RACIAL DISCRIMINATION COMMITTEE DISCUSSES PROPOSALS TO HARMONIZE REPORTING GUIDELINES

19 August 2004


The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination today discussed the question of harmonizing the reporting guidelines by the human rights treaty bodies.

The discussion was attended by Kamel Filali, a member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, who has been named by the heads of the treaty bodies as Rapporteur on the question of the harmonization of the reporting guidelines. The Committee members discussed the report of the seventh meeting of the heads of the UN human rights treaty bodies which was held from 23 to 25 June 2004, and which discussed this issue; as well as the report of the third inter-committee meeting (21 and 22 June) on the same subject.

In his report on the reform of the United Nations, Secretary-General Kofi Annan makes proposals concerning the work of the treaty bodies. The proposal before the human rights treaty bodies suggests that the committees ask each State party to prepare a core document with general information and statistics, as well as a specialized document with specific information sought under the mandate of each committee. In response to questions raised by Committee Experts on the proposal, Mr. Filali said the draft was aimed at facilitating the reporting obligations for States and avoiding repetitions.

The Committee will meet on Friday, 20 August to conclude its work and to issue its observations and conclusions on country reports which it has considered this session.