Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Working methods *

Introduction

1.The present working methods, which are subject to periodic review, were developed to guide the work of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and to complement the Committee’s rules of procedure.

2.The present working methods reflect the eight general principles that underpin the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

I.Reports of States Parties

A.Consideration of reports submitted by States Parties

General

3.According to article 35 (1) and (2) of the Convention, States Parties are obliged to submit to the Committee, within two years of the entry into force of the Convention and every four years thereafter, a report on the implementation of the Convention in the State Party concerned. The Committee will endeavour to engage in constructive dialogue with States Parties with the aim of helping them to better implement the Convention.

4.The Committee, through the Secretary-General, will notify reporting States Parties of the dates, duration and venue of the session at which their reports will be examined.

5.State Party reports will be examined in public meetings of the Committee. All relevant stakeholders may attend, including representatives of organizations of persons with disabilities, persons with disabilities and their families, and other interested parties. Summary records of the meetings will be published.

6.The Chair of the Committee, or the representative thereof, will conduct a constructive dialogue with the reporting State Party. The Committee, through the Secretary-General, will invite the State Party to be represented at the dialogue by a delegation. During the dialogue, the Chair will invite the delegation to present the report, focusing on relevant new developments since its submission. The Chair will invite members of the Committee to pose questions or to comment on the first group of rights to be reported on, as provided for in the reporting guidelines, and accord the delegation time to respond. The deliberations will proceed in the same manner for the next group of rights, until the Committee’s questions regarding all the groups of rights under the Convention have been addressed. The Chair will then invite the delegation of the State Party to give a closing statement.

B.List of issues

7.On the basis of information at its disposal, the Committee will formulate in advance a list of issues for which information supplementary to that contained in the common core document and the treaty‑specific document is required. States Parties will be requested to provide brief and precise replies in writing, not exceeding 30 pages. States Parties may submit additional pages of statistical data, which will be made available to Committee members in their original format, as submitted.

C.Examination of State Party reports

8.The selection of reports to be examined by the Committee will normally be based on the chronological order of receipt, with priority given to initial and long-overdue reports.

9.The Committee will normally reserve two three-hour meetings for the examination of State Party reports.

10.If a State Party does not send a delegation or requests a postponement of the constructive dialogue with the Committee, the Committee may decide to proceed with the dialogue without the presence of a delegation or, alternatively, agree to postpone the dialogue.

D.Participation of Committee members in the examination of reports

11.Members of the Committee will not participate in any aspect of the examination of reports submitted by States Parties of which they are nationals.

E.Role of the country rapporteur

12.The Committee may name one or two members as country rapporteurs on each report received from States Parties.

13.The country rapporteur will prepare a draft list of issues on the State Party report for which they are responsible prior to the dialogue, and draft concluding observations following the constructive dialogue.

F.State Party delegation

14.The delegations of reporting States Parties should comprise persons who possess the knowledge, competence and authority to explain all aspects of the human rights situation of persons with disabilities in the reporting State and to respond to the Committee’s questions and comments concerning the implementation of the Convention.

G.Concluding observations

15.Following the constructive dialogue with a State Party, the Committee will adopt its concluding observations in a closed meeting.

16.The concluding observations will comprise the following sections:

(a)Introduction;

(b)Positive aspects;

(c)Factors and difficulties that impede the implementation of the Convention;

(d)Principal topics of concern;

(e)Suggestions and recommendations.

17.In its concluding observations, the Committee may request a State Party to submit complementary information, in accordance with article 36 of the Convention and within a set deadline, in order to better evaluate the level of implementation of the Convention in the State Party concerned.

18.The Committee will include in its reports to the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council the text of its concluding observations to the States Parties whose reports it has examined, together with any comments received from the States Parties concerned.

H.Publication of concluding observations

19.Once adopted, the concluding observations will be transmitted to the State Party concerned. Concluding observations will be made public on the last day of the session at which they were adopted, and posted on the website of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). They will be included in the Committee’s sessional and biennial reports to the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council.

20.The Committee’s concluding observations will be made available to all concerned departments, agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations, as well as other competent organizations that wish to participate in international cooperation.

I.Follow-up to concluding observations

21.States Parties will be requested to focus in a detailed manner on the topics of concern identified by the Committee in its concluding observations.

22.The Committee may request States Parties to provide written information on the implementation of the suggestions and recommendations contained in the concluding observations adopted in relation to their previous report.

23.The Committee may appoint one of its members to serve as rapporteur to follow up on the concluding observations adopted in relation to a State Party report. The country rapporteur on a report may be called upon to serve as the follow-up rapporteur on the corresponding concluding observations.

