Human Rights Council

Thirty-fourth session

27 February-24 March 2017

Agenda item 2

Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General

Conclusions and recommendations of special procedures

Report of the Secretary-General *

1.The Human Rights Council, in its decision 2/102, requested the Secretary-General and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue their activities in accordance with all previous decisions adopted by the Commission on Human Rights and to update the relevant reports and studies.

2.The Commission on Human Rights, in its resolution 2004/76, requested the Secretary-General to issue annually conclusions and recommendations of the special procedures so as to enable further discussion of their implementation. The Commission also requested the High Commissioner to continue to prepare a comprehensive and regularly updated electronic compilation of recommendations made by the special procedures, by country, where such did not yet exist. In paragraph 29 of the annex to its resolution 65/281, the General Assembly provided that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights would continue to maintain information on special procedures in a comprehensive and easily accessible manner.

3.The Secretary-General draws the attention of the Human Rights Council to the conclusions and recommendations included in annual reports and the relevant addenda thereto, submitted by the special procedures to the Council in 2016 at its thirty-first, thirty-second and thirty-third sessions.

4.In 2016, special procedure mandate holders presented 134 reports to the Human Rights Council.

I.Thirty-first session of the Human Rights Council

5.At the thirty-first session of the Human Rights Council, 21 special procedure mandate holders, including holders of 14 thematic and 7 country mandates, presented their annual reports:

Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief

Special Rapporteur on the right to food

Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment

Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders

Special Rapporteur on minority issues

Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment

Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography

Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights

Independent Expert on the effects of foreign debt and other related international financial obligations of States on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights

Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities

Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism

Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy

Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism

Independent Expert on the enhancement of capacity-building and technical cooperation with Côte d’Ivoire in the field of human rights

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Haiti

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Mali

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967

6.The Council also heard an oral update from the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea.

7.In addition, special procedure mandate holders presented reports on their visits to 16 countries and territories. The Special Rapporteur on torture presented a follow-up report on his mission to Ghana.

8.The Special Rapporteur on minority issues also presented a report containing the recommendations made at the eighth session of the Forum on Minority Issues (24 and 25 November 2015), which dealt with minorities and the criminal justice system.

9.The Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment presented a summary report on the expert seminar on the effective implementation of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment, challenges thereto and the way forward.

10.The Independent Expert on the effects of foreign debt and other related international financial obligations of States on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, further presented a final study on illicit financial flows, human rights and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

11.The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions presented a joint compilation report on practical recommendations, based on best practices and lessons learned, for the proper management of assemblies.

12.The special procedures also presented a report containing communications sent by all mandate holders between 1 June and 30 November 2015. The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on torture presented reports containing observations on communications transmitted to Governments and replies received.

13.The Chair of the Coordination Committee of Special Procedures presented a report on the 22nd annual meeting of special rapporteurs/representatives, independent experts and the Chairs of working groups of the special procedures of the Human Rights Council, including updated information on the special procedures.

II.Thirty-second session of the Human Rights Council

14.At the thirty-second session of the Human Rights Council, 17 special procedure mandate holders, including holders of 15 thematic and 2 country mandates, presented their annual reports:

Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights

Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health

Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers

Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons

Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association

Special Rapporteur on the right to education

Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression

Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions

Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants

Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children

Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences

Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity

Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice

Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises

Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus

Independent Expert on the enhancement of capacity-building and technical cooperation with Côte d’Ivoire in the field of human rights

15.In addition, special procedure mandate holders reported on their visits to 22 countries and territories. The Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions also presented a follow-up report on his mission to Mexico.

16.The Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions further presented a revision to the Manual on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.

17.The Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health presented a study on sport and healthy lifestyles as contributing factors to the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.

18.The Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises presented reports on the Asia Regional Forum on Business and Human Rights, on the regional consultation for Latin America and the Caribbean on public policy, business and human rights and on multi-stakeholder action to protect and respect human rights.

19.The Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance presented a report on combating the glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that fuel contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

20.The special procedures also presented a report on communications sent by all mandate holders between 1 December 2015 and 29 February 2016. The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions presented reports containing observations on communications transmitted to Governments and replies received.

III.Thirty-third session of the Human Rights Council

21.At the thirty-third session of the Human Rights Council, 15 special procedure mandate holders, including holders of 11 thematic and 4 country mandates, presented their annual reports:

Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order

Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes

Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples

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

Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons

Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences

Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights

Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation

Working Group on Arbitrary Detention

Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances

Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent

Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia

Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in the Central African Republic

Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia

Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in the Sudan

22.Special procedure mandate holders also presented reports on their visits to 20 countries and territories. 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 further presented a report on its mission to the European Union. In addition to its annual report, the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances presented a follow-up report on its missions to the Congo and Pakistan.

23.The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention further presented a report containing revised methods of work.

24.The special procedures also presented a report on communications sent by all mandate holders between 1 March and 31 May 2016.