Photo /Jean-Marc Ferré
The 38th session of the UN Human Rights Council, from 18 June to 6 July 2018, will consider issues including sexual orientation and gender identiy, freedom of association, assembly, expression and women's rights. It will also present an opportunity to address grave human rights situations in States including Burundi, Syria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea and Belarus among many others. Here’s an overview of some of the key issues on the agenda.
The UN Human Rights Council (the Council) will hold its 38th regular session at Palais des Nations in Geneva from 18 June to 6 July 2018.
Stay up-to-date: Follow @ISHRglobal and #HRC38 on Twitter, and look out for our Human Rights Council Monitor.
Don’t miss this side event organised by ISHR:
Here are some highlights of the session’s thematic discussions.
The first interactive dialogue with the new Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity will be held between 9:00 and 12:00 on Monday 18 June. The Council will consider the new report of the mandate holder as well as the report of the country visit to Argentina.
In a joint written submission to the Independent Expert submitted in the lead-up to the presentation of his report to the Council, a group of 12 NGOs detail State obligations that if implemented, would work towards ensuring that LGBTI defenders’ rights are protected.
According to these State obligations based in existing international human rights law and articulated in the Yogyakarta Principles (YP) and Yogyakarta Principles plus 10, (YP +10) States should, among other things, exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate, prosecute, punish, and provide remedies for discrimination, violence, and other harm on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics (SOGIESC) and enact a law to establish, designate, or maintain an adequately resourced mechanism for the protection of LGBTI rights defenders.
The submission also makes calls on the Independent Expert to:
Use the authoritative interpretations in the YP and the YP +10 in engagement with States on issues relating to LGBTI defenders; and
Engage with other relevant Special Procedures mandate holders and LGBTI rights defenders to identify protection needs of these individuals and organisations.
ISHR and ILGA will organise a side-event that will build on this submission and discuss in more detail State obligations set out in the YP +10. The event will take place on 21 June 2018 from 15:00 to 16:30 in Room XXIII.
Reports of cases of intimidation and reprisal against those seeking to cooperate with the UN not only continue, but grow. Intimidation and reprisal, not only constitute a violation of the rights of that individual, they also constitute violations of international human rights law and undermine the human rights system.
The passage of the resolution on reprisals last September at the 36th session of the Council that affirmed the particular responsibilities of its Members, President and Vice-Presidents to investigate and promote accountability for reprisals and intimidation; as well as the appointment of the UN Assistant Secretary-General as the Senior Official on addressing reprisals in October 2016 are indications of action taken by the UN on this issue. However, ISHR remains deeply concerned about reprisals against civil society actors who try to engage with UN mechanisms.
Item 5 of the Human Rights Council’s agenda provides a key opportunity for States to raise concerns about reprisals, and for governments involved in existing cases to provide an update to the Council on any investigation or action taken toward accountability to be carried out.
During the organisational meeting held on 4 June, the President of the Council again stressed the importance of ensuring the safety of those participating in the Council’s work, and the obligation of States to prevent intimidation or reprisals. Further, the President informed the Bureau that he has received a number of complaints of acts of reprisal and intimidation, and underscored his practice to consider carefully and respond promptly to allegations brought to his attention. The President further informed that he had discussed this issue with the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights during his recent visit to New York, including on how to strengthen the cooperation and coordination among the Presidency, the Assistant Secretary-General and OHCHR in this area to strengthen the response.
In line with previous calls, ISHR expects the President to publicly identify and denounce specific instances of reprisals by issuing formal statements, conducting press-briefings, corresponding directly with the State concerned, publicly releasing such correspondence with and from States, and insist on undertakings from the State concerned to investigate, hold the perpetrators accountable and report back to the Council concerning measures taken.
The annual full day discussion on the human rights of women will take place on Thursday 21 June at 16h to 18h. It will focus on the specific impact of online violence on the work of women human rights defenders. It is crucial that the Council’s discussions and resolutions recognise the critical role of women human rights defenders (WHRDs) and organisations led by women and girls as rights holders and agents of change.
ISHR will support joint advocacy on the resolutions on violence against women and discrimination against women as well as deliver a statement by a coalition of women human rights defenders at the annual full day discussion.
The Council will hold an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences on 20 June between 09:00 and 12:00 and will consider her report including the report of her visit to Australia. The Council will also hold an interactive dialogue with the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice and will consider their reports including a report on the country visit to Samoa and Chad.