24.The follow-up rapporteur will establish a deadline, not exceeding 12 months from the date of notification, for States Parties to submit the information requested. Once the requested information is received from the State Party, the follow-up rapporteur will submit a follow‑up report to the Committee within two months. The follow-up rapporteur will inform the Committee if the requested information is not received by the deadline.

J.Documentation supplied by the Secretariat

25.The Secretariat will prepare a country file on each reporting State Party, including country-specific information provided by specialized United Nations agencies, national human rights institutions and civil society organizations.

26.The Secretariat will also prepare a country profile on each reporting State Party. The file will be updated and made available to the members of the Committee in accessible formats.

27.The Secretariat will provide all official documentation required by the members of the Committee well in advance, but at least one month prior to the start of each session. Such documentation will be made available in the working languages of the Committee and in accessible formats. Other documentation will be transmitted as received.

K.Early awareness and urgent action procedures

28.The early awareness and urgent action procedures are aimed at preventing existing problems within States Parties from escalating into fully fledged conflicts or at preventing the revival of pre-existing problems. They are also used to consider issues that may require immediate attention in order to avoid serious violations of the Convention or to reduce the number or degree of such violations.

29.The Committee or interested parties, including non-governmental organizations (NGOs), may request activation of the early awareness and urgent action procedures. Such requests should be submitted to the Committee in writing, accompanied by supporting evidence or information to justify the request. The Committee will establish a working group on early awareness and urgent action to oversee the procedure, which will include examination of the requests for activation of the procedure, formulation of recommendations to the Committee with regard to the request, authorization of written communication to the State Party concerned and the formulation of questions.

30.Representatives of the State Party concerned will be invited to meet with the working group to discuss the main concerns. The members of the working group will pose questions to the State Party representatives, who will be expected to provide responses. The working group may also examine the material in the absence of State Party representatives. NGOs and other interested parties may submit comments in writing. Following the examination of the problem, the Committee will adopt a final decision, in which the State Party concerned may be asked to take certain specific measures to rectify the situation and submit further information in its next periodic report.

31.A follow-up rapporteur on early awareness and urgent action may be designated to follow up on the procedures, similarly to the follow-up rapporteur on concluding observations.

II.Relationship with other organizations and agencies for the completion of the work of the Committee

A.Submission of written information by specialized agencies

32.In accordance with article 38 of the Convention, the Committee may invite specialized agencies and other United Nations organs to submit written information on the implementation of the Convention in their areas of competency.

33.The Committee may invite specialized agencies to provide specialized advice on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within their respective mandates.

34.The Committee may indicate the time limit within which such information must be submitted to it.

B.Participation of representatives of United Nations specialized agencies

35.The representatives of specialized agencies of the United Nations may participate in the public meetings of the Committee.

36.The Committee will designate one or more of its members to act as coordinators for its relationship with other United Nations entities.

C.Interaction with special procedure mandate holders

37.The Committee will invite special procedure mandate holders active in areas that are relevant to its work to attend its sessions. The special procedure mandate holders may be invited to address the Committee and participate in its deliberations.

38.The Committee will invite the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities to attend a session at least once a year in order to report on relevant aspects of the mandate. The Special Rapporteur may also submit written information regarding reporting States Parties.

39.In addition, the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities will have the right to participate in all of the public sessions of the Committee.

D.Participation of national human rights institutions

40.The Committee will invite national human rights institutions to contribute actively and independently to States Parties’ preparation of reports, and to submit information to the Committee on reporting States Parties.

41.Contributions from national human rights institutions must also take into consideration the diversity of persons with disabilities.

42.The Committee may designate focal points to foster interaction with national human rights institutions, as it deems necessary.

E.Participation of civil society, including non-governmental organizations

43.Pursuant to article 38 (a) of the Convention, the Committee may invite specialized agencies and other competent bodies to provide expert advice on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of their respective mandates.

44.Considering the importance of organizations of persons with disabilities, particularly in terms of their design, application and evaluation of public policies, legislation, plans and programmes, the Committee emphasizes the importance of the participation and consultation of such organizations by States Parties in the preparation of their reports, in order to reflect the reality of persons with disabilities. States Parties are encouraged to provide reasonable accommodation and support to enable effective contributions from the diversity of persons with disabilities.

1.Submission of written information

45.The Committee welcomes the submission of reports and other documentation by NGOs, in particular organizations (international, regional, national or local) of persons with diverse disabilities, which enable it to have a more complete understanding of various problems affecting the implementation of the Convention in a specific State Party. Similar information can be submitted by NGO coalitions or committees. The Committee requests that such information be transmitted to it at least two months prior to the relevant session of the Committee.

