Credit: CIDH
In December, several universal and regional human rights bodies and experts will assess States’ compliance with their human rights obligations through the consideration of State reports, country visits, and thematic and contentious hearings. Two United Nations treaty bodies will continue their sessions that began in November on issues concerning racial discrimination and torture. Ten United Nations special procedures mandate holders and groups of experts will conduct country visits across five continents in December, and one UN group of experts will hold sessions. Regionally, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) will continue its session and hold thematic hearings on specific human rights issues in the United States and Canada. The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) will hold sessions, and the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) will hear two cases related to the right to assistance of counsel and the application of Islamic law in national courts, respectively.
The UN treaty bodies’ sessions may be watched via UN Web TV. The IACHR sessions may be viewed on its YouTube channel. The ECtHR hearings may be viewed on its webcast.
To view human rights bodies’ past and future activities, visit the IJRC Hearings & Sessions Calendar.
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 94th Session
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) will continue its 94th Session, which began on November 20 and will continue through December 8, 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland. According to the agenda and programme of work, the CERD reviewed the State reports of Algeria, Australia, Jordan, and Serbia, and will review the State reports of Slovakia and Belarus in the last days of November. The CERD will issue concluding observations at a later date with notations on positive developments and challenges to the implementation of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
According to the Information Note for non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society submissions, including “alternative reports,” should have been submitted by October 30, 2017 for this session. Additionally, to attend the session, civil society members should have registered online by November 15, 2017. NGOs may attend the sessions with delegations, but may not make statements during sessions with States under review; however, NGOs may organize “informal meetings” to present to Committee members. NHRIs not accredited by the Human Rights Council may also attend but not speak at the sessions; they may hold informal meetings with Committee members.
To view the session documents, including State reports, visit the 94th Session webpage. For more information on the CERD, visit IJRC’s Online Resource Hub.
Committee Against Torture 62nd Session
The Committee Against Torture (CAT) will continue its 62nd Session, which began on November 6, and will continue through December 6, 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland. According to the programme of work and the agenda, the CAT reviewed the State reports of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Italy, Mauritius, Republic of Moldova, Rwanda, and Timor-Leste earlier in November. After considering State reports, the CAT will at a later date issue concluding observations on each State, noting the positive developments and challenges to implementation of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. According to the session page, the CAT is also due to adopt lists of issues for Mauritania and Tajikistan, as well as lists of issues prior to reporting for Austria, Malawi, Serbia, Slovakia, Somalia, Spain, and Switzerland. The former will respond to the lists of issues ahead of their interactive dialogue with the CAT, and the latter will submit their responses to be considered as their State report.
According to the programme of work, CAT will hold private meetings with civil society. Each scheduled meeting with NGOs corresponds to a single country under review. For example, on day one of the session, a private meeting is scheduled with NGOs on the reporting of Moldova.
The CAT will also hold closed meetings with the European Court of Human Rights, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
To view the session documents, including State reports, visit the 62nd Session webpage. For more information on the CAT, visit IJRC’s Online Resource Hub.
UN Special Procedures
In December, seven individual special procedure mandate holders and three groups of experts will conduct country visits, and one working group will hold sessions in Geneva, Switzerland.
The Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression will continue his visit to Mexico, which began on November 27, 2017 and will conclude on December 4, 2017.
The Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order will continue his joint visit to Venezuela and Ecuador, which began on November 27, 2017 and will conclude on December 4, 2017.
The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association will continue her visit to Spain, which began on November 27, 2017 and will conclude on December 4, 2017.
The Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights will visit the United States of America from December 4, 2017 to December 15, 2017.
The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention will visit Sri Lanka from December 4, 2017 to December 15, 2017.
The Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice will visit Chad from December 4, 2017 to December 14, 2017.
The Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences will visit The Bahamas from December 11, 2017 to December 15, 2017.
The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will visit the Republic of Korea from December 11, 2017 to December 14, 2017.
The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will also visit Japan from December 15, 2017 to December 16, 2017.
The Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination will visit Ghana from December 8, 2017 to December 15, 2017.
The Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination will also continue its 32nd session in Geneva, Switzerland, which began on November 27 and will conclude on December 1, 2017.
The purpose of a country visit is for the mandate holder to assess the overall human rights situation in the State and the issues specific to their thematic focus. During the visit, the special rapporteur, independent expert, or working group of experts will collect information from the government, non-governmental organizations, and national human rights institutions. This information will be compiled in a report, to be presented at a later time before the UN Human Rights Council and the General Assembly.
To view the full list of forthcoming country visits, visit the OHCHR website. For more information on each special procedure mandate holder, visit IJRC’s Online Resource Hub.
