Opening Remarks by Bacre Waly Ndiaye, Director Human Rights Council and Special Procedures Division at the Opening of the Induction Session for incoming Special Procedures' mandate holders

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

 Geneva, 3 September 2014

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning,

It is my great pleasure to welcome you to this Induction Session for new Special Procedures’ mandate-holders on behalf of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and in my capacity as Director of the Human Rights Council and Special Procedures Division.  I am also pleased to address you as a former colleague, having served as mandate-holder on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.

This Induction Session aims to introduce you to the context within which you will carry out your functions and provide you with insights on certain key issues that you will encounter in the fulfilment of your mandates.

I am joined by Ms. Jane Connors who was, until very recently, the Chief of the Special Procedures Branch and is now Director of the Research and Right to Development Division, and Mr. Karim Ghezraoui, Officer-in-Charge of the Special Procedures Branch, who will walk you through the agenda of the three days and answer any questions that you may have on it.

Let me now say a few words about the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights – or OHCHR as you will come to know it – as it relates to you.  You are joining us at a time of change for the Office.  As you know, High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay completed her six year term at the end of August 2014 and the new High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein of Jordan, took up his functions on 1 September 2014.  Although he is unable to join us for this Induction Session, the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms. Flavia Pansieri, will meet you during the coffee break this morning. 

In 2013, OHCHR commemorated its two decade anniversary following General Assembly resolution 48/141 of 20 December 1993.  In the ensuing period, the Office has grown in all aspects including a more comprehensive and innovative human rights programme, number of staff 1108 in Geneva, the field and New York, as of December 2013 and geographic representation in Geneva, the field and New York.

It has also streamlined its structure, with four substantive divisions in Geneva, of which one, the Human Rights Council and Special Procedures Division, provides direct support to the system of Special Procedures and almost all of its thematic mandates.  The Universal Periodic Review, also supported by this Division offers countless opportunities to frame your country visits and information.  Two other divisions, the Research and Right to Development Division and Field Operations and Technical Cooperation Division support the Working Group on People of African Descent and country mandates, respectively.  While support to the Special Procedures’ is spread across OHCHR, efforts are made to ensure close cooperation and coordination of the work.  In the case of the Human Rights Treaties Division, exchanges between mandate-holders and the treaty bodies are manifold, but it is worth highlighting that country visit reports of Special Procedures are regularly consulted in the preparation of consideration of States Parties’ reports; treaty body General Comments and country based recommendations buttress your work. 

OHCHR has also professionalised its programmatic and other support in order to enable the Office and human rights mechanisms to more effectively achieve overall objectives.  You will hear further details on this by the DHC later on today.  A number of documents, including the Office’s Annual Report 2013 and Management Plan for 2014-2017 are available to you and provide a thorough understanding of the Office and its priorities, and systems for achieving these. 

As regards the system of Special Procedures, this system is widely recognised for its significant “value-added” to the architecture for the protection and promotion of human rights.  From its origins in 1967 to July 2014, it has grown to encompass 52 mandates, of which 38 are thematic and 14 country, with 73 mandate-holders.  In 2013, Special Procedures conducted 79 visits to 67 countries and territories and sent 528 communications to 117 States on alleged violations of human rights.  As of 1 January 2014, a total of 108 States have extended standing invitations to the Special Procedures.

The sustained growth of the system has provided benefits, not least, greater coverage of human rights issues, but also challenges.  Regarding the latter, undoubtedly you will have occasion here and during the upcoming Annual Meeting of Special Procedures to discuss these in greater detail and explore solutions, however, I would like to highlight two that I consider to be of critical importance.  First, as the High Commissioner noted in her last report to the General Assembly, “the growth of Special Procedures has not been matched by commensurate resources, which affects their ability to ensure adequate follow-up to many aspects of their work.”  Special Procedures receive less than half a percent of the UN’s regular budget or 10.3 million in 2012, which obliges both OHCHR and mandate-holders to think of creative ways to accomplish mandates and constructive approaches and synergies in this regard.  Second, coordination of work within the human rights architecture and follow-up to findings and recommendations are still areas warranting continuous, sustained attention and outreach, and is an area for considered reflection.

Ladies and gentlemen, from the time when I served as Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions from 1992 to 1998 to now, there have been major developments in the system of Special Procedures:

• Special Procedures did not have a Code of Conduct and there was no selection committee.
• There was also far less assistance to mandates with less than one staff per mandate.
•  In terms of working methods, reports were not published, and there was no systematic press release after country visits.  There were also no panels or side events in the margins of inter-governmental meetings.
• There was no questionnaire to receive complaints of alleged human rights violations.  I worked on devising a first questionnaire.
• There was also no internet or social media.

You now take up your functions with many processes and systems already well established, including more joint communications and statements, and with great opportunities provided by the ICTs allowing you to react much faster.  This environment encourages reflections on further improvements to the system, including ways of conducting joint country visits, and obtaining country visits invitations.  Although many of you will report to the General Assembly, opportunities to brief the Security Council are less and reflection would be useful on how to get across Special Procedures’ messages to this influential actor, including on the many crises’ situations on its agenda.  

Let me conclude my brief remarks to you.  Your work is of critical importance to ensuring that all human beings enjoy their civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights.  You join the system at a time of change, transition and opportunities, but also of immense challenges to the protection and promotion of human rights for all.  OHCHR is committed to ensuring that the human rights mechanisms are mutually reinforcing and assure you of the High Commissioner’s and Office’s committed support to you in the effective fulfilment of your mandates.

I now invite Jane and Karim to take the floor.