Statement of the Chairperson of the 59th session of the Commission on Human Rights to the 47th session of the Commission on the Status of Women

New York
5 March 2003
ORIGINAL: ARABIC

Chairperson,
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
Representatives of Agencies, and of NGOs,

It is a great pleasure for me to address the Commission on the Status of Women at its 47th session in my capacity as Chairperson of the 59th session of the Commission on Human Rights. Firstly I would like to congratulate the Bureau on a successful 46th session and wish you all the best for the remainder of the current session. I might also add my congratulations to you Mr Chairperson, as the first male chair of this Commission. In doing so I am very cognisant of my own position as only the fifth woman to chair the Commission on Human Rights in its 57 year history.

Although this is the first time a chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights has addressed your Commission, my presence here today builds on a history of interaction and cooperation between our two Commissions, and reinforces the close links between their respective mandates. The Chairperson of your Commission has attended sessions of the Commission on Human Rights since 1998, and I am happy to extend an invitation for him to do so this year on behalf of the Bureau of the 59th session of the Commission. And I hope that my successors continue to address your Commission on a regular basis and bring to you the perspectives of the Commission on Human Rights on the different issues of mutual concern.

The level of sharing and cooperation between our two Commissions is, I would say, among the highest between any functional commissions. This is particularly relevant at the present time when ECOSOC is encouraging closer ties between its various functional commissions, both in terms of substance and procedure. The meeting of chairpersons of functional commissions and other subsidiary bodies of ECOSOC convened here in New York last August by the President of ECOSOC underlined the importance of this practice.

In terms of substance, the mandates of our two commissions are inextricably linked through the issue of the human rights of women. While the human rights of women is on of the topics of concern of this Commission, questions relating to the rights of women pervade the work of the Commission on Human Rights, from debates and resolutions under the agenda item entitled ‘integration of the human rights of women and the gender perspective’ introduced four years ago, to the work of the 37 special rapporteurs and independent experts of the Commission. I would like to mention two areas where there is particular synergy between our two Commissions.

The first is the issue of trafficking in women and girls. Trafficking of persons is an ancient scourge that has recently regained international attention. For a number of years both the Commission on Human Rights and its Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights have undertaken devoted work on this issue. In its most recent resolution, the Commission addressed a broad range of actors in the fight against this phenomenon, including member states, special rapporteurs, UN organisations, internet-service providers, and business generally. In addition, and at the request of the Commission, the issue of trafficking was examined by the Special Rapporteur on violence against women in her report to the Commission in 2000. I am aware that part of the preparations for CSW47 was an expert group meeting on trafficking and that a large part of the thematic report before you addresses this issue.
The second issue I would like to mention is in fact one of the two themes you have chosen for your current session: women’s human rights and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls. As you know, the Commission on Human Rights has long undertaken distinguished work in this area. The special rapporteur on the issue, appointed in 1994, bases her mandate on the General Assembly’s 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women, an instrument elaborated by this commission. It is one the oldest of the current special procedures of the Commission, and the current special rapporteur will be presenting a ‘state of the world’ report in regard to her mandate before she leaves the mandate this year. The synergy of this report together with the outcome of the panel discussions on the issue at your current session, will provide a powerful impetus for action in this area in 2003 and beyond.
I would also like to mention our support and inspiration for each other in procedural matters and best practices. In a time of reducing resources yet mounting work, the functional commissions of ECOSOC face the challenge of enhancing the effectiveness of their working methods. Thus, in 2003 both of our Commissions have introduced changes to allow the election of our respective bureaux well before the substantive sessions commence. For the Commission on Human Rights, this change forms part of a series of innovations aimed at enhancing our effectiveness. Our session this year will also see the introduction of a High Level Segment for dignitaries statements, as well as interactive dialogues with our special procedures. The introduction of these changes has been facilitated by our Bureau’s practice of meeting regularly as an expanded bureau composed of the five regional coordinators along with the five office-bearers. I believe this method of work might provide an interesting model for other functional commissions.
As I stated earlier, the level of cooperation between our two Commissions is perhaps among the highest between functional commissions. In this we benefit from the support of the Joint Work plan of the Division for the Advancement of Women and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. However I feel that this cooperation can deepen as the scope for this exists in respect of our special procedures, and in particular the special rapporteurs. Individual special rapporteurs have participated in panel discussions during your Commission, and I would urge that this be continued and broadened. Issues such gender and discrimination against women are relevant to every mandate of the Commission on Human Rights.
In 2000 we marked five years since the fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. This year we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights. The time of ripe for operationalising commitments to women’s human rights made at each of these World Conferences. Much has been done, particularly with regard to strengthening the legal framework for women’s human rights through the elaboration of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. But we are now faced with the challenge of consolidating on our achievements and of trying to craft our work to produce more coordinated and efficient outcomes. This process will be built on deeper and more sustained cooperation between our Commissions.

Thank you