The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recently published its 2009 update on the roles and activities of the Special Procedures established by the U.N. Human Rights Council, which include country-specific and thematic special rapporteurships and working groups. See the report, “United Nations Special Procedures: Facts and Figures 2009” here. See the list of thematic special procedures on this blog.
Page 16 of the report highlights some of the human rights successes related to special procedures’ work in 2009, including a moratorium on the use of the death penalty in Mongolia. A review of the press releases and other public statements issued by the special procedures in 2009 (pages 20-26) provides an interesting synopsis of the issues of concern last year.