46.Written reports should take into account the perspective of gender, age and other factors that affect persons with disabilities.

47.The contributions of NGOs must be relevant to the matters examined by the Committee.

48.Based on the written submissions, the Committee will invite credible NGOs to participate in its meetings, thereby providing an opportunity for dialogue on the implementation of the Convention by the States Parties concerned.

49.The Committee will develop guidelines on the participation of NGOs and national human rights institutions in its meetings. The participation guidelines will be made available on the Committee’s website in accessible formats. NGOs, national human rights institutions and other competent organizations may request a private meeting with the Committee. The Chair of the Committee will decide whether to accede to such requests and will inform the Committee accordingly.

2.Oral presentation of information

50.NGOs may attend the public meetings of the Committee, including the meetings at which reports of States Parties are considered. NGOs wishing to attend a meeting must request accreditation from the Secretariat within the time frame set out on the website of the Committee.

51.NGOs that submit information on reporting States Parties may make oral presentations to the Committee.

52.The presentations by NGOs should:

(a)Focus specifically on the rights provided for under the Convention;

(b)Have direct relevance to the matters before the Committee;

(c)Incorporate the perspective of gender, age and other factors that affect persons with disabilities.

53.Such meetings will generally be public. However, NGOs may also request a private meeting.

54.The Secretariat will, on request, provide assistance to invited NGOs.

3.Side events

55.NGOs may organize side events during sessions to provide further information to the Committee members.

III.Other activities related to the reporting process

A.General comments

56.The Committee may formulate general comments with regard to articles, observations or specific themes concerning the Convention, with the aim of assisting States Parties in the implementation of the Convention and encouraging international organizations and civil society to efficiently foster the realization of the rights established under the Convention.

57.The Committee may distribute the general comment proposal to a limited number of experts to receive their opinions.

58.The formulation of a general comment consists of the following stages:

(a)Consultation with specialized agencies, NGOs, academia and human rights agencies through a day of general or thematic discussion;

(b)Drafting of a proposed general comment by a designated Committee member, based on the consultation;

(c)Adoption of the general comment by the Committee.

59.Once it is adopted, the text of the general comment will be disseminated through the media and the Committee’s website.

B.Days of general and thematic discussion

60.The Committee may organize days of general and thematic discussion during its regular sessions on matters of general interest related to the application of the Convention.

61.The Committee will schedule days of general and thematic discussion concerning specific provisions of the Convention or related issues. Information will be available from the Committee’s website at least two months in advance.

62.In preparation for days of general discussion, the Committee may establish working groups entrusted with conceptual and practical planning.

63.The days of general discussion will be open to the public, including representatives of States Parties, United Nations agencies, NGOs, national human rights institutions, professional associations, academia, youth and other interested parties. These meetings will include representatives of persons with diverse types of disabilities: intellectual, psychosocial, physical, sensory and other.

64.On the days of general discussion, the Secretariat will ensure accessibility, reasonable accommodation and support for the effective participation of all participants.

65.Following each day of general discussion, the Committee will compile the recommendations, which will serve as an aide-memoire for drafting the general comment.

C.Statements of the Committee

66.In order to assist States Parties in implementing the Convention, the Committee may issue statements that reaffirm and/or clarify its position with regard to important events and international matters covered under the Convention. The Committee may also issue joint statements with other committees, human rights mandate holders or international organizations.

67.The statements will be posted on the Committee’s website and widely disseminated to States Parties in accessible formats.

D.Meetings with States Parties

68.During its sessions, the Committee will regularly organize official consultations with States Parties to discuss matters of common interest or questions raised by the Committee.

IV.Optional Protocol: individual and group communications

A.Working group on communications

69.Under rule 63 (1) of its rules of procedure, the Committee will establish a working group on communications to assist it in any manner in which the Committee may decide. The Committee will designate a special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures from among the members of the working group to assist in the handling of communications and to chair the working group.

70.The working group on communications will be composed of up to nine members, who will serve for an initial period of four years.

71.Members of the working group will elect a Chair every two years, who will coordinate meetings of the working group and represent the working group in plenary and during external activities.

72.The Chair of the working group will act as the special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures.

B.Correspondence received by the secretariat

73.The secretariat (namely the OHCHR Petitions Section) will keep on file all correspondence on matters related to the Optional Protocol for the Committee’s reference and consultation.

