Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Fifth session

Summary record of the second part (public)* of the 10th meeting**

Held at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, on Friday, 15 April 2011, at 3 p.m.

Chairperson:Mr. Ronald McCallum

Contents

Closure of the session

The second part (public) of the meeting was called to order at 4.50 p.m.

Closure of the session

1.The Chairperson welcomed the Committee’s adoption of its concluding observations on the initial report of Tunisia (CRPD/C/TUN/CO/1), which attested to the fact that the Committee now functioned in the same way as the other treaty bodies.

2.Ms. Pavey(Secretary) listed the decisions taken by the Committee at its fifth session, namely: the adoption of the Chairperson’s report on the activities undertaken between the third and fifth sessions of the Committee (CRPD/C/5/5); the adoption of the Committee’s report on its fourth session (CRPD/C/4/3); the adoption of the Committee’s first biennial report to the General Assembly and to the Economic and Social Council; the decision to assign the Vice-Chairperson of the Committee, Ms. Yang Jia, the task of accompanying the Chairperson to the inter-committee meeting, to take place from 27 to 29 June 2011 in Geneva; the decision to appoint Mr. Ríos Espinosa as the Country Rapporteur for the next report of Peru; the decision to appoint Mr. Kim Hyung Shik and Ms. Degener Country Rapporteurs for the next report of China; the decision to include Ms. Hadj-Salah and Mr. Ríos Espinosa in the working group responsible for dealing with the subject of accessibility of public transport and air transport policy, currently chaired by Mr. Al-Tarawneh; the decision to set up a working group responsible for drafting a general observation on article 9 (accessibility), to be chaired by Mr. Al-Tarawneh with Mr. Tatić as Vice-Chairperson and Ms. Yang Jia, Mr. Ben Lallahom, Mr. Chowdhury, Mr. Gombos and Mr. Langvad as members; the decision to appoint Mr. Gobos as Vice-Chairperson of the working group responsible for drafting a general observation on article 12 (legal capacity), currently chaired by Ms. Maina, and to include Mr. Ríos Espinosa and Ms. Degener as members; the decision to disband the informal working group on natural disasters; the decision to consider, during two meetings at its sixth session to take place from 19 to 23 September 2011 at the Palais des Nations, the initial report of Spain (CRPD/C/ESP/1) and the draft lists of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of the initial reports of Peru and China; the adoption of the list of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of the initial report of Spain (CRPD/C/ESP/Q/1); the adoption of the Committee’s concluding observations on the initial report of Tunisia (CRPD/C/TUN/CO/1); the adoption of the Committee’s working methods (CRPD/C/5/4).

3.Ms. Maina, speaking in her capacity as the Chairperson of the working group on article 12, said that she wished to stress that the decision to appoint Mr. Gombos as Vice-Chairperson of the working group had raised to a number of issues, chiefly related to interference, which had not yet been resolved. She invited Mr. Gombos to contribute to the work of the group by dispensing with the expression of all opinions regarding the position or functions of the different group members.

4.Mr. Al- Tarawneh, speaking in his capacity as the Chairperson of the working group on the accessibility of public transport and air transport policy, requested that his proposal to write to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) should be given due attention, as making initial contact with the air transport authorities would be integral to the future work of the Committee in that area.

5.The Chairperson reminded Committee members that the chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the working groups were at liberty to take any initiatives they saw fit without the Committee having to take a formal decision. He suggested that Mr. Al-Tarawneh draft the aforementioned letter and send it to the International Air Transport Association with the assistance of the secretariat and the support of the Committee chairmanship if necessary. As to the decision to appoint Mr. Gombos as Vice-Chairperson of the working group on article 12, the Chairperson recalled that it had been the Committee’s decision and that it had been taken in accordance with the established procedure.

6.Ms. Cisteras Reyes requested that a fact sheet be added to the web page of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights devoted to the Convention providing information on the procedure for submitting a communication to the Committee, as provided for in the Optional Protocol to the Convention, together with corresponding guidelines.

7.Ms. Yang Jia asked whether a day of general discussion had been planned for the sixth session.

8.The Chairperson said that the Committee had decided not to hold a day of general discussion at its sixth session in order to use the meeting time for dialogue with the State party during the consideration of the initial report of Spain (CRPD/C/ESP/1) and to draw up two lists of issues in anticipation of the consideration of the reports of China and Peru.

9.Ms. Lee (Head of the Groups in Focus Unit of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) said that she wished to make a general observation on the need to ensure coordination and cohesion in the work carried out by the various working groups. As the groups represented the Committee, it was important for all members to be aware of the activities being undertaken and for there to be, if not centralization, then at least a holistic view of the initiatives adopted, the need for which would only grow more apparent with time. As to the proposal to write to the International Air Transport Association, Ms. Lee said that the first step would be to make initial contact with the Association, which, on the face of it, appeared willing to receive written correspondence from the Committee. Subsequently, a face-to-face meeting could be scheduled with representatives of the organization.

10.After the customary exchange of courtesies, the Chairperson declared the fifth session of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities closed.

The meeting rose at 5.30 p.m.