The Council will hold an interactive dialogue with and consider the report of the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises. It examines the duty of States to protect against human rights abuses by business enterprises to whom they provide support for trade and investment promotion. It will also consider the Working Group’s report on its mission to Canada, Peru, and on the sixth session of the Forum on Business and Human Rights. Both country reports contain specific sections analysing the situation of human rights defenders, with the report on Peru raising serious concerns about the high level of threats, attacks and violence against local leaders and HRDs. The interactive dialogue will be an opportunity for States to follow-up to recommendations made in the UPR in that regard.
The Council will also consider the report of the High Commissioner on the effectiveness of State-based non-judicial mechanisms that are relevant for the respect by business enterprises for human rights, including in a cross-border context, including an addendum on improving accountability and access to remedy for victims of business-related human rights abuse through State-based non-judicial mechanisms and on the relevance of human rights due diligence to determinations of corporate liability.
The core group on the resolution business and human rights (Argentina, Norway, Ghana and Russia) have announced that they will present a resolution at this Council session to request the OHCHR to continue with the accountability and remedy report with a focus on non-State based remedy mechanisms. The first informal consultation on the draft resolution will be held on 18 June at 16:30 in Room XXIV.
Colombia announced on behalf of the core group (Sierra Leone, Norway, and Switzerland) that they will present a draft resolution this session on the implementation of the prevention mandate of the Council as per paragraph 5f of the General Assembly resolution 60/251, building on the joint statements delivered in by Norway at the 36th session and by Sierra Leone at the 37th session of the Council.
The resolution will call for the creation of an expert group to present to the Council at its 42nd session recommendation on improving the implementation of its prevention mandate. The first informal consultation will be held on 19 June.
The Council will hold an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants on 20 June between 09:00 and 12:00 as well as consider his first report, with a focus on the safe return and reintegration of migrants, and his mission report to Nepal.
The Council will also hold an interactive dialogue and consider the report of the new Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. Switzerland with Costa Rica also announced that they will be running the resolution on the protection and promotion of human rights in the context of peaceful protests. The first informal consultations will be held on 19 June from 11:30 to 12:30 in Room V.
The Council will also hold an interactive dialogue and consider the report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, which examines regulation of user-generated content online.
The Council will consider the report of the High Commissioner on procedures and practices in respect of civil society engagement with international and regional organizations. The core group on the civil society space resolution (Chile, Ireland, Japan, Sierra Leone and Tunisia) announced that they will present a resolution this session.
The Council will also consider the reports of and hold interactive dialogues with the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, including the report of his mission to Poland, and with the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, including reports of her missions to Iraq and El Salvador.
During its 36th session, the Council passed two resolutions on Burundi; one led by the European Union extending the mandate of the Commission of Inquiry and a second resolution by the African Group that requested OHCHR to urgently dispatch a team of three experts to engage with the Burundian authorities and all other stakeholders to “collect and preserve information, to determine the facts and circumstances in accordance with international standards and to forward to the judicial authorities of Burundi such information” in order to establish the truth and ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable. Read here ISHR’s analysis of the two resolutions.
At the 38th session, the Council will hear the oral briefing by the High Commissioner on the mission of OHCHR on 4 July between 15:00 and 18:00. The Council will also hear an oral briefing by the Commission of Inquiry on 27 June between 09:00 and 12:00.
ISHR continues to remain highly concerned about the human rights situation in Burundi and its refusal to cooperate with the Council’s mechanisms, which taken together clearly warrant an invitation to the General Assembly to consider the suspension of Burundi as a member of the Council.
For more information on the situation of human rights defenders in Burundi, check ISHR Briefing Paper for the UPR here.
By any measure, the Chinese government is not living up to the commitments to protect and promote human rights inherent in its Human Rights Council membership. Since the twelve-country joint statement on the human rights situation in China in March 2016, there has been no concerted effort to use the Council space creatively to call for accountability and transparency related to violations in China. This, despite the fact that in July 2017, Chinese security authorities presided over the death in custody of Liu Xiaobo, the first Nobel Peace Prize winner to die in detention since Carl von Ossietzky died in Nazi Germany in 1938.