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights 166th Extraordinary Session
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) will continue its 166th Extraordinary Session at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The 166th Extraordinary Session begins on November 29 and will continue to December 7, 2017. The IACHR will hold public hearings on December 7, 2017 on matters related to the United States and Canada. The online system to submit requests for a hearing or meeting is currently closed. [IACHR Press Release] According to the schedule of hearings, the Commission will hear on the economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights in Puerto Rico; labor rights in the automotive industry in the United States; the rights to freedom of association, freedom of assembly, and freedom of expression in the United States; impunity for extrajudicial executions in the United States; sexual discrimination in the Indian Act of Canada; measures to prevent human rights violations by the Canadian extractive industries that operate in Latin America; follow-up and implementation of international human rights obligations in Canada; and follow-up of the recommendations of the Commission’s report on asylum seekers in Canada.
The IACHR is a regional body in the Americas that promotes and protects human rights violations within the Member States of the Organization of American States. The IACHR regularly holds thematic and contentious hearings during its sessions. Both individuals and NGOs may submit requests for thematic hearings and submit complaints on alleged human rights violations.
For more information on the IACHR, visit IJRC’s Online Resource Hub.
European Committee of Social Rights 296th Session
The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) of the Council of Europe will hold its 296th Session from December 4 to December 8, 2017 in Strasbourg, France. The agenda for the session can be found on the European Committee of Social Right’s calendar.
The ECSR assesses States’ compliance with the European Social Charter, which protects economic and social rights. During its sessions, the ECSR reviews collective complaints, examines national reports, and follows up on the Turin process, which aims to improve implementation of the Charter at the continental level. According to the agenda for this session, the ECSR will adopt conclusions on the States that were under review during the 2017 calendar year.
According to the ECSR’s calendar for national reporting, it considered State reports concerning the Charter rights on health, social security, and social protection from France, Greece, Portugal, Italy, Belgium, Bulgaria, Ireland, and Finland throughout the 2017 calendar year. The ECSR considered simplified reports on the same topic from the Netherlands, Sweden, Croatia, Norway, Slovenia, Cyprus, and the Czech Republic. Simplified reports focus on areas of non-conformity identified in the Committee’s previous conclusions. The Committee adopts and publishes conclusions at the end of the calendar year on each State’s compliance with the relevant provisions of the European Social Charter. The Committee’s conclusions may also include recommendations. See IJRC, European Committee of Social Rights.
The ECSR is a regional human rights body that oversees the protection of certain economic and social rights in most of Europe. In addition to the reporting system, the Committee also receives collective complaints against States on violations of the European Social Charter. Fifteen States have accepted the jurisdiction of the collective complaints procedure. See IJRC, European Committee of Social Rights.
For more information on the European Committee of Social Rights, visit IJRC’s website.
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) will hold two Grand Chamber hearings in the month of December.
On December 6, 2017, the ECtHR will hold a hearing in the case of Molla Sali v. Greece. The case concerns whether it was appropriate for Greek courts to apply Islamic religious (Sharia) law to a dispute over the estate of the Applicant’s late husband, a Greek national and member of the country’s Muslim minority. [ECtHR Press Release: Molla Sali] The Court will consider whether the Greek courts’ rulings violate the European Convention on Human Rights under Article 6(1) (right to a fair hearing), taken alone and in conjunction with Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination), as well as Article 1 of the Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (protection of property). [ECtHR Press Release: Molla Sali]
On December 20, 2017, the ECtHR will hold a hearing in the case of Beuze v. Belgium. The case concerns an applicant who was sentenced to life imprisonment at a time when Belgian legislation did not provide for the assistance of counsel in the preliminary stage of the trial. [ECtHR Press Release: Beuze] The Applicant argues that failure to provide counsel in the preliminary stages of proceedings is a violation of Article 6(1) and 6(3)(c) (right to a fair trial and right to be assisted by a lawyer) of the European Convention on Human Rights. [ECtHR Press Release: Beuze]
The ECtHR is a regional human rights judicial body based in Strasbourg, France. The Court has jurisdiction over alleged human rights violations under the European Convention on Human Rights, which may be submitted by individuals and States against States parties to the Convention.
For more information on the European Court of Human Rights, visit IJRC’s Online Resource Hub.
Additional Information
For more information on UN treaty bodies; the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination; the Committee Against Torture; the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; the Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order; the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights; the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention; the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice; the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination; the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences; the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; the European Committee of Social Rights; the European Court of Human Rights; or for upcoming sessions and hearings, visit IJRC’s Online Resource Hub.