Civil society participation in the Universal Periodic Review

Opportunities for civil society participation in the Universal Periodic Review  Submission of information for the stakeholder summary 5-page documents with information on key human rights challenges in state under review:  Gaps in legislation, discriminatory legislation, gaps in ratification of human rights treaties  Specific human rights situations, incidents and illustrative cases  Recommendations for action by the state under review  Purpose: To contribute to the information basis for the review  Tools: Documents produced over previous 4 year period, internal guidelines for UPR submissions, emerging good practice

Opportunities for civil society participation in the Universal Periodic Review  Alerting civil society in countries coming up for review A state’s preparation for the UPR is a key opportunity for consultation with civil society groups and organizations  Purpose:  To focus review on key human rights issues in country under review  To establish ongoing consultations between civil society and the government  To anchor UPR process at the national level  Tools:  1-page alert in 4-5 languages disseminated via AI sections and contacts and partners in country under review  Q&A to explain purpose and process of UPR  Model letters to encourage the government to hold a consultation

Opportunities for civil society participation in the Universal Periodic Review  Lobby states in advance of reviews – at the national level, via embassies and in Geneva Both states under review and reviewing states can be targeted by civil society  Purpose: to ensure that key human rights issues are addressed in the dialogue in the UPR Working Group and that concrete recommendations are made to the state under review  Tools:  Submissions  Compilation of recommendations  Identification of key states to target  Model letter

Opportunities for civil society participation in the Universal Periodic Review  Oral statements in the Human Rights Council before UPR outcomes are adopted NGOs with ECOSOC accreditation may participate in the Council session at which UPR outcomes are adopted  Purpose:  To comment on the review in the UPR Working Group  To recommend key recommendations for early implementation  To highlight any gaps in the review  Tools:  Oral statements which can also be issued as a public statement, posted on website, and sent to governments, UN missions and media contacts  Webcast of oral statement for national level promotion

Opportunities for civil society participation in the Universal Periodic Review  Ongoing advocacy to encourage early and full implementation of the UPR outcome by the state reviewed The recommendations made by reviewing states as well as any voluntary commitments by the state reviewed are key outcomes of the UPR, and should complement other UN recommendations  Purpose:  To ensure the UPR has impact on the ground  To give prompt effect to UPR recommendations  To continue partnerships at national level  Tools:  Analysis of UPR outcome and recommendations  Membership letters to governments, embassies, troika rapporteurs; media work  Partnerships with other civil society groups

Achieving the key objectives of the UPR Some lessons learned so far  Civil society engagement has to be strategic, timely, targeted, and sustained  Strategic: UPR is a continuous and complex process for 192 countries. Civil society needs to focus limited resources on key opportunities for impact  Timely: Be aware of deadlines:  For civil society submissions – some 5-6 months before the review  The timeframe for states to produce the national report – to ensure inclusion in their consultation.  The timeframe for reviewing states to prepare for reviews in the UPR Working Group

Achieving the key objective of the UPR Some lessons learned so far  Targeted:  Focus on *key* human rights concerns in the country under review when submitting information  Suggest concrete, measurable action for the state under review to address human rights concerns  Complement lobby efforts with media work, public events  Use emblematic cases to illustrate human rights violations  Sustained:  Maintain focus after the dialogue in the UPR Working Group  Lobby states to accept as many recommendations as possible before adoption of the outcome by the Council.  Lobby states to establish a plan for the implementation of the UPR outcome and to monitor progress

UPR as information source The information generated by the UPR is useful beyond the review in the Human Rights Council. The three key documents each views the human rights situation from the point of view of:  The government under review – the national report  The UN’s human rights mechanisms – the UN compilation  National and international civil society – the stakeholder summary  The outcome of review - the recommendations accepted by the state under review and any voluntary commitments by the state