ISHR calls on States to take joint and individual actions at the 38th session. Such action is warranted based on the above criteria and should take into account the dangerous environment in the country for human rights and those who defend them, and should serve to hold China accountable to the standards to which the government has committed. Specifically, we urge States to:
Condemn China’s refusal to allow Liu Xia, a poet and activist and the wife of Liu Xiaobo, to travel and communicate freely. She has been under de facto house arrest, and occasionally held incommunicado in an unknown location, since October 2010. Her physical and psychological health has deteriorated significantly, especially since Liu Xiaobo’s death in custody in July 2017.
Demand full access for independent observers, including possibly UN experts, to Xinjiang in order to verify the facts related to the reports of large-scale detentions of Uyghurs and restrictions on fundamental freedoms, including freedom of religious belief.
Continue to call for the release of individuals arbitrarily detained and/or held incommunicado, including Wang Quanzhang, Gui Minhai, Tashi Wangchuk, Lee Ming-che, and Yu Wensheng.
The Council will hold an interactive dialogue with and consider the report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea on 25 June.
ISHR joined a cross-regional group of non-governmental organisations to share their serious concerns over the systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations that continue to be committed with impunity in Eritrea.
The organisations urged Member and Observer States of the Council to support and co-sponsor at the 38th session a streamlined resolution that accurately reflects the gravity of the situation on the ground, renews the mandate of the Special Rapporteur under the Council’s agenda item 4, and sets out a framework for needed reforms to improve the human rights situation in the country and advance accountability.
The Council will hear reports on and is expected to consider resolutions addressing a range of country situations, in many instances involving the renewal of the relevant expert mandates.They include:
During this session, the Council will adopt the UPR working group reports as part of the 29th session of the UPR. These reports list recommendations the following States under review are expected to implement: France, Tonga, Romania, Mali, Botswana, the Bahamas, Burundi, Luxembourg, Barbados, Montenegro, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Liechtenstein, and Serbia.
ISHR supports human rights defenders in their interaction with the UPR. We publish and submit briefing papers regarding the situation facing human rights defenders in some States under review and advocate for the UPR to be used as mechanism to support and protect human rights defenders on the ground. This session of the Council will provide an opportunity for Burundi, Mali and the United Arab Emirates to to accept recommendations made in relation to human rights defenders, as proposed in ISHR’s briefing papers on those countries.
During the organisational meeting for the 38th session held on 4 June 2018, the President of the Human Rights Council presented the programme of work. It includes four panels of discussion and 52 reports. States also announced at least 16 resolutions. However, more resolutions are expected to be presented during the session as per the 2018 voluntary yearly calendar of thematic resolutions.
The President of the Human Rights Council has proposed candidates for the following nine vacancies of mandate holders to be filled at this session:
In view of the pending appointments, it is relevant to recall that in appointing mandate holders, the President of the Council is required to give particular attention to the need to avoid actual or perceived conflicts of interest. Mandate holders should also be genuinely committed to the independence and effectiveness of the special procedures system, and have a demonstrated commitment to civil society engagement and participation.
The Council appointed new Bureau members due to the departure of the Ambassadors of Chile and Germany. The members of the Bureau for 2018 now comprises of the following Ambassadors:
At the organisational meeting the following resolutions were announced (States sponsoring the resolution in brackets):
Furthermore, according to the voluntary calendar for resolutions, it is possible that the following resolutions could also be presented at this session:
During each Council session, panel discussions are held to provide member States and NGOs with opportunities to hear from subject-matter experts and raise questions. All panel discussions will be broadcast live and archived on http://webtv.un.org. Four panel discussions are scheduled for this upcoming session:
States and NGOs are holding a series of events. You can download the list of State events here and NGO events here.
Photo: UN Photo_Jean-Marc Ferré
On Tuesday 16 April 2024, ISHR delivered to both Geneva’s Administrative Council and its legislative counterpart, the Municipal Council, physical copies of the more than 1000 signatures collected in support of a memorial honouring Chinese human rights defender Cao Shunli.
The 79th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights will be held in Banjul, The Gambia, from 14 May to 3 June 2024. The session will be preceded by the NGO Forum, which will be held in hybrid format from the 11-13 May 2024.
13 April 2024 marked one year since the Chinese authorities arbitrarily detained prominent human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng and his wife, woman defender Xu Yan. As their health steadily deteriorates, 30 rights groups and the European Union have renewed their call for their prompt release.
