Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights opens its sixtieth session

Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

20 February 2017

Elects New Chairperson and Bureau, Swears in Three New Members

The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights this morning opened its sixtieth session, electing Maria Virginia Bras Gomes as its Chairperson, and swearing in three new Committee members.  The Committee also elected three Vice-Chairs and the Rapporteur of the Committee.

Simon Walker, Chief, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Section at the Human Rights Treaties Division of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that 2017 had begun in a challenging context, with disenchantment often coming from the denial of economic, social and cultural rights.  Persons who risked losing their jobs with little prospect of a social safety net might too easily be tempted to listen to populists who offered seemingly easy solutions.  In 2016, the Committee had done important work on two General Comments – on the right to sexual and reproductive health and on just and favourable conditions of work.  The Committee had devoted considerable time to the Optional Protocol on communications, and it was hoped that more States would ratify it.  The 2030 Agenda also provided an opportunity for the Committee to advance the Covenant. 

Mr. Walker informed that 2016 had represented the second year of the implementation of General Assembly resolution 68/268, which had allowed the Committee to make considerable progress in reviewing pending reports and to focus on substantive issues important to its work.  Later this year, the General Assembly would discuss and decide whether or not it would grant the necessary resources for the amended meeting time in 2018-2019.  As a result of the reduction of the backlog and a temporary slowdown in the number of State party reports submitted in previous years, it was expected that the Committee would revert to its original meeting time of eight weeks every year in the next biennium.  The number of States parties had gone up to 165, with the ratification by Sao Tome and Principle, while the Central African Republic had acceded to the Optional Protocol.  Only nine State party reports had been submitted in 2016, reminded Mr. Walker.  During the sixtieth session, the Committee would be discussing issues related to follow-up to concluding observations, an area which had been identified as needing further reflection and a new impetus. 

Mr. Walker expressed his appreciation for the work of the outgoing Bureau of the Committee, led by Chairperson Waleed Sadi. 

The three new members of the Committee – Laura-Maria Craciunean-Tatu (Romania), Sandra Liebenberg (South Africa), and Michael Windfuhr (Germany) – took solemn oaths.

Maria Virginia Bras Gomes (Portugal) was elected as the Chairperson of the Committee by acclamation.  Ms. Bras Gomes assured the Committee that she would continue to work in full trust and transparency.   The Committee would continue to work hard on the implementation of the Covenant, she stressed. 

The Committee held a minute of silence for the recently deceased Nigel Rodley, former member and Chairperson of the Human Rights Committee.

The Committee then elected Heisoo Shin (Republic of Korea), Zdislaw Kedzia (Poland) and Mohamed Ezzeldin Abdel-Moneim (Egypt) as Vice Chairs of the Committee, and Lydia Carmelita Ravenberg (Suriname) as the Rapporteur of the Committee. 

The Committee will next meet in public on Tuesday, 21 February at 10 a.m. for a full day of general discussion on the draft General Comment on State obligations under the Covenant in the context of business activities.

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For use of the information media; not an official record

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