Geneva Academy
14 September 2020
At an event organized by the Geneva Human Rights Platform (GHRP), 50 experts and practitioners – members of United Nations (UN) treaty bodies (TBs), diplomats, academics, civil society representatives and staff from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights – reflected on the consultation process of the TB review 2020 led by Morocco and Switzerland.
‘This event allowed participants, in particular, TBs Chairs and NGOs to reflect upon and comment on the proposals formulated by States during this consultation process. This includes the simplified reporting procedure and the idea of fixed schedules of reporting, two proposals that are widely supported by States, TBs and other stakeholders’ explains Felix Kirchmeier, Executive Director of the Geneva Human Rights Platform.
TB Chairs also pointed to areas that, in their view, received too little attention in the consultation process by states. These include the value of engaging in reviews in the regions, bringing TBs closer to the national level, as well as the important area of follow-up to TB recommendations.
Participants addressed the lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis and the holding of online sessions, which raised a series of challenges for UN TBs, notably regarding accessibility and time zones differences.
Civil society representatives also reiterated their concern about the protection gap produced by the fact that in online sessions, TBs were not able to review State reports.
Besides the written submission submitted by the Platform, the GHRP also works to ensure that all stakeholders – diplomats in Geneva, members of UN TBs, civil society representatives, academics and OHCHR staff – can exchange around the proposals put on the table, discuss their pros and cons and identify the best ways forward to ensure an efficient TB system.
‘The issues discussed during our event will be brought to the attention of the co-facilitators, allowing them to include them in the report they will submit on 15 September to the President of the General Assembly’ says Felix Kirchmeier.
‘We expect the following from a follow-up resolution: that it will confirm the latest text on TB strengthening (GA/Res/68/268); endorse our key recommendations to improve the system; and put the TBs budget on a sustainable path by moving to a budget that projects the number of state reports on the basis of a fixed and coordinated calendar. This would be a major breakthrough for human rights accountability’ explains Felix Kirchmeier.
Our new publication, Equality and Non-Discrimination, brings together cutting-edge scholarship on one of the most fundamental principles of international human rights law.
ITU
Our event brought together human rights practitioners, data scientists, and AI experts to explore how artificial intelligence can support efforts to monitor human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Adobe Stock
This side event will bring together stakeholders to discuss the growing concerning recurrence to short-term enforced disappearances worldwide, and the challenges they pose for victims and accountability.
Wikimedia
This evening dialogue will present the publication: International Human Rights Law: A Treatise, Cambridge University Press (2025).
ICRC
Participants in this training course will gain practical insights into UN human rights mechanisms and their role in environmental protection and learn about how to address the interplay between international human rights and environmental law, and explore environmental litigation paths.
UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré
This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.
Victoria Pickering
This project aims at providing support to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association Clément Voulé by addressing emerging issues affecting civic space and eveloping tools and materials allowing various stakeholders to promote and defend civic space.
UN Photo/Violaine Martin
The IHL-EP works to strengthen the capacity of human rights mechanisms to incorporate IHL into their work in an efficacious and comprehensive manner. By so doing, it aims to address the normative and practical challenges that human rights bodies encounter when dealing with cases in which IHL applies.