74.The secretariat will verify that any communication received contains the information required for the special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures to take a decision on its registration. Such information includes, but is not limited to, the name, nationality and date of birth of the author and alleged victim, sufficient information regarding the relevant facts and claims presented to the Committee and copies of relevant domestic decisions. The secretariat will also verify that the alleged victim has signed the communication, when they are represented. In the absence of the alleged victim’s signature, the representative must include a justification as to why such written consent cannot be obtained. The secretariat may request the author of the communication to provide any information that may be missing and that may be relevant for a decision on registration and interim measures.

75.As a general rule, any comments and observations from either party to a registered case should not exceed 10,000 words. The secretariat may request the parties concerned to resubmit comments or observations in order to respect the word limit.

76.Communications will first be screened by the secretariat, which will reject those that are inadmissible prima facie, such as anonymous communications, communications concerning a State not party to the Optional Protocol, communications that fall outside the scope of the Convention and communications that are manifestly unfounded.

C.Functions of the special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures

77.The Chair of the working group on communications, acting as special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures, should be available during the intersessional period to adopt decisions on registration and interim measures. Other members of the working group may be called upon to support the Chair in those functions, including in the light of the guidelines on the independence and impartiality of members of the human rights treaty bodies (the Addis Ababa guidelines).

78.Requests for interim measures should be received at least three working days in advance of the date on which the harm or the risk thereof is expected to materialize, such as the date of deportation or eviction. The special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures will decide on such requests as soon as possible. In urgent cases, the special rapporteur will decide within 24 hours.

79.Pursuant to rule 68 (1) of the rules of procedure, the special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures may decide to register a communication without transmitting it to the State Party for observations and propose that it be declared inadmissible. In such cases, the special rapporteur will propose to the working group on communications, as soon as possible, a draft decision on inadmissibility. If the working group decides not to confirm the draft decision, the initial communication will be transmitted to the State Party concerned with a request that it submit additional written explanations or statements relevant to the question of admissibility or the merits of the communication, in application of rule 68 (9) of the rules of procedure.

80.The special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures may register a communication and transmit it to the State Party concerned with a request, pursuant to rule 68 (4) of the rules of procedure, that it provide observations relating only to the admissibility of the communication. Upon receipt of the author’s comments on the State Party’s observations on admissibility, the special rapporteur will, as soon as possible, propose to the working group on communications a draft decision on the admissibility of the communication in question.

81.In all other cases, the special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures will, upon registering a communication, transmit it to the State Party concerned with a request that it provide, within six months, observations on both the admissibility of the communication and its merits.

82.For each registered communication, the Chair of the working group on communications will either act as case rapporteur or appoint a member of the working group to do so. The case rapporteur will examine all the information contained in the case file and propose to the working group an appropriate course of action, including recommendations on the admissibility of the communication and/or its merits. Draft decisions on admissibility and/or the merits approved by the case rapporteur will be transmitted to the other members of the working group. Where relevant, the working group may also appoint a member of the Committee who is not a member of the working group to provide technical assistance to the case rapporteur.

D.Functioning of the working group on communications

83.The working group on communications will examine the admissibility and/or the merits of all communications registered with the Committee before referring them to the plenary. Where relevant, the working group may propose more than one outcome to the plenary.

84.Communications that the working group on communications unanimously finds inadmissible are transmitted to the plenary, which may, unless any member of the Committee requests otherwise, adopt the decision without formal discussion.

85.The working group on communications will consider the draft decision prepared by the case rapporteur and any additional information at its disposal, and will submit proposals and recommendations on the draft decision to the case rapporteur.

86.On the basis of the comments received from members of the working group on communications, the case rapporteur will prepare a consolidated draft decision on admissibility and the merits, with a view to the working group reaching a consensus on a recommendation to be addressed to the plenary. If consensus is not reached, agreement by the majority of the members of the working group will be required.

E.Friendly settlement

87.Pursuant to rule 75 of the rules of procedure, the Committee may, at the request of any of the parties, make available its good offices to the parties with a view to reaching a friendly settlement. The Committee may also do so, if it is deemed necessary and appropriate, on its own initiative or at the request of the working group on communications.

88.Negotiations to facilitate a friendly settlement may be conducted by the working group on communications. The working group will make recommendations to the Committee, which will adopt a decision in plenary with a statement of the facts and of the solution reached.

F.Third-party interventions

89.Pursuant to rule 72 (3) of the rules of procedure, the Committee or the working group on communications may consult with or receive relevant written submissions from third parties that might assist in the examination of a communication. The procedure for third‑party interventions is set out in the Committee’s rules of procedure and its guidelines on third-party interventions with regard to communications submitted under the Optional Protocol to the Convention. The Committee will publish on its web page a list of cases pending its consideration, including a short summary of the subject matter and the articles of the Convention invoked, for use by third parties when preparing an intervention.

