HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE

Eighty-ninth session

New York, 12-30 March 2007

Decision on the Report of the Working Group on the Harmonization of Working Methods of Treaty Bodies (HRI/MC/2007/2)

The Human Rights Committee

Appreciates the Report’s description of the discussions of the Working Group.

Understands from its representative at the meeting of the Working Group that the Preliminary Points of agreement, many of which have merits, were not in fact formally adopted by the Working Group and accordingly have no official status.

In particular, the Human Rights Committee does not concur with the idea of the establishment of a “small group to examine the substantive elements of a proposal for the creation of a unified body for communications”.

Agrees to participate at the next meeting of the Working Group.

Mandates its representative to participate in a discussion on the handling of individual communications that should be limited to dealing with how to promote harmonization of procedures for dealing with such communications.

Requests that this decision be brought to the attention of the next meeting of the Working Group and reproduced in its report.

Requests further that this decision be reproduced in the Annual Report of the Human Rights Committee.

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GE.07-41157