Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All

Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families

Twenty-fourth session

Summary record (partial)* of the 325th meeting**

Held at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, on Friday, 22 April 2016, at 10 a.m.

Chair:Mr. Brillantes

Contents

Organizational matters

Closure of the session

The discussion covered in the summary record began at 1.10 p.m.

Organizational matters

The Chair, giving an overview of the work completed during the session, said that the Committee had adopted concluding observations on the reports of Lesotho, Mauritania, Senegal and Turkey, lists of issues for Bangladesh, and lists of issues prior to reporting for Guyana, Indonesia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The Committee had amended its rules of procedure by adopting rule 10 bis so as to incorporate the guidelines on the independence and impartiality of members of the human rights treaty bodies (Addis Ababa guidelines). It had also adopted the Guidelines against Intimidation or Reprisals (San José Guidelines) and had appointed Ms. Dzumhur as the Committee’s Rapporteur on reprisals. An outline long-term programme of work had been adopted. The Committee had also adopted a decision on the translation of draft documents.

A meeting had been held with representatives of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) about the draft general comment to be issued jointly by the Committee and the Committee on the Rights of the Child on the human rights of children in the context of international migration, and funding for a consultant had been confirmed. A large number of submissions had been received in response to the Committee’s call for input on the draft general comment and a meeting had been held with several civil society organizations to discuss the subject. The Committee had also issued a statement on the recent deaths of migrants in the Mediterranean Sea.

In addition to the usual meetings with representatives of civil society, national institutions and agencies, a number of other meetings had taken place, including meetings with Mr. Salama, Director of the Human Rights Treaties Division of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and with other OHCHR staff members to discuss the recent activities of the Office and of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants.

The Committee had also met with members of the International Steering Committee of the Global Campaign for Ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Migrants to discuss promotional activities and with representatives of the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights to discuss its project concerning the 2020 review of the United Nations treaty body system by the General Assembly. Members of the Bureau had met with the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to discuss ways of cooperating in the future and with representatives of the Holy See and Brazil to discuss promotion of the ratification of the Convention. The Chair had participated in an event to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Lastly, the Committee had adopted its report to the General Assembly on the Committee’s twenty-third and twenty-fourth sessions.

Closure of the session

After the customary exchange of courtesies, the Chair declared the twenty-fourth session of the Committee closed.

The meeting rose at 1.15 p.m.