G.Lack of cooperation by the parties

90.In the absence of a response from either of the parties in a case within the established time frame, the secretariat will send a reminder. In the absence of response by the State Party following the reminder, the Committee may examine the case without the information requested. In the absence of response by the author of the communication after the reminder, the Committee will discontinue its consideration of the communication.

91.In the case of procedural decisions to be taken by the special rapporteur on new communications and interim measures, such as decisions on requests for suspension of its consideration or on the withdrawal of requests for interim measures, no reminders will be sent to the parties. The special rapporteur may decide on such requests in the absence of information from the other party, after the deadline to submit such information has passed.

H.Decisions

92.The draft decision confirmed by the working group on communications will be submitted to the Committee for discussion and final adoption in plenary. The draft decisions will be made available to all members of the Committee in the working languages of the Committee at least one week before the date of discussion.

93.Pursuant to rule 60 of the Committee’s rules of procedure and to the Addis Ababa guidelines, a member of the Committee may not participate in any aspect of the consideration of a communication if:

(a)The member has any personal or professional conflict of interest in the case or any other real or perceived conflict of interest;

(b)The member has participated in the making of any decision on the case covered by the communication in any capacity other than under the procedures established under the Optional Protocol;

(c)The member is a national of the State Party against which the communication is directed or has the same nationality as the alleged victim or any third parties to the case.

94.The Committee will endeavour to reach its decisions by consensus. If consensus cannot be reached, a simple majority of the members present and voting will be required. Any member of the Committee who has participated in the discussion on a decision may indicate, before the adoption of the decision, that she or he reserves the right to submit an individual concurring or dissenting opinion, pursuant to rule 73 (6) of the rules of procedure. The individual opinion should be submitted by the member concerned within two weeks of the receipt by the member concerned of the final text of the Views or decision in the working language of the member.

I.Follow-up to Views and to friendly settlements

95.The rapporteur for follow-up to Views will, pursuant to rule 76 of the rules of procedure, monitor the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Committee’s Views on a communication or in its decision that a friendly settlement has closed its consideration of a communication.

96.The rapporteur for follow-up to Views will inform the Committee of the progress made by States Parties in implementing the Committee’s recommendations, based on the information received by both parties, and propose the appropriate course of action. The Committee will then adopt a follow-up progress report on individual communications, which will be made public. The report will include the Committee’s assessment of the degree of compliance with its Views (compliance, partial compliance, non-compliance and no cooperation) and its decision as to whether to keep open, discontinue or suspend the follow‑up dialogue. This decision will be communicated to the parties in each case.

97.Any written submission from the parties under the procedure for follow-up to Views should not exceed 3,500 words. The secretariat may request the parties concerned to resubmit comments or observations in order to respect the word limit.

98.In the context of the follow-up dialogue, the rapporteur for follow-up to Views may request a meeting with the State Party in order to seek further information or clarification on the measures taken to implement the Views.

V.Technical assistance

A.Reports of States Parties that contain a request or indicate a need for technical advice or assistance

99.The Committee will transmit to United Nations specialized agencies, funds and programmes (including the United Nations Children’s Fund, the International Labour Organization, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the World Health Organization) and to other competent agencies, as appropriate, reports of States Parties that contain a request or indicate a need for technical advice or assistance. The Committee will also transmit to them its observations and recommendations with regard to these requests or indications, pursuant to article 36 (5) of the Convention. The required technical assistance may pertain to the preparation of reports and to national programming for the implementation of the Convention.

B.Visits to States Parties

100.Committee members may visit States Parties, at the invitation of the Government, with the aim of promoting the implementation of the Convention. The Committee will designate one or two experts to conduct the visit.

101.The Committee will take into account the areas of expertise of the experts, as well as their geographical proximity to the State Party to be visited, when making its designation.

VI.Other forms of relationships

A.Coordination with other organizations

102.The Committee will strive to coordinate its work with that of other relevant organizations whenever possible, taking into consideration the knowledge, competence and experience of the organizations. The Committee may designate members to update the Committee regularly on the work undertaken to this end.

B.Participation in the meetings of the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies

103.The Chair of the Committee will represent the Committee at meetings of the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies.

104.The Chair of the Committee will represent the Committee at sessions of the Human Rights Council, as appropriate.

105.At each session of the Committee, the Chair will update the Committee on her or his participation in those meetings.

C.Conference of States Parties

106.As part of its efforts to encourage and support the implementation of the Convention, the Committee will actively contribute to the Conference of States Parties. It will designate one of its members to attend and report to the Committee on the preparations for and outcome of the Conferences.